The Ugly Truth about Grad School
December 10, 2009 | Nathaniel
Anyone here going to Grad School? Scared about the transition or what kind of mass hyste-studying you’ll have to do? We talk to Rebecca M. to see what her experience has been like. She’s into her second year of studying in grad school and started right after she finished her undergraduate years. The change was immediate she says and not so difficult. The main difference was,
“…lifestyle change. Here it’s nothing but studying. They like to compare our program to two full-time jobs.”
Holy shbugushnick! That’s awful. No time for a social life or any school organizations? The discipline to buckle down and engross oneself into the material seems necessary in such an environment to maintain a steady and passing grade.
“Often times I find myself feeling guilty when I stop studying on Fridays at 8:30pm, you start to feel a ‘separation anxiety’…” I can’t imagine feeling guilty. Maybe knowing that I’m setting myself up for a bad grade. Okay, that might inspire guilt in some students. She says that while taking eleven classes she’s got very little time to worry about much else going on in the world around her and it leaves most “spare” time to figure out what to do next in her incredibly crammed and stuffed schedule.
Is there a difference in the style of testing that goes on in grad school when compared to the undergrad tests you have taken?
“The biggest difference in testing isn’t the type of testing. It’s the quantity.”
She compares some of the courses she’s taking to a crash course in each respective subject. Tons of studying and information shoved at the student and then they’re tested to see how much of the shoved info was retained. “Its surprising how much of it stays.”
Anyone curious for some studying techniques in grad school?
“Repetition, repetition, repetition. One way is reading from books, then notes, then writing notes on my notes, comparing book to notes, and then ‘pimping!’ I have a close friend…who I study with ALL of the time and we “pimp” each other: asking random questions to each other that we find important for tests…”
Pimpin’ ain’t easy, folks. Neither is studying in grad school. However, these techniques seem to be working for Ms. M. here. Quizzing one another seems like a viable option and especially when you’re being tested everyday of the school week. One test a day? Pretty heavy. Any studying at any time would probably be vital to securing a passing grade.
As far as advice on choosing a school to get your respective grad school degree at, Rebecca has this to offer: “My advice when it comes to picking grad schools is don’t look at names. Go small and walk the campus.” When working in a certain profession the name of the school you went to probably won’t matter. She goes on to illustrate that a smaller campus is more beneficial when trying to establish a good relationship with faculty and professors. The smaller the campus, the more tightly knit the community will be. It could even make classes more comfortable and enjoyable to attend.
That’s all for this one on one, ladies and gentlemen. Join me next time when I go toe to toe with some sort of different aspiring scholar. Feel free to use these study techniques and advice when choosing your next scholastic establishment.
STUDY HARD!
