Should I Go Now or Later?

There is no right answer! You should consider:

  How heavily does the graduate program you are interested in weigh related work experience in evaluating applicants? For example, do they ask you to submit a resume or CV?

  How highly do employers in your field value experience and how much experience do they experience do they expect someone with a graduate degree to have?

  In your field, is a grad degree-level position considered entry level, or advanced?

  Is a grad degree required to do the job you want?

  In fields where it is, such as law or medicine, students are more likely to go right away, and related experience is typically less important. In fields where it is not, like business, students tend to go later, and experience is more important.

  If you do choose to go right away, make sure you are building your resume with relevant experience at the same time. This can be done through graduate or research assistantships, internships, practicum hours, volunteer work, and jobs in your field.

Choosing a Graduate School

UCCS Graduate Programs: http://www.uccs.edu/gradschl

Events on Campus
Mock Interviews

Graduate School Rankings

USNews.com: Education
The publisher of U.S. News and World Report has produced one of the most outstanding guides to educational information on the Web. Dedicated sections of this site focus on college, community college, graduate school, e-learning, and financial aid; and each is filled with quality news, information, and resources. USNews.com also lists the annual rankings of colleges and graduate schools.

Applying to Graduate School

    Timelines/Deadlines
    Admissions Exams

• What exam should I take?  A description of common graduate school exams

• UCCS Test Prep Courses - via College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences Extended Studies Program

Standardized Tests

  GRE: The standardized test used by most graduate programs. Measures your overall scholastic ability, specifically verbal and quantitative reasoning, critical thinking and analytical writing skills.

  GMAT: Test used by business schools as a tool to decide whom they are going to let into their MBA program

  MAT: Made up of analogies - the test is designed to test analytical reasoning & content knowledge

 LSAT: Required by most law schools. Tests reading comprehension, logical reasoning, analytical reasoning, experimental skills, & essay writing.

 MCAT: Required for most medical schools. Includes physical sciences, verbal reasoning, writing & biological sciences