In Japan looking to apply to grad schools for '17

[100larrydavids]

Hey there, I'm an American currently living in Japan teaching English. It's my dream to get my Masters in TESOL and I want to get started as soon as possible. I believe I have the needed background and motivation required to do so. However, I have a few things holding me back: I am not sure how easy/difficult it will be for me to apply to schools while I am living abroad. Also, I will be in Japan until summer '17, but would like to start grad school that fall of '17 when I come back. I can't decide if I really want to get started with this process or take the kind of easy way out and begin applying when I come back. I really would rather not wait and have gaps on my resume, though.

Any advice from people who applied with success internationally, or other advice in general?

[fernandes]

Hey @100larrydavids, welcome to the forum.

I am an international student who has applied to MS and PhD programs in the US for the Fall term of 2016. Long story short you just need to be aware of the required materials, examinations and documents you have to send and most importantly the deadlines. I had help from my girlfriend throughout this entire process, which was really helpful, but it is definitely doable without any help (especially since you're from the US and maybe would not need as much assistance with writing formally as I did). 

I don't know anything about the MTESOL program, but in general you'll need three letters of recommendation (really good ones, by the way), a statement of purpose (SOP), maybe taking the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), your CV, and your academic records. Although it sounds simple, you should plan ahead of time and start writing your SOP as soon as possible, as well as contacting your potential 'recommenders' to see if they'd be willing to write you a recommendation letter. While preparing your SOP, you could also send emails to potential advisers. I don't know how it works in the MTESOL program, but in my personal experience contacting professors ahead of time was utterly important to grant me an offer letter from my dream school. It all depends on the school you'll be applying to as well, so you should check on the school's website and just email professors regardless of what you find.

I hope it helped. Good luck!

[100larrydavids]

Thanks @fernandes, good tips and information here.

On the topic of the letters of recommendation, is it considered bad form to not have any of your previous profs on the list? I was thinking of having current supervisors/faculty write my letters, but I could reach out to some profs, though it has been a while. I'm not sure of the consensus on that one.

Also, when you said contacting profs ahead of time, you mean the ones who will be at your grad school, correct? Just contacting them about the program and such?

[fernandes]

No problem!

I don't think it would be a problem not to have previous professors on the list. I think that the most important thing is to choose someone who knows you both as a student and person, someone who will be able to evaluate you both academically and personally. It's great to have someone who will write about your scores, but it's more meaningful to have someone who will talk about your grades but also about how enthusiastic/determined/focused you are and how applying to grad school will help you achieve your goals. 

And yes, that's what I meant. I contacted potential advisers ahead of time to introduce myself, tell them my goals, show them that we had common interests in research and ask them if they would have free time to speak with me about their lab and research activities. I also asked if they would be accepting students for the Fall term.