Speaker 1: Hi there, I'm Amanda Bittner, a professor in the Department of Political Science. I'm here to talk to you today about how to get into grad school. Just a few things to think about. One of the things you might want to think about first when you're thinking about applying to grad school is thinking about what it is that you actually want to do when you're done. Why might you want to do a graduate degree over something else? Why not work? Why not come back and do a bit more undergraduate work? Why not think about law school? Why not think about other kinds of things? All of these are viable options, and it's important to think about this and to think about what it is that you want when you're thinking about what comes next. There are a few things that you should think about when you're thinking about why you would want to go to grad school, and there's also reasons not to go to grad school. You should absolutely not consider grad school in order to please your parents or because you think it'll bring you money, fame, and glory. You should not consider graduate school just because you don't know what to do with your life. Be aware. Grad school is hard work. It'll be very different from your undergraduate program, and it may not be for you, and that is okay. There are reasons, though, that you should consider grad school. You should consider grad school if you enjoy being engaged in and challenged by intellectual and practical problems. It is a deeply enriching intellectual experience and can often be an excellent and necessary preparation for a professional career. So if you've decided on grad school and you're thinking about where to go, there's lots of ways and lots of factors that you can consider when you're deciding where it is that you want to go. You'd want to consider the kind of program. Is it a course-based program? Is it a thesis-based program? What exactly is involved in the program itself? Where is it? Where might you want to live? Where might you not want to live? These are all important things to think about. What are the program requirements? Do you have the GPA to get in? Does it require a standardized test in order for you to get in? What are the language requirements? And then also you want to think about who it is that you might work with at this school. Who are the professors? Who are the possible supervisors? Do they do what you want to do? Is this a good fit? And finally, of course, you should always think about the cost of the program as well as financial aid. School costs a lot, and so the more you think about these kinds of things, the better off you're going to be. There are also things that you can do when you're planning to and beginning the process of applying to grad school. You want to make sure that you visit the website of the programs that interest you, along with the website of the faculty or school of graduate studies at that school. You can email the program coordinator of the program that you want to obtain additional information that you might need and that you don't have. One thing to keep in mind here is that you never want to ask questions where there are easy answers available online. This will just annoy the person who's receiving your email, and they're often the ones who are deciding the status of your program application, so you want to make sure that you present as good a foot forward as possible. Also a good idea, if you can, is to visit the department, talk to professors, and talk to students who are currently in the program. You'll get a better feel for what's involved in that school and what being in the program might actually feel like once you're there. Finally, you want to make sure that you also assess the credibility of the program, especially if it's a foreign-based program that you've never heard of. You want to make sure that it's a real program and not something strange or unusual or out there to kind of get you and steal your money. When you're thinking about grad school and programs in particular, it's one thing to take a look at, you know, the web and see what's out there and think about grad programs in general, but you also want to remember that at the end of the day, you're the one that's going to be in that grad program. You want to make sure that you pick a program that's right for you, not right for somebody else. So there are a few things that you can do to make sure you pick the program that's right for you. Talk to professors at your home institution. They're full of useful advice, they know you, and they can help you. They know you as a student, and they know how many of the programs that are out there that might be appropriate and might be of interest to you. Select programs that best match your intellectual interests and your professional and personal needs. Don't select programs that you don't really want to be a part of because you're wasting your time and your money as you're applying for these programs. Also, if you're not a great fit, they're going to see that and they're going to wonder why it is that you're applying. You always want to think about finances. Money always matters. There's a joke out there. It's not really a joke about students always being poor. You don't want to go down that road. If you can actually get money for your program to finance your life and to finance that degree, you should try to do that. Finally, you want to think about where it is that you want to live. We are all different. We have very different preferences about geography, weather, location, all that kind of stuff, family and friends. Where do you want to live? School is one of the times that you actually have some choice over where it is that you are, and that's something to think about because you'll enjoy your program more if it is somewhere you actually want to be. One of the things that people often ask when they finally found where it is that they want to go and they're like, okay, now what? I know where I want to be. I know what I want to do. Now what do I do? The first important thing that you want to do is carefully look at all the prerequisites. You want to make sure you understand whether or not the program requires language testing, whether it requires standardized testing or other kinds of tests before you can even apply. If so, make sure that you make arrangements early to take those tests and perhaps even a prep course if you can because those scores need to be included in your application and you want to give yourself enough time to actually accomplish that part of the application first. In terms of what your application will include, if you had to do a test, then the test scores are required, but it's important to remember that no two applications are the same. In addition to filling in an actual application form online or by paper depending on the situation, you'll probably need to include a few other things as well. It's important to remember these things as you're preparing yourself. So often programs require reference letters, recommendations from professors, employers, things like that. You will probably need transcripts from all of your post-secondary schools. Any undergraduate work that you have done will be required. We want to see how it is that you've done in the past, whether or not you'd be a good fit for the program. Also a lot of programs will require some kind of letter of interest or statement explaining what it is that you want to do, why it is that you want to do it. Why it is that the school and this program is appropriate and perfect as a fit. You may have an application fee that you've got to pay as well. Often applications will require a CV or a resume of kind of what you've been doing so far and a lot of applications also require a sample of your written work. So often what this means is it's a paper that you've written in your third or your fourth year of your undergraduate program. This is a lot of components and it does require some time to compile, so you don't want to just rush it. You want to make sure that you give yourself enough time to actually do all of these things to make sure that you have a successful application. So a few tips to kind of finish off here. It's important that you don't wait till the last minute. Start working on your application early, ideally two to three months before the deadline. Make sure that you follow the requirements set by the program or the university. For example, if there are required components, whether it's transcripts, whether it's reference letters, whether it's a writing sample, any documents that they require, make sure you include them. Often your application can be rejected on technicalities. So if you didn't include something because you didn't notice that it was required, your application, while otherwise perhaps successful, can be rejected. So make sure you pay attention to details. Make sure also that you follow up on your application. It's your responsibility to make sure all of the required documentation is there. It's not anybody else's job to do that. So you want to make sure that you follow up and make sure that your transcripts are in, that your recommendation letters have arrived, they've gone to the appropriate deadline. So you can watch other videos that talk about how to ask for a reference letter and how to write a statement of interest. And those are really helpful, but it's really important that you think about all application components as you move forward. And remember, if you have a question, look online first, see if you can find the answer. And if you can't find the answer, absolutely you should get in touch with those who are running these programs to give you some more information. Good luck.