Graduate School: Why Me? Why Now?

By Dereck J. Rovaris

Following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, numerous residents and students of the Gulf Coast dramatically witnessed the uncertainty of tomorrow. Lives were changed in an instant. As a result, many began to focus on the important matter of rebuilding the region. This process will require a variety of professionals trained at the highest levels, including engineers, biologists, psychologists, educators, economists, historians, architects and additional leaders from various other fields. Most of these professionals will have earned graduate degrees in their respective disciplines. Their graduate work provided them with the expertise to handle such an unprecedented disaster as well as other situations that may be more common.

Graduate school is fast becoming an entry-level requirement for many of the more desirable academic and other professional positions. Further, there is a critical shortage of African Americans and other underrepresented groups with advanced degrees, especially the Ph.D. The need for African-American lawyers and MBAs is critical. Additionally, the necessity for African- American Ph.D.s to provide research and instruction in all academic areas is also at a critical stage. Without their presence, education will take on a much different look. Their absence will be felt in all segments of society. What would the Gulf Coast look like in the absence of these types of problem solvers? You can be a part of these and other solutions by pursuing doctoral study.

The opportunity to conduct research, develop programs and teach can facilitate better understanding and problem solving. Obtaining a graduate degree allows for tremendous flexibility and expanded experiences in anyone’s professional career path. The Ph.D. will offer instant credibility in a world that often marginalizes underrepresented groups and women. Beyond the familiar, it can open doors to the unfamiliar such as the aftermath of a storm.

The Graduate School Process

It is not a process that can be taken lightly, and like anything else that is worth having, it will require a great deal of work. Graduate study typically refers to programs that award a master’s degree and/or a doctorate. Master’s degrees usually involve one to two years of coursework, a comprehensive examination over that coursework, and in some cases a thesis. Unlike undergraduate programs, your graduate coursework will take place nearly exclusively in your major area of study. Doctoral programs can require anywhere from two to four years of coursework, comprehensive exams, and a dissertation. The comprehensive exams are much like senior comps and require a great deal of preparation. Typically a three-hour written exam based upon your major coursework, comprehensives also may have an oral component covering your proposed research. The thesis or dissertation is your original research written with the guidance of a group of faculty known as your committee. Many people worry about the ability to produce a thesis, but you will find that writing one, although challenging, can be accomplished with your committee’s support and your academic training.

The Application Process

Once you have decided to pursue a graduate degree and have figured out which specific field you will study, the steps in the application process are as follows:

1. Create a list of potential schools.
2. Register, practice, and then take the Graduate Record Examinations (GREs)
3. Ask faculty members for letters of recommendation.
4. Write a statement of purpose and have it critiqued.
5. Complete and submit your applications for admission and financial/ fellowship support.

1. Create a list of potential schools.

In order to maximize your opportunities, you will need to apply to several schools. The more schools to which you apply, the more chances you have for admission. By consulting sourcebooks such as Peterson’s Guides (they can be found online or at your college library), you will uncover a comprehensive listing of graduate opportunities in your respective area. The listings include descriptions of each discipline and their subfields. The listings will also include a wealth of data about the various institutions in those disciplines (location, entrance requirements, acceptance rates, tuition costs, funding options, enrollment demographics, etc.). Of course, online searches are always available and should complement your sourcebook inquiries. Web pages tend to have the most up-to-date information and can be quite informative, yet their navigation will take longer without the preliminary sourcebook searches.

To create your list of schools, you should first consider factors like quality of the program, strength of the university, reputation of faculty in your discipline, availability of funding, institutional support, and commitment to minority students. Other factors that may play a part include geographic region, size of enrollment, diversity of the student body, the community in which the school is located, and campus facilities and activities. After weighing these factors, you should compile a list of ten or more institutions.

Start by asking faculty members to recommend institutions. (Be careful; they almost always will think their alma mater is the best choice for you. This may or may not be the case.) Check to see who are the leading experts in your chosen field. Find out what schools they attended and where they are currently working. Either school would be good to have on your list. Check to see where recent graduates from your academic department have gone to graduate school. If they have had positive experiences, that institution might also be good for you.

After creating your list of choices you should contact each school. Wherever possible you should make a personal visit to the campus. Campus visits can sometimes make all the difference. In any case, you should request application materials and any other information that will help you with the admissions process. Ultimately, you want to be able to select the university that will give you your best opportunity for success.

2. Register, practice, and then take the GRE.

Educational Testing Service (ETS) produces the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) General Test, which is the entrance exam most often required for graduate admission. The GRE has assumed a role of greater importance in the admissions process than was ever intended. It has assumed this role primarily because most applicants will have good GPAs, decent statements of purpose, and glowing letters of recommendation. What usually distinguishes one applicant from another is the score received on this nationally normed and standardized test. Therefore, performing well on this test is of major importance. Make sure you practice using a review course or study manual. Register early (since the test is computerized you may register at your convenience at a test site near you). Be sure to schedule your exam at least nine months, but preferably a year and a half, before you start graduate school. Finally, make sure you do well on the test.

Few schools will post cutoff scores (something ETS strongly discourages), but there seems to be some “magic” in obtaining a combined GRE score of 1,000-1,100 or better. This combined score is obtained by adding the quantitative score to the verbal reasoning score. Many schools will not only expect a minimum total score, but will have minimum scores established for these individual sections of the test. Finally, many departments will require a minimum score on a Subject Test. The Subject Tests (covering material unique to your graduate discipline) are administered separately and require preparation and practice much the same as the General Test. Study material for both tests can be obtained directly from ETS.

3. Ask faculty members for letters of recommendation.

Often applicants will try to impress admission committees with letters from a local politician, a high-ranking university official, or even their pastor. While these people may be able to say nice things about the applicant, the admissions committee is more interested in assessing academic ability. This usually requires the evaluator to be someone who has taught you and who can speak favorably about your ability to perform graduate-level work. Faculty members from whom you have earned at least two grades of B or higher (preferably two or more A’s) are ideal candidates to write strong letters of recommendation for you.

When requesting these letters, always remember that it is just that–a request. It should therefore be requested in a courteous and thoughtful manner. This means that you approach your faculty members early and provide them with enough information so that they may effectively write about your potential. Provide them with a half-page abstract that includes the courses taken and grades received from that instructor; a concise description of your graduate plans and plans beyond graduate school (i.e. “I plan to pursue my Ph.D. in higher education administration, and later work as a student service administrator...”); the mailing address for the particular schools to which you are applying (most schools will provide special envelopes for these letters); and the deadlines for mailing the letters of recommendation.

4. Write a statement of purpose and have it critiqued.

The statement of purpose often distinguishes the winners from the losers. Those who are accepted almost always have better statements of purpose than those who do not. What sets a good statement apart is its overall quality and its ability to clearly articulate your potential for graduate study. A good statement is:

• Concise: Say what you have to as efficiently as possible; most are limited to a page or a page and a half.
• Organized: Your essay should be well thought out and structured; work from an outline.
• Clear: It should say exactly what you want it to say without ambiguity.
• Honest: Do not pretend to be who you are not, but do not sell yourself short, either.
• Personal: It is uniquely yours; it is a statement about you; write about you.
• Positive: Sell yourself using positive attributes; do not dwell on negatives like low grades.

The content of a statement of purpose varies from school to school. Be sure to read each application carefully and provide the specific information requested. Typically you are asked to include most of the following:

• Why do you want to get a graduate degree?
• What are your specific goals for graduate study?
• How have you academically prepared for these goals?
• What are your goals beyond graduate study?
• What tangible experiences helped prepare you (research projects, internships, professional and volunteer experiences, publications, exchange programs, etc.)?
• Why should you be admitted?

 Upon completion of your statement, ask a friend to critique it. Make corrections and then share it with a faculty member. Ask the same questions. Inquire about punctuation and grammar. Make the necessary revisions and then have it proofed one last time. If you are satisfied you may then include it with the rest of your application. While this may seem like a tedious process for a one-page statement, it is necessary since you will seldom be asked to write a more important statement. Take a look at this excerpt from an actual statement of purpose. Although it is not perfect, it is an example of what a good statement might contain:

5. Complete and submit your applications for admission and financial/fellowship support.

While most applications can now be completed online, you must be very thorough and detailed whether your application is mailed or submitted via the Web. This is in fact a very important process and you do not want to leave anything to chance. Complete your application making sure it is accurate and precise. Make copies of everything! If it is being mailed it should look nice and should be legible. Submit or mail all materials well in advance of any stated deadline! Institutions receive hundreds of applications and most have no room for late or incomplete applications. Order transcripts and test scores early enough to be mailed in a timely fashion to the appropriate institutions. Remember, a completed, clean and on-time application will not by itself gain you admission, but an incomplete, sloppy or late application will ensure rejection.

Also, complete all financial aid forms (some are separate) and fellowship/ assistantship requests (most are included in the application) in a similar manner. While most students receive funding from their graduate institution, it is always advantageous to have outside funding. This funding may come from major corporations, professional organizations, special interest programs or other sources. They often have application deadlines in the fall and they typically require exceptional grades and test scores. Contact these funding sources directly or check with your school for other sources. These funding sources can be found in reference journals at your library or at websites such as Black-collegian.com and Fastweb.com. It must be noted that due to the underrepresentation of certain groups at the graduate level, there is plenty of funding to go around. You should not have to pay for a Ph.D. given the number of funding opportunities available.

Graduate Study, Why Me?

You have (or will have) successfully completed an undergraduate program that prepared you for the rigors of graduate school. You have the intelligence. The question is, do you have the discipline and persistence? What about grades? Usually a 3.0 GPA is a minimum, but there have been numerous graduate degrees awarded to people with averages that were lower. Good test scores and a strong statement can make the difference if your grades are not as strong as you would like.

What about going later? Why put off until tomorrow what you should be doing today? People who wait often do not ever pursue graduate study because of professional, financial, or personal commitments. Others who wait and eventually enroll will typically state that they wish they had started graduate work earlier. Go now while there are plenty of funding opportunities, while you are still academically sharp and while you are not overly encumbered.

Your career, in whatever field you have chosen, can only be enhanced by the acquisition of a master’s or a Ph.D. degree. Your marketability and opportunities will increase, as will your prospects for major contributions to your field and for leadership responsibilities. These and other intangibles point to the many benefits of advanced study. You owe it to yourself and the world around you to make the most of your education and your life. Preparing today for an advanced degree will enable you to make a significant impact on our world.

Dr. Dereck J. Rovaris, Sr. is assistant dean of the graduate school and director of graduate placement at Xavier University of Louisiana.