Update on higher ed application process

[tdix09]

Hi guys - it's been a minute. Where are we all with applying, getting recs, GRE, etc?

 

Me: I've been giving more thought to location. Yes, I want to leave NYC but realizing I could be happy staying in the Northeast. My school list is somewhat the same:

• I scrapped Michigan. Didn't feel any pull to it aside from name/reputation.
• Penn is still tops - my personal statement practically screams "take me pleeeeeeease!"
• Michigan State still on the list, though it feels further and further away. I like the state school feel but worry about feeling too old to be there
• I wish I felt a connection to schools in the DC/DMV area but nada (looked at GW for a minute, quickly scrapped it. Looked at Maryland - I see they recently restructured their HE program and has a really small cohort). Perhaps I will look at summer assistantships in that area as I would really love to live there.
• Ohio State is on my list but their application seems very strenuous, plus... it's Columbus. Just as unfathomable as Lansing. They DO seem aligned with my interests though. 
• Added Rutgers to my list, for closeness (family is on east coast) and generally good reviews from peers and former boss who works in the field. Still would love to get a NY school on my list for the sake of in-state tuition.

 

Recs: Still havent gotten a hold of my UG advisor, and I'm letting it go. But, got 2 recommenders in the works (current and former managers) and have 2 more I want to get on top of, one of which works in higher ed.

 

Lastly, still havent taken GRE. I've dropped the ball hard. Can't bring myself to give Kaplan my money for prep. I think I could do pretty average without prep (I've studied on my own, not heavily, but enough to be familiar with what i'm getting into). I need to do it soon as my closest deadline is 12/1 (OSU) and 12/15 (Rutgers).

 

Your turn!

[iphi]

Just so you know, Columbus is not a bad town. It was named one of the most intelligent cities in the world, and is certainly several steps up from Lansing! I even prefer it to Philadelphia (I've lived in both cities) but that's just me. Here is a link to an article you should read.

Edited October 26, 2013 by iphi

[jsparks63]

Ohio State was one of the schools I was considering but I had to scrape it due to my budget. I am applying to University of Maryland, Indiana-Bloomington, Rutgers, and Syracuse. I have heard great things about Penn's program but I am looking more for two year programs so that I could get as much experience as possible. I am interested in the practicum experiences that I can get at each school as well as funding!

 

I just took my GRE last week and got a 156V/ 153M and not sure on my writing score. Do these scores with a 3.0 GPA from an Ivy sound competitive? And @tdix09, Rutgers allows you to self report your scores if they don't get in in time and I think Ohio State gives you two weeks after the deadline to turn in everything. Check though on that.

 

What other programs are people applying to?

[JBums1028]

For the record MSU is in East Lansing, which is a smaller suburb outside of Lansing. It's just like any other college town in America. If you go there, you most likely won't ever need to go into downtown Lansing unless you choose to. Just felt the need to clarify that. Also I'm not sure how old you are @tdix09, but if you're young to mid twenties you'll fit right in. I wouldn't worry about feeling "too old."

 

Anyway, here's my update:

- UCONN application is just about ready to go. Just have to edit my personal statements and resume, PDF them, then hit submit!

- I'm just about done with my MSU personal statement. Once that's done I'm pretty much set to go there as well.

- I will probably push my Michigan ap to the end, because I'm contemplating scraping it for similar reasons mentioned above.

- Will also apply to University of Rochester in NY. I know it's not a big name, but I loved their curriculum!

- I will add one more Michigan school as a back up, I'm bouncing back and forth between Eastern Michigan and Grand Valley State University.

 

I'm relieved to see that others are still working on getting everything together. I was starting to feel like I was behind...

[jsparks63]

I have a question for everyone: Are you using a base personal statement for each school and just tweaking it; or are you creating a new statement for each school?

[oster14]

I am creating a new statement for each program since each program asks for specific information.  I am applying to PhD programs so I also have to mention which faculty I would like to work with.

[lilgreycells]

Not a current applicant, but when I applied for my MEd and my PhD I used the same base statement and then just tweaked where needed. Much more tweaking necessary for the PhD statement since I needed to talk about how my research agenda fit that specific institution as well as which faculty members I wanted to work with.

[tdix09]

@jsparks63: I considered using a base statement and tweaking, but my statement is one big "PENN PLEASE PICK ME" advertisement. I need to buckle down on the other schools.

 

@jbums: I'm a city girl through and through - all the midwest is one big town to us who haven't lived elsewhere. The only experience I have with a "college town" is visiting Amherst College the past couple summers. Really pretty and quaint, but not sure if two years of it is for me. Also, I just looked up SUNY Binghamton - totally off the radar but instantly became infatuated with their faculty and curriculum, and it's my best bet in attending school for free as it's in-state and a public school.

 

Lastly, I'm late 20s, so I feel like I'll be on the high end of the age spectrum. :/

[JBums1028]

I have a question for everyone: Are you using a base personal statement for each school and just tweaking it; or are you creating a new statement for each school?

 

Well I wrote a totally separate one for UConn since it had a strict word limit. For the others though the questions they ask are all similar enough that I'll probably just be able to tweak it a litte and call it good.

 

I get why the personal statements are important, but writing them has been so annoying... I almost really appreciated UConn's 250 word limit since it forces you to be very blunt and to the point about why you're interested in attending.

[JBums1028]

Lastly, still havent taken GRE. I've dropped the ball hard. Can't bring myself to give Kaplan my money for prep. I think I could do pretty average without prep (I've studied on my own, not heavily, but enough to be familiar with what i'm getting into). I need to do it soon as my closest deadline is 12/1 (OSU) and 12/15 (Rutgers).

 

Based on your deadlines, I'd honestly just take it with little to no prep. Spending money on a study program with a little over a month to prepare IMO is not worth the cost. The test itself isn't bad, it's mostly the length of time it takes that makes it a nusiance. I'd recommend doing a free practice test one afternoon (Kaplan offers them every once in a while, check on their website).

[oster14]

I was wondering if other PhD applicants have reached out to faculty in the programs. What did you include in your email and did you receive a response?

[tdix09]

Based on your deadlines, I'd honestly just take it with little to no prep. Spending money on a study program with a little over a month to prepare IMO is not worth the cost. The test itself isn't bad, it's mostly the length of time it takes that makes it a nusiance. I'd recommend doing a free practice test one afternoon (Kaplan offers them every once in a while, check on their website).

 

Thanks for that reassurance! I plan to take it next Saturday. I've taken practice exams before - maybe i'll take one more before then.

[scfitz5]

Lastly, still havent taken GRE. I've dropped the ball hard. Can't bring myself to give Kaplan my money for prep. I think I could do pretty average without prep (I've studied on my own, not heavily, but enough to be familiar with what i'm getting into). I need to do it soon as my closest deadline is 12/1 (OSU) and 12/15 (Rutgers).

 

I took the GRE with little prep (took two practice tests) and I think I did alright. 162V, 155Q and 4.5 AW

I'm just nervous as I work on my applications about my gpa (2.99) but still hoping to return to Michigan as my top pick.

[tdix09]

Took GRE: 153V, 153Q, waiting on AW. I'm guessing 4.5+ as I'm a decent writer. Did meh on the issue but nailed the argument.

 

As for my scores, theyre reflective of my study habits and practice exams (I took one around this time last year, got the same score). I also had a super stressful week (too late to reschedule) and the high-security GRE environment (if you've taken it, you know) threw me a bit. In any case, 2 of my 3 programs require GREs and I'm under both of their average scores.

 

Should I take it over? I'm definitely going to pay for Kaplan if I do, but one of my school's deadlines is 12/15. If I retake, do I withhold my current scores or go on and submit what I have now?

[juniperoo22]

When I took the GRE, I prepped for about a week beforehand and just went with my gut on answers. Bombed the Quant section (like, seriously, it was a disaster), but did really well with the Verbal and Writing (former Humanities major and Latin nerd, so no surprise there). I decided not to re-take it because I knew there was no way I could bring up the Quant enough for it to really matter.

 

If you feel really confident that with some studying, you could bring up your scores by a few points, then by all means, re-take it. You may feel better a second time around now that you know what you're in for. As for me, once was more than enough, so I took my scores and ran!

[tdix09]

Took GRE: 153V, 153Q, waiting on AW. I'm guessing 4.5+ as I'm a decent writer. Did meh on the issue but nailed the argument.

 

As for my scores, theyre reflective of my study habits and practice exams (I took one around this time last year, got the same score). I also had a super stressful week (too late to reschedule) and the high-security GRE environment (if you've taken it, you know) threw me a bit. In any case, 2 of my 3 programs require GREs and I'm under both of their average scores.

 

Should I take it over? I'm definitely going to pay for Kaplan if I do, but one of my school's deadlines is 12/15. If I retake, do I withhold my current scores or go on and submit what I have now?

 

OK: 4 on the writing. Acceptable I suppose. I've decided not to retake. I will just deal.

 

But, I DO think I shouldve gone with my gut on applying to programs where I'm likely to get funding and in-state programs. Sigh. Looking at Baruch, St. John's, SUNY Binghamton (I know for sure their deadline is all the way in April)