How to choose a graduations school - some tips

The choice about your graduation school is a critical one. It can determine the direction of your career. Graduate study imparts students with a host of skills that are transferrable to a variety of positions and fields. You should be careful in choosing a graduation schools that offer strength, quality, commitment to supporting its students. So when you are choosing a graduation school, you should consider more than the contents of a course catalog or a student’s handbook.
Here are some tips that you can keep in mind.
• Other than the course catalog, you need to collect University’s catalog, department publication. These handbooks can be more easily kept current, and they may also provide useful information on local resources and culture.
• How many courses are required to complete the degree? What exams are required, and when must they be completed? Is there a thesis option for the MA? What additional qualifications (e.g., languages) are needed? What are the residency requirements?
• How often are the courses listed in the catalog offered? How many are typically offered each semester? Is the curriculum likely to change in the next two years? Which faculty members will be on leave in the next two years? Are there faculty members who are regularly gone? How frequently are there visiting scholars in the department?
• Are all graduate courses open to all students in the department, or are there restrictions? Can you take graduate courses in other departments, to pursue interdisciplinary interests? Must you take a certain number of courses in your own department each semester?
• Once you have entered a program, you should meet with an adviser or faculty member as soon as possible to receive a comprehensive description of your program, including course requirements, exams, deadlines, and expectations for the thesis or dissertation. You should receive a calendar outlining a typical graduate program.
• Consider fully the costs of graduate school and plan carefully, beyond the first year. Graduate student support falls into many categories, from tuition waivers and student employment to dissertation grants. Research into all these.
• You can also check on teaching assistantship. What are the responsibilities of a teaching assistant in the department? What is the average load for a teaching assistant? What is the annual stipend awarded for teaching? Does it include a tuition waiver? Does it include student fees? Do graduate students pay union dues or have other union responsibilities? Does the department award any book allowances? You can check on these points.
• What career placement services are available to graduate students? Do the department and career placement center help you pursue teaching positions at different kinds of institutions? You also need to take into account the percentage of the department's graduate students who were on the job market in the last three to five years and look into what positions they are in right now.
Graduate schools are training grounds for careers both within and beyond academia. Departments and institutions make available and support different kinds of opportunities for practicing the skills necessary for future success. It’s important that as students you make best use of the opportunities and resources given to you. If you fare well in your graduation, you can earn a good job and look at a best online MBA program or an online MBA program alongside with a job.