Tips for Applying to Graduate School

TIMELINE – Keep a calendar of important events

Junior Year

  • Begin thinking about graduate school as an option
  • Visit the Oxley Integrated Advising Program to determine if graduate school is right for you
  • Begin research on your field of choice, through the internet, informational interviews, and meetings with faculty and deans to determine if graduate school is required or preferred
  • Gain experience in your field of choice through an internship or part-time job

Summer Before Senior Year

  • Research different graduate programs through school websites, asking professors, friends, co-workers, etc.
  • Begin making an important dates /deadline calendar
  • Get applications and financial aid materials from prospective schools/programs
  • Being studying for GREs/GMATs/ (possibly enroll in Kaplan or other test preparatory course). Please note that LSAT’s and MCAT’s have a different time schedules to study. You should check with your pre-law advisor or pre-med advisor for more details

Senior Year

  • Take required entrance examination in Fall (usually October)
  • Contact faculty for letters of recommendation
  • Begin drafting personal statement and any other required essays – then finish them!!
  • Visit the Oxley Integrated Advising Program to have essays proofed and resume reviewed, if resume is required in application
  • Request transcripts from every undergraduate school attended
  • Mail competed application packets to prospective schools
  • Follow up on application status!
  • A personal interview is required for some graduate programs. If you are asked to participate, be sure to brush up on interview skills and have a coherent argument for why you want to attend their program and why they should admit you to their school!

Important Tips for Applications

  • Be neat. Type everything!
  • Proofread everything, and have someone else proof it as well!
  • Xerox copies of all materials, especially financial aid information!
  • Mark all important dates/deadlines on a calendar – meet those deadlines well in advance!

Make sure to visit the Oxley Integrated Advising Program, Founders Hall 408 for more information and resources to make your graduate school search easier.