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based off multiple personal experiences

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“Oh, you’re an art history major! What do you want to do with that? Become a teacher?”

— Any adult who asks about my major

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lets get drunk and talk about art

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The person who had my book before me was shipping Michelangelo and Giorgio Vasari apparently. I don’t hate it.

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Sometimes I think that Vasari should have just minded his own business

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Can you do a moodboard for art history majors?

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hannibal & art moodboard: 1. francisco goya, boy staring at an apparition, (1824), 2. håkon gullvåg, sommerkveld, (1979), 3. bartolome montalvo, sea bream, (2013), 4. jean-pierre ruel, untitled, (unknown), 5. gustave moreau, the apparition, (1876), 6. caspar david friedrich, the monk by the sea, (1808), 7. arnold böcklin, the isle of the dead - third version, (1883), 8. agostino arrivabene, velario, (2017), 9. cy twombly, the fire that consumes all before it, (1978)

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Another view of the pyramids, Egypt

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Graduate School Application Guide

This post is going to be long and will cover general advice for graduate school applications. Some of the topics regarding applications I have already answered in previous separate posts or can make an individual and more detailed post about it, so if there’s anything you need more information on, please do not hesitate to contact me!

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

Before starting your application process you need to answer a couple of questions to yourself 

Why do you want to go to grad school?

What are you going to study?

Where are you going to study it?

Do you have a list of programs you’re planning to apply to?

Do you have a list of all of the steps that you will need to take during grad school applications?

Do you know how you will fund your studies?

Do you know which exams you will need to take for grad school applications?

Do you know all of your deadlines?

Once you’re done answering all of these questions, you may continue your application process.

MAKE A TIMELINE + TO-DO LIST

Before you get to this point, you have to go back to step “Before You Begin” and make sure that you have all of the programs picked out that you’re going to apply to. Then look at the program websites and focus on the application and admissions sections. You need to make sure that you fit all of the criteria and it will be different based on where you’re from and where you’re applying to! The general criteria that postgraduate programs are looking at are

Previous Academic Education - your undergraduate program

Grades - you have to meet GPA requirements

Motivation - this refers to your personal statement/motivation letter/statement of purpose, etc.

References - usually require two academic references

Extra curricular activities - volunteering, internships, etc.

CV or Resume - you need to make one and make sure that it is up to date (has to be based on your academics, not job experiences, unless the two are linked together)

Then you need to make a timeline and a to-do list for yourself to make sure that you get everything done. I would start working on gathering all of the necessary documents for your applications, such as asking for academic references, scanning passport copies, having a digital passport photo of your face, ordering transcripts, translating documents if necessary, etc. 

REFERENCES

Asking for references is difficult because often people don’t know who to ask for a good reference. I would advise to build relationships and network with your professors during your undergrad years and asking references from your academic advisers, mentors, research supervisors. Essentially people who know you well and can write you a good reference for you! For example, I thought of asking for a reference from our psychology department chair would be impressive; however, my mentor warned me that they only write very general references and recommended a professor who was my academic advisor and practicum course instructor and could write me a good reference! Also I was able to network with professors during undergrad and was offered written reference letters from different professors on more than one occasion (this is how you know you’re doing well 👌🏻), so network and receive good reference letters!

CV OR RESUME

Depending on whether you’re applying to programs in the US or everywhere else in the world, this might be a necessary/unnecessary step. If you need a CV or a resume don’t forget that they’re different and have different formatting, so do your research! Actually, I’ve already done research for you, so just look at these links:

CV vs. Resume: The Difference and When to Use Which

The Difference Between a Resume and a Curriculum Vitae

4 Stellar Resume and CV Templates for Graduate School

4 Successful Graduate School Resume and CV Examples

Resumes and CVs by Cornell University Graduate School Department

How to Write a Resume for Graduate School: 5 Expert Tips

GradRes Info (this one has amazing resume examples!)

Resume Writing Tips by Studenting

A Guide to Writing Your Resume by Night-Studying

CV/Resume Advice by Queendread

ESSAYS

I had to write a motivational letter but depending on where you live and where you will be applying they could also be called statement of purpose, statement of motivation, personal statement or letters of intent. They’re all different, so I would suggest Googling examples of the one that you will have to write. I would also advise looking at the letter/essay examples for your program, such as “Neuroscience motivational letter examples”, etc. 

I will be writing a separate blog post on motivational letter writing but my general advice is to

Plan out your letter/essay by making an outline of everything that you will discuss

Write a rough draft 

Edit, edit, edit

Send it to a couple of people you can trust for feedback and further comments on what you can edit

Know your word limit, usually it should all fit into one page (but this depends on where you’re applying)

Here are a couple of useful links:

Write a Graduate School Essay that Will Knock their Socks Off

Graduate School - Statement by University of California Berkeley

3 Successful Graduate School Personal Statement Examples

How to Write a Graduate School Personal Statement

Write a Successful Motivation Letter for Your Master’s

Sample Letters of Intent for Graduate School

Cliches to Avoid for Essays by Studiyng

Writing the “Why X University?” Prompt by Etudiance

Personal Statement Do’s and Dont’s by Motivastudy

Personal Statement Suggestions by WayfaringMD

Personal Statement How-To-’Stravaganza by WayfaringMD

How to Be Attractive to Graduate Admissions Committees by Mertina Writing Services

If you need help writing your undergraduate/postgraduate personal statements and you would like me to peer-review it for you, I would gladly do it! I helped out one of my followers last year and they got accepted into their postgraduate program, so just send me a private message!

INTERVIEWS

I have a separate post all about interview questions and tips. Not all programs will offer interviews, but most should. Don’t panic if you’re offered an interview, it’s a good sign! It means they’re interested and would like to learn more about you and it is a great way for you to provide them with a sales pitch about yourself! 

Here are some other useful links:

Grad School Skype Interview Prep

How to be Good at Interviews by Junlistudies

EXAMS, TESTS, TEST PREP

Find out if you need to take exams like the GRE to complete your grad school application. In the US you have to submit a GRE score and if you’re applying abroad then chances are you will need to submit an English language proficiency test, such as TOEFL, IELTS, etc. 

I was registered to take the TOEFL test; however, I was able to get an excuse for my degree (because of my bilingual situation) but I have a separate blog post on TOEFL prep tips. 

Useful websites where you can find online courses for these tests are:

Edx.org

Coursera.org

That-Trilingual-Girl’s How To Slay TOEFL post

SUBMITTING THE APPLICATION FORM

Once you gather all of the necessary documents, finish writing and editing your essay, know that your academic references were sent and delivered and you’re registered for the necessary tests you are able to submit your application! Congratulations! Let the waiting for decisions period begin! 

I hope this guide was somewhat useful, as it was difficult to write keeping in mind that each program and university have different application processes! Everything depends on your previous academic background, career goals and where you would like to apply but if you’ve just finished undergrad and/or don’t know where to begin with grad school apps then I think this post will give you a general idea of what you should be looking forward to! 

Stay tuned for more posts from this series! If you would like to read more from me, click HERE to see other blog posts! You can also follow my studygram HERE for some inspiration! 

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Do you ever get hit with the unwelcome realization that the rest of your life is going to be like this, and you feel like you've been punched in the gut by the Hulk? Like... you suddenly realize that every, single day of the entire remainder of your life is going to be an exhausting, painful, uphill struggle for survival... and the resulting wave of shock and grief and anger that washes over you is so overwhelming, that you actually feel like you've had the wind knocked out of you?

I don't want to live my life in survival mode.

It's not fair.

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don’t feel guilty if your chronic illness prevents you from doing something one day that you were able to do a different day, chronic illness has its ups and downs and that’s ok

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ICONIC

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