idealist.org

Did You Miss Our Grad Fairs? (Next Steps for Grad School)

By Jung Fitzpatrick, who tweets @gradresources.


See al of Jung's photos from the season Never fear, we hold the Idealist.org Graduate Degree Fairs for the Public Good each summer in DC and New York, and fall in cities across North America.

In the meantime, it’s never too late or too early to begin researching the graduate degrees you’re interested in and learning more about the admissions process. A good place to start online is our Public Service Graduate Education Resource Center.

I recommend taking a look at our grad school timeline to structure your research and admissions process whether you are applying this winter or next fall. Applying to grad school can be a full-time job—especially if you are currently studying and working—and the timeline can help structure your time.

I also recommend staying open to various graduate fields of study unless you know that you must get a particular degree to do the work you want. Certain professions (teaching and counseling) and professional fields (medicine and law) require specific degrees in order to practice. Otherwise, there are many graduate programs available that can give you the skills and knowledge you want.

For example, if you’re interested in international development, you can approach it from a masters in international policy or affairs, a masters in international management or business administration in a school that has an international focus, or from the new masters in development practice.

Graduate programs for the public good are increasingly multidisciplinary to help equip their students with the tools needed to tackle and solve some of the most complex issues facing us. Therefore the exact of the name of the degree is less important than the content of what you learn, the opportunities provided by the program, and ultimately, what you make of the experience.

Then again, you may decide you don’t need grad school. There are many paths to get to your final destination. The challenge and adventure is figuring out how!