10 Things I Wish I Had Known About Grad School

10 Things I Wish I Had Known About Grad School

• On DAY ONE, you must be prepared for the amount of reading and assignment work that must be done, unlike undergraduate school. – Yone E.
• Try not to compare yourself with others - everyone is in their own path, and you are not too young (or old) to be in grad school! – Aisyah A.
• Save a little extra money for the summer. Printing and books add up really quickly. – Kayla A.
• It’s okay to say no. Sometimes you feel like you have to say yes to everything, but taking a step back and assessing whether it is a good idea to do it or not is better. – Maribel H.
• You can do an internship or summer program as a graduate student in a Ph.D. program. I didn't apply to opportunities I was interested in because I was worried my research would go on the wayside. But I learned from my peers that if you discuss the opportunity with your mentor, and they are agreeable, then you could do an internship! A friend of mine made her internship project one of her aims of her thesis and turned the research into a publication. – Daenique J.
• Knowing the importance of statistics in research and learning how to use a citation manager early on is highly important. – Aishat M.
• The importance of maintaining a balanced diet assists with studying and being able to function in class. I did not know this in my master’s program but definitely took this into consideration for my Ph.D. program. – Desmond K.
• The importance of utilizing university counseling services to increase performance and maintain mental health to deal with rejection/correction during graduate school. – Desmond K.
• It’s a challenge to find balance in life. When in a grad program, you tend to focus a lot of effort and time on that field of study. Being able to still enjoy other aspects of life can be hard, but is vitally important. – Michael A.
• I wish I had known how to better manage my time to include self-care, between classes, research, writing, being involved in a student organization and “life”. It’s easy to get overwhelmed. – Dr. H.