Courtesy of the half-blood prince

Posted May 6th, 2009

Struggling With The Stress Of Deadlines

The process of applying to graduate school presents most students with at least some form of psychological difficulties. Whether it is doubt about your qualifications, awkwardness as you make requests for letters of recommendation or anxiety as you face pre-selection interviews or other social situations in which you are being evaluated.

Beyond these emotions being uncomfortable, they can also pose more serious problems for some grad school applicants if they cause you to procrastinate when it comes to initiating and completing essential tasks.

For more information on overcoming procrastination, I would suggest the following book: The Now Habit: A Strategic Program For Overcoming Procrastination and Enjoying Play, by N.A. Fiore. There are other self-help books on overcoming procrastination, but Fiores’ book is as good as any I have ever seen on the topic.

Due to the grueling nature of the application process, self-confidence is an absolute must if you are to make through and come out the other side as a graduate student in the program of your choice. If self-confidence is a problem area for you, then I would suggest that you prepare a detailed plan of action.

Dealing After The Deadlines Have Past

Hopefully you are feeling relief and pride at having completed the process and you are feeling confident in your efforts being worthwhile; however, many students also face psychological challenges following the application deadline. Although you may have confirmed that your file is complete at each program to which you re applying, decisions won’t be announced for several more weeks, which for some grad school hopefuls many seem to be an unbearable amount of time without knowing what might be going on. This can lead to having all sorts of irrational ideas about what the outcome may be lead you to act impulsively.

At all costs, it is very important to resist all temptation to call and ask about the status of your application or how the admissions committee is coming along with their selections. You can seriously hurt your chances of a favorable decision by calling about these things because it may be seen as attempt on your part to manipulate the decision makers. Or, you could be giving the impression that you are egocentric and that your candidacy is of critical importance to the program. If someone wants to talk to you about your application, be assured that they will call you.

Check out e-chapter 9 for more information on avoiding other mistakes that may keep you out of graduate school.