The document provides advice from faculty members on factors to consider when applying to or recommending students for graduate programs. The top five factors mentioned are: 1. Interest fit with the department's focus and being able to identify specific faculty members and research areas of interest. 2. Strong communication skills as demonstrated in statements of intent, writing samples, and interviews. 3. A well-written statement of intent that clearly explains research interests and fit with the program. 4. Ability to think critically and creatively about research topics. 5. A strong academic record, especially in relevant coursework from the last two years of undergraduate study. Other important factors include commitment to complete a graduate degree

2. Robert P. Connolly
Director, C.H. Nash Museum
Associate Professor, Depts.Anthropology & Earth Sciences
rcnnolly@memphis.edu
901-785-3160
rcnnolly.wordpress.com

3. My Experience inThis Area
My own graduate education
• MA inAnthropology, University of Cincinnati, 1991
• PhD inAnthropology, University of Illinois at Urbana-
Champaign, 1995
Working with Graduate Students
• Active in graduate admissions/committees at multiple
universities since 1994
• In last 7 years, at the University of Memphis, chair or
serve on over 30 graduate student committees

5. h#p://www.idealist.org/info/GradEduca9on/GoodReasons

6. h#p://www.idealist.org/info/GradEduca9on/BadReasons

7. Bad Reasons for Going to Graduate School
• To avoid making life decisions
• Peer or family pressure to go to graduate school
• You don't know what to do with your life
• You think a graduate degree is necessary for your
desired career

8. Not so Good Reasons for Going to
Graduate School
• You would like to study a particular subject to
satisfy your curiosity or general interest
• Consider other options such as MOOCs (see
coursera.org)
• Unable to find a job of interest
• HaveAmeriCorps tuition funds to spend

9. Good Reasons for Going to Graduate School
• A graduate degree is required for your career interest
• A graduate degree may enhance your options to
progress in your career
• A graduate degree may improve the compensation in
your career
• Others??

11. The Question
What are your top five factors when
considering (or recommending)
students for a graduate program?

12. 29 –Total Responses from faculty:
2 – Urban Studies
2 – Medical
2 – Biology
2 – Business
2 – Museum
3 – History
3 – UniversityAdministrators
4 – Earth Sciences
9 –Anthropology

13. #1 – Interest FitWith Department, Campus
“Evidence student researched
our program and that they see
themselves working with a
specific faculty member on
specific themes we are known
for. Also must have
an awareness of what we do
and don't teach.”
History,
Egyptology
University
of
Memphis

14. # 2 – Communication Skills
Wri$ng
in
the
Sciences
was
taught
in
2012
at
coursera.org.
The
course
is
taught
by
Kris9n
Sainani
a
clinical
assistant
professor
at
Stanford
University.
I
par9cipated
in
the
first
two
weeks
of
the
course
and
found
it
be
quite
good
and
the
assignments
challenging.
Based
on
my
experience
I
recommend
this
course
to
students.
All
of
the
lectures
and
exercises
are
archived
and
available
online.
Of
course,
the
archive
does
not
provide
the
peer
interac9on,
review,
and
course
grading.
Here
is
the
link
for
the
course
archive:
h#ps://www.coursera.org/course/sciwrite
Here
is
another
coursera
course
on
wri9ng
-­‐Cra0ing
an
Effec$ve
Writer:
Tools
of
the
Trade.
The
course
is
considerably
more
remedial
than
Wri$ng
in
the
Sciences.
A
new
course
began
on
June
14th.
Here
is
the
link:
h#ps://www.coursera.org/course/basicwri9ng
Wri$ng
II:
Rhetorical
Composing
–
“Rhetorical
Composing
engages
you
in
a
series
of
interac9ve
reading,
research,
and
composing
ac9vi9es
along
with
assignments
designed
to
help
you
become
more
effec9ve
consumers
and
producers
of
alphabe9c,
visual
and
mul9modal
texts.”
A
new
course
begins
on
September
15.
Here
is
the
link:
h#ps://www.coursera.org/course/wri9ng2
Here
is
a
list
of
other
MOOC
wri9ng
courses
of
which
I
have
no
experience
or
direct
knowledge:
h#p://www.mooc-­‐list.com/tags/wri9ng
.

16. #3 – Statement of Intent
“Write a meaningful letter
of intent - this means take
the time to think
through what you're
interested in studying, why
you're pursuing a degree,
what faculty you want to
work with, and what you
hope to get out of the
program - and then clearly
explain this in the letter.”
Katherine Lambert-Pennington
Associate Professor
Department ofAnthropology
University of Memphis

17. #3 – Statement of Intent (continued)
The student's career goals, as currently perceived, must be
clear, well-conceived, and an excellent fit to the target grad
program. Every program asks its applicants to submit a
personal statement. I want to see a statement that is well-
written and aimed specifically at my department’s strengths.
R. Barry Lewis
Professor Emeritus
Department ofAnthropology
University of Illinois at Urbana
Champaign

18. Elizabeth Murray
Professor
Department of Biology
College of Mount St. Joseph
#4 –Think Critically
“Creativity is essential in
science/research in
order to develop sound
hypotheses and both
explore and design
methodology, as well as
taking initiative.”

19. #5 Grade Point Average
“An excellent GPA in the field the student is entering (If
you are a History Major, we don't care if you got a C in
algebra, but we do care if you got a C inAncient History)
– Suzanne Onstine
Outstanding academic performance during the last 60 hrs
of undergrad, including standard test scores, is very
important. – Barry Lewis

20. #6 – Commitment to Study
Ability to generate their own ideas and channel those ideas
into independent research. – CameronWesson
My experience is that PhDs tend to go to those who want
them the most. Everyone who gets admitted to the program
is bright enough to complete it, but those who walk away
with the degree in hand never lost sight of their goal and
what then need to do to finish. – R. Barry Lewis

21. #7 – Letters of Reference/Support
Letter guidelines:
• Make request at least one month in advance of due date
• Ask if individual can write a “strong” letter of support.
If they hedge, ask someone else.
• Letters need to provide a good balance of academic,
applied, and work experience.
• Must have at least two academic references, ideally
three that speak to your total person.
• Do not ask a Boy Scout Leader, eight-weekTeam
Sponsor, local public official, athletic coach, etc. unless
they are directly related to your field of study.

22. # 8Teamwork, Humility, Ethics

23. And . . . Diversity of Skills,Able toTake
Constructive Criticism, Language Skills
“Maturity – realism; understands failure, doesn’t expect
perfection of self/others, well-grounded, understands and
empathizes with others, recognizes obstacles and what can
and cannot be tackled, can say “I don’t know” with a smile.
“I don’t know” is essentially the foundation of science (and
I like people who are excited and inspired by all the
wonder of what they don’t know rather than look at that as
a downfall.” - Elizabeth Murray

24. WhatYou Should Look For in a Program . . .
“How happy are current
graduate students with funding
situation/department culture?
How is the funding situation in
general? Opportunities for
exploration within the program?
Is there flexibility to gain skills
but also try new things?What
are alumni doing? Are they
going on to careers that you see
yourself doing?”
Elizabeth Bollwerk
Museum of Culture and Environment
CentralWashington University
Burke Museum of Natural History
University ofWashington

25. And . . . “Students should research
faculty members they want to
work with and engage
them. Are they are taking
new students? Visit campus
to see the facilities and also to
get a sense of the "vibe.” Be
sure the university is
someplace you will want to
spend several years. Engage
other students and see what
they've liked and not liked
about their program.”
Bonnie Pitblado
Professor ofAnthropology
Robert E. andVirginia Bell Chair
Anthropology Department
University of Oklahoma

26. And finally . . .
“Try to find out what graduates of the program do after
graduation - do these kinds of things line up with what
you see yourself doing after you graduate?
Does the department offer assistantships or funding? My
general rule of thumb is - don't go to grad school unless
they're paying you to be there - it means the faculty/
department is investing in you. Higher education debt is
difficult to pay back with the current job market/salary
situation.”
- Katherine Lambert Pennington