Graduate School Decision-Making
Are you ready for Graduate School? View the Graduate School Timeline.
The following questions can help you decide whether or not graduate school is right for you.
- Why do I really want to attend graduate school?
- What do I want to study?
- What makes me an outstanding candidate?
- Am I ready to go into a program that may take me 2 to 6 years to complete?
- Could I get a personally fulfilling job in this field without further education?
- Would I have a better idea about furthering my education in this field if I worked first?
- Do the students in the program I am interested in have work experience?
- How will I finance graduate school?
- How do I honestly rate myself as a student? Am I in the top 5%, 10%, or 15% of my class?
Here is a list of some of the personal characteristics of successful graduate students. Do any apply to you?
| Committed | Empathetic | Detail-oriented |
| Organized | Curious | Flexible |
| Hard-working | Mature | Determined |
| Focused | Competitive | Serious |
| Persistent | Self-disciplined | Independent |
| Self-motivated | Endurance | Articulate |
| Adaptable | Effective |
- If you are applying to graduate or professional schools, the Career Center can assist you in preparing applications and writing personal statements.
- The Career Center has the Peterson's Guide to Graduate and Professional Programs series of books to assist you in locating schools offering programs in your field of study.
- Stop by the Career Center to pick up registration booklets for graduate school examinations such as the GRE, MCAT, LSAT, and GMAT.
- You may practice for the GRE and LSAT on the Career Center computers.
- To prepare for your interview, you may sign up for a Mock Interview in the Career Center.
