After you have gotten clear on why and how you will apply to grad school, and identified and contacted those who will help you along your journey, it is time to zoom in on “the little things”. Breaking your application journey into small, daily tasks is key; do each task to the best of your ability, and your final product will shine. Here are the steps to take in months two and three.

MONTH 2: WRITE YOUR WAY IN

Week 1

• Find your CV/ resume. Ensure that it reflects your latest and most relevant achievements in a convincing way. Your CV, like your personal statement, functions as a marketing document. It must be clear, cohesive, and as convincing as possible. If your CV needs to be updated, start tweaking it, and approach a friend or professional to help you review it once you are done.

• In month 1, week 3, you approached your recommenders. Now it is time to give your recommenders an information packet to refer to as they write on your behalf. It should include the main message you will explore in your personal statement, your CV, and information on your chosen program(s). Give them a specific date by which to submit their letter, and make them aware that you will remind them about the deadline. Add the dates to remind them to your personal calendar.

• Continue studying for your standardized test. Take a timed practice test at the end of the week, review it thoroughly, and note the areas which need improvement.

Week 2

• Begin writing your personal statement according to your time table. Create an outline that expounds on your main message, and start fleshing out the outline. If you are writing multiple statements, prioritize the one for the program you most want to get into or the one which will require the most effort (research, writing, editing). As much as is possible, work on one statement at a time.

• Continue updating your CV/ resume. Ensure it is focused on the impact you have had in relevant professional roles, not on the tasks you have performed in these jobs. Admissions officers don’t care that you “Entered data in a spreadsheet daily,” they care about what you made possible by doing that.

• Open an application at all the schools to which you will be applying. Thoroughly review each application form—ensure that you are aware of any and all short essays/ commentaries requested and the format in which you are expected to submit your CV (as a Word document or PDF file, or typed directly into a form the school supplies). This will help you accurately estimate how much time you need to complete each application.

• Continue studying for your standardized test. Take a timed practice test at the end of the week, review it thoroughly, and note the areas that still need improvement. Block out a few hours on the weekend to complete and review as many practice questions focused on your problem areas as possible.

Week 3

• Continue writing your main personal statement. Give yourself a deadline, by the end of the week, to send a completed draft to those reviewing your statement.

• On Thursday, use these three tips to make sure your personal statement draft is as strong as it can be. On Friday, send your draft, the writing prompt, and a description of the program to your editor.

• Continue updating your CV/ resume. Ensure it complements the main message in your personal statement. The information in your CV should corroborate what you explore in your personal statement. It should also tell a story of its own—one that has no holes.

• Continue studying for your standardized test. Take a timed practice test at the end of the week, review it thoroughly, and note the areas that require that you fine-tune your knowledge.

Week 4

• Send your CV/resume to a friend or a professional to be edited. Get help. Two sharp minds are better than one. It is much better to do everything you can to prepare a strong application and ensure that you only need to apply once than to submit a mediocre application and run the risk of having to reapply.

• Edit your main personal statement based on feedback you have received. It is important to find reviewers who you trust so that you don’t question the validity of their feedback.

• Check in on the delivery status of your recommendations and transcripts. Communicate with your recommenders in a respectful, eager manner, but not in an entitled manner.

• Review the application fees for each school and ensure you are on track to pay them.

• Continue studying for your standardized test. Take and review at least two timed practice tests during this week. Once you have mastered your problem areas, exposing yourself to as many past questions as possible will increase your confidence.

MONTH 3: TEST, FINALIZE YOUR WRITING, AND APPLY

By now, your main personal statement and your CV should be in robust shape. This means you should be able to complete both with as little as 30 minutes of work each day over the next few days.  It’s time to focus on writing additional personal statements, filling out your application forms, and taking any outstanding tests.

Weeks 1 and 2

• Review what you wrote down in month 1, week 1. Remind yourself why going to graduate school is the best move you can make in your life right now, then remind yourself that as important as this is to you, you have an abundance of options in your life. You don’t need to worry, because your ability to create and enjoy a fulfilling life does not rest solely on getting into your top choice school.

• Devote just an hour or two each day (or every other day) to writing and editing your remaining personal statements. As before, try to work on one statement at a time. If you find that you are staring at the computer screen but not making progress, ask those supporting you for help rather than letting the time go to waste. Sometimes a quick conversation is all you need to get ideas flowing.

• Remind your recommenders to upload their letters on your behalf. In your email, include the web links they must use to do so. Check each program’s application system for confirmation that the letters have been delivered.

• Take and review at least two timed practice tests during each week. In week 2, test closer towards the beginning of the week, and leave a few days between your last practice test and the actual test.

• Take your standardized test. You did it!

Week 3

• Devote three to four hours each day to editing and copyediting your personal statements and CV/resume. Ensure that you have followed all formatting directives, including margin widths, fonts, placement of your name and applicant number etc.

• Triple check that your recommendations and transcript(s) have been submitted.

Week 4

• • Upload your personal statements and CV/resume.
  • Complete your application forms. Review your forms to ensure you have uploaded the correct documents, according to submission regulations.

• Submit your applications.

Take a few days to rest and celebrate this bold step you have taken towards achieving the goals you have for yourself. Be sure to thank those who supported you during the process.

In the weeks to come, if you need to, start searching for scholarships that can give you more discretionary income with which to enjoy your graduate school experience. Otherwise, start thinking about how you want to spend the last few months before you head off to school. If you managed to impress the admissions committee, it won’t be long from now.

Found this helpful?

To get our one-on-support with your match application, email the word “GRADUATE” to shawna (at) memorableessay.com.

The post How To Apply To Graduate School In Three Months – Part II appeared first on Memorable Essay.

When overwhelmed by an impending deadline, applicants often go into complete paralysis. Others do the opposite—jump straight into hurried action—they open applications with a few schools they have been eyeing, ask for references, start studying for a standardized test, and begin editing their CV, all at once.  While you must take action, the best first step is to develop a big-picture view of why and how you will complete your application. Creating an informed strategy will save you time in the long run.

MONTH 1: STRATEGIZE AND START

Week 1

• Write down the three life goals that are most important to you. Beside each, write how going to grad school will help you fulfil it. This simple process helps you to come up with your “Why,” the main reasons you are applying. You are about to invest hundreds of hours, and maybe dollars, in this process; your “Why” will help keep you going when it gets challenging. Stick this list on your mirror or laptop, or inside a book you open often.

• Write down two fulfilling alternatives you can pursue if you choose not to go to grad school at this time. While it is important to believe that your application will be successful, acknowledging that you have other options can help you keep calm as you apply, when you interview, and as you wait for feedback.

• Take stock of your financial situation. Specifically, determine the budget you need to apply to, move to, and pay for graduate school. After doing this, you should know exactly how much external funding you need to pursue your studies, which will influence the schools and scholarships to which you apply.

Week 2

• List the attributes in a school that are most important to you, and start researching your options. Create a spreadsheet for recording the places that meet your criteria: Include their deadlines, contact information, as well as links to their selection criteria pages. Make note of the schools that require standardized tests, and record the average score of the last incoming class—if they don’t have the average displayed, call and inquire about it. This way you know the bar you have to reach.

• Review your list of schools and ensure that it includes at least two you are not overqualified for. Apply to some schools you are more than qualified for, ones you are a competitive candidate for, and a few that seem (objectively) just a bit out of your league. Each one must be a school you would be happy to attend. Depending on your field, ensure your final list has just the number of schools you need in order to have high chances of being admitted to at least two; you don’t need to overextend yourself.

• If you need to but have not already taken a standardized test (such as the GRE), do a practice test to see how close you are to the score you need to impress your top choice (above average). Depending on how far you are from the mark, get test prep help from friends, or register for a prep course. If possible, you can also target test-optional schools, programs that don’t require an entrance test at all, or places that put more weight on non-test achievements. Register for a test date 6–8 weeks away. If you excelled in the practice test, you can book a test date that is closer.

If you did not include travel tickets, food, and accommodations on test day in your budget (Week 1), go back and add these expenses.

• Conduct an audit of your social media accounts. Use a professional-looking photo for LinkedIn, make your Instagram account private if the message it portrays could undermine the message you will try to communicate through your application, remove Facebook photos and videos of you in compromising positions, and start ranting less on Twitter.

  Be aware that your applications might attract thorough scrutiny of your online footprint, and an admissions officer can use this digital trail to make conclusions about whether you would be a good fit for their school. It is in your best interest that your social media profiles portray your personality, values, and motivations in a way that complements the message in your application.

Week 3

• Create an application timetable similar to this one, but include dates and other details that are relevant to your situation. Include blocks of time to: study and practice for standardized tests, write your personal statement, update your CV/ resume, respond to emails from your schools and recommenders, and fill and review your application. These are priority hours in your life now; block them out on your calendar and show up for yourself.

• Get in touch with those you will ask to write your recommendations. Hopefully, these are people you have remained in touch with, but if not, update them on what you have been doing and how going to graduate school will help you achieve your life goals. Give them a date when they will hear from you with more specific guidance about what you need them to write.

• Identify a backup recommender. Don’t tell this person they are your backup. Simply email them to say hello, and update them on your latest activities. Sometimes those we trust disappoint us, and in case your chosen recommenders do not deliver, or if they deliver slapdash work, you must have someone else you can call on. You don’t want to be the qualified applicant begging someone you last spoke with three years ago to quickly write and submit a glowing recommendation on your behalf. Worse, you don’t want to be forced to submit a lazily written letter, because you had no backup.

• Begin studying for your standardized test according to your time table, and do a practice test at the end of the week. An integral part of studying is doing practice tests then carefully reviewing them. Don’t ever skip review. Go over questions you got wrong or found difficult, to ensure you understand their underlying concepts. Also, double check the soundness of the methods you used to arrive at the answers you did get right; guessing is not an ideal method.

• Contact the programs to which you will apply. Ask any genuine and relevant question on your mind. When doing so, without pandering, tell them briefly why their program is of interest to you. If you are located close to the school, one question you can ask is whether you can shadow a class in the program. Follow and interact with their social media accounts.

Week 4

• Order your transcript(s) for delivery to your schools or to you for uploading. This process can take many weeks, especially if you owe an institution money; take care of it now so you can submit your application on time.

• Review your transcript(s) for any period of prolonged poor academic performance (below what your dream school requires). Make a note of how you will explain these patterns, either in your personal statement or on the application’s “more information” section. If you experienced poor academic performance because of traumatic events like tragic family accidents, this is something recommenders can address on your behalf.

• Figure out the main message you will convey in your personal statement, regardless of the specific school to which you apply. If you have no idea where to start, use this free download. Once you have this down, go back and tailor this message to each school. Conveying a clear, coherent message about why your school and program should choose you is a must if you want to get an acceptance letter.

Continue studying for your standardized test. Consider alternative methods of strengthening your problem areas—YouTube videos, audio lectures, your old college notes, study groups. You can also email friends or former professors for help.

That’s month one! In month two, you will begin to write your application essays and sharpen your CV while still studying for your standardized test. If you don’t have to take such a test, or if you have already gotten it out of the way, you will be free to focus on writing. In month three, you will take your standardized test, buckle down on reviewing your application essays, and submit your application. Applying to graduate school in three months is not ideal, but it is doable.

Found this information useful? Be sure to share it on social media!

To get our one-on-support with your graduate school application, email the word “GRADUATE” to shawna (at) memorableessay.com.

The post How To Apply To Graduate School In Three Months – Part I appeared first on Memorable Essay.

Recommendations function somewhat as testimonials; they are written by people who have had a chance to assess your work over some extended period. Your recommendations should advocate for you.

Here are four tips for getting a strong recommendation:

1. Choose recommenders you trust—people who will portray you in a strong and positive light, and take the time to write something unique, relevant and grammatically correct. The best recommenders are people who feel personally invested in the outcome of your application.

2. Make it easy for your recommenders to pen a stellar letter—give them plenty of time to write! High school teachers will be busy in September, so go ahead and approach them before you leave school in May. Your former college professors may be busy with research or travel, so reconnect with them at least six months before you need a letter and let them know of your intentions.

3. Guide your recommenders. As I once heard someone say, “Who is more suited to toot your own horn than you?” You should have thoroughly researched the opportunity you are interested in and understood why it is perfectly suited to your goals, and why you deserve to win it. Communicate your selling points to your recommender; the most convenient way to do this is by talking with them, and then giving them a ‘brag sheet’ with bullet points of your relevant accomplishments as well as a copy of your resume or CV.

4. When getting more than one recommendation, approach people who can speak to different strengths. For example, if applying to a liberal arts institution that values students with broad interests, secure a recommendation from teachers who can speak to your strengths in disparate disciplines, e.g., in the arts and sciences. If applying to graduate school, approach someone who can speak to your academic prowess and someone else who can speak to your impact in professional settings.

BONUS : Don’t forget to thank your recommenders! One, it is thoughtful. Two, you might find yourself asking them to write on your behalf again and again.

Which strategies have you used to secure stellar recommendations?

The post How To Get A Strong Recommendation Letter: 4 Tips appeared first on Memorable Essay.