21 Factors to Consider Before Choosing a Graduate School

There are many universities out there that offer the graduate degree that you want to take. How to choose the best ones to apply to? Here is what I will consider if I were to do my Master’s degree again.

Contents

1. Why do you need to spend time choosing your grad school?
2. What factors to look for when doing your research?
3. Tips on where to get your information

1. Why do you need to spend time choosing your grad school?

Graduate school can last for a couple of years of your life. Who you become in the future depends on your social network, what you learn, and what opportunities you have.

Also, let’s be realistic. Graduate school is expensive, not only because of the tuition but also the opportunity cost. Instead of studying, you can spend time earning income from a full-time job. Graduate school should bring more

A graduate program that does not not serve you and your future goal is a waste of time, money, and other resources. That’s why you need to choose carefully.

2. What factors to look for when doing your research?

Here are the 21 factors that I think are important for your graduate experience

The program

Most of your graduate experience is with your program and the department it is in. What your program and its department offer are essential to your learning and development.

Here are the factors to look for:

1. Accredited program – Is your program accredited by important associations in the field?
2. Qualification of your faculties – What experiences and research interest do the faculties have? Will they help you achieve your goal?
3. Course catalogue – Do they offer courses for important topics of your field? Do they offer topics that you are interested in?
4. Out-side classroom opportunities – Do they have strong research labs or opportunities to gain real-world experience?
5. Reputation – Is the program well-known by people in the field?
6. Student experience – How students think about the program? What are the strengths and weaknesses from student points of view?
7. Alumni network – What are alumni of the program doing? Are they willing to support you in your professional development journey?
8. Admission requirement – Can you satisfy the requirements to be admitted to the program?

The institution

Beside academic, you also need other student assistance service, which belongs to the larger institution. Here are some service you want to look for:

1. Career development services – What professional and career assistance you can get from the school?
2. Physical health support – What are the programs or facilities that you can use to maintain your physical health while you are there?
3. Mental health support – What are the programs and services that you can use to deal with mental health problems (stress, burnout, unexpected life events, etc.)
4. Student engagement activities – What are the events, workshops, programs, etc. that help you connect to the larger community?
5. Other freebies – What are some other free resources that can help reduce your spending?

Finance

Attending graduate school means you cannot spend lots of time working. It is important to figure out how you can afford it beforehand.

Here are some big things:

1. Cost of living – Rent, utilities, transportation (public or your own vehicle), insurances, groceries, and an average cost for a night out
2. Financial assistance – From scholarships, assistantships, fellowships, family, loans, etc.
3. Jobs on and off campus

Location

From my painful experience in the past, location is really important for all aspects of your experience and available future opportunities. Check if:

1. Area – Is it near metropolitan area, big cities, or other big towns? Does the area have job and internship opportunities for your field? Does it have places to hangout and have your social life?
2. Weather – How many seasons they have and how long is each season? Do you prefer a specific weather than others?
3. Environment – How bad is the pollution there? Is it safe to drink tap water?
4. Public safety – How is the crime rate of the city? What is the most common crime? How often does crime happen?
5. Demographic composition – Are the area diverse in age ranges and ethnicities? What is the population composition? What are the culture that dominates the area?

3. Tips to get your information

Don’t find information about your graduate programs of interest only on their website. Nobody wants to talk badly about themselves. Here are other sources that can give you more realistic information:

• Graduated and current students of the program – connect with them on LinkedIn and ask for a coffee chat. You will be surprised what you find out
• Find the program’s faculties on Rate My Professors – you may find out how invested they are in teaching their students
• Visit the school – find out where you are going to spend your time with and get to talk to your faculties in person
• Use third-party ranking websites – make sure to check their rating criteria
• Read reviews on reddit – gossips on Reddit can be enlightening
• Social media group for your institution – check out the members of your community

Conclusion

Above are the factors that strongly impacted my graduate school experience. I hope the list encourages you to investigate more thoroughly about the place you are going to spend your upcoming years there.

What are your thoughts after reading my list? What are other factors that you can think of? Leave a comment below.