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Preparing for Graduate School

A Few Important Points of Orientation

1. You would be foolish to think about graduate school and not talk to the faculty you have available about your plans. They can advise you about the specialties of different schools, which schools are most likely to admit you, what you can do with the graduate education you are considering, etc. Hence: It is never too early to get to know professors who taught classes you enjoyed!

2. Start thinking about all your options early. For example, taking a GRE or LSAT test in your Junior year helps you in two ways: They will let you develop realistic application plans (such as to which schools to consider applying). Further, it gives you a chance to re-take them in order to raise your scores.

The GRE Exam

The GRE (Graduate Record Examination) is the entrance exam for graduate school. "The GRE is to graduate school what the SAT is to college." The exams are even formatted similarly; both have a verbal and a math section, although the GRE also contains a writing section. In some cases, schools you are applying to will require you to take the subject part of the GRE in addition to the rest of the exam. In other words, EVERYONE that wants to go to graduate school HAS to take the GRE, but some may be required to take a subject exam, as well. This varies a lot by discipline (the term for 'major department' in graduate school). For example, most Political Science departments do not require the subject-specific part of the test while most Psychology departments do. The subject exam is often experienced as quite difficult, but since it is graded on a curve, you should not be intimidated by it. Many students have a tough time with this part of the exam.

GRE: The General Test measures verbal, quantitative, and analytical skills that have been acquired over a long period of time and that are not related to any specific field of study. The test consists of three scored sections.
http://www.gre.org/

The verbal section is pretty much like the SAT verbal section. It contains analogy, antonym, sentence completion, and reading comprehension sections.

The math section of the GRE has questions relating to reading charts and graphs, a section with word problems (including those kind that list four possible responses (I, II, III, and IV), and you have to determine if I and II are true, none of them are true, all of them are true, etc.). The other section in the math part of the exam has two columns; Column A will have a number, for example, 1/2n. Column B will have, for example, 1/4n. You have to determine which number is larger, if they're equal, or if it cannot be determined from the information given. (The key here is to remember to plug in positive numbers, negative numbers, zero, and positive and negative FRACTIONS. AND to do it all in the amount of time allotted for that section!).

The analytical writing section has two compoments. One section requires you to "Present your perspective on an issue" while another has you "analyze an argument." The "perspective" portion emphasizes your ability to make strong arguments and present cogent reasoning yourself in support of the stance you give. The "analyze an argument" section requires you to deconstruct the strengths and weaknesses of an argument the test presents to you.

SUGGESTIONS: It's a very good idea to GET COMFORTABLE about the exam before taking it. To do this you have a number of good options:

A. You can take a class in preparation for the exam. University College offers a good (fairly inexpensive) one; they can be reached at 985-1000.

B. You can buy a book that offers practice exams and helpful hints to remember in taking the exam. Many of these books will list vocabulary words that appear often on the verbal section of the test and some basic math review for the math section.

C. There may be software available to help in the preparation.

The key here is to feel ready for the exam, and not have to waste time reading the directions for each section, etc.

If you plan on attending graduate school the fall following your May graduation (for example), take the test no later than December of your senior year--tests taken after that date will not be scored in time for your applications to be processes by the universities you have applied to. Of course, it would be better to take them in the summer preceding your senior year (or early in the fall).

If you took the test more than once, most universities (like with the SAT) will look at your best scores in deciding upon your admission. Some schools will look at your scores from all three sections, and some will focus on just two of the three (depending on what field you are pursuing); however, the scores for ALL sections will be sent to the universities you specify. If after you finish the exam, you are sure you did not do as well as you expected, you are given the opportunity to, in effect, cancel your registration for the test. Your exam will not be graded, and the scores will not be sent to the universities you specified on the application form. If you are a little concerned, do not cancel your registration; everybody feels a little anxious after taking an exam such as this.

Expect to do ABOUT the same on the GRE verbal and math part as you did on the SAT verbal and math part. They are scored the same, with 800 being the top score for each section. Since there are THREE sections in the GRE (as opposed to two in the SAT), a maximum score would be 2400 (as opposed to 1600). Competitive schools will require that you do well on the GRE (the average GRE score (all three sections) for students admitted to the Government and Politics Department University of Maryland was over 1850. GRE application packets are available in the testing center, Shoemaker Hall.

Applying to Graduate School

The most important thing to consider before applying to graduate school is whether or not that is really what you want to do. If you go to graduate school because you are trying to avoid the real world, or because mom and dad want you to, you probably will not be that happy there. This is especially true of professional degree programs as the investment of money you make in such programs often will leave you with great debts, and hence require a restricted set of career options. But it is also true of cases where you are going to a graduate 'academic' program. These programs will not give you a well 'rounded' liberal arts type background. They are designed to give you particular research and professional skills.

In choosing colleges, you were looking primarily at schools with good reputations that would accept a student in your standing. In choosing graduate schools, these are also important considerations, but you may also want to choose a school that employs a professor who you would like to work under or take a few courses with. Graduate students have very close contact with their professors, and often publish articles or books with them (this is very important for the job market).

Once you have decided to attend graduate school, and you know what field you want to study, take the GRE's. Meanwhile, send your applications out; the GRE scores will automatically be sent to the universities you specify on the GRE application form. Be sure your applications are complete before mailing, and DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE!

Your graduate school application is evaluated on many factors. Obviously, undergraduate G.P.A. and GRE scores are important, but your recommendations are also very important in determining your admission. So is your personal statement. The average student applying for graduate admission to the Government and Politics Department of the University of Maryland at College Park, for example, has an undergraduate G.P.A. of 3.5 (on a 4.0 scale) and average GRE scores (all three sections) above 1800. Those competitive for assistantships average 1900-2000 on the GRE's, and their G.P.A.'s are usually a bit higher as well.

Based on the merits of your application, many schools may offer you an assistantship or fellowship. ALWAYS check the box on your application which asks if you want to be considered for these awards. There are two kinds of assistantships--one is research (helping a particular professor whose interests you share in conducting research for one of their projects), the other is teaching (in which you would be a teaching assistant for an undergraduate class, which usually entails leading a discussion section once a week, and grading all papers for students in that section). Both assistantships require you to work approximately 20 hours per week. A fellowship involves no work commitment. Both assistantships and fellowships usually come with tuition remission as well as some type of salary for the 20 hour/week work commitment. (This is a general description of the types of scholarships available through the GVPT Department at UMCP, but is fairly similar to those offered at other universities.)

Application Process

Once you have narrowed down your list of programs to the ones to which you wish to attend, the application process is next. You will need to consider several factors when applying to programs, and one is the application fee. Many of the Minority Identification Project core schools may consider waiving the application fee if requested by the student. So take advantage of this opportunity. The number of schools you apply to may vary and be prepared to apply to different tier programs.

Resources to take advantage of on the Web

Statement of Purpose.com: Writing your admissions essays or Statement of Purpose (SoP) is a long and intensive process - ten to twelve drafts over a two-month period are fairly common. It is necessary to put in this hard work to come up with an essay that is uniquely yourself, and a compelling read which convinces the admissions committee that you are right for their school. This is a great opportunity to look inside yourself and be rewarded by a better understanding of who you are and what you want.
http://www.statementofpurpose.com

Admission Essays : The premier personal statement development service on the Web. We provide all the necessary guidance to help our clients produce memorable, striking, and effective personal statements and admission essays to help them get into their schools of choice.
www.admissionsessays.com

The Application Process: The components of a graduate school application all work together to provide universities with a well-rounded view of an applicant. Keep this in mind when developing your strategy for effectively "selling" yourself to admissions committees. General information on common components of the application follows, yet is subject to individual institution's instructions.
http://www.albany.edu/cdc/gradschool/applicatio_process.html

Applying to Grad School: This article contains instructive information about how to choose programs and schools, what to know about completing the application and writing the personal statement, and how to coordinate your transcripts and letters of recommendation in a timely manner, among other information.
www.careercenter.umd.edu/student/newGradAppArticle.html

Grad School Application Process: There are some very important things to consider: financial, social, career-related.... This isn't the place to discuss that. This will just be some links and lists. Still, I hope this may be of some preliminary help to someone.
http://www.people.fas.harvard.edu/~roche/grad_schoolframe.html

Timeline for Graduate or Professional School Research and Application: You should begin the application process no later than the summer before your senior year of college or at least a year before you plan to start graduate school. Many students who have had graduate school in mind for most of their undergraduate careers start much earlier. This timetable is approximate, but it offers an idea of the steps you must think about and, roughly, when you must complete each step. No generalized chart provides the specifics that you will need to meet your personal timeline.
http://www.cgsnet.org/ResourcesForStudents/timetable.htm

Writing a Personal Statement: Usually the purpose is to persuade the admissions committee that you are an applicant who should be chosen. You may wish to show that you have the ability and motivation to succeed in your field, or you may wish to show the committee that, on the basis of your experience, you are the kind of candidate who will do well in the field. Whatever its purpose, the content must be presented in a manner that will give coherence to the whole statement.
http://career.berkeley.edu/Grad/GradStatement.stm

The Graduate School Experience

What should you expect from graduate school? Most people who attend graduate school in political science (or government and politics, as it is called here) do so because they want to teach, usually at the college or university level. Graduate classes are small, seminar-style courses, much like the upper-level seminars in this department, only smaller. The professors do not really lecture, instead they present ideas from the assigned readings for the students to discuss. There is a LOT of reading required, anywhere from 200-500 pages PER CLASS. A full course load (at UMCP, for example) is 3 courses. There are no tests based on the readings (except for the comprehensive exams, discussed later), and most professors require minimal written work other than a 25-page research paper at the conclusion of the course. Some may also require reactions to the readings assigned, and some preliminary research for the paper.

After completing the course work in the areas you concentrate in, you will be required to take a comprehensive exam. This is basically exactly what the name implies--a comprehensive exam covering the material from all the courses taken in that concentration. A team of professors specializing in that area grade the exam, and if you passed, you will receive a Masters' Degree. The Ph.D. requires at least two comprehensive exams (in different areas), sometimes three.

The professors work closely with graduate students, are always willing to listen to ideas or read rough drafts of papers or presentations. Many professors will publish or present articles with their students; this is a great way to get your name out by latching onto a more well-known scholar in the field. Graduate students are treated almost as equals to the professors and staff of the department--at least this is how it feels.

If you have any additional questions about the requirements of a specific graduate school, consult the files in the main office or call the school yourself. If you have more general questions about graduate school, feel free to ask your teaching assistant (another experience graduate students get), a professor, the Director of Undergraduate or Graduate Studies in the department.


Home \| Contact GVPT
	Preparing for Graduate School Home > Undergraduate > Preparing for Graduate School A Few Important Points of Orientation 1. You would be foolish to think about graduate school and not talk to the faculty you have available about your plans. They can advise you about the specialties of different schools, which schools are most likely to admit you, what you can do with the graduate education you are considering, etc. Hence: It is never too early to get to know professors who taught classes you enjoyed! 2. Start thinking about all your options early. For example, taking a GRE or LSAT test in your Junior year helps you in two ways: They will let you develop realistic application plans (such as to which schools to consider applying). Further, it gives you a chance to re-take them in order to raise your scores. The GRE Exam The GRE (Graduate Record Examination) is the entrance exam for graduate school. "The GRE is to graduate school what the SAT is to college." The exams are even formatted similarly; both have a verbal and a math section, although the GRE also contains a writing section. In some cases, schools you are applying to will require you to take the subject part of the GRE in addition to the rest of the exam. In other words, EVERYONE that wants to go to graduate school HAS to take the GRE, but some may be required to take a subject exam, as well. This varies a lot by discipline (the term for 'major department' in graduate school). For example, most Political Science departments do not require the subject-specific part of the test while most Psychology departments do. The subject exam is often experienced as quite difficult, but since it is graded on a curve, you should not be intimidated by it. Many students have a tough time with this part of the exam. GRE: The General Test measures verbal, quantitative, and analytical skills that have been acquired over a long period of time and that are not related to any specific field of study. The test consists of three scored sections. http://www.gre.org/ The verbal section is pretty much like the SAT verbal section. It contains analogy, antonym, sentence completion, and reading comprehension sections. The math section of the GRE has questions relating to reading charts and graphs, a section with word problems (including those kind that list four possible responses (I, II, III, and IV), and you have to determine if I and II are true, none of them are true, all of them are true, etc.). The other section in the math part of the exam has two columns; Column A will have a number, for example, 1/2n. Column B will have, for example, 1/4n. You have to determine which number is larger, if they're equal, or if it cannot be determined from the information given. (The key here is to remember to plug in positive numbers, negative numbers, zero, and positive and negative FRACTIONS. AND to do it all in the amount of time allotted for that section!). The analytical writing section has two compoments. One section requires you to "Present your perspective on an issue" while another has you "analyze an argument." The "perspective" portion emphasizes your ability to make strong arguments and present cogent reasoning yourself in support of the stance you give. The "analyze an argument" section requires you to deconstruct the strengths and weaknesses of an argument the test presents to you. SUGGESTIONS: It's a very good idea to GET COMFORTABLE about the exam before taking it. To do this you have a number of good options: A. You can take a class in preparation for the exam. University College offers a good (fairly inexpensive) one; they can be reached at 985-1000. B. You can buy a book that offers practice exams and helpful hints to remember in taking the exam. Many of these books will list vocabulary words that appear often on the verbal section of the test and some basic math review for the math section. C. There may be software available to help in the preparation. The key here is to feel ready for the exam, and not have to waste time reading the directions for each section, etc. If you plan on attending graduate school the fall following your May graduation (for example), take the test no later than December of your senior year--tests taken after that date will not be scored in time for your applications to be processes by the universities you have applied to. Of course, it would be better to take them in the summer preceding your senior year (or early in the fall). If you took the test more than once, most universities (like with the SAT) will look at your best scores in deciding upon your admission. Some schools will look at your scores from all three sections, and some will focus on just two of the three (depending on what field you are pursuing); however, the scores for ALL sections will be sent to the universities you specify. If after you finish the exam, you are sure you did not do as well as you expected, you are given the opportunity to, in effect, cancel your registration for the test. Your exam will not be graded, and the scores will not be sent to the universities you specified on the application form. If you are a little concerned, do not cancel your registration; everybody feels a little anxious after taking an exam such as this. Expect to do ABOUT the same on the GRE verbal and math part as you did on the SAT verbal and math part. They are scored the same, with 800 being the top score for each section. Since there are THREE sections in the GRE (as opposed to two in the SAT), a maximum score would be 2400 (as opposed to 1600). Competitive schools will require that you do well on the GRE (the average GRE score (all three sections) for students admitted to the Government and Politics Department University of Maryland was over 1850. GRE application packets are available in the testing center, Shoemaker Hall. Applying to Graduate School The most important thing to consider before applying to graduate school is whether or not that is really what you want to do. If you go to graduate school because you are trying to avoid the real world, or because mom and dad want you to, you probably will not be that happy there. This is especially true of professional degree programs as the investment of money you make in such programs often will leave you with great debts, and hence require a restricted set of career options. But it is also true of cases where you are going to a graduate 'academic' program. These programs will not give you a well 'rounded' liberal arts type background. They are designed to give you particular research and professional skills. In choosing colleges, you were looking primarily at schools with good reputations that would accept a student in your standing. In choosing graduate schools, these are also important considerations, but you may also want to choose a school that employs a professor who you would like to work under or take a few courses with. Graduate students have very close contact with their professors, and often publish articles or books with them (this is very important for the job market). Once you have decided to attend graduate school, and you know what field you want to study, take the GRE's. Meanwhile, send your applications out; the GRE scores will automatically be sent to the universities you specify on the GRE application form. Be sure your applications are complete before mailing, and DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE! Your graduate school application is evaluated on many factors. Obviously, undergraduate G.P.A. and GRE scores are important, but your recommendations are also very important in determining your admission. So is your personal statement. The average student applying for graduate admission to the Government and Politics Department of the University of Maryland at College Park, for example, has an undergraduate G.P.A. of 3.5 (on a 4.0 scale) and average GRE scores (all three sections) above 1800. Those competitive for assistantships average 1900-2000 on the GRE's, and their G.P.A.'s are usually a bit higher as well. Based on the merits of your application, many schools may offer you an assistantship or fellowship. ALWAYS check the box on your application which asks if you want to be considered for these awards. There are two kinds of assistantships--one is research (helping a particular professor whose interests you share in conducting research for one of their projects), the other is teaching (in which you would be a teaching assistant for an undergraduate class, which usually entails leading a discussion section once a week, and grading all papers for students in that section). Both assistantships require you to work approximately 20 hours per week. A fellowship involves no work commitment. Both assistantships and fellowships usually come with tuition remission as well as some type of salary for the 20 hour/week work commitment. (This is a general description of the types of scholarships available through the GVPT Department at UMCP, but is fairly similar to those offered at other universities.) Application Process Once you have narrowed down your list of programs to the ones to which you wish to attend, the application process is next. You will need to consider several factors when applying to programs, and one is the application fee. Many of the Minority Identification Project core schools may consider waiving the application fee if requested by the student. So take advantage of this opportunity. The number of schools you apply to may vary and be prepared to apply to different tier programs. Resources to take advantage of on the Web Statement of Purpose.com: Writing your admissions essays or Statement of Purpose (SoP) is a long and intensive process - ten to twelve drafts over a two-month period are fairly common. It is necessary to put in this hard work to come up with an essay that is uniquely yourself, and a compelling read which convinces the admissions committee that you are right for their school. This is a great opportunity to look inside yourself and be rewarded by a better understanding of who you are and what you want. http://www.statementofpurpose.com Admission Essays : The premier personal statement development service on the Web. We provide all the necessary guidance to help our clients produce memorable, striking, and effective personal statements and admission essays to help them get into their schools of choice. www.admissionsessays.com The Application Process: The components of a graduate school application all work together to provide universities with a well-rounded view of an applicant. Keep this in mind when developing your strategy for effectively "selling" yourself to admissions committees. General information on common components of the application follows, yet is subject to individual institution's instructions. http://www.albany.edu/cdc/gradschool/applicatio_process.html Applying to Grad School: This article contains instructive information about how to choose programs and schools, what to know about completing the application and writing the personal statement, and how to coordinate your transcripts and letters of recommendation in a timely manner, among other information. www.careercenter.umd.edu/student/newGradAppArticle.html Grad School Application Process: There are some very important things to consider: financial, social, career-related.... This isn't the place to discuss that. This will just be some links and lists. Still, I hope this may be of some preliminary help to someone. http://www.people.fas.harvard.edu/~roche/grad_schoolframe.html Timeline for Graduate or Professional School Research and Application: You should begin the application process no later than the summer before your senior year of college or at least a year before you plan to start graduate school. Many students who have had graduate school in mind for most of their undergraduate careers start much earlier. This timetable is approximate, but it offers an idea of the steps you must think about and, roughly, when you must complete each step. No generalized chart provides the specifics that you will need to meet your personal timeline. http://www.cgsnet.org/ResourcesForStudents/timetable.htm Writing a Personal Statement: Usually the purpose is to persuade the admissions committee that you are an applicant who should be chosen. You may wish to show that you have the ability and motivation to succeed in your field, or you may wish to show the committee that, on the basis of your experience, you are the kind of candidate who will do well in the field. Whatever its purpose, the content must be presented in a manner that will give coherence to the whole statement. http://career.berkeley.edu/Grad/GradStatement.stm The Graduate School Experience What should you expect from graduate school? Most people who attend graduate school in political science (or government and politics, as it is called here) do so because they want to teach, usually at the college or university level. Graduate classes are small, seminar-style courses, much like the upper-level seminars in this department, only smaller. The professors do not really lecture, instead they present ideas from the assigned readings for the students to discuss. There is a LOT of reading required, anywhere from 200-500 pages PER CLASS. A full course load (at UMCP, for example) is 3 courses. There are no tests based on the readings (except for the comprehensive exams, discussed later), and most professors require minimal written work other than a 25-page research paper at the conclusion of the course. Some may also require reactions to the readings assigned, and some preliminary research for the paper. After completing the course work in the areas you concentrate in, you will be required to take a comprehensive exam. This is basically exactly what the name implies--a comprehensive exam covering the material from all the courses taken in that concentration. A team of professors specializing in that area grade the exam, and if you passed, you will receive a Masters' Degree. The Ph.D. requires at least two comprehensive exams (in different areas), sometimes three. The professors work closely with graduate students, are always willing to listen to ideas or read rough drafts of papers or presentations. Many professors will publish or present articles with their students; this is a great way to get your name out by latching onto a more well-known scholar in the field. Graduate students are treated almost as equals to the professors and staff of the department--at least this is how it feels. If you have any additional questions about the requirements of a specific graduate school, consult the files in the main office or call the school yourself. If you have more general questions about graduate school, feel free to ask your teaching assistant (another experience graduate students get), a professor, the Director of Undergraduate or Graduate Studies in the department.

The Department of Government & Politics 3140 Tydings Hall, College Park, MD 20742