Application Encouragement in the Time of Coronavirus

[amazingbutternutsquash]

Hi everyone. I know many of you have probably heard things about how the admissions situation is likely to be harder this upcoming cycle. State budget cuts combined with a decrease in number of undergraduates is likely to decrease the number of funded slots for many universities. Some programs have already said that they are not going admit applicants for the coming cycle -- the number of these programs is still small, but the fact that it is happening at all is worrying. At the same time, there will probably be more applicants: Historically, more people apply to graduate school in times of economic hardship. Everything may look even more uncertain for international applicants. Basically, things are crazy, so I wanted to take the time to a) point out some of the potential bright spots in this mess, and b) suggest some things that applicants can do to increase their chances. If anyone else has any insights or observations, I hope you'll chime in. 

First, I want to say that even though there will probably be more applicants, you have been preparing for this application season for years. You have done more than anyone who decides to apply to grad school spur of the moment can possibly do, at the very least because you have had more time. In short, I think that if your application was competitive before it is likely still competitive. 

The second major stumbling block I can see is the uncertain number of slots universities will have to admit graduate students. I don't think anyone can say, yet, how big of a problem this will be. I have heard from professors I work with (at my undergraduate institution, my masters institution, and now at the university where I will do my Ph.D.) that they all expect to admit fewer students. However, they also say that they are just as confused about what will happen and what all of this will mean as we are. So here are some ideas that might help. 

1. Apply to an increased number of programs, but do it thoughtfully. To be clear, I am not saying that you should sacrifice fit (although you should also absolutely tailor fit to the professor you are applying to work with). However, if it is financially possible for you, I would suggest applying to more places. Think of it as a numbers game.
2. Look for professors who have their own funding. While some funding agencies will likely re-negotiate the funding already being received in the coming months (e.g., probably NIH), a professor who has their own funding may be more free to decide to take a student than one who is dependent on the department. There are a few ways to tell if a professor has an active grant: First, look at their web page, in particular the grants portion of their CV. Second, look at where their current graduate students are receiving funding -- for instance, teaching assistants usually receive funding from the department while Research Assistants are often attached to a grant. 
3. Email professors on whether they will be taking students after school has started. Right now, they don't know what is going to happen. This year, I would wait until the end of September or October. (Also, follow all the usual guidelines for sending these emails. I used an email template I found here last year to formulate my letters and it worked out very well for me). This will also help you focus your resources on places that are more likely to admit you. 
4. Apply for funding from external sources. This one is more chancy given that the available external funding is likely to be a) more scarce than before and b) more competitive, but it is also true that if you can bring your own funding then you pose less of a problem for your department. 

Those are all my ideas for now, but if anything else comes to me/I hear ideas from anyone else I will be sure to pass them along. It is true that most of this is out of everyone's control, so whatever happens don't be too hard on yourself.  A lot of the advice I've given above applies even without a pandemic -- however, I would argue that it is even more true now than it is during more normal times. 

A final random note -- I highly recommend meta-analyses as a way of keeping up your involvement in research if your lab has closed! 

You guys are awesome. You've got this!  

[higaisha]

This was pleasant, thank you  

[SuzytheExplorer]

Thank you so much for words of encouragement! 

I'm also gonna apply for the 2021 cycle with an external funding. I hope I secure some good schools.  

 

[SheMadeItEventually]

Thank you so much for writing this. This is my first admission cycle after a gap year so everything looked so grim.