The five critical factors of initial academic employment are
Although you are already dealing with the second issue, you need to strongly consider who your advisor will be. This will set the stage for your dissertation topic - so you should carefully consider the academic productivity of potential advisers. You should also meet these people beforehand and rap with their graduate students. A good adviser is invaluable in finding your initial academic position. I have seen Ph.D.'s with exceptionally weak presentation skills get appointments in good schools because of the influence of their adviser.
A quality dissertation means well-written, new contribution to the literature, and readily divisible into journal articles. Anyone with a definable potential for four journal articles in their first three-year appointment should make it to the final interview for any position.
Finally, blessed are they who publish before their dissertation defense - for their defense committee shall have refereed evidence of dissertation quality and academic potential, and they shall have created pre-employment standing in the marketplace.
From: jparches@acpub.duke.edu (Jennifer Parchesky)
I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing for people entering or applying
for grad school to hear about the down side, and especially not about the
current job market situation in academia. I have a lot of friends from
college who are contemplating grad school just because a) they're having a
hard time finding jobs with a BA, b) they miss the college environment, or
c) they can't figure out what else to do. I tell them DON'T DO IT!!!!!
If a well-paid job is all you're interested in, spending 6 years working your
way up the corporate ladder will probably serve you much better.
So, a little advice:
From: clin@eng.umd.edu (Charles Lin)
I've seen it other ways. Some grad students do have fun, but spend a few days where they concentrate on their work and crank out results. There are people I know who do nothing for two or three weeks but play games, and then work hard for one week programming. And, this is grad school. Of course, you need a sympathetic advisor who will let you do this. In addition, it may mean you will take a long time graduating.
In addition, some students who are in technical areas can sometimes get summer jobs that pay better (assuming the advisor will let you go) such as working at Bell Labs, etc. In general, however, you will not be making a fortune unless you earn the degree part time (again, only with advisor consent). If you do your Ph.D. part time, then it will take a really long time, but then you won't be so poor either assuming you have a full time job that pays decent. I don't know how common this is, but it does happen. Most Ph.D. candidates are full time though.
Charles Lin (clin@eng.umd.edu) explains :
A credit hour is a way of weighting the grades that you get for a
course. For example, in a 4 point grading system (A = 4 pts,B = 3 pts,
etc.), if you take a three credit course and get a B, and then take a
4 credit course, and get an A, then your GPA is the grade you get,
multiplied by the credit hours for that course, divided by total
credit hours.
( (3 credits * 3.0) + (4 credits * 4.0) ) / 7 credits = GPA
This would be the GPA if you only had those two courses. Most universities have courses that weigh somewhere between 3 and 4 credit hours. Usually the more credit hours that is required per course, the more work it is, or the harder it is. However, there is no standard. Most courses at the University of Maryland are 3 credit hours each. However, at Cornell University, many of the introductory courses are 3 credits, but many of the technical upper-level (junior and senior undergraduate courses as well as grad courses) are 4 credits.
Other universities use such terms as units. You can get a rough idea of what you need to graduate by taking the total number of credit hours needed to graduate and divide it by a typical course number of credits. SO, 55 credit hours divided by about 4 credits per course, would be 13 or 14 courses, which, at the grad level is about 4 semesters worth of courses or five semesters (average of 3 courses a semester).
Credit hours are away of measuring the time spent in a course--time spent in lecture, discussion sections, lab sessions, etc.
Ideally, 1 credit hour refers to one hour per week during the length of the quarter, trimester, or semester. In reality, there is a lot of variation. Some 1 credit courses may meet for more than one hour a week. Science courses with labwork often meet for more hours than the credits awarded--I remember a very intensive 5 credit chemistry course where I did my undergraduate work that included 3 hours of lecture, 2 hours of discussion section, and 8 hours a week of labwork: 13 hours a week (to say nothing of time spent working on homework) for 5 credit hours. (Needless to say, I didn't take that course.) This sort of workload is, thankfully, pretty rare. Most schools that assign credit hour values stay pretty close to 1 hour/week = 1 credit.
Also, it is not unusual for a university to have class periods that are less than an hour in length, and the length of the quarter/trimester/semester varies from school to school.
A final note: a credit earned at a school on the quarter system is not equal to a credit earned on the semester system, since a quarter is shorter (10-12 weeks for a quarter, vs. 15-17 weeks for a semester is typical). The usual equivalency is that 1 quarter credit = 2/3 of a semester hour. So a degree program which requires 45 quarter credits to complete is comparable to a program which requires 30 semester credits to complete.
The Educational Testing Service (ETS), which owns and administers the GRE, is very particular about how scores are used in the admissions process. ETS strongly discourages the use of cut-offs: saying "if you have a GRE score of at least 550 in the verbal measure, you will be admitted, but not if you have only a 540" would be considered to be a poor usage of the GRE by ETS.
The reason for the variation is that there is no overall government or private agency in the USA which mandates admission policy. Each college or university has substantial freedom to set its own standards.
Unfortunately, the best (and really the only way) to determine what kind of weight is placed on GPA and on the GRE is to ask the people at the colleges or universities you are interested in attending. If you are attending a college or university which does not use a similar grade scale to the scales used by US universities, you should ask how the colleges you are interested view the grades you have earned. You might want to phrase the question: "What GPA (and/or test scores) does the typical admitted applicant to your college have?"
This newsgroup is a good place to ask questions about particular institutions. If you were to post a request along the lines of "I am interested in attending {institution name}. Can anyone tell me what kind of gradepoint average is needed to get in?", you may get some responses from students at that institution, or from people who work there (like me).
Chris Parks | email: ccp2@alpha1.csd.uwm.edu
From: clin@eng.umd.edu (Charles Lin)
Not from what I have heard. It is certainly preferable
to have your GPA around 3.6 or higher, but having a 4.0 doesn't
guarantee you will get into a name school, and having a 3.0 doesn't
necessarily exclude you, though you really have to have something
else that stands out like outstanding recommendations, and
showing that you have some skill that some professor might
want. For example, if you happen to be really good at theory
but lousy at programming, and have written or co-written
papers, then this would count for something. I think the
name schools want to see students who have done research
or who have recommendations that say they are unusually
bright.
I think, first and foremost, the top 5 universities are looking to see if you can handle graduate level courses. Your undergrad grades contribute to this. If you have a 4.0, this is an indication that you are bright. A recommendation saying that you are a brilliant student may also help. The second is potential for doing research. If you have done some research already, then this looks good, especially if it is somewhat noteworthy research. If you have skills, such as being able to write large amounts of code, say, systems coding, or stuff like that, then these skills may help. If your research meshes well with what's being done, then that may also help. Any interesting experiences that you have that might tie in with someone's research can help offset a GPA that isn't near 4.0. I think once you are past a GPA of 3.5 or so, then that's what people are looking for. Do you have exceptional talent in some area? The higher the GPA, probably, the less they care if you have talent in a specific area, and may accept you for simply being bright.
The top schools can basically look for students who have the highest GPA, the highest GREs, and the best recommendations, and probably not go wrong there. However, the lower your GPA, the more you have to sell yourself. For example, I think there are many researchers who may not be doing the most inventive research in the world, or profound, but they know how to sell their research and convince others that their research is quite good. So, a very bright student with high grades doesn't need to do much except apply. A student with a lower GPA may have to visit the university, talk with the faculty, and do various other things to try to convince them that you are worth being accepted. However, if all you have done is taken classes, and have a so-so GPA, then you don't have much to sell. If, on the other hand, you built your own parallel processor and a compiler to go with it, and your GPA is 3.2, then you are going to get more attention.
also, does anyone know what kind of impact things like minority status have on acceptance rates (american indian, for example)...
Universities try to make an effort to accept minorities (historically disadvantaged minorities) and may be willing to lower their standards just a tad to let some in. However, I don't think it will be a big lowering. Certainly, the minorities that are let in ought to be able to handle the grad work. However, so few minorities (even non-minorities) apply to grad school, that the numbers are small, in any case. Asian Americans (Indian, Chinese, Korean, etc.) tend to number a bit more than other minorities. Women are also encouraged to apply, but again, very few get in because so few apply.
Chris Parks :
Where I work, we look at the last-two-years primarily for applicants whose cumulative GPAs are below 3.0. One rationale for doing a GPA on the last two years is that most juniors and seniors are focussing on their majors in that period. To the extent that assumption is true, a last-two-years GPA becomes an indication of an applicants capability within their chosen discipline. In addition to these measures, sometimes a GPA on courses strictly within the major is calculated.
Given the nature of graduate study, it is important not only to know that a given applicant has the basic capacity to do advanced study (cumulative GPA), but to know that s/he has adequite preparation in the field (or in related fields-- last-two-years GPA).
-- Chris Parks | email: ccp2@alpha1.csd.uwm.edu Admissions Specialist | voice: (414) 229-4982 UW-Milwaukee Graduate School | USMail: P.O. Box 340 Milwaukee, WI USA | Milwaukee, WI 53201-0340
From: jeanne@lamar.ColoState.EDU (Jeanne Sirovatka)
My two cents are that your first priority needs to be how interested you are in doing the research. This is going to be your life for the next few years, so you better like it! However, a close second priority is your potential compatibility with your advisor. It doesn't do any good to work for a professor that you don't enjoy interacting with.
As far as tenured vs. non-tenured professors go, I'd say that would
be a bit farther down on the list of things to consider. If you're
convinced that the research is top-notch, then I wouldn't worry
Another related issue is whether or not the faculty who are free to take
on new students are matched with prospective students in terms of
research interests. If you want to study medieval literature, and a
program to which you are applying doesn't have any faculty who could take on
a new student, you aren't going to get admitted to that program...at
least not now.
From clin@eng.umd.edu (Charles C. Lin)
Once you have a GPA below 3.0, it gets very hard to get into
grad school, unless you have something else that you can offer.
I know of someone who has a GPA below 3.0 and was still able
to get into grad school, but had to talk to professors at
the various universities, and try to get them interested
in his background. Basically, he had done some research
as an undergrad, and was able to use that as a selling point.
With a low GPA, you have to pull every string you know to
apply to grad school. I would say that it would be near
impossible to get into a grad school in the top ten universities,
but it might be possible to get into a grad school with
lower rankings, provided you have something else that
stands out in terms of your background.
There are other options. For example, you might be able
to take graduate level courses, but not be officially enrolled
as an MS or Ph.D. student. If you get A's in these courses,
that might convince an admissions committee later on.
I have talked to a couple professors about the grad school admission
process and am under the impression that almost any single weakness
in one's record, including bad grades, can be overcome if you have
strengths that can cancel them out.
One prof gave me the example of a student with a 2.5 GPA that
got into Stanford Biology program (a top school) a couple of years
ago. She said his strengths were that he had strong research credentials,
excellent GRE scores, worked throughout his college years, and went
to one of the better schools in the country as an undergrad.
Apparently, I am told, grades are not necessarily a very good indicator
of how one will perform as a researcher, so if you are going into a
scientific field (I don't know much about non-scientific fields),
you are definitely not out of the race...
...but you should probably work hard on writing a good personal statement,
which will need to cover these points:
Chris Parks :
The answer is "Yes." Academic departments are highly individual things.
Even within a particular discipline, you will probably notice philosophical
differences between departments at two different universities. One of
the possible differences could easily be whether you would be allowed to
expand upon an existing theory or would be required to develop something
entirely new. Usually these sorts of requirements are set by the
department rather than by any particular university standard. Since your
department eventually has to say "This work merits the awarding of a
doctorate", it is the members of the department who will determine when
you've done enough (or the right sort of work).
My guess is that the main person in charge is your advisor. Since
you are working under her/his supervision, s/he has the final say. My
oldest brother had to do a great deal of work before his advisor was
satisfied with my brother's dissertation. Once the advisor was
satisfied, then my brother knew he was essentially done.
Those of you out there who are actually in doctoral programs should feel
free to chime in with your own experiences :)
From the NAGPS Guide to Graduate Students :
Admissions committees expect recommendations to support and reinforce
the rest of the application. They act as a sort of reality check. When
the information from your recommendor doesnt match up with the
information youve provided, it looks bad.
Great recommendations are rarely enough to save a weak application from
doom. But they might push a borderline case over to the admit pile.
Mediocre recommendations are potentially harmful: an application that is
strong in all other areas now has an inconsistency that's hard to
ignore.
Bad recommendations meaning that negative information is provided cast
doubt on the picture youve created. In some cases they invalidate your
claims. This can mean the end for your application. Again, be careful
whom you ask for recommendations.
You certainly want to be polite when you ask someone such a question.
But you certainly should ask. Otherwise, the programs you apply to will
get vague or even negative letters, which certainly won't help your
chances of getting admitted.
(by Chris Parks again)
This depends on the requirements that the programs to which you
apply have for recommendations.
If a program requires that the recommender be able to comment on your
ability in the field of psychology, you will need to ask someone who has
had you in a psych course to write the letter. If the program only asks
that the recommender be able to comment on your general capability for
graduate study, an instructor in any field will do.
It certainly helps if the person who is writing your letter knows you as
something more than as "one of several students in course X". So if you
have taken more than one course with a professor, worked with a professor
on an independant study course, assisted with her/his research, or even
distinguished yourself by the quality of your work within a class, you are
more likely to get a specific recommendation.
Q:I am currently taking a double major degree, but I have decided
to do graduate study concentration on only one of the majors. Are
graduate schools more interested in the total GPA, or the GPA of the
relevant major?
A: It will depend upon the school. Both GPAs will count: overall GPA as an
indication of overall capacity for advanced study, and subject GPA as an
indication of capacity to study in the field, and as an indication of
adequite preparation in the discipline. The amount of weight these
measures receive depends on the particular schools to which you will apply.
Q: I am just wondering why the number of credits toward Master Degree vary
between schools. Some universities require 48-72 and others require 24-36 to
apply toward the degree in semester system.
A: There are several reasons for such variation. Professionally-oriented
programs may require more credits than the traditional academic
programs. At UWM (where I work), many of the programs in our College of
Letters in Science require around 24 semester credits. In contrast, our
Business master's programs require around 30 credits, our Library and
Information Science and Nursing programs each require 36 credits, our MPA
program requires 42 credits, and our MFA program in Performing Arts-Theater
requires 72 credits.
Q:But the schools that require more credit hours still have the same length of
study(2 year program). Does it mean they are harder because you take more
credit hours unless you want to finish it slower, 3 or 4 years?
A:Length of time to complete the degree depends upon whether part-time
enrollment is allowed. At a school with a large part-time enrollment,
rather than setting a hard-and-fast policy (e.g. completion in two
years), they may decide to be more flexible (e.g. at UWM, completion of all
requirements in five or seven years, depending upon the number of credits
required).
The only ways to finish a 40 credit masters in two years would be (a) to
take a higher credit load each semester [compared to what someone in a
24 credit masters has to take] or (b) to enroll in summer sessions as well.
Q: I'm beginning the process for applying to grad school. Does anyone have
recommendations toward a format toward replying to opened ended
essays (i.e., describe your experience in managing human, financial,
material, etc... resources). I'm contemplating as to whether I should
approach the question in an tabular format where I state each questions
and give specific answers, or if I develop a theme in which I state
examples of each, and than say why completion of the specific program would
help.
A: I would do drafts in both formats. Each school you apply to may have
different requirements for the format of the statement of purpose/
admissions essay/whatever else they call it. Some programs may require
tabular format, and others may want you to write an essay. Once you are
actually filling out applications for particular schools, you can revise
your drafts to fit the format requirements and show where your skills
and experience fit in with a particular schools program.
Abother advantage to doing drafts in both formats would be that the
exercise might strengthen your final statements. In writing for both
formats, you may discover more effective ways to represent your
capabilities for graduate study.
A statement of purpose fills a variety of roles. One of these roles is
to make sure that your professional and/or research goals are in line
with the interests of the faculty. If you want to study international
business and University X doesn't focus on that, you probably aren't
going to get admitted.
The statement is also used to evaluate your ability to write coherent prose.
A third possible use for the statement is to provide some background
information which goes beyond the specifically quantitative measures of
your admissibility (GPA, test scores). This is particularly important if
your GPA and test scores are not as strong as those of other applicants in
the pool.
Q: What will they usually do if an incomplete application form is sent, like
probably without the recommendation letters (although they will be sent later
on)?
Will they just look at the GPA, deciding that it's not really good and reject
it right away, or will they table it for later evaluation? Or will they still
consider the applicant, but without any financial aid?
A: The answer is "Yes" :) What I mean is, it depends on the program to
which you are applying. Some programs process admissions applications
and applications for financial support at the same time; others don't.
(It even varies with the individual programs where I work--some do, some
don't.)
In either case, my guess would be that most programs will wait a
reasonable period before doing anything to an incomplete application file.
Usually, if a program decides to require recommendations or test scores,
it is because the faculty feel strongly that they need that information to
make a good decision, so they will wait for it. Besides, it saves them
having to reconsider an application later on the basis of newly submitted
information. Like most people with a lot to do, professors like to make
decisions only once.
If all they get is an application and transcripts, and the required
letters of recommendation, and/or test scores don't arrive for months
afterward, they probably will decide the applicant is not seriously
considering their school and set the file aside, or refuse the applicant.
If a program *does* consider applicants for admission and financial
support at the same time, they *may* use the third option you mention, and
consider the applicant for admission only. If you are depending on
financial support to afford tuition and living expenses, this option is
effectively the same as being refused.
The moral of the story is: Ask the programs you are considering how long
you have to get all your materials in. If you are going to submit an
incomplete application form, make sure you get the missing items in ASAP,
and check periodically (not every day, but perhaps once a week) to see
that the missing items are getting there.
An additional view by Chris Parks :
It is common for graduate degree programs to admit students on the
basis of whether an advisor is available. The real question is, "What
advisor-advisee ratio is appropriate?" Where I work we have programs
that will admit only a dozen or less new students each fall because they
have decided to keep the ratio low. This makes the admissions process
for those programs very competitive.
Q: In almost all grad catalogs that I have received I see 3.0/4 points as the
minimum requirement for grad school. Does my (GPA<3.0) mean that I should
NOT even consider grad school?
Another more detailed answer by kcsite@leland.Stanford.EDU (Kyle Coachman)
also...
Q: What is the nature of a PhD ?
If I am understanding your question, you are asking which of these views
constitutes the dominant view of what would be considered an appropriate
topic for research leading to a doctoral dissertation.
Q: Could I have more info about recommendations ?
Q: Do you think it is polite to ask the recommender (when asking for a
recommendation letter) if he/she could give a good recommendation?
Chris Parks | email: ccp2@alpha1.csd.uwm.edu
From: clin@eng.umd.edu (Charles Lin)
It would be more polite to ask if they feel they can give a good
recommendation rather that if they will give one.
Q: Charles Barnard asks:
If I am applying to a clinical psych program and
need recomendations, Is it appropriate to ask an English professor
for one?
and
I'm sweating over who to ask for references.
How well do you have to know a professor in order to get
a good recomendation? Is being in a seminar enough?
Is it appropriate to ask a professor at this late date to spend some time
and get to know me just for a recomendation?
Some Questions answered by Chris Parks :