Getting Into Graduate School

If you are still an undergrad, definitely keep those grades up. A high GPA will give you one less thing to worry about when it comes time for graduate applications. Many grad schools have a minimum GPA requirement, so keep this in mind.

Contrary to popular belief, less than perfect transcripts are not the end of the world for a grad school hopeful. The first step is to counteract a low GPA by excelling in other areas. After you’ve balanced your application a little, be sure to explain why you got lower grades than expected and why you will do better in the future.

If you dropped the ball in undergrad, but know you can do well academically, try to ace the GRE to prove your skillst to potential grad schools. In fact, some grad schools will only ask for the GRE if your GPA is weak. This is a second chance to show your academic potential.

Earning a certificate in your field, taking a few graduate level courses before getting into a program, or taking failed courses again to take advantage of your undergrad’s grade forgiveness program (most schools have them) is another way to demonstrate academic potential outside of your GPA. If you’re just not good at taking tests you will have to prove your worth in other areas, such as experience and dedication.

Your personal statement is the place to explain any bumps in your transcript. Did you ace all your major classes but struggle with general education? Be sure to point out your in-major GPA as well as your overall GPA. There’s a good chance an English graduate program won’t care about your grade in calculus, and a biology graduate program won’t mind much if you struggled with philosophy.

If your grades dropped because you were holding down a full-time job to support your family or because you were suffering from some kind of illness, put that information in your personal statement. Sometimes a compelling tale of overcoming adversity is more appealing to an admissions board than high grades alone.

If your grades were low the first and second year of undergrad but came back up for junior and senior year, be sure to point that out too. It shows that you’ve matured and grown, and are now ready to take on the academic world.

The best thing you can do is start getting experience any way you can. Volunteer, apply for internships, and see if you can get a part-time job in your field, even if it’s only marginally related. Grad schools have limited slots, and they don’t want to waste one on a student who’s going to decide they don’t like the field in a year.

Start making a short list of grad schools you’re interested in and start checking out their requirements. There is usually some leeway, but don’t expect to get into a top-tier school with a 2.3 GPA. Check university websites for acceptance statistics, or if they are not offered on the site, email and request them. These statistics will show you what kind of qualifications the program demands of its applicants. Armed with this information, you can either up your game to meet their qualifications or move on to a different school.

How important the GRE is for you will depend on your field of study and your GPA. Be sure to research the schools you’re most interested in, since many grad programs don’t require a GRE score at all. Others require the test if your GPA is below a certain average, or at least strongly recommend it, to show your academic potential.

If your GPA is low or your desired program requires it, the GRE is important, but it is still only one part of a whole picture. As long as you meet any minimum program requirements, the GRE is taken into account along with GPA, work and volunteer experience, recommendation letters, your personal statement, and often a writing sample. Furthermore, it’s usually not weighted that heavily in comparison with other factors. By all means, try your hardest on the GRE, and even retake it if you think you can do better, but don’t let it keep you up at night.

The best way to prepare for the test is to cover the material over time throughout college, then begin reviewing as test time grows closer. If that isn’t an option, there are a few things you should focus on to get the best score.

For the Quantitative section, you are going to have to go back to some basic math. If your major isn’t related to mathematics, it may have been a while since you covered the material. An A+ on algebra and geometry in high school doesn’t necessarily translate to a high score on the Quantitative section, so be sure to give yourself a thorough review. The good news is you can skip calculus and other higher math, since they won’t appear on this test.

While the Quantitative section will largely be familiar to those who’ve taken the SAT, the Verbal section incorporates much more advanced vocabulary. You can’t answer a question if you don’t know what the words mean, so make time to study the GRE vocabulary list and get to know it well.

For the Analytical Writing section, spend some time in your writing lab if your school has one and take a challenging English course whether your major requires it or not. Getting feedback on your writing from a professor will also help you hone your skills.

One of the best ways for students to prepare is to get familiar with the test itself. Kaplan University, The Princeton Review, and the Educational Testing Services (ETS) all offer free practice tests that will give you a chance to become comfortable with the format and more familiar with the types of questions you can expect. This is especially helpful for getting used to the time limits.

If you can afford it, a tutoring service will also help you get the scores you’re looking for on your GRE. While not strictly necessary, tutoring can be a big help to students who are struggling.

You will receive three scores from you GRE, one for each section. The Verbal and Quantitative sections range in score from 200-800 points and the Analytical Writing section is scored on a scale of 0-6. In addition to your score, you will also be shown a percentile. This is the percentage of students who took the GRE in recent years that scored lower than you for that section. This will give you a good idea of how you stack up against other students. Check the GRE requirements for the schools you are most interested in to give yourself an idea of what to shoot for.

If you didn’t get the score you were hoping for, don’t give up. You are allowed to take the GRE as many times as you like, although most people recommend not taking it more than three times. Schools will be able to see all of your scores, but they will only count the two highest in each section, ensuring that you never have to worry about coming out with a lower score than you started with. Take some time to study up, spring for a tutor or a test prep course, and try again in a few months. Now that you know what to expect, you might score higher next time.

Emphasized more than anything else, this factor is, in fact, probably the most important thing to consider. Besides helping you to obtain employment and learn from some of the very best professors, a school with a solid reputation gives your degree some gravitas, an aura of universal respectability. Most guidebooks, professors, and people in the field place this “reputation” factor quite apart from and above the many others which follow. And with the difficult job market ahead and the many additional resources that generally accompany a school with reputation, I would be loathe to contradict them. But, of course, it is not the only thing.

Who will you be competing against for admission to this program? Are your scores and undergraduate grades comparable? Don’t get hooked on a school for the wrong reasons, especially if your qualifications do not approximate the level of competition for that particular school. By the same token, realize that you bring a unique set of academic abilities and personal traits to any graduate program. Could the Harvards of this world accept only summa cum laude varsity lettermen from the Ivy League? Possibly so, but could you imagine this class?! They aren’t looking for cookie-cutter people, after all. Convince them of your merits, and they may be looking for you.

For personal or family reasons, applicants sometimes have only a certain geographic range of schools to which they can apply. Being as open as possible to different areas will increase dramatically the prospects available to you. It also may help you to get in to certain schools, as the University of Idaho might want to diversify its student body with a true Southerner, for instance. But you will also need to consider that the school’s reputation and alumni network will be strongest within a few hundred miles of the school, and therefore many of your post-graduation job prospects will emanate from this region. If you can’t see yourself living in the area for very long and are applying to a school without a nationwide reputation, you may be doing yourself a disservice.

Where did the people who are writing your references get their degrees? Since admissions teams habitually evaluate the qualifications of the recommenders (and what could be better than their own alumni?), these schools might be well worth considering. Alternatively, ask your recommenders if they know anyone at the other programs to which you are applying, or if they recommend any particular programs for your interests and background. Remember the saying: “it’s not what you know; it’s who you know.” Get to know as many people as possible, and utilize their insight as fully as possible.

This is important both for your own personal tastes (can you stand being in a program with just a handful of students… or one with several hundred?), as well as for future job prospects. Some applicants believe that a smaller student body will translate into more personalized attention and a better chance of being “top dog,” whereas others see additional classmates as resources for program reputation and name recognition. You must also keep in mind that the more faculty and alumni a program offers, the bigger that program’s “network” will be. Under relatively larger programs, your chances of being introduced to “people in the know” — and who may help you to find jobs — will increase proportionately. (This final point, however, assumes that the people who graduate from the program are able to obtain employment with their degree, no mean feat in itself.)

Where do you want to live? With M.A. programs generally taking two years to complete, and Ph.D.’s stretching to about six or seven years, this urban/rural difference can become a pretty important factor. Of course, it need not be similar to your undergraduate institution, and there may be advantages to a new perspective that you have not yet considered. You may also find that a novel setting is “acceptable” as long as you are sufficiently pleased with the other, more substantial aspects of your environment.

Certain schools have reputations that emphasize particular facets of their curricula. If you have areas which you especially enjoy or dislike to concentrate upon, this can make a big difference. In fact, the school with the best overall reputation may not be the one that excels in your particular area of interest. On the other hand, however, you may decide to change your specialty after you enter grad school. How much will this affect your happiness with this particular school?

Library size is something you always hear about in brochures. Things like science labs, computer centers, departmental fellowship funds, and archival holdings in your field of interest similarly represent the institution’s dedication to providing resources for its graduate population. You will appreciate them when the time comes; find out what they offer up front.

Be certain that the school offers the exact degree you are interested in pursuing. If you are interested in more than one possibility, see if the school has both.

A school’s social life will be reflected partly by the strength of the graduate community, partly by the scope of public attractions available, and partly by the atmosphere within the department itself. Articles, advertisements, and crime reports in the school newspaper are all time-tested methods of judging the tenor of social activities; talking to current students is another.

All schools will say they have a solid record of success, but how can it be possible to have a tough job market when all these schools tout “94 percent professional placement rates”? Check the figures, ask students, look at employment listings; in short, do whatever you can to ascertain the true story on this score. This will, after all, be the most important thing to you in a few years .Many schools are accepting students into dangerously oversubscribed professions.

Some departments do a better job of weeding out graduate applicants after they arrive on campus than in admissions. Again, the numbers are difficult to determine. Check the size of the entering classes versus those graduating, query the admissions staff, and ask students currently enrolled for the real story. If the students have no idea what you’re talking about, fine. If they do, listen carefully… and ask a few more students.

Graduate students quite often are an afterthought to the strategic planning of university administrators, especially since they comprise a relatively small, self-regulating body of adults who don’t tend to cause problems (e.g., tearing up the newly-seeded football field, puking on wealthy benefactors, leading demonstrations against cafeteria food). This is even more likely if the vast majority of students (i.e., “tuition income sources”) are undergraduates. Check the ratio of graduate to undergraduate students to see how outnumbered you will be. This ratio also will tell you something about the school’s social priorities. If undergraduates seriously dominate the landscape, the academic and social life probably will also be skewed in that direction. As long as you don’t mind buying beer for nineteen-year-olds and giggling at sophomoric jokes, this won’t matter to you. Otherwise, ask.

After you spend several years working towards this degree, will professionals in the field universally acclaim you as one of their own, or will they look at you like you just bought a Cracker Jacks license? Check the number and status of the various accrediting agencies if you have any doubts.

The opportunity to work under the academic “giants” in your field of interest is one of the most exciting thing about graduate study. Be careful about basing your decision on this, however, as this great faculty member may die, leave, take a sabbatical, or other such thing. It is true that a faculty advisor who transfers to a different school often can bring his/her promising students to the destination program; those who die, however, leave their students plum out of luck.

Masters Students: It may be advantage for you to consider schools which offer the PhD as well as the masters since they often can offer richer resources, stronger faculty, and a broader base of students and alumni. On the flip side, however, you will want to determine the prevailing attitude towards masters students in such programs. Finding yourself on the short end of a preference for doctoral students can easily make graduate school a much less pleasant experience than it might otherwise be.

Doctoral Candidates: Keep in mind that the major purpose of most doctoral programs is focused upon publishing, and use that as an important yardstick for your own choices. What is the average length of time to complete a dissertation at the various programs? What subjects have been featured in previous candidates’ dissertations? Is funding available to students after finishing the comprehensives? Such questions will illuminate the priorities and problems that may define your post-Master’s work at this school, or alternatively force you to consider transferring… and unnecessarily endure this application process again.

There is no way around it: grades are important. They are not the only important thing, and they may not even be the most important, but having a 4.0 definitely doesn’t hurt your chances of getting into grad school. Sometimes when specialty tests are required, like the LSAT, a high score is enough to move you to the top of the list. For other schools it’s a positive footnote, but not a deciding factor.

If you really want to give that GPA some weight, make sure you attend an impressive school. Attending an Ivy League or similar caliber institution will show that your high GPA was a challenge to obtain, and thus make it worth more to those who might accept your application.

Get engaging recommendations from people who are leaders in their field and have personal experience with your work. A recommendation from someone the review board may know, either personally or by reputation, will carry much more weight than one from someone they’ve never heard of. Furthermore, a recommendation from someone who knows you personally is more likely to include the personal qualities and anecdotes that make you stand out. .

Take some time to research the school to which you are applying? What are some of their professors researching? What does it say in their mission statement? Knowing what each program is looking for will help you tailor your application to their specifications and get you noticed. If the university has a well-known professor, try showing interest in the subject he or she is researching. If the university leans more toward a particular specialization, be sure to spend extra time on your qualifications in that particular area.

If you find a professor who focuses in an area that you are particularly interested in, try emailing him or her to get a little feedback on your potential at the program. Be respectful but confident. Ask what he or she thinks of your potential and how you could do better. Get a conversation started about the professor’s research. Making this kind of connection will not only give you an insider look at how to apply, it will also get your name on the mind of at least one of your potential professors.

Most graduate schools want to see some kind of work experience. Just showing up to class and passing undergrad isn’t enough to guarantee you’ll do well in grad school. Talk to your professors about what work experience is most impressive for graduate applicants in your field and then go out and get it. You will probably have to take less than glamorous jobs and sometimes work for free to get the kind of resume you are looking for but think of it as working for experience instead of money, because it is well worth your time.

Your personal statement is your best opportunity to showcase your skills and personality, as well as explain any weaker parts of your application. Spend some time on your statement and don’t be afraid to get personal with it. Let them know why you want to be in your field of choice, what you’ve done to prepare, and what your goals are for your future career. Make yourself sound like a potential colleague they would love working with, not a just a student trying to get a foot in the door.

If your grades or test scores are low or you don’t have the volunteer experience you would like and there is a good reason, tell them why. Don’t be whiny here, but if you’ve legitimately overcome some kind of adversity to get where you are today, make that a part of your statement. Your goal is to make the review board understand what a talented and motivated person you are.

Your job doesn’t end as soon as the application is in. Appropriate follow-up can be the force that either gets you in or leaves you wondering what went wrong. Once you’ve sent your application in, take a moment to call and make sure that everything has arrived as needed. This is a small step that can mean the difference between acceptance and no one even looking at your application.

If you do get a rejection letter, you should still follow up. Ask where your application could have been improved and what you can do to prepare for another round of applications next time. You may not hear back, but if you do, the insight you gain could be very valuable. If something significant has changed since you applied, such as new experience or a new grade that boosted your GPA, you can also request that the board reviewing your application take a second look. Depending on how important the new factor is, this could get you in the door or get you no response at all, but it doesn’t hurt to make the effort.

Most graduate programs like to see at least one letter of recommendation from a professor if you are recently out of school. Cultivate your relationships with your professors while you are still in school, and you will have a much broader array of options when it comes time to ask for those letters. Ask and answer questions in class, always come prepared, and make use of office hours. Not only will this help you earn better grades, it will also help you forge the kind of relationships with your professors that result in exemplary letters of recommendation.

You should also try to get a professor in your field to write your letter. Your English teacher might be impressed with your prose, but a graduate letter from her probably won’t help you get into a chemical engineering graduate program. It may sound calculating, but make special efforts to forge a relationship with the professors in your chosen field of study. Not only will they have much to teach you, but they can also offer a letter of recommendation with more clout.

If you’re already graduating, and you don’t have a close relationship with any of your professors, don’t panic. Professors are used to getting letter of recommendation requests and may help you out even if you were just another face in the class to them. In cases like this, professors will generally ask for your curriculum vitae, which is basically a very detailed and more academically inclined resume, and base the letter off of what you give them.

The next person grad programs want to see letters of recommendation from is usually your mentor at a volunteer position or supervisor at work. After learning that you thrive under academic conditions, they want to see if you do as well in the working world. This letter should ideally emphasize your passion for the field and your dedication to continually advancing your knowledge and your career.

Colleagues can provide good recommendations, but you should only ask them once you have exhausted your supply of professors, mentors, and supervisors. More credit is given to the opinions of people who are already successful and renowned in their fields than to people who are on the same level as you are. Make sure your colleague is a skilled writer before asking to avoid a potentially embarrassing situation down the road.

While it may seem an easy choice, don’t ask family, spouses, significant others, or personal friends for recommendation letters. Grad school programs will not be impressed if you can get your mother to say nice things about you, regardless of how nice those things may be. The only possible exception to this rule is if you have a family member who also happens to be a leader in your field, or whom you have worked with in the past, but be careful here; this choice can backfire.

Your first step is to find out exactly what your graduate programs are looking for. Do they have particular requirements for letters of recommendation? Do they accept emailed letters or only those sent through the post office with the writer’s signature across the back flap of the envelope? Are there length requirements or limits? Are free-form letters accepted or is there a form required? Find out the answers to all of these questions before you ask and come prepared with any forms needed. You should also get an idea of what you would like the writer to emphasize in your letter.

Once you have all the research completed and paperwork in hand, it’s time to start asking. If it is physically practical, speak to each potential letter writer in person. Let them know they have been a positive influence on your career, you respect their work, and you would really appreciate it if they could write you a letter of recommendation. If speaking to them in person isn’t practical, an email or a phone call is acceptable.

If they say yes, speak frankly about what you would like the letter to include and be sure to give them all the information they need, including the letter due date. Depending on the reliability of your letter writer, it may be best to tell them the due date is a little earlier than it actually is. You can avoid lying by saying when you would like to send the letters in rather than when they must be in by.

The method you choose to get your recommendations to the grad program of your choice will depend on your program’s requirements. Some will accept emails directly from the writer of the letter, while others require a hard copy that has been signed across the seal. If you have to use hard copies, be sure to collect your letters early and send them with the rest of your admissions packets. Be sure to send the letters to the right place when applying for multiple programs at once to avoid the embarrassment of a letter addressed to the wrong school.

First, do your homework. Check through the brochures of all the schools you are seriously considering. Using the faculty listings and research interests as a guide, check whom might you be especially interested in working with, or under. Even if this professor does not end up being your advisor, you will have engaged a important collegial relationship, and gained useful information as well. Certainly it won’t kill you to be wrong about whom to choose, but you might as well be right.

Next, go to the largest library available. A large regional library will do, but a strong university system is even better. You are going to be doing a small bit of research on each of these professors for whom you haven’t got sufficient information. Check especially through such things as The National Faculty Directory and the Directory of American Scholars. You don’t need a great deal of information, but seek useful tidbits. For instance, working with a professor who won a significant award in your field is going to help increase your reputation for having worked under her. The primary goal is information sufficient to glimpse the professor’s interests and to make an intelligent, informed presentation in your letter.

As far as the letter itself, explain who you are. Discuss their research interests and why you are particularly interested in their program; the more specific you can be, the better. You’ll probably also want to know whether they would be available as an advisor next year, or some such thing pertinent to your decision whether to apply to this school. Send a copy of your résumé: it will readily introduce them to you without having to come right out and say how great you are, and will allow them to judge your qualifications for the program. It’s best to find out now if they think you might be overmatched by the competition, and for you either to respond or to change your plans accordingly.

When you do get a response, it is a momentous opportunity to gauge your candidacy and to correct any mistaken impressions. If they loved your credentials, thank them; or if, as is likely, they were wishy-washy, you can reinforce the more positive aspects. You can then choose either to continue the correspondence, or wrap it up and let them know how much you appreciate their help. Whichever it is, you now have someone on the faculty who at very least will recognize your name. You’ve also got a name to mention in your personal statement, indicating both your enduring interest in the program and the maturity of your decision to apply. And you probably understand the school or department a little better. It was an effort well spent.

Take at least one class in creative or persuasive writing if you are unsure of your writing abilities. At the very least, you should talk to a professor or educated friend about what makes a paper compelling and work that into your personal statement.

Start by making a list of the things you want to address in your statement. Write down what you want the review board to know about you: why you chose this career, why you’ll make a great grad student, why your grades were lower junior year than the others. Making an outline will help you remember to cover everything.

Look at each program’s requirements. Some grad programs won’t have any specific requirements, while others will have strict rules to follow. Making sure you know what those rules are ahead of time will save you a lot of revision down the road.

Think carefully about what kind of tone you want to convey. It should be professional but accessible. Use vocabulary you’re comfortable with, but avoid slang and poor grammar.

Stick with one tone to give your statement internal consistency. Since the personal statement is all about you, write it in first person. Personal statements written in third person often sound stilted and awkward. Any good paper needs an introduction and a conclusion, so be sure to wrap up your statement at the end with a few concluding sentences.

Follow the mini-skirt rule of writing. Your paper should be long enough to cover everything but short enough to be interesting. The review board looks through hundreds of these statements, so you don’t want to bore them or waste their time, but you should take the time you need to get your point across. Avoid repetition and try to make your points as concise as possible without losing meaning.

Remember that the rest of your application exists. Your transcripts will cover your grades in detail, so you don’t need to rehash them in your personal statement. While you can mention your grades to make a point, or explain them if they are weak, don’t just list your grades for various classes. The review board already has this information.

Address your weaknesses. College review boards will notice the weak points in your application whether you bring them up or not, so take the time to explain why your grades weren’t where you wanted them to be or how your experience in the field makes up for what you missed in the classroom. Be clear and assertive without being defensive or whiny.

Tell them why you’re passionate about the field. Grad schools want to know that they are spending their time and resources on someone who is going to contribute to their field someday, so talk about what excites you. Be honest and direct, but avoid clichés.

Talk about your goals. Show grad schools that you will be an interesting and hardworking colleague, not just a student. Talking about your future plans shows that you have put thought and consideration into your career instead of just applying because it seemed like a logical next step.

Limit your anecdotes. While the right anecdote can set the tone and grab the reader’s attention, too many can start to become repetitive. You’re not writing the story of your life. You’re telling them why they should accept you into the program, so keep anecdotes short and relevant.

Read over what you wrote, once in your head and once out loud, to see how it sounds. Comb through for any grammar or spelling errors and polish your tone. Check the list of points you wanted to cover and make sure you have addressed everything.

Let a trusted friend or professor read over your work. Getting someone else’s perspective, especially if they have sat on admissions boards themselves, can keep you from making common mistakes and help ensure that your points are clearly covered.

Tailor your statement to each program. Make sure you are following all their rules for personal statements. Take a moment to make it personal by adding a paragraph about what attracts you to their specific program and why you think it’s a good fit. While this takes a little more time, it will show grad schools that you really put thought and effort into your application process.

Writing a personal statement doesn’t have to be intimidating. Follow these simple steps and you will already be well ahead of most of the competition.

If anything has changed in your grades or experience since you sent in your application, you can apply for a second consideration. Whether or not this tips the scales in your favor depends on how significant the change is, but since nearly six months can pass between application and response at some schools, it might be worth a try.

If you don’t want to challenge the letter, take a look at when admissions time comes around again. For some programs, admissions continues throughout the year. Others take applications once a semester, while still others only accept applications once a year. If you still want to pursue graduate school, take a look at when your next chance to get is and start preparing.

Take a moment to email or call the schools you received rejection letters from and ask if there’s any information they can give you about why you were not accepted. Be sure to keep your tone respectful and interested, and be polite but persistent. Not all programs will respond to you, but those who do will give you invaluable advice for improving your application. If you do it right, you may even gain an ally at the school.

One of the first things to look at after getting that acceptance letter is your potential financial aid package. Some schools will give you a financial aid offer along with your acceptance. If that’s the case, count yourself lucky and relax a little while you wait for your first semester to come around.

If you weren’t that lucky, take some time getting to know the financial aid department at your school. They will help connect you to different financial aid sources you might qualify for. If you think you might qualify for a scholarship, grant, or assistanceship, go ahead and apply. The more financial aid you get, the less you’ll have to worry about repaying when you begin your career. Most programs will offer at least some kind of financial assistance to their graduate students.

Take some time to search the Internet for scholarships as well. If you intend to work in an underserved area, have a military background, are returning to school after a long absence, are a parent, or any other long list of qualifications, there may be aid available to you. Spend the time researching your options so you can worry less about finances and focus more on your studies.

Once you’ve applied for scholarships and know what’s available to you, it may be time to look at loans. Focus on federal loans first, as these have lower interest rates, more lenient and income-based payback plans, and may allow you to apply for loan forgiveness after a certain number of years.

Prepare to Relocate

If your grad school isn’t in the area, it’s time to start packing and getting ready for a move. Relocating can be difficult if you’re not familiar with the new area, and a little research can go a long way. Look into both campus housing and local rental rates and see how they stack up against each other. Most of the time renting off campus is less expensive, but this is not always the case.

If you do decide to rent off campus, research the various complexes, buildings, and neighborhoods available. Online reviews are a good resource if you’re conducting an apartment hunt from faraway. But if possible, try to visit the area before making your final housing choice.

Talk to Your Employer

If you are working an unrelated day job to pay the bills, this will not be a particularly difficult transition. On the other hand, if you are working in your field and may want to take a new position with the same company once you graduate, you should tread a little more carefully. Let your supervisor know how much you’ve enjoyed your position and that you would like to talk to the company about opportunities once you graduate.

Some jobs will offer to pay for your graduate program in exchange for your agreement to work with them for a set number of years once you graduate. If the organization you work for offers this kind of program, take advantage of it. You can always break the agreement, provided you pay back the tuition costs, if you change your mind later.

In undergraduate, school is largely a thing that happens to you. In grad school you need to be an active participant. Do the required reading, raise your hand, argue your points and beliefs. You may sound foolish a few times, but you will gain confidence.

Forming lasting relationships with current and future leaders in your field is one of the best things you can do in grad school. This will affect you future career opportunities and your professional satisfaction.

If you get offered an amazing internship in a foreign country, take it. If you have a choice between researching something you are truly passionate about and something that seems safe, choose your passion. Don’t let the resources of your school pass you by because you were too intimidated to use them.