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SmallerFor those seeking academic graduate degrees, information about North American Universities and the Religious Studies and Theology departments within them is universally available at www.petersons.com.
Planning for Graduate School in Religious Studies: Timetable
Sophomore Year:
Begin completing the course requirements for a BSU Religious Studies degree
Note: Graduate programs look for excellent grades and breadth in coursework.
Begin establishing relationships with professors (they will be writing your letters)
Write an initial academic resume, called a Curriculum Vita
Begin participating in extra-curricular, departmental academic events
Junior Year:
Continue what you began your Sophomore Year
- Build relationships with professors
- Complete relevant coursework
- Update your vita
- Participate in extra-curricular events
Begin preparing for the GRE (www.gre.com)
Begin investigating prospective graduate programs.
Note: Check out each program's acceptance rate. Together with picking schools that match your interests, it is helpful to have a few "back-up" schools, to which admission may be marginally less competitive.
Begin thinking about how you will develop a writing sample for your application.
(You may use a research paper from an upper-level course of independent study.)
Senior Year:
(Most of this needs to be done by December, plan accordingly)
Continue what you began your Sophomore and Junior years
Register for and take the GRE
Note: Register for and take the GRE no later than October. If you take it earlier, you can have the option to re-take it prior to your application deadlines. Your GRE score will be a decisive factor (along with your GPA) in the acceptance of your application.
Select prospective schools
Write to prospective schools for application materials (Application due dates typically range from late December to early February. Allow plenty of time during the December break to make your applications as strong as possible.)
Request letters of recommendation from three faculty members most familiar with your academic work. For information on how to solicit recommendation letters see: http://www.bsu.edu/web/afischer/WHAT-TO-GIVE-REF-HO.htm
Narrow the list of schools to which you will apply. Discuss which schools are appropriate for you with your academic advisor, but make sure to aim high and include a couple of "safeties."
Complete applications carefully. See the "Application Checklist" below.
Make sure you have enough money to pay for all the necessary application fees and transcripts
Send applications
Arrange for the sending of transcripts and letters of recommendation
Confirm with the schools that your transcripts and letters of recommendation have been received
Politely(!) remind the registrar or letter writers of deadlines
Wait patiently, most decisions are made in late-March through April 30
Inform the department of your success
The Graduate School Application Checklist
Carefully type all information in the application. Proof read. Have someone else proofread. Quadruple check everything.
Request all needed materials very early. Aim to have all of your materials to the schools four weeks prior to the deadline to give yourself time to fix any mix ups.
Include a cover letter with your vita and application that highlights your education, experience, expertise, and interests.
Remember to include the application fee with your materials.
Confirm with the schools, by phone if possible, that your application is complete prior to the deadline.
Double-check with your letter writers: Make sure you have asked individuals that know you well and are willing to write a strong letter. Ask them if they are comfortable writing you a strong letter and if they need any information from you to do so. Be prepared to provide
- a transcript
- a comprehensive vita
- a copy of papers/exams you wrote in a class with the writer
- recommendation forms provided by the prospective schools
- stamped, addressed envelops to send the letters
Preparing for Graduate School
The following is an excerpt from Marie desJardins,"How to Succeed in Graduate School: A Guide for Students and Advisors" (http://info.acm.org/crossroads/xrds1-2/advice1.html):
Before You Start
Many headaches can be avoided by doing some advance planning. First, why go to graduate school at all? The usual reasons given are that a Ph.D. is required or preferred for some jobs, especially research and academic positions; that it gives you a chance to learn a great deal about a specific area; and that it provides an opportunity to develop ideas and perform original research. Wanting to delay your job hunt is probably not a good enough reason. Over the past decade, research and academic positions have become more difficult to find, and many recent Ph.D.s end up ``killing time'' in a series of postdoctoral positions, or taking non-research jobs. Having a Ph.D. is not a guarantee of finding a better job in and of itself! In addition, graduate school is a lot of work and requires strong motivation and focus. You have to really want to be there to make it through.
It helps to have a good idea of what area you want to specialize in, and preferably a couple of particular research projects you might like to work on, although many graduate students change their minds about research projects and even specialization field after they start school. Look for books and current journals and conference proceedings in your area, and read through them to get an idea of who's doing what where. (You'll be doing a lot of reading once you start graduate school, so you might as well get used to it.) This is where advisors first enter the scene: faculty members ought to be willing to talk to undergraduates and help them find out more about research areas and graduate schools. Try to get involved in research: ask professors and TAs (teaching assistants) whether they need someone to work on an ongoing project, or start an independent research project, with guidance from a faculty member.
Contact faculty members and graduate students at the schools you're interested in. Tell them about your background and interests and ask them what research projects they're working on. A good way to do this is via electronic mail if possible -- email is much easier and quicker to respond to than a paper letter. A good advisor will be willing to answer these kinds of inquiries (although if they're busy they may give you only a brief answer or point you towards a graduate student -- you'll have to use your intuition to decide whether they're brushing you off or just busy). If you can't get any answer at all, consider that that individual might not end up being a very accessible advisor. Asking these questions will help you narrow down your choices and may increase your chances of admission if the professors you contact become interested in working with you.
Your best bet is to find a school where there are at least two faculty members you'd be interested in working with. That way, if one doesn't work out, or is too busy to take on a new student, you have a fallback position. Breadth of the graduate program (i.e., high-quality faculty in a broad range of subareas) is also a good thing to look for in a school, especially if you're not entirely certain what you want to specialize in.
It's also important to most people to feel comfortable with the community of graduate students. It pays to talk to some of the graduate students (both junior and senior) to find out how they like it, which advisors are good, and what kinds of support (financial and psychological) are available. Because there are so many students applying to each school, even highly qualified applicants are often rejected. You should apply to a range of programs -- and don't take it personally if you do get rejected by some of them.
You can increase your chances of getting into graduate school by developing good relationships with your professors and work managers (this is very important for getting good recommendations), working on a research project, having a clear sense of what you want to work on (although it's always all right to change your mind later), having a broad background in your field and in related fields … getting good grades (especially in upper division classes in your area of interest), and getting a high score on the GRE if required.
