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Career Development Services
Division of Student Affairs
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Making yourself Marketable:
Many graduate programs receive many more applications than they have space available. Graduate schools look at a number of factors in deciding whom to admit. The goal is to pick people who are likely to have the background, aptitude and work habits necessary to complete their graduate program. Schools typically look at some combination of five factors in making their initial decisions: grades in college; test scores; letters of recommendation; research experience; and experiences related to your field. The relative weight that each program gives to these factors varies.
Grades - Most programs have a minimum GPA, below which you will not make the "cut" unless you have some outstanding compensating factor. Note also that even though programs have minimum scores, their successful entering students are likely to have higher scores than the minimum. Grade point average is an important indicator of you ability and your work ethic.
Test Scores - Most graduate schools require that you take a standardized test for admission.
Letters of Reference - This is another important area for most graduate schools, third only to grades and test
scores. Letters of recommendation can be very helpful, especially where there are situations that need to be
explained (such as why you had a bad semester) or particular accomplishments that might not be evident from your application materials. Really outstanding reference letters can make a particular difference if you are on the border or are in a "tie" with other applicants.
Related Experience - Experience in your field can give you an important edge over other applicants who do not have experience.
Community Service - It can provide you with a way to document attributes such as dependability, hard work, and good interpersonal skills.
Awards, Honors and Extracurricular Activities - Identifying potential students who work hard, have high levels of ability, and demonstrate leadership is important to graduate school admissions committees. They also rate fairly far down on the list of factors that graduate schools consider, and will not make up for poor performance on the standardized test or in grade point average. Just a list of organizations to which you belong will not be helpful either. If you join an organization you should also be able to document your participation in that organization.
The Interview - Once you are a finalist for admission to a program, some graduate programs will ask you to have an interview. Some programs have all their interviews in person, while others have telephone interviews. The interview is a way for a program to meet you and to see how well you "fit" with their program. It is an important way for you to let the decision makers know about your personal and professional qualities. Doing well in the interview is crucial for program admission.
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