Investigate programs

Once you’ve decided what field/area and the degree you want to pursue, you have to decide what schools you want to apply to. No two graduate schools are the same.

Do your homework

• Listing of U.S. universities and graduate school locators
  • Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education
  • GraduateSchool.com
  • PhDs.org
• University Websites
  • University of Michigan Rackham Graduate School offers 108 Ph.D., 100 master's, and 38 certificate programs
  • University of Michigan College of Engineering is a top-ranked school
• Meetings, conferences and/or events
• Talk to friends
• Social Media (e.g., Twitter, Facebook)
  • Michigan Engineering:@UMengineering
  • U-M Rackham Twitter: @umichgradschool

Narrow your list

You might discover that there are dozens of universities that offer programs and/or have research projects that align with your interests. As you make a list of your top programs pay close attention to:

• GPA requirements
• Test score requirements
• Cost of application
• Fee waivers
• Curricular requirements

Consider all the details

• Demographics & Culture
• Publications and research of faculty
• Requirements (credits, teaching, candidacy, thesis)
• Preparation/ Placement Record
• Funding
• Resources and support