Graduate Studies

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Graduate Studies

• Oh Canada Education Consulting Center
• Oh America Education Consulting Center

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Overview

• Selecting schools
• Preparing Documents

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Conduct a Self Assessment

• What are your Goals?
• Immediate
• 5 Years
• Long-Term
• Knowing your goals will help you pick schools
  that can help you get there

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Conduct a Self Assessment
What type of degree do you want? MA MS MBA Rese
arch or Classroom-focused 1 year 2 year Other
length Also When do you want to start? Know
the difference between starting your Masters
degree and starting your language studies
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How to Select Schools

• Step 1 Self Assessment - Qualifications
• Test Scores and transcripts
• Work and Research Experience
• Personal Experience

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Conduct a Self Assessment
Grade Point Average (GPA) (Have you requested
your transcripts yet?) What is your overall
GPA? What is your GPA for the last 2 years of
university? BIG QUESTION How do US and Canadian
universities view test scores (GRE/GMAT) and
GPAs? - Is one more important? Truth is that
both are important but are usually not going to
make or break your application.
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Conduct a Self Assessment
And Dont Forget About EXAMS!! TOEFL / IELTS
Your score vs. minimum score GRE Taking it?
Your score vs. minimum or average score GMAT
Taking it? Your score vs. minimum or average
score Will you need Intensive English
preparation? Are you looking for Conditional
Admission? If so, what kind? TOEFL waiver vs.
deferred TOEFL?
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How to Select Schools

• Step 2 Financial Assessment
• Tuition costs
• Living costs
• Scholarships and other funding

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How to Select Schools

• Step 3 Other Considerations
• Location
• Size of City
• Campus culture
• Alumni and Job Opportunities

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How to Select Schools

• Step 4 Find Suitable Schools and Programs
• Search Engines Petersons, etc.
• Education Fairs
• Resource Centers OC/OA center
• Talk to companies

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How to Select Schools

• Step 4 Final School Selection
• Reach Schools
• Target Schools
• Safe Schools
• Strategies for scholarship applications

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Making Successful Applications

• Step 1 Supporting documents
• Essays
• SOP
• Personal Statement
• Study Plan
• Letters of Recommendation
• Resume

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The Big Picture

• Dont forget what you are trying to accomplish
• gain admission to graduate school!
• Schools are looking for reasons to admit, not
  reject give them reasons
• Be Specific and personal tell a story only you
  could write.
• Written content is to fill in gaps not found
  elsewhere and provide information on soft
  credentials or subjective skills
• Show that you fit the individual schools program
• The Medium is the Message Write well
• Simply put, its all about What you say and How
  you say it

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RUTQ Read Understand the Question

• You must fully understand the question and
  respond to the specific question being asked.
• Many Questions look similar, but have subtle
  differences
• Be careful in re-using SOPs or essays
• Start with the essays from your most sought after
  school
• Pitfalls of not following this advice

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What You Say

• Collecting Content Through Self Assessment
• General themes Who are you? Why do you want to
  go to grad school? What do you want? Where are
  you going?
• Three areas to collect information from
• Academic
• Work
• Personal experience
• Make sure content is personal, honest and
  relevant
• Show analytical and critical thinking ability
  through your content.
• Be selective!

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What You Say
Collecting Content Through Self
Assessment Include information on your values
and personal philosophy what makes you
tick! Remember schools want to know the
person Include content that shows you will fit
into the particular program you are applying to
know the program! Include references to faculty
work or current topics in the field that are
relevant to your interest. Redefine weaknesses
into terms that are favourable to you.
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Things to Avoid

• NEVER try to second guess the admissions
  committee do not write what you think they want
  to hear.
• NEVER include things not relevant to your
  application
• AVOID controversial content religion,
  politics, personal/political viewpoints,
  strange/unconventional content content from when
  you were in high school or earlier content about
  families
• NEVER use clichés or quotations they have all
  been used before and are unoriginal.
• NEVER include details included on your resume
• NEVER stroke your ego show your good points
  through experiences and other peoples evaluations

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Things to Avoid

• NEVER include information that is outside of
  your person, i.e. details about work duties
  rather you should show how the duties have
  effected you ad your values.
• NEVER over explain weakness
• NEVER be vague and grandiose in your goals
• NEVER use gimmicks, be over creative or too
  cutesy -- show that you are a mature, young
  professional through your presentation.
• NEVER go over stated limits. Be concise. Avoid
  excessive addendums the thicker the file, the
  thicker the person

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The Information Collection Process

• Brainstorming Research Take stock of your
  background, experiences, abilities, and goals.
• Part 1
• Think about your past
• What were my academic achievements?
• What kinds of work and/or research did I do, both
  during and after university?
• What aspects of my personal background might be
  useful to note down?
• Also
• What are my weaknesses?
• Do I have a personal philosophy?

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The Information Collection Process

• Brainstorming Research Take stock of your
  background, experiences, abilities, and goals.
• Part 2
• Questions to consider
• What were my strongest subjects as an
  undergraduate? How did my academic experiences
  influence my choice of major and my decision to
  attend graduate school?
• When did my interest in the profession that I
  hope to enter after leaving graduate school first
  develop?
• What do I want to be doing in five years?
• What are my favorite extracurricular activities?
  Why do these mean so much to me?

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The Information Collection Process

• Brainstorming Research Do Your Research
• Know your audience
• Make sure you know plenty about the school you
  are applying to and the department you are
  applying to.
• Look for keywords in their literature that appeal
  to you, and use those key words in your essays.
• Example, if an engineering program puts a focus
  on small-group learning, and if this style
  appeals to you, mention this fact in your
  personal statement where appropriate.

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The Information Collection Process
Brainstorming and research Break down into
three areas 1) Talk to your friends, family,
classmates, counselors and/or professors about
this content. 2) Check your essay topics. What
will you have to write (SOP, Personal Statement,
etc.)? 3) Edit your content and keep most
relevant and strongest information. 4) Does
anything about your past jump out at you? In
your content do you see information which tells a
unique story about you?
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Organizing Your Content

• Review and organize all content into similar
  groups
• Arrange information groups into logical order,
  i.e. time flow, etc.
• Flesh out content
• Conduct more research and repeat process, if
  necessary
• Common templates for writing
• - Time progression
• - Learning or research content
• - Work advancement
• - Development of values
• - Research interest

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How You Say It The Writing Process

• Write an initial outline
• Whats your Main Idea?
• Write it down
• What are your supporting ideas?
• Write them down
• Whats your Hook/Angle?
• Every good essay tells a story and every good
  story has a hook what will keep readers
  interested?
• For example A grad school applicant with
  ordinary grades but outstanding achievements in
  other areas might want to focus the essay on the
  one great thing she did in university vs. the
  other mediocre things that do not impress.

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How You Say It The Writing Process

• Divide your outline into paragraph-form
• One paragraph for each supporting idea
• Include topic sentences, supporting sentences,
  and a strong closure with your last paragraph
• Basic Example
• Main Idea Why I am a good candidate for ___
  Universitys MBA program.
• LEG 1 My work experience is relevant Ive had
  experience managing both projects and people
• LEG 2 My undergraduate degree gave me a good
  quantitative foundation
• LEG 3 I have goals relevant to the completion of
  an MBA
• LEG 4 My personal and professional experiences
  will add to the variety of the MBA class
  participants.
• THEREFORE, I am an excellent candidate for the
  program.

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How You Say It The Writing Process

• Write Your First Draft
• Check your first draft on your own and make your
  own revisions
• Does each paragraph have a specific focus?
• Does the essay have a logical flow, with a clear
  introduction, good supporting ideas, and a strong
  conclusion?
• Does your essay tell a unique story about you
  that is not already stated in your application?
• After you check it once, check it again for
  obvious errors of spelling, grammar, punctuation,
  etc.

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How You Say It The Writing Process

• Review Send Your Final Draft
• Next, ask a friend, colleague, family member or
  professor to review the essay(s) one last time.
• Its best to pick someone who has already done
  graduate studies overseas so that they will be
  familiar with the challenges you face.
• Revise as needed
• When youre done
• Send the essays to a professional essay reviewer
• When you get your essay back, review it to make
  sure it is your own voice, make any changes you
  deem fit.

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Specific Areas of Study
Different Programs Look for Different
Things Business School (MBA) Usually include
series of essays rather than just a basic SOP or
Personal Statement Law (LLM) More emphasis on
quality of writing usage of grammar and clarity
of presentation simple and straightforward
rather than wordy commonsense rather than overly
creative clear motivation and goals capacity
for research work Humanities Programs Style,
energy, imagination, originality, future
orientation, clarity of goals and how goals
relate to the degree Science / Engineering
English ability familiarity with issues in their
chosen field research experience or interests
general clarity of goals future-oriented
evidence of analytical ability (even in analysis
of failures)
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Not all Writing is Alike

• Different Types of Writing Your Approach
• A Statement of Purpose (SOP)
• A detailed description of the career the
  applicant intends to pursue after graduation.
• A Personal Statement
• More elaborate than an SOP and autobiographical
  in nature, it tells the story about why you have
  chosen to apply to a particular school, why you
  have chosen to take a specific course of study,
  and your plans after graduation.
• An Application Essay
• Any essay assigned to you by the school or
  schools you are applying to. SOPs and Personal
  Statements are application essays, as are
  short-essay questions (often asked by MBA
  programs).

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Not all Writing is Alike

• Different Types of Writing Your Approach
• Letters of Recommendation
• A Letter, written by a colleague, professor or
  supervisor, supporting your application to
  graduate school.
• A Recommender Form
• Some schools request that recommenders fill out
  special survey and/or comment forms rather than
  writing a letter.
• A Resume or CV (Curricula Vitae)
• A chronological listing of an applicants work,
  professional, research, publication, volunteer,
  and /or extracurricular experiences.

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Finding the Right Recommenders

• Letters of Recommendation (or Recommender Forms)
  You will need anywhere from 1 to 3
• Who to ask?
• Graduate school professors and perhaps one from
  the employer if youre asked.
• MBA / Business MA or MS employer or a
  recommender with experiential knowledge of your
  professional abilities (former client, partner,
  mentor, etc.)
• Schools will normally be specific with regard to
  who can serve as a recommender. Follow their
  specifications exactly.
• When to ask?
• Ask early!
• Follow your schedule
• Make sure your recommenders know your (not the
  schools) deadline!

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Finding the Right Recommenders

• What to give them?
• Along with the recommendation form or
  letter-writing instructions, provide them with
• Your resume
• Your career goals (an essay or simple list)
• List of strengths weaknesses
• List of projects you and your recommender have
  worked on together.
• Description of your target schools

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Finding the Right Recommenders

• Content in a Letter of Recommendation
• Nature of relationship with candidate
• Explain how candidate entered school or work
  compare to other options
• Specific comparisons to other people in program
  or work environment
• Description of work content supervised
• Assessment of work/research capability
• Assessment of leadership/independent work skills
• Assessment of future potential
• Small commentary of opinions of candidates
  personality
• Length 1 - 1.5 pages

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Making Successful Applications

• Step 2 Preparing application packages
• Filling out Forms
• Final presentation
• Beating the Deadlines

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Conclusion

• Think of your questions
• Visit with schools
• Come and visit us
• Http//ohstudy.net
• 2741-8800