8 Steps to Applying to Grad School (As Told By Memes)

We are not quite one month into the new semester, but I have been ridiculously stressed already. Why? I’m applying to graduate school.

Now, this is just my experience, and applying to grad school is very different for each person. But I wanted to share a bit of my journey with all of you, and what better way to do so than with memes.
So, without further ado, I present: Applying to grad school, as told by memes.

1. If you’re like me, you might be sending applications to a few different schools. And since every school has different application deadlines and different expectations, you are probably looking at a good few weeks of submitting and uploading and emailing. It’s just like exam season, only with more transcripts. And speaking of transcripts…

2. Again, each school is different, and they want different things. I applied to four schools, and each wanted transcripts in a different form. Official or administrative, uploaded or mailed…by the time I was done I was up to my eyeballs in transcripts. This is especially true if you, like me, took classes at a few universities, because you have to get transcripts from each one of them.

3. So now comes the part where you have to submit a letter of intent…and oh boy is it an adventure. You have to tell them about yourself, but without too much detail. You have to make yourself seem like the perfect candidate, but not be too braggy. You have to give enough detail, but you might only have 500 words to do it.

My best piece of advice? Have literally everyone in your life read your letters before you submit them. I made my entire family read mine, and most of my friends, and also some of my mom’s friends for good measure. Oh, and one of my professors.

4. They may tell you that the admissions average is B, but in my experience, that’s the bare minimum. Getting good grades is only one part of your application, but it’s an important one. Grad schools expect you to be a good student, so get ready to study and earn those A’s!

5. And after all that work, you might just find out what the admissions rate is, which might make your eyes pop out of your head. Now, the program I’m applying to is especially competitive, so this might not exactly apply to you, but in general grad schools and professional programs are far more competitive than undergraduate programs.

6. Now comes the part where you’re ready to hit that “submit” button. You’re excited and maybe just a little bit proud of yourself. And then you remember that each application comes with a fee! Expect to spend a lot of money during applications!

7. So, you’ve submitted all your documents, your letters are in, your grades are high, and you’ve paid your fees. Now…you have to wait. My applications were all due in January, but I won’t hear about any decision until at least March, maybe April! Right now I’m in a state of limbo, just waiting to hear from the admissions board. So until then, I’ll just sit here. Waiting. Patiently.

8. Deciding to go to grad school is a huge step, but if it is what you want, it’s totally worth it. It’s the next step in your education, something completely different, where you can explore a whole new side of yourself. And guess what? You rocked those applications! So congrats! And good luck!