When to Apply

With the number of graduate school applications received by institutions of higher learning on the rise, the issue of when to apply for admission has become very important. There are perfect times to begin and end the application process. You should begin at least a year before you plan to enter school (sooner if you’re a nontraditional candidate or are changing fields). Find out the following essential dates as early as possible and incorporate them into your own personal application schedule:

• standardized test registration deadlines
• transcript deadlines (some schools send out transcripts only on particular dates)
• letters-of-recommendation due dates
• application deadlines (submit your application as early as possible to ensure that you get a fair and comprehensive review)
• financial aid forms deadlines (federal/state programs, universities, and independent sources of aid all have definite deadlines)

Setting Up an Application Schedule

We’ve organized the following “seasonal” schedule to help you understand how to proceed through the admissions process.

Winter (18–20 months prior to start date)

• If you’re a nontraditional applicant or plan to switch fields, begin investigating program requirements. Take courses to make up any missing portion of your background.

Spring (16–18 months prior to start date)

• Browse through program catalogs and collect information on different grants and loans. Create your own graduate school library.

Summer

• Request applications from schools. If they’re not available yet, ask for last year’s so you can get a feel for the questions you’ll have to answer.
• Write a draft of your personal statement and show it to trusted friends and/or colleagues for feedback.
• Consider registering for the GRE in the fall. This will give you plenty of time to submit your scores with your application.
• Research your options for test preparation. Take the test included in this book to give you a good idea of where you stand with regard to the GRE.

Early Fall

• Ask for recommendations. Make sure that your recommenders know enough about you to write a meaningful letter. Ask them first if they would be willing to write you recommendations and then ask how much lead time they would need. Once your recommenders have agreed to write recommendations, make sure to give them clear deadlines so you can avoid any timing conflicts.

Late Fall

• Take the GRE.
• Request applications from schools, if you haven’t already done so.
• Request institutional, state, and federal financial aid materials from school aid offices.
• Request information on independent grants and loans.
• Order transcripts from your undergraduate (and any graduate) institution(s).
• Follow up with your recommenders, sending a thank-you note to those who have sent their recommendations in already.

Winter

• Fill out applications. Mail them as early as possible.
• Fill out financial aid applications. Mail these early as well.
• Make sure your recommendation writers have the appropriate forms and directions for mailing. Remind them of deadline dates.

Spring

• Sit back and relax (if you can). Most schools indicate how long it will take to inform you of their decision. This is also a crucial time to solidify your financial plans as you begin to receive offers of aid (with any luck).

The timing described here is approximate, and you needn’t follow it exactly. The most important thing for you to do is make yourself aware of strict deadlines well in advance so that you’ll be able to devote plenty of quality time to your application. In the next chapter, we’ll go over the application process in detail.