GardeningGrad

terrible breath

Funny money

I think it's perfectly reasonable to ask. The recommenders only have to make minor adjustments to their LOR for you for each school. Be sure to make it REALLY easy for them - include your up-to-date CV in PDF format, the school's name and program, a few sentences about why you would be a great fit for the specific program, and any pertinent links to the program website. Be up front about the deadlines for the LOR (so if someone can't write the LOR, they'll let you know) and don't hesitate to send reminders. Bon chance!

Saw this and thought of this forum conversations: until June 18th, Staples is offering 100 free business cards... http://www.staples.com/sbd/cre/marketing/coupons/13166_cpc_offer/offer.html happy saving money!

I agree with NeuroPsych... June is too early for a 2012 applicant to contact professors. I visited my top school in August 2010 - and that was far too early for professors to even think about 2011 applicants. When I communicated in May - before the end of the school year/summer, but with the application deadline in focus - I got better responses. I'd suggest searching on the forums for other conversations happening about how to communicate with professors.

family reunion

I'm not in the field of speech pathology, but...yikes. You should choose the recommendations from the people who know you best, believe in your potential, are qualified in your field, and who are great writers. Does your professor fit these categories? Then ask him. I've never heard of abilities/disabilities of recommenders even being a factor. Your friend may be way off-base. Any grad school that 'doesn't take letters from deaf professors seriously' isn't a school I would want to attend!

My two cents: Objective/Research Interests (<100 word description) Education (including major, GPA, graduation honors, and the title of my honors thesis) Research and publications (including your honors projects) Teaching Experience (including undergrad TA position, volunteer tutoring, and related self employment) Academic Awards and Honors (things like Dean's List, merit scholarships, national awards) A section for volunteer service/related experiences (include school newspaper) Other Publishing Experience (I wrote and edited for the school newspaper for two years) and Languages (seperated by modern and ancient) If applicable, add a section for professor associations you're involved in. good luck!

Yep, I included a PDFed version of my CV, and highlighted my interests and experiences, drawing parallels with the professor's research interests. I also included a direct question - would you be interested in possibly serving as my faculty advisor? or something like that.

You can also use Office business card templates (like these - http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/CT010104309.aspx - or google search) with some nice cardstock and a paper cutter... almost completely free!

Nope - you can take nothing into the test room. That means no pencils, paper, nothing in pockets, chapstick, water... They'll provide scratch paper and pencils. You must relinquish the paper and the pencils when you leave the room. Good luck!

Check with the grad administrator for your program to see what kinds of students get accepted directly as PhD candidates. I looked into a similar type of program and found that I was under-qualified and unprepared for straight-to-PhD. Also, ask if you apply as PhD and get denied, if they'll still consider the same application for the Masters program. Make it clear that you want to get your PhD at some point (more funding available).

Hey - this is GREAT. It's a long, hard struggle to get noticed for grad school. Professors are very busy people who get hundreds of inquiries from potential students every year - they ARE being polite to you, but they seem to be genuinely interested in you as well. Keep communicating professionally and politely with them and be sure to reference any recommendations (i.e. "Dr. Someone recommended that I contact you, pointing out many similarities our research interests."). Also, ask specific questions - people like to share what they know and they love seeing that you've done your research on the program and have interesting questions about them. You could contact the administrators of the programs and ask for guidance - "I applied last year and I wish to strengthen my application so I can attend your excellent program...". These administrators may also be able to introduce you to professors - and they will know who's on the admissions committee. By the way... even if a prof isn't on the admissions committee, if they like you and you convince them you'd be a great asset to their program, they will make 'noise' on your behalf. Finally - keep records of who you've talked to from each school. Save yourself the embarrassment of accidentally sending the same professor an introductory e-mail twice.

psychological assessment

Yeaaaah.... I can join your cohort in that excitement! Nothing like a fresh school year in the crisp, bright fall... and being surrounded by a few dozen fellow nerds who, like me, chose to go to this level of schooling and are also excited to start! Reading ahead has helped me note what in my field excites me and what is a bore. Helpful - and encouraging - to know there is something to look forward to learning, even in theory and stats classes!

I agree with above responses. If you send out feelings (i.e. "I'll be applying to grad school come December. You came to mind as an excellent writer for a letter of recommendation due to your experiences with my scholarship in ____ class/research. Would you be willing to write a letter of recommendation on my behalf for my graduate applications? I would be happy to provide you with my CV and brief Statement of Purpose for your reference." If yes, give them the deadline for the LOR and inform them when to look for further information. Some applications require LOR writers to submit directly to the application website... meaning you can only ask the LOR writer to write once you've formally begun the application process.

If I was a POI and someone who admired me wanted to read my article... I'd be more than happy to provide it to them. Just make sure you have tried opening the article a few different ways (browsers, on a different computer, etc), and then email her a brief note explaining that you are interested in reading this article but haven't been able to access it.

Yes, NSF is wicked competitive... but your future grad school may have funding (TA/RA, internal fellowships which aren't too shabby, small grants, etc.), so while it won't hurt to start so early, it'd be wise to put your eggs in more than one basket. Other scholarships - if you think learning some language will be good for your research, look into the Boren Fellowship and the FLAS fellowships. Also research any university-specific fellowships that may be under the radar and which may have random requirements.

Rather than worrying about writing skills or reading how-to books on lit reviews, read, read, and read some more. It would be appropriate to ask advisors, friends in your discipline, or forum members (or heck, just google search it) for suggestions of pertinent reading in your discipline. Then, look for sample lit reviews and think about how they're structured; admire a nice journal article and decide why you like it; read (cough - skim) a PhD dissertation (often universities or professors 'publish' the dissertations online or in their libraries) and decide how you'd make it better. I found that discovering 'intellectual crushes' through reading made me a much better writer as I modeled - consciously or unconsciously - my work according to my pleasant experience reading theirs.

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Yes, I think your uni will get the transcript by Monday or Tuesday next week... calling your undergrad to make sure that it's sent is a smart move. Once it's in the mail, though, not much you can do!

I have mixed feelings about reading ahead... on one hand - work hard and play hard! and if this summer is the last of play for some time, goodness knows I won't be reading. However, grad school is for me - my education, my growth, my adventure. Being prepared and thus taking away even one percent of the imposter syndrome and the inevitable feeling of "ahh, I don't know what's going on!" is worth it for me. Once upon a time I worked in Europe, and people told me I should study French before going. But I was swamped with other preparation. Once in France, I was so overwhelmed in the new environment and job that all my existing language skills went out the window for a few months. I admit I'm approaching grad school with that experience in mind... I'm not pre-reading texts, but I bought a second-hand basic text for my discipline and I'm going to be setting aside 'academic-level blog writing evenings' each week to get my mind in the game.

I agree - submit what you think is best. Maybe ask your undergrad advisor or professors which paper they thought was exceptional. I submitted my undergrad thesis - after reviewing it and editing it again.

I've sent a lot of personal mail from the East Coast to the UK - it's taken less than 5 days. A few times, my letter got to the recipient in two days! Though USPS is notoriously unpredictable, it seems to take international mail seriously. If anyone at your program asks, you can say something like, "you can expect the transcript to arrive by the end of this week, or, at the latest, the beginning of next. Is there anything else I can do to improve my application package?"

I was just wondering the same thing! I am drooling over possible classes to take, and I'm having flashbacks to freshman year of college... classes filling up, being on the bottom of the totem pole, etc. It will be delightful to have guidance and a bit of flexibility for when I register for classes!