Students all over Reddit search for graduate school admissions help that can provide advice and help on the subtleties of the admissions process. Even students with high GPA, strong references, and impressive experiences in their graduate school CV realize that getting into their desired grad program takes more than good grades and a list of notable experiences. So, how do you get into grad school? Your application must create a holistic narrative of your personality, strengths, experiences, and goals, so a random list of accomplishments won’t be enough. In this blog, we reveal what the admissions committees look for in their candidates and who can help you with creating the best possible application.
What is the challenge of a graduate school application?
Creating a holistic narrative between all the different application components is perhaps the most difficult aspect of putting your graduate school application together. Just think of it - without being repetitive, each application component should echo the next and contribute to a fuller understanding of you as a student and a professional. That’s a tall order! For example, this means that your reference letters should ideally connect with what you wrote in your graduate school statement of purpose, but not repeat it. The composition of all the application elements, therefore, will create one, holistic narrative that captures the attention of the admissions committee, enough to invite you to an interview.
So, what application components do you need to submit? Here, we have another challenge. Since there is no unified application system for graduate programs in the US or Canada, every program dictates its own requirements and score thresholds. This means that every program application you create must be customized to meet individual requirements of that specific program. And while there are generally some consistent components like transcripts and references, some programs might ask for a statement of purpose only, while others may additionally ask for a statement of intent or research interest statement. This means that you need to carefully track what components should be submitted where.
Last but not least, for your graduate school application, you must possess a certain level of self-awareness and insider knowledge. What does this mean? You must be aware of what kind of skills and experiences will be appropriate for the programs you are applying to. Keep in mind that this awareness must be much more subtle than “if I am applying to graduate school, I should possess research skills and experience” – this will not be enough. Keep in mind that you are up against thousands of other applicants with great grades, high GRE scores, strong references, and tons of research experience. This means that your application must demonstrate memorable experiences and skills, i.e., more than just generic research experience.
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How can you stand out?
And if you are thinking that you and your experiences are simply not memorable – you are wrong! This is exactly the level of self-awareness I mentioned earlier in the article. To create a great application, you must reflect on the seemingly insignificant details of your experiences. For example, if you are applying to a very research-intensive program such as a PhD, you may think that including a conference where you presented your research is more impressive than mentioning that you helped a professor index their book that has nothing to do with your discipline. While the conference is certainly a great experience to include in your application, so is your work with a professor who trusted you enough to work on this!
Furthermore, you should be able to detect what kind of experiences and skills your programs value the most, so you can include relevant information in your application. This is not always easy! Program descriptions can be vague or general. So how can you identify this important information that helps you create the best suitable application for your chosen programs? In truth, this ability comes only with experience. Only an experienced graduate school admissions consultant can help you identify the areas of your expertise that would impress admissions committees at your chosen schools. Why? Because they have helped hundreds, if not thousands, of students go through the application process successfully. No one student has done this, so your peers, as helpful as they can be, do not possess the wealth of experience that can help. To get to that level, you or your colleagues would have to apply and get into hundreds of schools – which is of course, unfeasible.
This is the value of a grad school admissions advisor. Not only do they possess the experience that can help you craft the most appropriate and suitable application, but they can also help you dig deep into your work and personal experiences that will impress the admissions committee. If you are one of those students thinking that you have nothing new to share since you submitted your Common App Activities Section and college essays, the help of a grad school advisor would be unparalleled. For example, you may think that your years as the running back on your college football team is irrelevant to a grad school admissions committee. However, this position is mistaken – your commitment to sport shows dedication, leadership, diversity, and more.
A great advisor can help you incorporate your unique and memorable experiences and skills into a holistic narrative. They can guide you in weaving a narrative that includes your academic, artistic, athletic, and even personal achievements. These seemingly unrelated experiences can become one strong story.
What is the most important graduate school application component?
As you could probably tell from this article, there is really no hierarchy when it comes to graduate school application components. Most programs review your application holistically, so you cannot really consider one application component over another. Nevertheless, you must be strategic in terms of your application. The most obvious strategy you can implement is to apply to schools where your GPA and scores exceed the expected average. But more importantly, you should apply to schools where your research and career goals can be accomplished. This means that you should look at program faculty to see if there are suitable supervisors for your research interest. Essentially, you want to have support on the inside. A grad school advisor can help you find the schools where your research interests will be celebrated and reach out to appropriate program faculty via your grad school career goals statement.
But even if your application blows everyone on the admissions committee out of the water, you still have a tough hurdle ahead of you. So, if we had to choose the most challenging aspect of the admissions process it would be the interview. Not all grad programs conduct admissions interviews, but many do. Grad school interviews are used to assess whether you are as good of a candidate in person as you seem on paper. However, they also assess skills that you cannot really demonstrate on paper, such as your verbal communication skills, confidence, poise, and so on. In addition to running through answer strategies for grad school interview questions, your advisor should help you work on behavior that will solidify your performance.
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Conclusion
In truth, getting into graduate school is only the beginning of the journey. It is a great accomplishment that you should celebrate, but do not lose sight of what’s ahead. Lectures, seminars, research, thesis, and defense are trials that are just ahead. Whether you are pursuing graduate school or professional schools like law or MBA, do not hesitate to ask for help. In addition to getting in with the help of law school admissions consulting and MBA admissions consulting, you will gain skills and experiences you can hold on to as you go through the program, such as writing and critical thinking skills. Additionally, remember that you can also always reach out for help while you are in the program. Whether it’s a grad school essay tutor or a thesis writing services, keep in mind that you do not have to go through these processes alone.
