Graduate Program Hunting

by Susan L. Miller, M.A., Career Services

Is Graduate School in your student’s future? If they are not sure or just not sure which one to attend, encourage them to explore their graduate school options at The University of Arizona’s 2007 UA Graduate School Day on Wednesday, October 24th from 1pm to 4pm in the Student Union Memorial Center 3rd floor ballroom.

With over 70 tables reserved, here is just a sample of the schools that have signed up to attend this event as of mid-September: Carnegie Mellon, Creighton, Emory University, Hawaii Pacific University, Iowa State University, Northwestern University, Pepperdine University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, St. Matthew’s University, Thomas Jefferson University, UC Berkeley, USC, UC Davis, UC San Diego, University of Denver, University of Illinois, University of Minnesota, University of Nevada, University of Texas, Utah State University, Virginia Commonwealth University, Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Washington.

In addition to these opportunities, we have a dozen University of Arizona Departments from disciplines that include the College of Optical Science, American Indian Studies, the Eller MBA Program, Nutritional Sciences, the Zuckerman College of Public Health and the School of Natural Resources plus at least two international opportunities, one in Japan and one in Australia.

Like all career fairs, taking the time to prepare for the event will go a long way to helping your student get the most out of it and the research they do depends on where they are in the graduate school selection process. Assuming they already know where their dominant interests lie, one of the most important aspects of their research will be selecting the programs best suited to their interests and career goals.

If students are stymied about how to select programs best suited to their interests, we can help with some online programs designed to assess just this. The UA Career Services department is grateful to The UA Parent & Family Association, which has been instrumental in sponsoring a wide range of web resources for UA students.

One of our web resources is DISCOVER, a comprehensive career assessment tool that includes three inventories (skills, interests, and values). DISCOVER also includes information and resources to assist in exploring careers, educational options and job searching. DISCOVER is available online and it's free for current UA students.

For more information about graduate school options, students can set up an appointment with a UA Career Services career counselor where they can get one-on-one career advice. Check out our Web site at www.career.arizona.edu for more information on the upcoming UA Graduate School Day, or click here: http://www.career.arizona.edu/Events/EventList.aspx?eID=GS2007
for a complete list of attending institutions.

Susan Miller can be contacted via email at slmiller@email.arizona.edu