Questions about graduate schools in general?

Graduate School
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<p>I am still a HIGH SCHOOL junior, so I don't really need to think about this for a long time. But my family doesn't really understand this whole process, so I have a few questions.</p>

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<li><p>What is taken into consideration when applying to graduate schools? ie. does the school or the degree matter in the end. I would like to go to ut dallas (mainly because it would be inexpensive), but if i apply to a graduate school for engineering (just an example: mit) would ut dallas really come into the picture? or are the gre and the transcript and stuff more important?</p></li>
<li><p>What exactly is the difference between the gre and the gmat? </p></li>
<li><p>Does undergrad prepare you well for those exams, or would i need to work on them by myself?</p></li>
<li><p>Lastly, is it the norm to take a 2-3 year break after undergrad, to see if you really need the degree in graduate school? or can one apply and attend grad schools fresh out of undergrad?</p></li>
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<p>I honestly have no idea about any of these topics :P</p>

2

<ol>
<li><p>The GRE and transcript are two of the less-important factors in graduate admissions. More important are your academic letters of recommendation and research/professional experiences in the field in question. For example, if we were to talk about history, Person X with a 3.4 GPA, a published senior thesis and time spent working at a major museum likely has an advantage over Person Y with a 3.6 GPA but no publications or experience.</p></li>
<li><p>Two different exams for two different sets of programs. Of academic graduate programs that require a test, very few accept the GMAT as a substitute for the GRE.</p></li>
<li><p>Depends on your level of undergraduate preparation. Some studying might be helpful to refresh yourself with the trickeries used by standardized tests, but it’s not worth killing yourself over. The GRE is nowhere near as important to grads as the SAT is for undergrads.</p></li>
<li><p>Your application cannot be hurt by taking a break. Many students know right away that they want to pursue graduate studies and go straight through. Many others take time to explore working opportunities, internships, etc. before returning to school. There is no right or wrong answer - both methods work.</p></li>
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<ol>
<li>Your college matters indirectly. At face value, going to UT-Dallas won’t keep you out of grad school in the sense that professors won’t look at your application and say “Ugh, UT-Dallas, not worthy of our program <em>toss.</em>” It’s a more indirect thing. First of all professors at top grad schools tend to be more familiar with the professors at departments at other top schools. If you’re applying to MIT, you’ll be competing with GA Tech and MIT and Columbia grads. So professors will say, “Oh, Sally James worked with Professor T at Tech? I went to grad school with Professor T/collaborated on that project with Professor T/cite Professor T in my own work, so I know she’s doing good work” or “I know I can trust this letter from Professor T.” Your UT-Dallas department will be more of an unknown, so you will have to distinguish yourself in other ways.</li>
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<p>Other indirect ways are the internships you’ll have access to (top department professors and career centers can place their students in top summer research & industry internships), library holdings (expensive schools can spend more money on library holdings, which can mean that Sally James’ papers may be better researched than yours simply because of what she has access to) and course offerings (Sally James may get to take more specific classes in her interest area and learn more advanced techniques because the courses are offered at her great university, whereas your university’s offerings are more basic.)</p>

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<li>Quickly:</li>
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<p>-The biggest difference is that the GMAT is computer adaptive, which means that how you do on the first question affects the difficulty level of the next question presented. Difficult questions are worth more points, and you cannot skip questions or change your answers. The GRE used to be like that, but the test-makers have revised the test to a non-adaptive format in which each question is worth the same amount and you can skip questions and return to them, or change your answers on past questions.</p>

<p>-The GRE requires two essays; the GMAT only requires one.</p>

<p>-The GMAT has an “integrated reasoning” section that is separate from Q and V sections. On preview, it looks like it’s similar to the “data analysis” topics in the Q section of the GRE, which emphasize interpretation of data charts and figures.</p>

<p>-The GMAT is typically used for business school applicants, whereas the GRE is typically used for graduate and other professional school applicants. However, more business schools are accepting the GRE.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Undergrad forms part of the preparation for the exam, but you will need to study independently to learn testing strategies and the structure of the exam. In your junior year of college, you can purchase some study aids published by the same companies that make SAT/ACT study books (Princeton Review, Barron’s, Kaplan) and take 1-3 months to prepare for the exams, depending on your level of comfort with standardized testing.</p></li>
<li><p>This depends on the field and your own preparation. In some fields it’s not uncommon for students to go straight from undergrad to grad school, whereas in others taking time off is virtually required. Most professional degrees (MPAs, MPPs, MPHs, engineering, MSNs, etc.) recommend some time off (2-5 years or more) and it’s pretty much required for the most competitive MBA programs. Law and med school are a toss-up, but it’s becoming increasingly common for law and med school hopefuls to take about 2 years “off”. However, it’s still very possible to get into either straight from undergrad.</p></li>
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<p>Academic/research programs vary by field. In some fields it’s expected that you will take two or three years after undergrad to do some research or work in a related field, perhaps earning an academic master’s along the way. In others, it’s more common for undergrads to transition straight into a grad program. But I’d say that it’s more acceptable these days for people to delay grad school post-undergrad, even in traditional humanities fields where the old expectation was a straight jump. And personally, my advice is always that 2-3 years “off” is a good thing for all but a few exceptionally well-prepared, ambitious students. I wish I had taken some time “off.”</p>

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<p>Thanks for your help :)</p>