Just when you feel like you’ve figured college out, it’s time to look ahead to graduate school. Pathways to advanced degrees are incredibly contextual, but we have a few tips to get you started.
Talk to Your Faculty EARLY
Your faculty have been there. They successfully navigated the years-long process of obtaining an advanced degree and often have personal advice from the experience. Also, your faculty connections will end up being the people you ask for letters of recommendation. The earlier you get to know them, the more details they can share about just how awesome you are.
PS - Even if you end up not going to grad school, their recommendations work for job applications as well.
Talk to Your Advisor EARLY
In many cases, your advisors have also been there. Many have seen their students gain admission to grad school, and they can speak to those students’ strategies. They can help you connect to faculty and research opportunities that improve your application. They can also help you understand the risks and benefits involved in pursuing advanced degrees. Finally, your advisors work with you to create degree plans that allow you to meet pre-requisites or gain experiences that make you as competitive an applicant as possible.
Learn How to Talk About Yourself
Start by learning more about yourself. Reflect on your values and interests, your background and experiences that brought you to where you are now. Admissions committees are looking for the best candidate for their program, which includes academics and personality. People, as a rule, love clarity. If you can clearly articulate who you are, the committee can know if you are a student who will grow in their program.
