Planning: your first step to succeed in your PhD application

Meet your new best friend: the checklist! (Image: Pixabay)

The most important step in your whole PhD application is planning. And, when I say planning it does not only mean thinking about it, but rather writing down deadlines, program options, fees, prerequisites, and actions you must do in order to achieve your goal. Thus, I would like to list below some important components usually found in a PhD application, to which you should be prepared.

1. Choose your PhD program. This may seem a bit obvious, but some people may have more than one program option to enroll in order to research their desired topic. So, do your digging and find the right program that suits your career objectives. Your choice should be very clear for you because you will have to explain to the committee why you chose that program.
2. Search for universities. After you have chosen your program, find the best institution to apply for. There are a lot of criteria that you could use to help you decide which school to attend. For exemple, you could look the raking position of the school or of the particular program online. Other factors you could consider are faculty, research topics, region, etc. You could ask your current or former advisor for suggestions too. Last but not least, you should choose the universities which you have the prerequisites to enter.
3. Prerequisites. These are some of the common prerequisites you should have prior to applying for a graduate program in the US.
   
   A) English proficiency exam. If your native language is not English, or if you did not graduate from an English speaking university, you will probably have to prove your language proficiency by presenting TOEFL iBT/IELTS test scores. Each school sets their own minimum. You should check those before applying.
   
   B) GRE General Test. It stands for Graduate Record Examinations. The GRE General Test has three parts: Verbal Reasoning (English comprehension questions), Quantitative Reasoning (Math problems), and Analytical Writing (two essays). Again, each school sets their own minimum. You should check those before applying.
   
   C) GRE Subject Test. Some schools, especially the most competitive ones, will likely require this test too. The subject you should take will depend on your program field.
   
   D) Transcripts. You must send your college transcripts (with the courses you took and your grades) in English. In the US, an official transcript is that sent from one institution to another. Any document sent by the student to the university is considered unofficial.
   
   E) Recommendation letters. Usually three recommendation letters are required. These should be written by professors who you worked with(in research, perhaps) or had class with. Be sure that the professor you ask those to likes you, so that his/hers letter actually contributes positively towards your application.
   
   F) Personal statement. This is an essay, one to two pages long, in which you express your desire to enter in the program. In it, you will report you past experience that led you to pursue a graduate program and state you career goals and how this graduate program will contribute to it.
4. Deadlines. Most programs in the US start on the Fall term (August-September) and the deadline for application is usually December-January. However, some universities and departments offer programs that start on the Spring term. So, read the information on your desired program website to be aware of the deadlines for application.
5. Fees. Most universities will charge you with an application fee and the amount varies between schools. From my searches, I have seen they vary from 50 to 125 US dollars. These are usually paid by credit card. Beware! Some schools might waive your application fee. So, only pay for it if you are required to.
6. Online application form. This is where everything comes together. All of the prerequisites I have mentioned above will be uploaded or referred to on the online application form. Fill it carefully and if you have any questions on how to fill any information, send an e-mail to the graduate office.

Well, if you made it here, congratulations! This is a big picture of the application process. The next posts will be derived from your questions. So, after reading this, if you want to know more about any of the steps, state you question in the comment section, and I will be sure to prepare a post about it. Or, if it is too simple or specific, I might just answer you comment.

HELPFUL RESOURCES

1. Planning timeline. Here is very visual and interesting timeline which includes the main activities you should do while applying for a graduate program and the desired time frame to do them. I got it from the American Chemical Society website.
2. GRE General Test. Here are some materials to help you prepare for the test. I would also recommend you purchase and use the Ready4GRE app at your preferred app store.
3. TOEFL iBT. Here is a practice test from Magoosh TOEFL Blog.
4. GRE Subject Test (Chemistry). Here is a practice book taken from the ETS website.