RESEARCHING A U.S. UNIVERSITY AND GRADUATE PROGRAMRESEARCHING A U.S. UNIVERSITY AND GRADUATE PROGRAM

Presented by Marisa Rivero March-April 2011Presented by Marisa Rivero March-April 2011

RESEARCHING GRADUATE PROGRAMSRESEARCHING GRADUATE PROGRAMS

Why?

• Strengthen your application (Statement of Purpose and Statement of Study Research Objectives) by effectively describing your research project and why you need to study in the U.S.

Access to specific coursework, resources, faculty, research facilities, practical experience, etc. not available in Ukraine

Remember, do not specify a particular university in your application but come up with good examples to demonstrate your knowledge of the resources and opportunities available to you at a U.S. university.

• Get a better idea of what kinds of universities are a good match for your research to achieve the best Fulbright experience

KEY CONSIDERATIONS KEY CONSIDERATIONS FOR GRADUATE PROGRAMSFOR GRADUATE PROGRAMS

• Program course offerings• Program requirements and flexibility• Program faculty specialization and research• Relevant research and resource facilities• Admissions requirements• Program (not university) competitiveness and

reputation. Even if the general reputation of a school is very good, your graduate studies will take place predominantly in a single program department.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS OTHER CONSIDERATIONS FOR GRADUATE PROGRAMSFOR GRADUATE PROGRAMS

• Program size – student/faculty ratio • Professional and career development• Student associations and activities• Opinions of current/past students• Alumni network• Location and campus life

RESEARCH YOUR FIELDRESEARCH YOUR FIELDProfessional associations• Help you identify universities and faculty in your field• Provide professional development and networking opportunities during your Fulbright program and beyond

Some examples:

• American Chemical Society http://portal.acs.org/portal/acs/cor

g/content

• IEEE Computer Society http://www.computer.org

• American Economic Association http://www.aeaweb.org

• American Society for Engineering Education

http://www.asee.org/

• American Association for the Advancement of Science

http://www.aaas.org/

• American Mathematical Society http://www.ams.org/home/page

• American Political Science Association http://www.apsanet.org/

• National Council of Teachers of English http://www.ncte.org/

• American Bar Association http://www.americanbar.org

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION EXAMPLEPROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION EXAMPLE

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION EXAMPLEPROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION EXAMPLE

GRADUATE PROGRAM GRADUATE PROGRAM SEARCHES AND RANKINGSSEARCHES AND RANKINGS

Some examplesUS News and World Report

http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools

PhDs.org

http://graduate-school.phds.org

Peterson’s Graduate Schools

http://www.petersons.com/graduate-schools.aspx

Princeton Review

http://www.princetonreview.com/graduate-schools-programs.aspx

GradSchools.com

http://www.gradschools.com

University Library – graduate ranking directory

http://www.library.illinois.edu/edx/rankings/rankgrad.html

GRADUATE PROGRAM WEBSITESGRADUATE PROGRAM WEBSITESReview the following:

• Admissions Admission process and requirements (can also imply competitiveness)

• Department size Number of faculty and students

• Degree requirements – courses, research, internship, thesis, etc.• Course offerings• Information on faculty:

Courses Research Resume Publications and conferences http://scholar.google.com

• Information on current graduate students Research Internships Student associations Department activities for students

• Career and professional development services• Department contact information

GRADUATE SCHOOL SEARCH EXAMPLEGRADUATE SCHOOL SEARCH EXAMPLE

UNIVERSITY WEBSITE EXAMPLEUNIVERSITY WEBSITE EXAMPLE

GRADUATE SCHOOL SEARCH EXAMPLEGRADUATE SCHOOL SEARCH EXAMPLE

UNIVERSITY WEBSITE EXAMPLEUNIVERSITY WEBSITE EXAMPLE

OTHER RANKINGSOTHER RANKINGS

• LawNational Law Journalhttp://www.law.com/jsp/nlj/PubArticleNLJ.jsp?id=1202483173162&LAW_SCHOOLS_REPORT&slreturn=1&hbxlogin=1

Top Law Schoolshttp://www.top-law-schools.com/

Leiter’s Law School Rankingshttp://www.leiterrankings.com/index.shtml

• PsychologySocial Psychology Networkhttp://www.socialpsychology.org/ranking.htm

• PhilosophyPhilosophical Gourmethttp://www.philosophicalgourmet.com/

Reminder!

You can find lots of ranking

in the fields of business and

medicine but remember that

Fulbright does not support

business study (accounting,

auditing, marketing, business

management) or clinical

medicine.

Rankings for specific fields are available. Some examples include:

A WORD ABOUT RANKINGSA WORD ABOUT RANKINGSRankings may not account for

your own interests or preferences.

Rankings should be utilized mainly as a way of viewing condensed data and information about schools or programs;

NOT as a single source for determining the quality of a school or program.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCESADDITIONAL RESOURCES• Education USA Advising Centers

http://www.educationusa.info/Ukraine Collections of handbooks and informational guides to U.S. universities; CDs on educational institutions in the United States; Various resource materials

Computers for professional development;• Fulbright Ukraine Office

Inna Barysh, Program Officer Fulbright Graduate Student Program student@fulbright.com.ua Contact information of past or current Fulbrighters who have attended a

university you are interested in.• U.S. university websites

Contact information of the graduate program coordinator at a university you are interested in.

HELPFUL ARTICLESHELPFUL ARTICLES• Fulbright Graduate Student Tipshttp://www.fulbright.org.ua/page.php?pid=35

Application advice from past Fulbright students

• Graduate School Tipshttp://www.princetonreview.com/opinionAdvice.aspx?type=grad

Advice on a variety of graduate school topics 

• Graduate School Acronyms and Jargonhttp://www.petersons.com/graduate-schools/graduate-school-glossary.aspx

Brief glossary of common terms

• Life at an American Graduate School http://www.petersons.com/graduate-schools/life-american-graduate-school.aspx

Tips about campus life outside of your studies

Good Luck with the application process and thank you for your attention!

Any questions?