Saturday, April 25, 2009

Graduate Studies

Until now, many people still think that graduate school is not important. As long as you have a bachelor degree, you are done with school. Well, this is wrong. Your learning experience has just actually start when you finished your undergraduate studies (CSUSM President, Karen Haynes). Graduate studies are not unimportant, it actually opened up opportunities for many people.

Some myth about graduate school:

1. People usually think that they are not graduate school material. However, the fact is that all of us are graduate school material. Graduate school is not only for those people who are smart or geniuses. Everybody can go to graduate school as long as they have the passion to learn and willing to study and work hard.

2. We think that graduate studies are expensive. Yes it is expensive. Nevertheless, there are many funding out there that are available for all of you guys. Associations that promote research are giving scholarships all the time for those people who cannot pay tuition fee. All you need to do is do some research on the type of scholarship available and fill out the applications. Some school even pay for your living expenses as well as tuition fees.

3. We can only pursue graduate studies at university within our hometown or country. WRONG! We have to get out of our comfort zone. We have to think what is best for us and for our future. If there is a great school outside the country, go for it. International students do get scholarship. You don't have to be afraid of going to a different country. There are some great people out there who will help you adjust to the new place, and people adapt to their surroundings. After some time, you will be able to mingle and adjust to different life style. Also, it is always a good opportunity to visit another place and learn about different things. So, think outside the box.

4. People choose university based on the school's name. For example, going to Harvard University just because it is one of the Ivy League school. DO NOT DO THIS. You have to research the best school for the discipline you are interested in. Choose the school based on the program that are offered. Find program that best suited your needs. Sometimes, the top schools doesn't match with your value and your discipline. So, NEVER choose a school just because of its name. Some school might be nameless to many people, but that school might be really famous within certain field of study.

These are some information that you guys might want to think about if you are interested in pursuing higher education after bachelor level. If you have any question, feel free to ask me. I hope that Binsus's students and graduates will think about pursuing their education until graduate level ^^

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