Graduate School under a Rice student's view

Graduate School
So, if you are interested in going to graduate school, what is the best way to get in? Where should you apply at all? How do you do it? First, let me qualify my advice by saying that nothing is appropriate for everyone, and the best advice for you personally is probably not exactly what I have written below. Still, I hope I can give you a start! I did all of this stuff last year, so it's still fresh in my mind.

Where to apply:

This depends on what you want to study. By early in your senior year, you should have found an area in the field that interests you, and perhaps you are doing some independent research with a professor in that area. If so, that person is going to become your best resource. He or she will know where the good research is happening, who else is eminent in the field, and which schools hold the most promise. If you are not lucky enough to have such a professor, dive into the literature. Go to the library and browse the journals for your area, reading the articles that seem interesting. Then, take a look at where they're coming from: there may be a few names that seem to show up often, suggesting that those professors are turning out papers that get published often--which likely means that they are well-funded and doing good work, and might be potential grad advisors. However, there is more to the decision of where to apply than just "where is the best research." Another thing to consider: "will I get in?" Apply to a range of schools, some that are pie-in-the-sky longshots, some that are shoe-ins, and some in between. I applied to six schools, I'm told that's a good number.

How to apply (most of this is from my advisors):

Get letters! Apparently, recommendation letters matter most on graduate school applications, along with a strong statement of purpose. Approach professors in the department with favorable views of you, and ask if they would write letters on your behalf and also review your essays. Do this early (October-ish), as most applications start falling due in late November through the end of January. Also, if you are applying for an NSF grant (suggested!), that is due at the end of November for EE students. Spend time on your statement of purpose, as it is the best way the graduate school will be able to evaluate you. Mention not only your research interests but also your extracurriculars as well, and try to use a natural voice--don't get stuffy or academic, since the professor considering you is probably more interested in an exciting new student than a boring stuffed shirt.

Also, take the GRE early, leaving enough time to take it again if necessary. In my experience (which was bad!), I left it too late, and then did poorly. I took the computer version, and was unprepared for the time constraints...and so I got a little flustered and didn't do so well. Unfortunately I couldn't take it again before my app. deadlines, so I had to submit less-than-great scores. Don't let this happen to you.

Finding money:

I don't have any advice here, except that it is commonly said that "you should never pay for graduate school." Either by way of grants or fellowships (perhaps TAs or RAs), there will be some way for you to get funded, and then as you progress in the grad program, you can get signed onto the support of a particular project.

Last remarks:

In choosing an advisor, consider more than just his or her status in the field. Will the person be easy to work with? Are they going to be interested in understanding your goals and helping you reach them? Are they accessible if you need them? Are they likely to be interested in you from the start, or will you need to work your way into their group? Are they hands-on or hands-off managers, and which do you prefer? What do their current students think of them? Do their students graduate on time, early, or delayed? Is their funding reliable, or is it year-to-year? These things and others will affect your life much more than whether or not your advisor is eminent. If you can't find them for help or they micro-manage everything you do, you will have a miserable five years and will very likely do sub-optimal work in sub-optimal environment.

So there we go, I hope that helps some of you, having my perspective on ECE at Rice. I graduated BSEE/BA in 2005, and now I'm a first-year graduate student at Rice, working with (surprise surprise) Dr. Aazhang :-). If you have any more questions, please feel free to email me at .

	Web ms-phd.com

Does Research Experience Make a Significant Difference in Graduate Admissions?

I know that many of you are undergraduate students who are interested in going on to graduate school in psychology. Others are in master's degree programs and hope to get into a doctoral program. As a student, your perceptions of graduate admissions criteria may differ from those used by graduate admissions committees (Cashin & Landrum, 1991). Although you may accurately recognize the importance of your overall GPA, you probably underestimate the importance of your verbal and quantitative GRE scores, your autobiographical statement, and your letters of recommendation. You are also likely to overestimate the importance of extracurricular activities, practica, and the prestige of your undergraduate institution (Cashin & Landrum, 1991). The purpose of this article is to describe the real role that research experience plays in graduate admissions decisions. You are already ahead of the game. Most students don't bother to investigate how graduate schools select students until they are rejected by the schools to which they apply (Landrum, Jeglum, & Cashin, 1994). If you read this article and seek the kinds of experiences it recommends, you may be able to improve your chances of acceptance.

Often we faculty tell you that we had it tougher than you do. We walked 10 miles in the snow and lived in utter poverty, all for the honor of studying for long hours . . . which is all true . . . but time has not made graduate school admissions criteria less stringent. The criteria have actually gotten tougher. In talking with other graduate program admissions committee members, it seems that although the GRE scores required have stayed about the same, these days most successful applicants have already presented their own research at a conference. Many of today's applicants have authored or coauthored papers. These things were not typical of applicants when I applied to graduate programs. Although I have served on admissions committees myself, I thought it was important to examine the literature on graduate admissions. I found that with one or two exceptions, the data is consistent with my experience.
Some of the things one might think are important are actually not so important. Your score on the advanced Psychology GRE is less important than your Verbal and Quantitative scores (Bonfazi, Crespy, & Rieker, 1997; Landrum & Cashin, 1991; Munoz-Dunbar & Stanton, 1999; Purdy, Reinehr, & Swartz, 1989). Admissions committees often believe that if you have strong basic academic skills, then they can teach you psychological theories. Practica, internships, or field placement experiences and nonpsychology activities are not given as much weight in PhD program admissions. Although it may be that these hands-on experiences are important for those wishing to enter PsyD programs in clinical psychology, researchers who have studied admissions to PhD programs in experimental, clinical, counseling, and school psychology have found that practica, internships, or field placement experiences are not as important as GPA, GRE scores, letters of recommendation, and research experience (Hines, 1986; Landrum & Cashin, 1991; Landrum, Jeglum, Cashin, 1994; Purdy, Reinehr, & Swartz, 1989).
Researchers conducting the most recent study of graduate admission directors of APA programs in clinical psychology found that research experience or commitment to research was the most important factor in selecting graduate students, followed by letters of recommendation, statement of purpose, quantitative GRE score, and other factors (Munoz-Dunbar & Stanton, 1999). In another study of APA-approved clinical psychology programs, research experience was only exceeded in importance by verbal and quantitative GRE scores. These were followed in importance by letters of recommendation and grades (Hines, 1986).
Purdy, Reinehr, and Schwartz (1989) looked at the priorities of admission committees in a variety of types of graduate psychology programs. They also found that admission committees emphasized GREs (verbal, quantitative, and total), letters of recommendation, research experience, and GPA more than clinical experience, psychology GRE, analytic GRE, previous graduate course work, and courses taken. Landrum, Jeglum, and Cashin (1994) found that GPA, GRE, and letters of recommendation are important, as are autobiographical statements, conference presentations, and publications.
On the other hand, when I've served on PsyD admissions committees, I've noticed that clinical work experiences were valued more highly than research. This observation was confirmed by Bonifazi, Crespy, and Rieker (1997). If you apply to PsyD programs, it will be important that you ask the professors and clinical supervisors who are familiar with your clinical skills to write letters for you. Even on PsyD admissions committees, however, research experience may still be valued. After all, most professors, even those who teach in PsyD programs, hold PhDs themselves and are often interested in research.
When Hines (1986) and Bonfazi, Crespy, and Rieker (1997) asked faculty teaching in doctoral programs whether any particular course or activity would have made a student with a master's degree more attractive for admission, the most common response was research involvement. In Bonfazi, Crespy, and Rieker's (1997) study, 33% of the respondents from APA-approved PhD programs in clinical psychology, 44% of respondents from PhD programs in counseling, and 27% of respondents from school psychology programs said that research experience would make an applicant from a master's program more attractive. When asked the same question in Hine's (1986) study, 33% of the respondents from APA-approved programs in clinical psychology said that research involvement including joint authorship of a paper or publication, would make an applicant more attractive. Considering its relative importance in the ranking of applicants, research can make up for a less-than-optimal GPA, but only up to a point.
I am a good example of the influence of research experience on admissions. I was in the rigorous premedical program at Duke University, so I regularly enrolled in physics, chemistry, and biology courses, a math course, and a couple of psychology courses. I came down with mononucleosis one semester and didn't withdraw from school because I didn't want to be seen as a quitter. Not the best call. I also had a very busy social life. So, my GPA was not a 4.0. But when I earned an A in a graduate-level statistics course, the professor took me aside and offered me the chance to get involved in research on schizophrenia. I accepted the offer and was eventually admitted to an APA-accredited program in clinical psychology to work with an expert on schizophrenia research. Coincidence? I think not.
Research involvement, including presenting your research at conferences, also affects your chances in other ways. Research experience can help you to develop an area of interest. Many students who like psychology say that there are so many interesting areas that they aren't sure which type of graduate program would be best for them. My first research experience entailed working in a visual perception lab through a work-study program. I had a wonderful supervisor, but learned that I wasn't particularly interested in psychophysics. My next experience was with taste perception. That didn't really excite me either. I found, however, that I did enjoy working with behaviorally disordered children and found the research on schizophrenia interesting. By the end of my undergraduate experience, I knew that I wanted to become a clinical psychologist. I have since added anxiety disorders, alcohol dependence, and the psychology of women to my list of interests. Keep in mind that interests can always change and expand. Another advantage to getting involved with research is that as you work with a professor, she or he gets to know you better and can then write you a more meaningful letter. Your research supervisor may also introduce you to his or her colleagues at conferences, give you the scoop on careers in psychology, and invite you to join professional organizations where you can network, or at least meet interesting people. No guarantees, but strings have been pulled, and connections are a major factor in the hiring process for first jobs (Bair & Boor, 1988).
Although enrolling in a master's degree program does not typically give you an edge on the competition, if you don't get into a doctoral program on the first try, it may be helpful to enroll in a master's program that has a research emphasis (Bonifazi, Crespy, & Rieker, 1997; Hines, 1986). An empirical master's thesis and any papers or publications you could produce during the program would be viewed very favorably by admissions committees. Course work in research methods and statistics is also viewed favorably (Bonifazi, Crespy, & Rieker, 1997; Hines, 1986; Purdy, Reinehr, & Swartz, 1989). If you complete an empirical master's thesis, it and several core courses (e.g., statistics, research methods, learning, development, personality) may transfer into the doctoral program you eventually attend (Bonifazi, Crespy, & Rieker, 1997; Hines, 1986).
Attending a master's program is not the only way to become involved in research, however. You can do research under supervision as part of an undergraduate program, through a special arrangement with a professor, or even as part of a paid job. There are likely to be opportunities to get involved in research at your school, as there are here at La Salle University. Ask your professor whether she or he needs help with a research project or if you could collect and analyze data for your course project instead of writing a regular term paper. Those are just two of the ways students and faculty can build research experiences into course work in a way that allows students to do research as part of their regular academic load. Traditional independent studies and summer research internships are other ways to add research experience. It is clear that research experience does make a significant difference in graduate admissions. Any of these experiences can enhance your graduate school applica-tion and allow your potential to shine through!

References

Bair, J. H., & Boor, M. (1988). Psychology of the scientist LIX: The academic elite in psychology: Linkages among top-ranked graduate programs. Psychological Reports, 63, 539-542.

Bonifazi, D. Z., Crespy, S. D., & Rieker, P. (1997). Value of a master's degree for gaining admission to doctoral programs in psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 24, 176-182.

Cashin, J. R., & Landrum, R. E. (1991). Undergraduate students' perceptions of graduate admissions criteria in psychology. Psychological Reports, 69, 1107-1110.

Hines, D. (1986). Admissions criteria for ranking master's level applicants to clinical doctoral programs. Teaching of Psychology, 13, 64-67.

Landrum, R. E., Jeglum, E. B., & Cashin, J. R. (1994). The decision-making processes of graduate admissions committees in psychology. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 9, 239-248.

Munoz-Dunbar, R., & Stanton, A. L. (1999). Ethnic diversity in clinical psychology: Recruitment and admission practices among doctoral programs. Teaching of Psychology, 26, 259-263.

Purdy, J. E., Reinehr, R. C., & Swartz, J. D. (1989). Graduate admissions criteria of leading psychology departments. American Psychologist, 44, 960-961.

	Web ms-phd.com