Researching grad programs

Once you decide to go to graduate school, the next step is knowing where you want to go. You don’t need to have just one specific school in mind, but you need to know of a few schools that you are interested in applying to.

It seems obvious that your next step is knowing what schools and programs you are interested in, but it really is imperative. You need to research programs to find out what tests you need to take to apply, like the Graduate Record Exam (GRE), and you need to know how much time you have to apply. I recommend starting this search as soon as possible, especially because it takes time to prepare for the test and receive your scores.

Searching for a grad school or program can be hard, especially because there are so many schools and programs in the U.S. I talked to one of my communication professors about where to apply. She recommended Kent State University, The Ohio State University, West Virginia University, Pennsylvania State University, Ohio University and The University at Buffalo.

I was not interested in all of these schools, but her recommendations gave me a good starting point. I researched all of these schools online and looked into their communication programs.

Another good way to find programs is to research schools in the location you live or would like to live. I’m from Ohio, so I wanted to stay close to or within the state.

If you have no preferences for location, you can start with The Princeton Review website. It allows you to search for schools based on the area of study you are interested in. It does not contain a complete list of schools, but it will list several large schools with the specified program.

Once I researched a school, I created a document that listed the communication programs offered, application deadlines, availability of assistantships and stipends, application fees and whether they required GRE scores.

By taking notes on each school, I was able to easily eliminate ones that did not offer the programs I was interested in. Knowing the application deadlines for schools that offered my program helped me to prepare for the months ahead.

An important factor for me when looking at grad schools was whether they offered assistantships and stipends. I had no intent on paying for grad school, so I knew right away if I could eliminate a school.

Having a list of requirements in mind when searching for programs can be extremely helpful in finding the grad school that is best for you.

A desire to learn

The decision to go to grad school and continue with an education can be difficult, especially after four years of undergrad and the possibility of beginning a well-paying career. I always figured I would get a job right after graduation, and I had never even considered getting my master’s until my junior year of college.

During my first trimester of junior year, I took the class Communication Theory and Research. Research had never appealed to me before, but this class changed my views of writing research papers.

I was in a research group with fellow students Alicia and Lindsay. Together we decided to explore the framing of Muslims in American media. We chose this topic because the class took place during the time of the anniversary of the September 11 attacks, the proposed building of the Islamic Center in New York City and threats of burning the Quran by a pastor in Florida.

We also thought this was a good topic because other groups in our class were researching Teen Mom and Jersey Shore. We wanted to write on a topic that sounded a little more academic than trashy teens and fist pumping.



Alicia, Lindsay and I (left) received trophies
after we presented our research. 

After working on this paper during the entire term, we were able to produce a 28-page paper titled “The Content Analysis of the Portrayal of Muslims in American Media." Our professor was very happy with our work and encouraged us to submit it to the James C. McCroskey and Virginia P. Richmond Undergraduate Scholars Conference.

We submitted our paper to the conference and were not only accepted, but we placed in the top four for undergraduate research papers out of more than 125 submissions. This meant we were able to travel to Arlington, Va. in April last year to present our research.

At the conference, many graduate schools with communication programs were present. Our professor kept telling us how they would want to recruit us to their programs, and I was excited about these prospects. This conference was the first time I seriously considered graduate school.

Since that conference, our paper has been published in Communication: A Publication of the Pacific and Asian Communication Association, which can be found here. It has also placed in the top five for undergraduate and graduate research papers at the University of Buffalo Research Symposium.

All of these experiences have been so enjoyable that I am looking forward to being a graduate student and having the opportunity to conduct research, write scholarly papers and present my findings to communication professors.

If you're considering grad school, I think it’s important to have a real desire to learn and have a good idea of why you want to go. Otherwise, you may regret staying in school when you could be out earning a salary and gaining job experience.

The 'real world' is near... maybe

I have about two months until graduation. Once I finish these next eight weeks of classes, I will have a bachelor’s degree in communication.

Now what do I do with it?

I have never really had a clear idea with what I want to do with my life. I’ve always wished that as a kid I knew exactly what I wanted to be when I grew up, but I was never like that. My sister always wanted to be a teacher, and she is one now, just like my mom. I, however, have had many great career plans since I was young. I’ve had dreams of being a candy maker, a veterinarian, a spy (after Harriet the Spy, of course), a teacher and an author.

When I started college, all I knew was that I enjoyed writing, and so I decided to major in communication. Once I started writing for the college’s newspaper, my career goal was to be an editor of a fashion magazine. Even though that still sounds appealing, I’m not interested in moving to New York City or having to wait many years to be promoted to an editor position.

For various reasons, I’ve decided to continue my education. While many seniors are busy searching for jobs, I’ve spent the last few months searching for and applying to graduate schools.

I’ve decided to go to grad school partly because I don’t know what I want to do with my life and partly because I’m terrified of the “real world.” But mostly, I’ve decided to go because I think I want to teach communication at a college or university. A master’s degree will give me more time to figure out my life and the education to pursue the career path of professor.

Both searching for and applying to graduate schools has been a long process. There is so much to do including taking the GRE, sending transcripts, obtaining letters of recommendation and making a final decision. Not to mention, there are so many costs involved with applying to grad school that I definitely didn’t account for.

Even though I’m not an expert on grad schools, I’ve recently gone through the application process, and I’m getting close to make an important decision that will affect my life, at least for the next two years.

So for advice on grad schools from one perspective student to another, keep reading.