If I knew then what I know now...

[Hillary Emick]

There was a lot of stress in my life this winter because I only applied to 2 schools, and the one I thought was a sure thing fell apart when the professor who wanted me in her lab decided to leave the university. So I was mired in anxiety and self-doubt for weeks while I was waiting to hear back from the other school. It all worked out for the best in the end (I got a good offer from the school I really wanted to go to, and I think I appreciate it even more now than I would have otherwise) but I could have saved myself a lot of stress if I'd done a better job giving myself options.

My 2 cents from this experience:

Cast a pretty large net. This is an extremely competitive process and you want to give yourself options.

Cultivate relationships with more than one professor in the department in which you are applying. The more professors who want you to come to the school, the better your chances are of getting in.

[lilymasala]

1. Do not accept offers of non-matriculation, unless that's the route you want to go, are taking courses for personal interest, or just trying to boost your record without having that school as your top choice. I was burned very badly by a school in which I went non-matriculated, took graduate level classes, received very high grades and was told by professors and the DGS that I would be accepted, and was rejected without mercy. I would have saved myself time, money, and heartache had I just applied to be matriculated.

2. Cast a wide net, and look for creative ways to market yourself. After doing years of work in my field it dawned on me that I was a perfect fit for programs focusing on applied forms of study rather than traditional academic work. This application season marketing myself this way got me in.

3. GPA and GRE can only hurt you, not help you. What makes your application stand out is your SOP, LOR, and CV. I know quite a few precocious freshly graduated colleagues that figured they were in everywhere based off of their 3.8's and 1400s, which did not end great for them!

4. Persistence and patience pay off.

[Christa]

I know this has been said before but I feel the need to stress it. There really are no safety schools in grad applications. I applied to 8 school, 4 highly ranked and what I thought were out of my reach and the other 4 were my safeties (low rankings- some even below 200) and you know what? I was admitted to the top 4 and rejected from all 4 that I though were safety and it was all because of fit! So if I have to give one advice to anyone, it'd be find the places you fit in most and apply to those.

[butterfingers2010]

Things I learned in the process of applying to grad school:

-The GRE is really not as important as it's cracked up to be. It's just one part of the total package of your application, and if you have most other things going for you, it's nothing to lose sleep over, nor is it a reason to not apply to your dream school! I had an AWFUL GRE score and I got into my dream school. I shudder to think that at one point, I thought about not applying because of this.

-Not everyone you ask will want to write your LOR, and that's fine. Take your time to find someone who really believes in you and your goals and who will enthusiastically say "Yes. I would love to help you get into grad school!"

-If you're on the fence about a particular school, take time to go visit. Pay close attention to your gut feeling. If you get bad vibes or it just doesn't seem like a good fit, go home and cross it off your list.

-Writing your statement of purpose is truly an art form and should be treated as such. This means that you should start writing as early as possible and that your work should evolve over time. Think of it as a formal portrait of your professional llife and goals. Have at least three different people read it. If you don't get a "Wow!" or a "That was so interesting!" or "That's great!" you need to re-write. You should also give your SOP the "anyone" test. If anyone could write it, then it's not really about you. Don't be afraid to be yourself and take some risks in your SOP-within reason. After all, the adcomm is using the SOP to get to know you! If they don't like you, then that is probably not where you wanted to go to school, anyway.

-Never, ever give up. The application process definitely challenges your sense of self, and is one of the most stressful things you'll do, but it's' well worth it when you start getting those acceptance letters in the mail. If you don't get accepted, don't sweat it. It just wasn't meant to be.

[HappyCat13]

I've felt kind behind as I waited 3 years after I graduated from undergrad to apply to grad schools. However, I used these three years to find out for certain what I want to do and how to get there so I'm glad I did. I've learned a lot about where I want to work, how I work best, what truly motivates me (not doing something just because I'm supposed to) and what mark I want to leave on the world. I don't think I would have been sucessful had I gone to grad school after undergrad because I needed to see some of the end result of school (jobs and real life) before I could plan for it. So my advice, 1. DONT apply to school just because you don't feel like your ready for the real world yet. I've seen people go this route, and it doesnt really get them the answers they think it will. If you're in this boat, join the peace corp or teach for america. You will certainly learn something new about yourself and will probably look at the world from a new prespective (also, after a few years out its hard to go back and have these experiences). Apply to school because you really truly want to learn more and you need the extra degree for a specific job. 2. Don't underestimate what schools you'll get into. Even if you have under a 3.0. The really do take the human element into account so take the time to visit and get to know professors. 3. Make sure that you get advice from everywhere you can. Especially if you aren't going into academia. The work world puts stock into name recognition (not just harvard, but also that school down the street) more than rankings, and nobody in HR reads US news and world report (Here, they just pass around avon catalogs ) . I'm definitely not saying that Harvard is never a good decision, but it's truly overkill if you want to say... work in a local school district. 4. Student loans are serious things; much more so for grad school than Undergrad. Undergrad is more of a life experience, and its worth the debt. However, Grad school is about a job (whether academic or not). For example, if you want to be a librarian and it pays 50,000 a year, then don't take out 100,000 in debt for an MLS. I don't care if it is harvard (look at advice #3). 5. If you don't have a specific job or industry in mind, then you should probably take a couple years off to determine that first. Too much education can hurt you as much as too little. For example, you find out that you really want to be an accountant...but you have a master's in Psychology. You probably aren't getting hired. It'll be hard to convince an employer than you're more serious about this career change then you were about the years of school you just went through to do something else. 6. There's more than one way to skin a cat. Meaning there's more than one field you can study to get to the same end result (job). Do some informational interviewing and see what other people studied. You'll probably be suprised and this may lead you to find other programs you can apply to.

Hi this is quite useful advice. I also agree that people shouldn't go straight to graduate school after undergraduate simply because they think that's the supposed route. Too much education without industrial experiences does hurt one.

I am applying to graduate school this year. Before that I have been working for one year. Although it is only one year, my mindset is very different now. I do not feel very stressed out in this application round. Instead, I just did my SOP/CV slowly and diligently without rushing for anything, using only weekends' time. I also did not apply any "safety" schools because I don't feel desperately to get into a graduate school just for the sake of going for graduate education. Life is multi-dimensional and there's always a lot of options even if I fail to get in any graduate programs. So I only applied to graduate programs where I really felt like to go.

[VBD]

LORs play a pretty big impact, at least in my field. To avoid LOR-related stress during this time:

A. Organize Organize Organize! I had a google spreadsheet to share with my LORs with the school, program name, POI, website links (or whether the applyweb, or whatever site sends an email) and the deadline date. If you update your short list, email the LORs of the update. Some LORs were even able to point out that they've met x POI and y POI at q conference, etc. which can be helpful. 

 

B. Echoing that post graduation, keep in contact with the LORs you plan to ask. I felt so dirty for asking one LOR that I didn't really keep in contact. It felt like I was using him, and he noted that he had forgottten some of what I did, so I engaged in a quick phone chat refresher. 

C. When you ask you LOR about their willingness to write a postive letter ask if they want to set up a reminder system. One of my LOR was absent-minded and self-aware of that, and was happy I asked him about that. The system we set up was I would email him a reminder every Monday night until he did it. And you know what? He was the first LOR to turn one in for me. Yay. 

Echoing another section: POI:

A. Contact more than one POI at the program of interest prior to applying. It may be the case that the POI would LOVE to have you, but cannot due to funding. The second POI would save you. I had made sure that for each of my programs, I had at least 2, sometimes 3 POI's I could see myself working with in the future. And I contacted each of them. Is it a lot of work? Yes. Am I sure of my fit at each of the 8 programs I applied to? A loud and resounding YES. 

B. Don't be dismayed if a POI ignores you, perhaps you contacted them when they were at a conference. Find out if your program has a grad student coordinator or some intermediary position (someone who works with the professor) I was able to do this and the coordinator reminded the busy POI about my email, and I got an extremely positive response this time!

C. Read the POI's publications. It's a bit of a warning sign if there is a huge space between publications than usually warranted for your studies. A friend (who's already in grad school, the lucky duck!) got a POI in the biomedical sciences who has not published since 2007 but was really personable. Had she asked around she would have found that this POI had a personality problem that drove away most of his lab, including the lab tech. 

As a UG - take advantage of summer opportunities. Yes, it could be fun to vacay with your friends at W place, but that can wait, at least get some experience for one summer. 

Also take time to research what kind of job you would like, and the degree needed to get that job. I've had peers who applied to PhD programs but found out that all they needed was an MS to do her dream job. It would save you time, money, and peace of mind. 

Cheers.

[St Andrews Lynx]

Most of the wisdom I'm able to provide has already been covered in this thread. But I think it deserves re-iterating. 

 

1. The reason that I don't believe "safety schools" exist is because (a) there will still be a large number of highly-qualified applicants submitting applications to these places as their safety schools too. You'll still be competing against the same talented people who applied to the R1s at the safety schools. And also because ( the most competitive schools at the top of the league tables are the ones with the most money for taking in new students.

 

2. First time around I had initially considered visiting the grad schools I was interested in...and decided against it. I cannot understate the importance of visiting the schools you want to apply to and talking to the faculty you want to work for. This was especially true for me because I'm an international applicant - unknown and expensive. I took myself on a summer holiday in the USA and tacked on several grad school visits during that time. Most people were impressed by the degree of initiative I'd demonstrated by doing this. Through the Thank You emails and follow-up questions I did my best to keep my name imprinted in the faculty's minds. 

 

3. The best way to get a meeting with a Big Name Professor is to contact the schools' Graduate Office and ask to schedule a visit. If you tell them who you'd like to speak to then they'll do the run-around to set you up with several professors...and sometimes throw in a free lunch with current grad students!

 

4. If things screw up and you end up not getting in to your first choice...or not getting in anywhere...IT ISN'T THE END OF THE WORLD. I know from experience that rejection stings...but it also catalysed a great improvement in my application for the next year, as well as an overall improvement in myself as a scientist. A rejection might be the best thing that happens to your PhD application.

[thenycheart]

This is a great post. I'm new here. I iwill be going through this application process in December 13' myself. I am starting to just now get deeply invested in making my lists, spreadsheets, and charting all the pertinent info on the schools I am interested in. Right now I study Womens Studies, African American Studies, and Writing. I am also quite interested in Sociology as well. Right now I attend a small liberal arts private school in NY.

[SLPjmar]

- DO NOT LISTEN TO OTHER STUDENTS. While some of the people in your cohort/program may have some great insight as they complete grad school applications, you may run into a few extremely neurotic ones. They boost the anxiety level to its highest point. If you have questions and want answers that are separated from emotions, go directly to faculty or staff members. It isn't worth being stressed over something that turns out to not be true. 

[amlobo]

- DO NOT LISTEN TO OTHER STUDENTS. While some of the people in your cohort/program may have some great insight as they complete grad school applications, you may run into a few extremely neurotic ones. They boost the anxiety level to its highest point. If you have questions and want answers that are separated from emotions, go directly to faculty or staff members. It isn't worth being stressed over something that turns out to not be true. 

 

This, this, THIS.  Even people who are current grad students only know what worked for them and people they know.  You will get conflicting advice from everyone, and what worked for someone else will not work for you... because your circumstances and experiences are only your own.  Do what works for YOU.  If you are really flustered, ask one of your LOR writers or another trusted faculty member. 

[sweetpearl16]

1. I do not think this can be stressed too much: do not reread your applications once you have submitted them. You will notice all of the flaws in them that somehow you missed before pressing the submit button. All this will do is lead to weeks of agony as you wait to hear back from all the schools you are sure will now reject you.

2. Mistakes, even in a SOP, are not the end of the world. If you come off as a strong candidate with clear goals, drive, and ambition schools will not necessarily reject your application just because you made a typo or two.

3. Do not apply to somewhere you would not want to go to if you got in. If you would hesitate to go somewhere, even if it is your one acceptance, it is not worth applying to. 

4. Do not apply somewhere that does not fit your interests, even if it is a top ranked school. You may have stellar credentials, but if you do not actually fit into the department, chances are you will not get in. All you are doing by applying is wasting time and money.

5. When trying to figure out where to apply to, start by identifying what it is you want to study. Then try to find which schools have professors with similar research interests. Talk to your adviser about your interests and life goals, and see if he or she can offer up any programs to look into.

[coffeeandmilk]

Apply for external funding!! This will make you a much more competitive applicant ESPECIALLY if you are aiming for a public University. If you are an international in the humanities / social sciences having external funding will do wonders for you.

[zapster]

Starting the SOPs earlier is great for one more reason...writing my SOPs helped me in selecting and finalizing the programs I finally applied to - the process provides unbelievable clarity and helps self-assess goodness of fit with the program. I thought I had a final list of programs ready after months of research on schools, rankings, departments, POIs, publications etc. - but once I started writing my SOPs, I eliminated half my list and added as many new ones !

[Karajan]

Don't apply to programs where you have a weak to no fit with faculty!  Apply to schools where you have a genuine fit with the faculty and department philosophy.

[doobiebrothers]

Addendum:

Believe it or not, schools can tell when you're a "prestige hound", and they'll consider weeding you out. For example [hypothetically, of course- I have no familiarity with the following field]: if you want to study marine biology, it's going to raise a few eyebrows if you apply to a dozen (mostly landlocked) Ivy League universities and honorary Ivies. Dartmouth, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Northwestern, Duke, Emory, MIT, Cal Tech, UCSF, and Cornell are all excellent schools, and some may even have top-notch marine biology research going on, but most marine biologists are going to wonder *why* you're applying to grad school in the first place, if all you care about is the name brand of the school with little regard to research fit. You're in for a world of disappointment if you're getting a PhD mostly for the prestige of it. If you're primarily motivated by a desire to impress people, you're better off going to professional school. And you probably won't make it to quals.

I just want to really, really, REALLY emphasize this point. As a reader on a committee of one of these top schools, I CAN TELL IF YOU ARE A PRESTIGE HOUND. So can everyone else on the committee, and most of us make fun of you for it. Please go work at the school where you fit best, not where the logo will look  most impressive on your coffee cup. I learned this lesson the very hard way.

[pears]

apply for any and all TA/RA positions that you possibly can, even if you think you have no chance, and even if the deadlines are before when you think you'll be hearing back (as long as your POI/the department says it's okay for you to apply). i had a totally self-defeating attitude about my top choice program, and now that i'm in, i'm really regretting my decision to not at least try to apply for some things to boost my wallet and experience (though, in all likelihood, i wouldn't have been given a position). 

[OxfgrdMovement]

I just want to really, really, REALLY emphasize this point. As a reader on a committee of one of these top schools, I CAN TELL IF YOU ARE A PRESTIGE HOUND. So can everyone else on the committee, and most of us make fun of you for it. Please go work at the school where you fit best, not where the logo will look  most impressive on your coffee cup. I learned this lesson the very hard way.

 

I guess this is more the case if you're applying to Dartmouth for...I don't know, Haitian Studies, when its Haitian studies program is like 97th in the country and you live nowhere near Dartmouth. 

[Tabes]

Millionthing the "no such thing as a safety school" sentiment.  My life just got flip-turned upside down in the most amazing way!

[runningincircles]

To foreign students, or students applying from out of state to UC schools, beware that they favor domestic state students because of funding. If you're an international, you can have the best grades in the world, and you'll be rejected - obviously depends on the program of course - but for social science majors, being a foreigner is a big problem....or being educated abroad is a big issue. Get some courses in the U.S. before you apply anywhere, that way they can rate you on their GPA scale. Also, it might be useful to get a transcript evaluation from a reputable company - they professionally evaluate your foreign credentials and give you an equivalent GPA. I wish I had submitted that with my applications, if I had, I feel I would have had a better chance of getting in.

[dat_nerd]

Don't ask strangers in the internet whether they think you'll get into the "top X" schools in your field. I get it, the application process is filled with anxiety, and we all want to know whether we have a reasonable chance of getting accepted. However, the people who can best answer that question are your academic advisors and professors, the people who know your research ability and your work ethic. They know you much better than the people on a discussion board, and truly want to help you succeed.

[annieca]

It's okay to be unfunded your first year. Choose the best school for you and ultimately, it will pay off.

Also, don't be offended if POIs don't respond. Professors are some of the busiest people on the planet and often these things are not even close to being on the top of their lists.

[Duna]

It's okay to be unfunded your first year. Choose the best school for you and ultimately, it will pay off.

Also, don't be offended if POIs don't respond. Professors are some of the busiest people on the planet and often these things are not even close to being on the top of their lists.

 

I am honestly not too sure about both of them. Yes, for some people it might be okay to take on another loan (or their first one) and everything will play out but for others it might not be their first loan and the pressure of having to think about money all the time can ruin your mood and, consequently, your ability to work a grad school schedule...

 

You should not be offended if POIs don't respond. However, if you feel that good advisement and a close relationship with faculty is a big point for you for feeling appreciated, supported, having fun, whatever, then do take such criteria into account (do not change your mind about applying to a school because one professor did not respond to one email but if you feel that this is a pattern and you don't like it, don't apply). 

 

As a PhD student, you are important for your program, your whole school and your advisor / committee. Do not undersell yourself... If you are successful, you are not only accumulating reputation for your school, program and faculty, you'll probably also end up somewhere in a tenure-track position with grants, you will review your professors, you will be part of their scientific community. This is important shit! 

[fuzzylogician]

It's okay to be unfunded your first year. Choose the best school for you and ultimately, it will pay off.

 

I'd be very careful with this advice. You DON'T know that it will work out and be worth it. You could finish your first year, still be unfunded, be unable to continue any further, AND be deep in debt because of the one year of school. If you have an unfunded offer, it's important to find out how often students get funded in their second year vs. how many remain unfunded or leave. For a school with insufficient money to fund all its students, it might make more sense to use the money to attract new students than fund students who are already paying out of pocket. The students who pay out of pocket contribute to the university's overall finances, while funded ones obviously do not. For me, the uncertainty and possible financial consequences would not be worth it -- I would assume there is a significant chance that I would not be funded later, and in my field, I don't think it's worth it to get into debt for a graduate degree. 

[Loric]

For non-traditional students:

 

Get your crap straight with any undergrad or former masters programs in regards to transcripts, etc... before putting in any kind of application with your intended programs. I had no idea my transcript was janky or that I'd be calling random department and having to send them proof I didn't steal their keys to get my transcript released.

 

That has royally screwed up my intended timeline ("We didn't get your fax." "We didn't get your certified mail we signed for." "Oh, our secretary is out with the flu.. for a month." "No one has the password for that system, they're all in Egypt counting sand, try calling when they get back - when? We don't know!" "What, you think anyone here actually does work?!?!")

[Crucial BBQ]

Addendum:

Believe it or not, schools can tell when you're a "prestige hound", and they'll consider weeding you out. For example [hypothetically, of course- I have no familiarity with the following field]: if you want to study marine biology, it's going to raise a few eyebrows if you apply to a dozen (mostly landlocked) Ivy League universities and honorary Ivies. Dartmouth, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Northwestern, Duke, Emory, MIT, Cal Tech, UCSF, and Cornell are all excellent schools, and some may even have top-notch marine biology research going on, but most marine biologists are going to wonder *why* you're applying to grad school in the first place, if all you care about is the name brand of the school with little regard to research fit. You're in for a world of disappointment if you're getting a PhD mostly for the prestige of it. If you're primarily motivated by a desire to impress people, you're better off going to professional school. And you probably won't make it to quals.

As the "resident" marine biologist here...I mostly agree with what you are saying. However, not all schools/programs ask where else you are applying. I am applying to one "top" program/school, and one Ivy.  But neither for the prestige.  Both of these schools utilize the same off-campus research institute to house their labs related to my interests of study, have researchers employed by this institute not related to either school who teach courses, and a few others. Essentially, I am applying to this institute, and not the specific programs/schools.  I don't even think the Ivy is a top-ranked program.  In any case, I made it clear in my SOPs I am interested in the program, not the name of the school.  

 

I have chose not to apply to top schools/programs, outside of the above, simply because I do not want to live where these programs are housed. However, I am looking at one school (that I will visit this Friday, hopefully) that has nothing to do with marine biology...and is rather landlocked...and kind of podunk. Many, well, a few at least, current marine biologists earned degrees in statistics, math, zoology, animal behavior/physiology, botany, general biology, biostats, bioinformatics, biochem, chemistry, biological hydrology, environmental science, public policy,  and so on.  As such, it could make sense to apply to many "landlocked" schools, if not for the previous examples of study, but also for lumnology. 

 

I agree about research fit.  Much of the research for this field falls into the "bucket science" category, and can be rather boring and tedious.  I definitely see the attraction with applying to the best programs or the ones with the most research dollars as they tend to have the "coolest" equipment/technology and world-class R/Vs (research vessels) instead of make-shift lobster boats that reek of decaying herring and buckets. 

Edited November 6, 2013 by Crucial BBQ