How to Survive Graduate School

Graduate school can be a rewarding experience for those who make it to graduation. Unfortunately, not every student who aspires to graduate with an advanced degree makes it through graduate school. Many factors affect student attrition, but overall, students who are better informed about the expectations for their individual graduate program, are more likely to succeed. Other factors contribute to graduate school success, such as outside responibilities, work, preparedness, and support, but there are many things that graduate students can control to make the graduate school years as memorable as possible.

Surviving and Thriving in Graduate School

Students who succeed in graduate school, often do more than just survive it. Graduate studies should narrow down a broader field of study to a more defined, advanced area. This makes graduate school very different than what most students have experienced as undergrads. Instead of half the time being spent on core college courses, graduate school courses are typically designed specifically for advanced study in a certain area. Most courses taken in graduate school will be in the field of study that you have chosen. With that in mind, many students rush into graduate programs without thinking about whether the field of choice is a good fit with their interests, abilities, and future career goals.

Choose a Graduate Program Carefully

In order to survive graduate school, it is important to choose the right program. Randomly picking a graduate program, without doing some research about requirements, program details, and campus information, is not advised. Do not apply to a graduate program based on a sudden, new interest, because your friends are in it, or because you heard it was easy. All of these reasons will work against your success in graduate school, and your chances of surviving graduate school are less than those of students who have put some thought into what graduate program would best meet their career goals ahead of time.