book on how to prep for grad school?

[mum]

Is there a book that outlines grad school info-what they are looking for, how to be a competitive applicant, what they like to see in the way of GPA, extracurriculars, etc. I read a book called something like "What high schools don't tell you" and it was a great outline of how to prep for undergrad applications. Now I want the grad school version! It's for ds, a junior in college this year. Can anyone tell me the time line for grad school apps? Are applications submitted fall of senior year?

 

Thanks!

[Cammie]

I would think grad school applications are MUCH more dependent on the specific area in which you are applying.  For example, the department I did my MA in was the South Asian Studies department.  For the GRE they did not look at the math scores (whew) but wanted the other two sections to be very high. They also looked at what I had done that demonstrated a deep interest in my field of studies. Perhaps contact the department your son would be interested and see if they have a guide for applicants.

[Orthodox6]

Visit any Barnes and Noble, and you can spend a long time browsing the many books available in their education section.

 

If your son is a junior, it certainly would be helpful for him to start speaking with those professors with whom he has had the best, most productive relationships and solicit their input.  When I was a junior, my equivalent of a "major professor" spent a lot of time suggesting career paths and potential good graduate school matches for me.

[EmilyGF]

This is super dependent on what field (law school is different than ed school is different than the sciences!). 

 

Have him determine what he wants to be and then get input from someone who has made it. If he wants to be a professor or researcher, then he needs relationships with some so that they can write him recs.

 

In the sciences (which is what I am familiar with), doing research is the most important thing. The professors who supervised your research need to write you good recs or your application will go nowhere.

 

Emily

[bettyandbob]

I might be a little off base here, but I think it's odd that you are asking, considering the age of most college juniors. Admissions at this level are expecting to be dealing with students who are making adult decisions on their own. I would caution involvement.

 

When I was in college this was by field of study. I never heard of grad schools looking at extracurriculars. Grad schools seemed to based on performance subject, overall performance and the type of research experience, including if work had been included in publication. Applicants needed to perform well on GREs, especially subject GREs. This approach may have changed, but it was well known to me in college (I was 19 as a junior). I did participate in a club specific to my major. Doing so kept me informed of research opportunities, grad school requirements, helped me network with professors and meet people in field.

 

Professional schools (law, med, vet, business) had their own admissions specific tests and I believe they still do. Some may specify they also want experience/hours in field as intern or volunteer. That would be specific to the school to which you apply. I know vet and PT schools often want this. The prospective student needs to look at the specific schools to see if what you are doing qualifies.

 

The prospective student can look up a field of study, like PT, and find a professional organization which provides list of general admissions requirements and lists of schools. He can also look up grad schools with degrees in his field and review their requirements.

[DawnM]

Amazon has several guides for getting in to grad school.  I would take a look there and see if there is one that fits your situation.

 

When I went to grad school, I took the GRE, applied, and went.  I may have written a personal statement.  I can't really remember.

 

Dawn

[mum]

Funny to hear some of the responses. Ds  is 17, and interested in so many things, I was just looking for a general book so that I could be informed and offer an educated opinion when asked for one!  So not too odd that I'm asking. I think as homeschoolers many of us are lifelong learners and this is a topic I would like to learn more about. If the book was really great, I might recommend it to the child involved.