Golden Rules - What I've learned through the application process

[Ohm]

It's been a hell of a journey but finally I've completed all the applications and am now just waiting for the application outcomes (fingers crossed!) 

 

Meanwhile, I'd like to share what I learned in the entire process (and probably answers to most of the questions asked in this forum). I know this might be repetitive with previous posts, but I still want to do it for some reason!  

 

1. Applying is NOT easy work. It requires extensive research on the universities, professors, their areas of interest, your possible areas of study, etc. If you do it fast, you're doing it wrong. The more you research, the more options you find
2. Your chances of getting into the university of your interest is purely based on your match with what the program has to offer. You may have GREAT stats, a 4 GPA, 360 (or 1600) GRE, 120 TOEFL, 20 top journal publications/conference submissions, but you still will not be selected if your area of work/interest is not a major research area in the university, be it MIT or Harvard or Cambridge or any university for that matter.
3. The safety rule is to apply to 6-8 universities of which (say you're applying for 7) 4 should be in your grade, 2 above your grade and 1 below your grade (commonly called the 'safety' school). An example of profile evaluation can be found here.
4. Prepare your recommendation letters WELL ahead of the application process. Discuss with possible referees and decide who will recommend you for which program. Give them their resources and to avoid all last-minute non-submissions, running around, reminding and forcing, here's a useful tip: Get signed hard copies of recommendations in a sealed envelope from the referee beforehand. This can be done as much in advance as you need. This will help in case the referee retires, changes his mind, gets too busy, or in some unlucky cases, dies Most of the schools accept paper recommendations if directly mailed to them. Also, regarding the people who recommend you, it is not necessary that they be top professors, department heads, etc. Not everyone can get to work with the top people, mad if you have great recommendations from ordinary professors, it still will work just fine. DO NOT FORCE/SIT ON PEOPLE'S HEADS.
5. Work extensively on your SOP. Do not keep any stories or beating around the bush. Make it as direct as possible. If the question is 'What made you passionate about your area of interest' do NOT start a story from your childhood describing how you grew up playing with construction blocks, etc. etc. Give them the life-changing even if any. Just be direct and honest. It's not a creative writing competition.Have many people proof-read it before you finalize it yourself. Also, never ever read another person's or sample personal statement(s) before you have finalized yours. Their style will stick to you and you will become repetitive.
6. Contacting possible guides in the university of interest will be of good help. Ask them for open positions in their labs/under their guidance. Make a strong impression in them in your email. Keep in touch with them.
7. Compile all your documents and keep scanned digital copies of all in a separate folder in your computer. This will come to be highly useful when you are uploading them to the websites.
8. Go through the application forms slowly and check every detail before submitting and payment. Check the email ids of the referees and verify if the correct, latest versions of the documents have been uploaded
9. After you submit the form, BE PATIENT. Do NOT write to/call departments constantly asking for updates on decisions as it will irritate them and might even result in rejection of the application.
10. Keep your referees updated regarding the decisions. 
11. Not everyone can get admitted everywhere. It's also heavily dependent on luck. So do not be upset when you get turned down by some schools despite you doing everything properly.
12. Talk to a lot of people who've applied before. Clear all your doubts and get to know the exact process before you start. It will help in avoiding small mistakes.
13. Be clear on what you want. If you want to get into a school only if they offer funding, then there is no point in keeping the offer without funding. You do not want to spend and regret.

In the end, if nothing works out for you, take it as tough luck and proceed with life. Don't beat yourself thinking you're not worth it, cause at the end of the day, there's no one 'not worth it'

[Seeking]

Thanks for this list, which is very helpful indeed.

 

I would like to add a few to the above - 

 

The "Grade" in the link given above largely applies to the STEM disciplines and perhaps to the MS programs. It will differ largely for PhD programs and for Humanities and Social Sciences disciplines.

 

Before applying, candidates should search for their preferred Programs' rankings on US News, Times Higher Education Rankings and QS Rankings, NRC rankings etc to name a few.

 

Besides, they should write to the Graduate co-ordinators of each program and ask about the success rate of the alumni of these programs in the job market. They should also find out how many candidates are typically admitted in a year and out of these, how many are International candidates.

 

The GRE scores are not so very important in the admission process, unless funding is not automatically linked to admission. Candidates with lower GRE scores can get admitted over those with higher GRE scores if their overall application package is stronger.

 

Especially in the Humanities programs, Quant scores don't have much importance in the admission process.

 

Before applying, the candidates should find out from the Departments what kind of role the GRE scores play in the selection process and if there is data available on the range of the GRE scores of the candidates admitted to the Department in previous years.

 

Often, all the above information is given in the university website. So, the candidates should spend time exploring the websites of the various programs to see what information is given and about what more they have to write to the Department to find out.

 

Those who want to apply for funding, should explore if the University website clearly mentions funding - for domestic as well as for International candidates. If it's not mentioned clearly, they should write to the Department and find out the possible sources of funding. They should clearly mention their citizenship and residency status while asking for this information.

 

Like the SOP, check and proof-read your writing sample several times and make sure it's related to the field you are applying to and it's the best writing sample you have in that field. SOP and writing sample play a vital role in the selection process.

 

A Majority of the American universities expect that you should have already taken Undergraduate or Graduate level courses in the discipline you are applying for - this is true of even many top-ranking universities.

 

There are some that don't make this a requirement and they usually say so in their websites of the relevant programs. If the university doesn't clearly mention that prior training in this field is not necessary, it usually means that you should have taken coursework worth of at least 12 credits (15-18 credits in some cases) in the discipline in which you are applying. This translates to approximately 4-6 courses.

 

So, make sure you have taken enough courses in the relevant discipline before you apply for a Graduate Program in the US.

 

MBA program may be an exception to this, where many STEM candidates are admitted without a prior training in financial fields. However, most MBA programs are not funded.

 

In your SOP, you should write very clearly why this program is relevant to your future career goals. Relate the professors' works and the courses being taught there to how you want to use this training to your future goals.

 

And before convincing the admissions Committees, convince yourself that this program is really relevant for your career goals. Don't get admitted into a program just for the sake of getting admitted.

 

Especially for Indian candidates -

 

It's not a good idea to get admitted into a low-ranked non-funded program by paying a lot of money to the university and/or to your admission counselor in India.

 

Greater chances are that your degree from these low-ranked non-funded programs are not going to be valuable in the job market when you graduate.

 

A graduate from a higher-ranked school will most likely always top you in the job market.

 

So, it's really a waste of time, money and energy to get into such programs.

 

Please check the ranking, success rate of the alumni and the reputation of the universities on the list that your admission counselor in India places before you when you go to them, especially if the universities are not very well known and especially if the payment of a lot of money is involved.

 

There is every possibility that you are just being exploited for your money and being sent to a low-ranked non-funded program, from where your degree will not be regarded as valuable in the job market when you graduate.

 

Don't fall for such admissions counselors in India, even if they are well-known.

 

Know this that many Indian candidates have fallen into this trap before you and they have suffered later after completing their US degree.

 

If you need any help and advice regarding this, you are welcome to PM me.

Edited January 31, 2013 by Seeking

[Ohm]

That was an awesome addition

[Seeking]

Thanks!

[t1racyjacks]

is there a list for humanities?

[Seeking]

Every discipline has its own list. This list varies by the organization that prepares the list and it changes every year even when prepared by the same organization. This is why several lists should be compared to get a fair idea of where a Program stands and its alumni's success rate after graduation should be inquired into.

 

Here is the NRC ranking of English language and literature programs - 

 

http://chronicle.com/article/NRC-Rankings-Overview-English/124728/

 

This should be compared with the ranking lists mentioned above and where their graduates from recent years are today should be found out before applying to these programs.

Edited January 31, 2013 by Seeking

[t1racyjacks]

ah, thanks. although I have already applied -- but in case I need to apply again sigh

[Seeking]

Well, hope not!

 

Good luck for this round!

Edited January 31, 2013 by Seeking

[t1racyjacks]

thanks. english tends to inform late in general so I am just stewing

[Seeking]

Some schools have notified. 

 

So, you are soon to hear something now.

[Ohm]

thanks. english tends to inform late in general so I am just stewing

 

Lot of the English PhD notifications have started....you should hear soon

 

And yeah, I get the wait! It's REALLY terrible and only this knowledge is keeping me going for so long....masters outcomes are not expected for a REALLY long time....sometime in March and April or Feb end at the earliest for some univs.

[Ohm]

is there a list for humanities?

 

I suggest Times rankings....this one

[Academe]

I feel one should take all these lists - NRC, US News, Times, QS and compare them for one's discipline.

 

But more than that, ask the department what their graduates from last 3 years are doing now. That's a much better index of "Ranking."

 

It's right that Indian candidates shouldn't pay a heavy sum to get into a low-ranked non-funded programme just because it's in the US. This way, only the Universities and the education counselors make money at the candidate's expense. These low-ranked degrees are not worth much in the job market. Many candidates have been misled by the education counselors this way.

 

It's a much better idea to get a Master's from a top-ranking Indian institution and then come to the US for a funded PhD at a well-ranked university. Top-ranking Masters from India offer much better prospects for well-respected funded PhD admissions in the US than low-ranked US Masters that don't lead the candidate anywhere, either in job or in higher research.

[margarets]

I understand the intent here, but isn't it premature to give advice when you are still waiting for the decisions?

[Ohm]

I understand the intent here, but isn't it premature to give advice when you are still waiting for the decisions?

This is the second time I'm doing it

[RafAkd]

There are definitely a few things that I would had done different if I knew at the moment, like applying just for six universities a how I picked the ones I applied for. I just hope I won't have to make this whole process again.

[Ohm]

There are definitely a few things that I would had done different if I knew at the moment, like applying just for six universities a how I picked the ones I applied for. I just hope I won't have to make this whole process again.

Hope not! It's gruelling...and everyone makes mistakes. You just have to hope that they're not bigger than your competition's

[RafAkd]

I really hope they aren't Ohm!!!

 

Now I read my SOP and I see flaws all over the place... It can't be healthy to keep going through one's application files

[Ohm]

I really hope they aren't Ohm!!!   Now I read my SOP and I see flaws all over the place... It can't be healthy to keep going through one's application files

Yeah, I did the same. While submitting the first time, I did in such a hurry I never realized there was now flow to it. The second time was way better, yet still could be improved. I hope there's not going to be third!

[Ohm]

Adding to the above....

 

• If you're applying for a PhD program, make sure you have a good thesis written and ready. Have it proof-read by your current guide - this helps mitigate any possibilities of the guide feeling that the idea has been stolen from his projects. Frame it to be crisp and short, a maximum of 2 pages
• Check your CV/Resume to make sure that you've got down all the details. All internships and company training should be mentioned separately and a brief of what you did should also be provided. All project work should be mentioned in Chronological order. 
• When mentioning publications in the resume, arrange them in order of weight (first author papers/higher impact factor papers in the beginning and so on). Provide links where the reader can download the papers from, or in case they need to be purchased, attach a copy of the paper and send.
• Do not write stories about your personal traits in your resume. The maximum you can do is a SWOT analysis and leave it at that. A very pictorial resume also stands out, so try including charts/diagrams
• Research on the department and your POI before writing your SOP or contacting the prof directly. You need to show that you know their work, for which you'll have to go through the papers published by that lab/by the professor concerned.
• Check if the university needs you to send in hard copies of the application, and any supporting documents. Make sure you send them in before the deadline, cause some universities have the same deadline for online submission and the hard copies t reach them (maybe 5 days gap). Don't go for last-minute submission of the apps.

More additions welcome.

[Ohm]

When accepted, think carefully before taking the offer. If you get 2 offers - one from a top school without funding and one from a mediocre school with full funding, always take the one with funding (unless of course if you can afford it)

[ion_exchanger]

1. Applying is NOT easy work. It requires extensive research on the universities, professors, their areas of interest, your possible areas of study, etc. If you do it fast, you're doing it wrong. The more you research, the more options you find.

5. Work extensively on your SOP. Do not keep any stories or beating around the bush. Make it as direct as possible. If the question is 'What made you passionate about your area of interest' do NOT start a story from your childhood describing how you grew up playing with construction blocks, etc. etc. Give them the life-changing even if any. Just be direct and honest. It's not a creative writing competition.Have many people proof-read it before you finalize it yourself. Also, never ever read another person's or sample personal statement(s) before you have finalized yours. Their style will stick to you and you will become repetitive.

 

Agreed 100% I spent about a month researching schools and deciding where to apply, only to become addicted to this site and see choices that I wish I would have had the chance to consider. Oh well.

 

Also, I look back at my SOP and cringe now. I wish more than anything that I had taken more time to work on it. Start early. What helps me is to write a full draft, and not look at it for a long time. You'll come back to it with a fresher eye and can edit accordingly. The longer you have to edit it, the better the statement.

[Ohm]

Agreed 100% I spent about a month researching schools and deciding where to apply, only to become addicted to this site and see choices that I wish I would have had the chance to consider. Oh well.

 

Also, I look back at my SOP and cringe now. I wish more than anything that I had taken more time to work on it. Start early. What helps me is to write a full draft, and not look at it for a long time. You'll come back to it with a fresher eye and can edit accordingly. The longer you have to edit it, the better the statement.

 

Seriously! Only after a while of writing your SOP and not looking at it do you realize how stupid/inaccurate it was! And yeah, if you have a lot of time, you can let it sit out for a while before realizing that it's gone bad

[Ohm]

Post-acceptance tips: 

 

• CELEBRATE that you're accepted!
• Make sure you ask for the maximum time period to get back on your offer - the more time you have, the more opportunities you may get from your other applications (if any)
• It is always wise to choose the fully/partially funded options over the top-end non-funded options - you're taking less of a risk in spending your dollars
• Stay in touch with your POIs throughout this process...just to make sure that they know you're interested!

[Ohm]

And the results are out!