Hi all! I’ve been toying with a new idea for a while and I’ve decided to officially go through with it after speaking with some friends who are applying for graduate school this cycle. I remember starting my graduate school application process and feeling lost, overwhelmed, and worried. The process feels complicated and disorganized, and there are few helpful sources for guidance. So the purpose of my series is to provide a step by step guide for those applying to graduate school, specifically psychology PhD programs, although I hope it can be useful for applying to other types of programs.
If you’re thinking about graduate school, these questions might be on your mind…
- What type of program is right for me?
- Would a masters degree or Ph.D. be a better fit?
- Am I qualified?
- Where do I want to live?
- Am I financially able to pursue a graduate degree?
- What type of financial support could I get at my program?
- Do I need to take (or retake) the GRE?
- What is the application process like?
- How much do applications cost?
The list could go on! I remember sitting in a coffee shop in San Francisco in July of 2018 with multiple spreadsheets open on my computer as I was just starting to think about these questions. It was scary, but also exciting. I hope that this series will be useful in breaking down each step of the process based on my own experiences, including the good and the bad!