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Show Grad school cont. Continued from page they learn to the workplace, said Sofarelli. 1 "GRADUATE SCHOOL IS AN EXPENSIVE WAY TO FIGURE IT OUT" Graduate school is not a substitute for getting out into the world and living your life, said Jon Davis, associate director of Career Services. It is an expensive way to figure it out. For example, one preparatory course for the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) can cost upwards of $700. Dr. Mike Zarkin, a Westminster political science advisor, pursued his Ph.D. improfessor and pre-la- w mediately after completing his undergraduate course-wor- k. I wouldnt advise people to do what I did, he said. Zarkin wanted to be a professor, so the decision seemed right for him. According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, the median age of recipients of earned doctorates in 2006 was 32. Zarkin proved a rarity since he earned his Ph.D. at age 27. Graduate school is not what you do to find out what to do with your life, he said. Zarkin also stressed the importance of learning outside the classroom. Take time for internships and different classes, he said. Dont rush through school. jors. There is nothing wrong with going out and workContinuing direcdy into professional programs can nt means of reaching ing. No grad school cares if you took time off, said prove to be the most ones educational goal. Keep the rhythm, said Bonnie Fogo. In fact, many graduate programs encourage Sofarelli, director of graduate admissions. Your motaking time off to establish a professional career. For mentum is already in place. Continue that momentum example, the MBA program at Westminster College to get it done. Doctorate students need nearly a decade is specifically designed for professional students. Soof momentum. According to The Chronicle of Higher farelli said of MBA applicants, We recommend three or more years of experience in a professional role. The Education, the median number of years from a bachelors degree to a doctorate is 9.5. theory behind the admissions recommendations is to For some, nearly a decade of education is more allow for a direct application of graduate coursework at worthwhile than waiting for others to make positive the students workplace. Some students view graduate school as a direct route changes. It is a door to, if you wake up and think our to their ideal career. To that Davis would argue. Getpoliticians suck or I dont like the way were teaching our youth, said Embray. Its a way to really effect ting your undergrad or graduate degree is not a guarantee you will get your dream job, he said. You have to change. Embray compared higher education to the reasons figure out how to apply what youre learned in the real behind learning another language. Why do people world. Try some things outside of the classroom. Golearn a foreign language?, said Embray. Because you ing just because you want to make more money is not a dont want to be the person in the room who doesnt broad enough reason to go. understand what everybody is saying. Theres not a bet"IT TAKES MORE THAN JUST GETTING GOOD ter feeling than when people have a conversation and GRADES." you understand. Other expectations of graduate students are profesIt takes more than just getting good grades, sional success and monetary gains. People who are in said Jo Hinsdale, director of the McNair Scholars Prograduate programs experience promotions and salary gram at Westminster. It takes focus, programs that increases because they are immediately applying what fit you, and professors who know you well so they can Like Fogo, many students enter college with specific graduate programs in mind ranging from future doctors to lawyers or professors. For these students, the decision to continue on to graduate and professional programs was made early in their academic careers. Its more like a calling, said Fogo. Its something you have to do. Passion for learning can fuel the devotion required to complete a masters or even a doctorates degree. Sharayah Coleman, a Westminster alumnus, began the colleges graduate program this fall. Towards my senior year, I thought, I want more of this challenge, she said. Coleman received a bachelors degree in philosophy last spring and decided to challenge herself further by enrolling in the masters of professional communication program. Coleman is not alone in pursuing 46.2 a masters program different from her bachelors doctorate recipients in 2006 sought out propercent of from different their initial undergraduate magrams time-efficie- VOLULME XLII: ISSUE 3 8 Mike Zarkin advises students to not rush through school. write to your academic strengths. One such program to help focus students towards graduate school is the McNair Scholars Program. Mce, Nair is a federally funded program for and underrepresented students in graduate education for doctoral study. Its not a scholarship, said Hinsdale. Its a program to prepare students for graduate school. The goal of the McNair Scholars Program is to have a more diverse professoriate professors for the next generation, said Hinsdale. In 2006, 77.4 percent of doctorate recipients in education were white (Chronicle of Higher Education). McNair Scholars Program is meant to address this underrepresentation of racial diversity. McNairs is an Upward Bound for college kids, said Embray. Students interested in the program may visit westminstercollege.edumcnair for qualifica- low-incom- first-generati- on |