Grad school? Think again …

Two years ago, after I had already signed on the dotted line to attend graduate school, I… Two years ago, after I had already signed on the dotted line to attend graduate school, I came across an article that read as a warning to unsuspecting students like me.

The article was a friendly reminder that graduate school is not for everyone and that there are some serious things to consider before signing up for another two or three years of schooling.

Even though I broke several of the author’s “rules” concerning the reasons not to decide on graduate school, I shrugged it off and thought, “What does he know?” The answer to that question, in retrospect, is “A lot.”

With that in mind, after putting in two years of graduate school myself, I thought it was time to re-evaluate this columnist’s arguments and add a few thoughts of my own.

The article implied that students should not consider graduate school based on reasons such as the following: “I have no idea what else to do with my life, so I may as well go to grad school,” “Drinking beer until dawn and getting up at noon is awesome, I should try to extend this lifestyle for a few more years” or “If I don’t have a master’s degree, I will never find a decent job.”

Granted, attaining further education is not such a bad thing if you can’t figure out what to do with your life. And it’s hard to argue against the beauty of having incredible flexibility with sleep schedules and such. Also, earning a master’s degree just might land you a higher paying, more prestigious job — if that’s what you’re after.

However, these rationalizations should be carefully weighed against the realities of graduate school. As the saying goes, “The devil is in the details.” Perhaps the illustration, included with the article I read, told the story best.

Pictured on the page was a young man, bent over, with a look of utter exhaustion on his face and at least five books stacked on top of his hunched back. If that image is not enough of a fair warning, here are some other points to consider:

As a graduate student, you will likely be expected to thrust yourself into a topic at 90 mph. Your eight-page paper on the abolition of slavery as an undergrad. will probably pale in comparison to the 30-pagers that will be expected of you on much more narrowly focused topics.

And speaking of papers, the American university system does not adequately prepare students to write research papers — I can say this with some authority having spent time at three different institutions as an undergrad. As I painfully discovered at one point in my academic career, a research paper should not be confused with a book report, a few pages slapped together with excerpts from wikipedia.org, or the like.

But students should not take it personally — the instruction on how to compose a paper properly just isn’t there. So feel fortunate if you had an undergraduate professor who took the time and energy to explain the real research process to you.

In some cases, classes called “seminars” consist of as few as five other students. In these classes, you may be expected to read a book or two a week. And with a class this small, it’s hard to hide behind the answers of your fellow students. If you don’t do the readings, it shows.

Also, although I cannot speak for all graduate programs, I found that many of the professors in my program had no mercy when it came to attendance, grading and participation. In other words, your chances of success triple when your butt is in the chair and you say something.

Be wary of the folks who tell you that graduate school is a breeze. They just might be the same people who sat next to you in calc class and aced every exam with minimal effort, while you pulled all-nighters to get C’s.

The decision to attain an advanced degree is one that deserves serious consideration. While I personally do not regret going to graduate school, there have been many times during the past two years when I wished I would have heeded the warnings of others beforehand. So before you sign up for another two years, at least give it a second thought.

If you’re thinking twice, e-mail Christine at clh4@pitt.edu.