Future Student FAQs

• IU Indianapolis has more than 300 degree programs.
• Graduate admissions are decentralized. Unlike undergraduate admissions, admissions decisions are made by the schools/programs so your application goes first to the program you are applying to, not our office.
• Due to the decentralized nature of graduate studies at IU Indianapolis, we recommend contacting the program(s) you are interested in directly for advice, application deadlines, admissions criteria, etc.
• Personal Statements, Letters of Recommendation, and Transcripts should never be sent to our office. They should go to the program to which you are applying. Sending them to us could cause a delay in processing which may lead to a missed deadline. GRE Test Scores are automatically deposited by ETS into a database, which your program representative can access.

Think of the three R's: Reasons, Research, and Resources

Reasons

• You are clear about your long-term goals and that they can best be reached by pursuing an advanced degree.
• You need certain credentials (M.D., J.D, PT, MSW, etc.) in your area of interest which require graduate school study.
• You want to develop skills and interests into a specific career.
• You are looking for career advancement/promotion or to enhance your job/personal satisfaction.

Research

• You have discovered whether you need additional courses or pre-requisites to get into your program of interest.
• You’ve done research on your program of interest and know what to expect in terms of the time it will take to pursue the degree.
  • Most master’s programs will take 1-2 years full-time; however, many programs allow part-time study which means it may take a little longer.
  • Most PhD programs will take 5-7 years to complete.
• You have spoken with a degree advisor or department staff to learn how your background fits with the intended graduate degree and if you will need additional courses or prerequisites prior to admission.
• You’ve talked to several current graduate/professional students in your program of interest to get their viewpoints and advice. Ask questions like:
  • What is a typical day like? What percentage of your time is spent doing what? What do you find most satisfying about being a graduate student? What are the challenges? What advice can you give me as I consider this field of study? What are your long-term goals?

Resources

• Review the graduate programs on our website to see what IU Indianapolis offers.
• If you are uncertain about making the decision to go to graduate school or the program/career field that is right for you, check out these resources:

  The Occupational Outlook Handbook: This is a guide to career information about hundreds of occupations. You can sort by salary, number of new jobs, educational requirements, and growth rate.

  CareerOneStop: This site offers several self-assessments as well as career profiles and occupation comparisons.

  O*NET Resource Center: This site offers the O*NET Interest Profiler, a self-assessment career exploration tool.

  Clifton Strengths: Online talent assessment ($20) to discover what you naturally do best; learn how to develop your greatest talents into strengths; and use your personalized results and reports to maximize your potential.

  Explore majors at IU Indianapolis by your interests.

  Book suggestions: What Color is Your Parachute? by Richard N. Bolles; Zen and the Art of Making a Living by Laurence G. Boldt; Kokology: The Game of Self-Discovery by Tadahiko Nagao and Isamu Saito

  Consider the IU Indianapolis Graduate Non-Degree Program to try out a few courses.

  Your best source of advice will come from an advisor in your program of interest. But, if you would like to discuss options and get general advice, email gradexpo@iu.edu to set up an appointment with a Graduate School staff member.

• Contact the program you have applied to. Admissions decisions are made first by the program, not by the IU Graduate School Indianapolis.

• The IU Graduate School Indianapolis offers free workshops to assist you in preparing a successful graduate application package. Admission to graduate programs and applications for fellowships often requires testing of prior learning. The most commonly used of these examinations is the Graduate Record Examination, or GRE. You will find tips for applying on our website and at Pathways to Science. For the Pathways page, scroll down to the Resource Toolbox with the headings “Graduate School” and “Preparing Applications”.

To be eligible for a temporary intercampus transfer (ICT), you must be active in a graduate/professional degree-seeking program at another Indiana University campus, be in good academic standing with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher (2.3 GPA for Law School), and have not been an ICT student at IU Indianapolis for more than 2 consecutive terms.

Detailed information about ICT and how to apply can be found at Temporary Intercampus Transfer (ICT).

• If you will come to IU Indianapolis on a nonimmigrant student visa, Office of International Affairs is your source for admissions information.
• All international students need to demonstrate English proficiency.
• Credential analysis is done by the Office of International Affairs after you have applied to a program. The program you have been accepted into will initiate this process.
• Types of documents needed by departments and by the Office of International Affairs

Graduate students at IU Indianapolis have access to several types of aid, including financial support available from individual departments, often in the form of graduate/research/teaching assistantships. There are also some fellowships available in which department representatives nominate students in their programs. Please contact your program of interest regarding available assistantships and fellowships.

Other options to explore are loans, family support, savings from work, and possible employer tuition support. If you are a full-time IU employee, you are eligible for the IU Tuition Benefit program.

Check out our Financial Support website for more information.

• Our email: gradoff@iu.edu
• Our phone number: 317-274-1577
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• Subscribe to our e-newsletter to receive information about upcoming events and workshops for prospective students.

• 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.