CP3

I decided it would be better to apply to grad school next Fall. I registered for the GRE back in July to take the test late October. I was unsure about applying to grad schools, but I registered for the test nonetheless so I could secure a test date (they fill up FAST!) I'm a little sad about waiting, but it's a relief. I'm not waiting because of the GRE, there are many reasons why I decided to apply next Fall. But the GRE was a factor. I've only had so much time to study working a full time job. I was studying a good amount for awhile, but started to lose steam. I was getting way behind on the quant materials, which is my weak area. I took the test last year and bombed it, so I know from personal experience that it takes some time and dedication to score well on this dreadful test! GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE TAKING THE TEST THIS FALL!!!!

Kudos! I think the schools are either A: trying to see what you are doing with your degree or B: trying to see what you are doing in your field or C: both or maybe D: what are you doing in your field to help you apply to earn another degree. It could go on A-Z. My situation is that I applied last year, got flat out rejected, and now I am coming to the realization that I may need to wait until next Fall to apply. I work a grunt job that has absolutely nothing to do with my degrees, but I have to pay the bills. However, I am spending hours per week outside of my crappy job on scholarship, the job is "funding" my future, as far as I'm concerned. Answer the question! Be honest, but don't sound negative about it.

It can be elitist at times. It helps having a family with money and connections when it comes to applying to schools. I'm the first in my family to go to college, and they have no money. I barely managed to scrounge up the money last year to pay for the application fees. This is a highly competitive process, especially in music. I was an underdog last year, and sure enough, I got rejected everywhere. Life happened since last Fall, so I was not able to accomplish much in terms of making my application stronger. There is still a few months to go before deadlines, but I feel like I'm beating a dead horse right now. Probably will wait until next fall to apply again.

Great input. A bit perplexing, but great! I would love to take the Ives route, but I'm not sure if any of us have the odd, mental fortitude to write music while earning a substantial income in a completely unrelated field. I'm not an expert, but I'm pretty sure that if Ives were 40 years old right now, he would be enjoying a tenure position at Harvard doing what he damn well pleased! Good luck VIM!

Thanks Nick!

I've been working on my application materials for the last 3 months. While working a full time job, I have been writing, studying (GRE) and researching potential grad programs. I was rejected last year, but told myself I would try again. I'm starting to think that it may be in my better interest in the long run to wait until next year to apply to PhD programs. I know that I would have a really strong application by next Fall. Is there anyone out there in the same boat as me?

It is a lot of money to spend when feeling uncertain, which is why I am strongly debating waiting another year to apply. I learned last year that I was not as strong of an applicant as I originally thought. Once I gathered all of my application materials together, it became clear that I was at a disadvantage. Nonetheless, I applied. I did not get accepted, but I'm glad I applied, I learned quite a bit from the process. I have been working diligently over the last several months on my application materials, but lately I have begun to have doubts. I don't want to spend so much time, energy and money if I don't feel like I can compete with other applicants. Another year would put me in the position I need to be in financially and professionally. Time will tell. Hope everyone's applications are going well.

Mention it, but very briefly (like, half a sentence). I consumed 2 paragraphs of my SOP last year talking about this type of subject matter. Big mistake on my part. I'm pretty sure the admission people get completely swarmed with letters that have people talking about family problems and financial hardships. And I'm pretty sure they get sick and tired of reading these letters. My advice, which I am currently applying to my SOP draft--Put yourself in the shoes of the person that will read your letter. Do you want to read about how someone worked in college because their parents went bankrupt?? No. Do you want to read about how excited someone is to attend their school, why they fit, and how they will contribute. yes!!

I scored a 149 V and 139 Q last Fall, didn't get accepted anywhere. Of course, these scores are just too low to be acceptable at the grad level. I only had 3 weeks to study, so I was pretty much doomed on test day. I'm just guessing here, but I would think that scoring in the 60-70 percentile range will keep you safe. Just focus on making the rest of your application really strong. Take the practice tests, this will show you which areas you need to focus on. Don't spend all of your time trying to cover all of the bases. For example, if you are decent at algebra but dismal at geometry, don't spend 30 hours studying an entire math book. Just focus on the geometry. I made the mistake of trying to learn everything all at once last year, big mistake. Also, make sure to know your vocabulary. The reading comprehension has the answers in front of you. You just have to skim through the paragraphs to find them. However, on the vocab questions, if you don't know the words, you have very little chance of getting the questions correct. GOOD LUCK!!!

Hello, So, I applied to Phd programs last Fall, did not get accepted. Last year my three writers were the 2 main professors in my field at my alma mater and a former classmate who went on to receive his PhD. This year, one of the professors enthusiastically said he would write letters again for me, but I haven't heard back from the second professor. I have not contacted my former classmate, because I am hoping to receive a letter from another prestigious professor at my alma mater with whom I took a few classes. I feel a letter from this teacher would carry more weight than my former classmate. Long story short, I only have one guaranteed writer at the moment! I've started to panic lately, applications are due in three months. I know it's early, but I'm already on the fence about applying this year, and not hearing back from 2 professors is making it harder to decide if I should apply.

Many great thoughts. thanks! I agree with everything said above, which is why I only applied to well-funded schools last Fall. I am reconsidering applying this fall, and waiting another year to beef up my application. One of the reasons is so that I can be accepted with a funding package. I feel that if I apply now, I may get accepted, but a better candidate will get the money. I don't want to get stuck anywhere, that's for sure. Plus, I already owe too much money to have that happen!

The price of applications is brutal! Fees, GRE scores, transcripts, postage etc. It adds up real quick. I'm looking at spending around 1500 this year, possibly more. Funding is tricky at many schools. Some offer a guarantee of full funding if you are admitted. Some of them are merit based. Beware though, the schools that offer guaranteed funding usually are extremely competitive and have only several spots available. Half of the schools I applied to last year were like this, and I was rejected across the board. I've been reading a book about admissions and essays. The author makes it clear that you have NO IDEA what your funding will be at most schools until AFTER they accept you. Some schools won't even let you know what the funding package is until after the April 15 deadline.

fantastic! Good job on the GRE scores!! I'm taking the test at the end of September, took it last year and BOMBED it! Right now I am researching good ways to approach the SOP. Last year I spent too much time delving into my past, rather than putting the primary focus on my current projects. Hopefully I can score well on the GRE and produce a concise SoP. Right now I am playing the juggling game: GRE, SoP, portfolio, researching grad programs and working a full time job. I'll be glad when the applications are done!

This thread covers a few different areas. I will keep it short and open it up for discussion. Last year I was flat out rejected. Most of the schools only admitted students who would receive full funding. I already owe quite a bit in loans. I did not want to add more debt, so I stuck with schools that gave a full funding package (stipend, tuition waiver, insurance). However, these were VERY competitive programs. Should I not worry about funding while applying to schools? Do schools that do not guarantee funding admit more students each year? It seems that schools with less competitive funding packages would be willing to let in more grad students, is this correct or am I crazy?

My writing samples are music compositions, but yes, I am working on two new pieces that will be performed and recorded in October and November. These will be the primary pieces in my portfolio that I will be sending to schools this upcoming Fall.

Wow, a lot of crickets chirping in this thread..... I guess the GRE talk put it to sleep!! So...ummmm...any new thoughts out there from prospective grad school applicants???

I am fortunate to be an American english speaker. I did really well on my practice exams on the Verbal at home, but bombed it on test day. The cold environment of test day was much different from home! If I can get around 162 on Verbal and the upper 150's on Quant, I would be satisfied.

I agree with this statement. I've always been pretty bad with math. I'm afraid that I will score poorly on the Qaunt no matter how much I study. A poor score has nothing to do with my academic ability. Either way, I am going to study as much as time allows (I currently work 45-50 hours a week). Hopefully my efforts will pay off. Some people aren't the greatest test takers, no matter how much time they study. This bothers me in regards to test scores.

I took the GRE last year and didn't do well. I am retaking the exam late September. One of the biggest mistakes I made last year was spending too much time memorizing words, but not learning the structure of the words. On test day, my memory froze. I recognized the words in front of me on the computer screen, but couldn't remember the definitions. If I would have spent the time to learn the structure of the word and how it fits into different sentences, I know I would've scored much better on the Verbal section. Now I need to figure out how to study for the Quant!!!!

This is great information, thanks!! The field of music is subjective. One professor may love someone's application, while another doesn't. Portfolio, writing samples, LORs, SOPs, these are all subjective. Even your GPA is subjective. A low GPA at a high level institution is better than an average GPA at a less prestigious school. The GRE is the only non-subjective element of the application. People will tell you that the GRE is used to evaluate your capability to perform in Grad school. WRONG!! Does a geometry formula have anything to do with writing a 200 page dissertation in grad school? Maybe if you are an engineer, but keep in mind, the math on the GRE is not college level math. Doubtful that is used by any math or engineering major at the grad school level. My whole point is that the GRE is used on an imaginary scale: Good score, the scale tips one way, bad score, the other way. Its true that the GRE is low on the list for the adcomm, but don't be fooled by people that tell you the GRE doesn't matter. They WILL look at the score, and with 300 applications piled up on the table, a low score will probably make it's way to the recycling bin

I just registered for the GRE yesterday, taking it September 28. That gives me 2 and a half months to study. I took it last October--I'm embarrassed to post the scores--152 V, 139 Q, 4.0 AW. Not awful, but pretty poor. I didn't get accepted by any schools, I applied to 8, 6 of which required GRE scores. In music, your portfolio, recommendations, etc. are evaluated to see if you "fit" into the program. These are more important elements than the GRE. HOWEVER, when a school receives 120 applications and only admits 4-6, it is pretty obvious that they put some weight on the GRE scores. Makes their job easier when 30 applicants apply with poor GRE scores. I firmly believe that the GRE is simply used as a tool of measurement. This might sound like a conspiracy theory, but I'm pretty sure that there are schools that won't even consider your application if you score really low. Regardless, I will not put all of my eggs into one basket studying for the GRE, but I will make sure to score as well as possible!!

Yep, the season is just around the corner. I'm considering waiting another year to apply to PhD programs in composition. I'm sending out pieces to competitions, calls for scores, etc. I have 3 new pieces I'm composing (the equivalent, I guess, to 3 research papers for those of you history/theory peeps). I'm really excited about these new compositions, but I think it may take too long to finish these projects in time to apply this upcoming Fall. We shall see. I know NOW how to write a better SOP, and I'm not too worried about the GRE. A better score from last time should be good enough. When it comes to my major, it seems to be more about what I am writing and where I am going with it. Good luck to those of you preparing applications!!! Word of advice to new applicants----START NOW!!!!!

I feel confident that I will get accepted the second go-around. I am working on my portfolio right now. Finding time to do the rest (GRE, SOPs, CV etc) will be a challenge. I will know by the end of summer if re-applying is in the playing cards for me. For now, I will work towards the goal of trying again. Congrats to you for getting in the second time!!!! It gives us second timers hope Out of curiosity, what do you feel kept you out the first time and got you in the second time? Any tips???

Great comment! Thanks! By the way, the Einstein quote is my favorite quote of all time. I actually have a poster of him with the quote underneath his picture! Thanks for the good vibes!

So many great thoughts thus far. This process is such a crapshoot! I'm hoping that the process of applying last year will give me the knowledge I need to apply again this upcoming Fall. I am contemplating waiting until next year to apply, more time to build my credentials. We shall see! This is a tough process, it takes some THICK skin to get through it, I spent 100's of hours and plenty of money last time just to get turned down. But I am churning on!