So I have just finished going through the graduate school decision process, which was pretty stressful but I am glad that it is finally over now. I have decided to attend the English PhD Program at UCLA, which is a really big change for me since I will be have to move to the West coast and away from my family and friends but it is also something that I am excited about. My post this week will center around some things I learned in the process and hopefully it will be of help to those who are perhaps going through a similar dilemma, about what college or grad school to attend.

Visit or at the very least contact the school to learn more about the program you are interested in. Although visiting universities will probably be difficult especially for those who are still finishing up school or have work/family obligations, I would strongly urge people to make the personal trip if they can. There is no better way to know whether a school is a good fit for you than to physically experience the campus life and meet with some of the students and faculty members. Some schools even offer to compensate your travel expenses so it is always good to ask. The English Department at Boston College funded my trip and organized a really great schedule for me to learn more about the school. Although I did not end up going to the college it is good to explore all of your options as fully as possible. As for UCLA, I could not attend the open house week scheduled for prospective English PhD students but I did converse with a lot of professors from the department via phone and email. I was really nervous about calling but overall I found that those phone conversations were the most helpful because I was able to speak directly with the professors and learn about their research and from that I realized that UCLA would be the best place for me to further my academic studies.

Below are a list of a few things I think are important to figure out about a school:

1. What kinds of research are the professors and grad students in your department doing and how well do they coincide with your own?

2. What kind of environment does that department have? Is it a comfortable safe place or a ruthlessly competitive one?

3. What types of courses does the department offer grad students?

4. How large is the program? How many professors are there and how many students are in your cohort? This is important because in really small programs students can suffer if the one faculty member in their field dies, leaves, or retires. Similarly if you decide to change your research interest, it is better to be part of a larger program that can better accommodate that transition.

5. Are there other institutions, programs, and facilities on campus that will help supplement your research interests?

Weigh your financial packages very carefully. This particularly applies to students who are aiming for a PhD because the process is extremely long and sadly not very financially rewarding. Especially for humanities fields, the PhD track can range anywhere from 5-8 years and to not receive a stipend that time will lead you to incur debts you probably won’t be able to back in a timely fashion with your teaching salaries. Money should not be the most important factor in your decision but it is still a practical consideration that you need to take into account. I have never done this myself but I heard if you let a school know that you have other offers, the school may decide to match that package or offer you an even better one. Unfortunately my process was slightly different, where I received really great financial and academic offers from the CUNY Grad Center and UCLA.

Last and most importantly- Consider Happiness and opportunities for Personal Growth. It is really important that in deciding what school to attend that you do not compromise your happiness in the process. It was initially really difficult for me to even consider going to UCLA because I would have to move to the West coast and be away from my family, friends, and especially my twin sister who I am really close with. I also have a lot of social anxieties so I was worried about adjusting and how happy I would be in UCLA, especially being enrolled in a rigorous PhD program where I could easily get swallowed up by my work and research. But finally looking past all the negatives, I began to realize that it would be a great chance for personal growth for both me and my sister. I can enter a new exciting academic community and meet great people and while being in an unfamiliar environment will be uncomfortable and possibly miserable for the first few months or years or so, people do eventually find their place. I will still be far away on another coast but I definitely plan to keep in touch with everyone in New York through facebook and skype and even occasionally come back for winter and summer break. So right now UCLA seems to be much more exciting and fun, although as the date of departure nears I will probably feel more anxious and scared. ^^

Well that is all for now and I hope that was somewhat helpful. =]