How to apply to graduate school

[lead]A guide for the frightened and nervous[/lead]

Are you interested in entering a field that requires lots of financial investment with no guarantee of economic, emotional, or professional reward? Did you drag yourself through your undergraduate degree and then think to yourself, “I could use a few more years of expensive suffering?” Do you still not really understand what exactly networking is, but feel haunted by the thought that whatever it is, you should probably be doing more of it?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, or if I caught you in the middle of a screaming-into-the-void session, then this is the semi-serious guide for you!

Here are some steps for you:

1. IF YOU’RE READING THIS, IT’S NOT TOO LATE

Haven’t applied yet, but still maybe want to? Only halfway through your application and hyperventilating too hard to finish your statement of intent?

• You’re not alone, and you’re not a failure for finding this difficult—grad school is very intimidating, but ultimately conquerable. You’ll get it done, and things like asking a prof for advice, or visiting a writing centre, can really help.
• Application deadlines vary wildly across departments, programs and disciplines. While programs in arts faculties generally set their deadlines for mid-to-late January, even these can vary – and because we live in an ageing society which is constantly running out of young people – grad school application rates have been gently falling, so deadlines often get pushed back to allow more people to apply. Remember, at the end of the day, grad schools want your money as much as they want good students. This sucks, but can also be a comforting thought with the right amount of blindness to the caprices of capitalism.
• Many programs offer September deadlines for January admission!

2. IF YOU’RE READING THIS, THIS IS HOW TO WRITE THIS

The most challenging part of the application, at least for me, can be the Letter of Intent, which can also be called the Statement of Interest, Statement of Purpose, Application Essay, Objective of Graduate Study, Letter of Panicked Screaming, et cetera. Letters of Intent are essentially outlines of what you intend to research during your Master’s, and for this reason it’s fairly difficult to find samples of them. However, I’m gonna come through for you one more time, with some general steps:

• You don’t have to propose a Master’s research project just yet, but you do have to have a fairly-to-really good idea of what you want to study. Don’t throw buzzwords around willy-nilly, and don’t regurgitate the program description from their website.  Do be specific about what aspects of your field of study interest you, and do name-drop your academic influences (both profs who have taught you and people whose work you have read).
• This is not a cover letter. Don’t address it to anyone, don’t introduce yourself, don’t thank them for taking the time to read this letter. This is an outline of your research intentions; it’s much better to think of it as an essay proposal than a ‘letter’ of the traditional kind.
• Do talk to profs from the program you are applying to—a lot of them will be willing to meet for an hour in person or over Skype to chat about the research they’re currently doing. Having a good ‘fit’ with the program is equally, if not more, important than grades.

3. IF YOU’RE READING THIS, THIS GIMMICK IS GETTING OLD

Here’s the thing: I haven’t thought about anything other than grad school for a month. It has consumed my waking moments, it makes guest cameos in my nightmares, it elicits fearful whimpers from me whenever someone asks how I’m doing. Applying to grad school is consuming and taxing and I’m emphasizing this point because going straight into grad school from your undergrad might not be for you, and that is completely okay. If you’re not sure what you want to do, take a semester off. If you need to do really well this semester, don’t split your focus by also applying to grad school. If you don’t think you can put together a strong enough application this year, do it the next one.

Use the breathing time to build personal relationships with profs—they’re vital and just as important as you’ve always heard. A mentor in your field is worth much more than just a good reference letter. They’ll have advice as to which faculty you should contact about research opportunities when you do decide which program you want to apply to, and they’ll help you put together a strong Master’s project and Letter of Intent. Taking time off from school might mean supporting yourself without OSAP or other school-related forms of financial assistance for a while. This is hard, but the other side of the coin is that a stronger application can get you better forms of graduate assistance, which means less debt in the long run. Taking time off is worth it if it prevents you from shooting yourself in the foot during your undergrad.

Conclusion and summary of this guide: You’re not as screwed as you think you are. There’s still time, and there’s still hope. Ultimately grad schools need and want you, and the number one way to make yourself a good grad school candidate is taking care of yourself by taking your time, applying at your own pace, and making sure you don’t burn out with anxiety before you get to the finish line. Go forth and be great.