So you’re thinking about going to grad school?
So you’re thinking about going to graduate school? You’ve probably started researching all there is to know about grad schools and the application process… and, like most people in your position- you’ve hit a brick wall.
When you went through the application process for college, resources were everywhere. You probably had:
Help from a high school guidance counselor
Advice from dozens of adults around you who have been through college
Sample essays, and help editing your own
Easy access to a myriad of statistics on acceptance rates, GPA requirements, SAT averages, and demographics for every school in the country
Information on different campus cultures
Financial aid explained simply
A standardized and structured process aimed to make it easy for you to apply
Now, this isn’t to say it was all easy. Applying to undergrad was probably still quite daunting at the ripe old age of 18. But, there were resources available to you.
Resources for graduate school applications, on the other hand, are a big black hole of nothingness.
Where do I even start? Am I even qualified to go to grad school? Should I take a gap year(s)? How do I write my personal statement? How does funding work? How many places should I apply? How do I find programs I’m interested in? Should I reach out to a professor directly? PhD or Masters? Do I even want to be doing this? Won’t I make more money if I just get a job? How do I make sure letters of recommendation are strong? Should I apply for grants? When? When should I start this process? Should I have started months ago?
Relax. We will get there.
With over 2 million graduate school applications each year (and growing)... you are not alone
Now, there are scattered resources across the web, and if you spend some time digging, you might find a few gems of information that could help set your application above your peers. There are some bits of helpful info on Quora and Reddit. There are a few small blogs, and some short essays written about the process. But, most advice is offered by people who haven’t been through the process in decades. And, while some fields are smaller black-holes than others… compared to anything you’ve experienced before, this process sucks. And there is no one but yourself to help you with it.
So, that’s where we come in. We are a group of graduate students and professionals who would like to shine some light on this dark corner of academia. We don’t consider ourselves experts in the process, but we’ve been through it ourselves. We believe that everyone has a different story and a unique experience applying for and getting accepted (or denied) to grad schools. We come from various walks of life: different ages and career stages, but we have been there and we would like to help.
This blog/guide/whatever-you-want-to-call-it is dedicated to helping you on your path to grad school.
How this guide is organized.
We’ve organized this guide into four main sections to help you get the information you need, depending on where you’re at in the process:
Articles about what to consider before applying to graduate school. Grad school isn’t for everyone and you should think carefully before starting down this path.
Detailed articles about how to figure out where to apply. There are so many options!
Articles about how to apply. Specifically, how to assemble an application package that will stand out and increase your chances of admission.
Articles about how to make your decision to accept a specific university or program. Don’t make this decision lightly!
But wait, there’s more!
Stories: Asking questions of people who have been through the process before you, in your specific field of study, is one of best things you can do to help your application stand out. We collect stories from current and past graduate students so you can search by field of study or university and get field-specific advice from a diverse group of experts! See our story book here!
Editing Services: For those who want more personalized help from experts in their field, we offer a range of mentorship and editing services where we pair you with current or recently graduated graduate students in your specific field of study! Everything else on this site is free; however, we believe in paying graduate students for the work they do, so this is a paid service. Scholarships are available for applicants from underprivileged or underrepresented backgrounds. See our editing services here!
Get Involved: There are many ways you can get involved with GetMeToGrad, we are always looking to expand and improve our site! See the various ways you can contribute here!
