What kind of information can I find on this website?
There is a lot of information about graduate school on the website with much of it tailored particularly to the needs of young adults who were placed in foster care during their childhood and adolescence. Please look around and explore!
The Discover section is intended for prospective students who are just beginning to think about graduate school and want to find out more. This section offers suggestions on various opportunities and ways to investigate degrees and career options.
In the Timeline section, you will find materials to help prospective students understand the trajectory towards graduate school. This journey is often not linear. There is information about how to select a program, what kinds of tests you may be required to take, the kind of experience you will need before applying for any given degree, and specific information about different kinds of degrees: Master of Science, Master of Arts, dual degrees and PhD.
Under the section titled Application Process are descriptions of all the kinds of documentation you will need to submit as part of your application. This will vary depending on the degree you are pursuing. This section includes sample essays for various programs and disciplines as well as sample resumes. The section also includes instructions on how to write an addendum, how to prepare for interviews, and advice for talking with mentors. There is information on applications for private schools and a discussion of how some degrees – primarily professional degrees – require you to apply through a central portal.
In the Financing Your Degree section you will find information addressing how to pay for your advanced degree program. Many universities offer some funding to their incoming students and there is advice on how to negotiate around these offers. There are also links to information about potential outside scholarships and graduate school loans as well as loan forgiveness programs.
I’m an educator looking for resources to help young adults understand more about graduate school. Do you have courses or teaching materials I could use?
Under the pulldown tab For Mentors you will find two additional tabs. The link Teaching Cases will take you to a list of 12 different narratives. These “stories” describe the academic journeys of prospective students and the challenges they faced in their pursuit of graduate school. The cases are similarly structured to those you would find in management education. Each case begins by describing a dilemma a prospective student faces and then provides a lot of information about graduate school and the application process. The reader can make use of this information to think about what they might do in a similar situation and how to move forward with their application. The link Mentor Guides will take you to a list of the guides that accompany each case. The guides suggest how to use the material in a classroom setting, including questions you might pose to students.
If I need specific assistance with my application or someone to read my essays can MAPS help?
Currently, MAPS is only a resource and repository of information. If you would like personal assistance with your graduate school application, please contact the Graduate School Pathways Program (GSPP) through Ready to Succeed. This program offers comprehensive academic guidance, including mentoring and financial support. The GSPP goal is to ensure students are prepared for graduate school and ready to submit a competitive application. Contact Zoe Fried at zoe@readytosucceedla.org for more information.
This website provides the knowledge every prospective student needs to create a competitive application and successfully gain admission to graduate school.