By Soham Shetty and Shrutee Behera
Introduction
While many students decide to accept a job offer and begin working immediately after graduating, there are still a substantial number of undergraduates who decide to pursue alternative routes, including post-graduate education. Often students learn about or realize their post graduate ambitions too late which does not give them enough time to prepare for exams like the GRE or GMAT.
At GT specifically, several different opportunities are presented to students to continue their education here. For instance OMSCS or the BS/MS pathway. The specific requirements will vary, whether that means taking a specific standardized assessment, gaining research experience, submitting recommendation letters, completing prerequisite coursework, etc.
Creating a how-to guide specifically for Georgia Tech students would help organize these options and their corresponding application processes. Showing students of all the options they actually have at the institution and providing guidance about the application process itself will help students have an easier time both deciding what they would like to pursue after graduating as well as planning out the logistics and finances.
Table of Contents
- Define your long-term career/academic goals
- Research your post-graduate options
- Work on your Grad school Application timeline
- Network with fellow Upperclassmen
- Get the required number of faculty recommendations
- Look into and take required assessments pertaining to post-graduate studies
- How to finance your post graduate education
- Summary
STEP 1: Define your long-term career/academic goal
Before deciding on a specific post-graduate program, it’s important to identify what your long term goals are within your career in order to see if a specific post-graduate program would help you achieve those goals. For instance, a student who graduates with a bachelor’s degree in computer science might decide that their long term goal is to move into a more managerial role at whichever firm/company they decide to work for. This could mean pursuing an MBA would help them readily make that pivot from traditional software engineering. Pinpointing what you would like your career trajectory to look like will help you understand if investing in post-graduate studies will be worthwhile for you and can also give you an idea of the kind of program that might be a good fit.
STEP 2: Research your post-graduate options
A crucial first step toward pursuing education after your undergraduate degree is deciding what type of post-graduate program you want to enroll in. For example, if you want to finish your master’s more quickly, you can look into Georgia Tech’s BS/MS options, which let students to double-count up to 6 credit hours toward both degrees. If you want to go into the workforce after undergrad while still pursuing a master’s, you can also consider GT’s OMSCS program, an online option that offers more flexibility. While requirements vary by program, it is important to conduct proper research to maximize your chances by attending GT’s Grad Expo ,speaking with faculty or department advisors, and reviewing the full list of GT graduate programs to determine the best option.
The general requirements for most GT programs include
- A Bachelor’s degree
- Competitive GPA
- Resume
- Personal essays and letters of recommendation
STEP 3:Work on your Grad school Application timeline
You would typically start planning out your grad school application process in the middle or later years of your undergraduate degree. You would start by exploring your post-graduate options and building a strong academic foundation because having a competitive GPA is often a requirement to stand out for applications. In addition to focusing on your academic endeavors, you should also focus on building your resume by taking part in research, internship and building technical projects that show you taking initiative. If you are in junior/senior year – you also need to showcase your academic rigor by taking harder classes and taking on more complex projects that challenge you. While enrolling within these classes, you build a strong relationship with your professors or faculty members for potential letters of recommendations. Typically, after taking a professor’s course and performing well, you can approach them to request a letter of recommendation based on your performance and engagement in that class. In the summer before your senior year, students should focus on finalizing and polishing their resume and working on any necessary supplemental application material required for their degree program – whether it be a research statement or supplemental essays. It is typical during the fall of your senior year that you submit your graduate school application along with your transcripts and letters of recommendation and receive the results of your application by Spring. You can reference a wide range of online resources to help you map out your application timeline, such as Purdue university’s sample application timeline.
STEP 4: Network with fellow Upperclassmen
Aside from researching online – one of your best resources would be to network with your fellow upperclassmen who are already enrolled in your desired program and get their insight on it. These upperclassmen can provide practical advice on the inner workings of the program, how to secure scholarship aid and how to make your application more competitive. Additionally, they can also point you towards other resources, recommend faculty connections and almost act as a “mentor” while you pursue your post graduate education.
The easiest way for you to find these connections is by reaching out to upperclassmen with whom you may have interacted through your classes or student organizations. You can also search them up on GT’s LinkedIn Page and try to reach out to people on Linkedin or use GT’s grad expo to learn more.
STEP 5: Get the required number of faculty recommendations
The different post-graduate options at Georgia Tech have varying recommendation requirements. For instance, the BS/MS Computer Science pathway requires two letters of recommendation from applicants. One of these letters needs to come from a Georgia Tech College of Computing faculty member and the second recommendation can be written by any Georgia Tech faculty member. On the other hand, OMSCS requires applicants to provide contact information for three letters of recommendation from people who can speak to their academic or technical ability. This also looks different for programs outside of computer science. For example, students applying for an MBA through Scheller need two letters of recommendation, while the MS in Analytics requires three letters of recommendation. Due to these nuances between program requirements, you should carefully check what the specific guidelines for recommendation letters are depending on your program of interest. It’s also recommended that you do this early enough to develop relationships with professors or supervisors ahead of time in order to ask for a recommendation letter prior to the application deadline.
STEP 6: Look into and take required assessments pertaining to post-graduate studies
The different post-graduate options at Georgia Tech have varying assessment requirements as well. For instance, some programs may require or accept the GRE, whereas post-graduate options through Scheller might require or accept assessments like the GMAT or GRE. Other specific programs, like the MS in Analytics, require students to submit GRE or GMAT scores. However, there are options like the OMSCS or the BS/MS pathway in Computer Science, which do not require the GRE. Making these considerations is also crucial for students who might be looking into postgraduate options in medicine or healthcare through Georgia Tech, like the Emory and Georgia Tech MD/PhD pathway. In this case, they would need to take the MCAT rather than the GRE. Considering the process of registering, planning, and studying for these exams, it’s important that students recognize the exams they need to take as early as possible.
STEP 7: How to finance your post graduate education
Pursuing postgraduate education can be expensive, but financial aid can help reduce costs through fellowships, scholarships, and assistantships. At Georgia Tech, options like the GANN Doctoral Fellowship and FACES Fellowshipare available. Students can also secure Graduate Research Assistant (GRA) or Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) positions, which may include tuition waivers. A GRA works in a faculty-led research lab, supporting projects, experiments, and publications, and is typically obtained by reaching out to faculty and showing relevant skills or experience.
You can take a similar approach when trying to apply for a GTA position. A GTA position is essentially a TA position for a grad/undergrad class where you help the professor with their day to day tasks.Forming relationships with faculty early on can give you a better chance at getting a GTA position.
You can find more information on how to apply for a GRA or GTA position here.
Summary
Sources
- Georgia tech grad (www.grad.gatech.edu)
- Georgia Tech website (www.gatech.edu)
- Georgia Tech catalogue (www.catalog.gatech.edu)
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