Friday Feature: Ask a Grad Student, Answered

We recommend submitting documents that are formatted nicely, but simply, especially if you are applying online. Complicated fonts and formatting might not print out correctly from our computer, unless you've submitted them in a PDF document. Even then, simpler is better.

Please note that if you are applying online, there is no need to mail in a paper copy of your application as well. We already received your application online, so submitting it again just wastes paper--and we like trees, so we don't like to do that.

We strongly agree with one About Grad School suggestion:

Include your name on every page submitted. If your essay is more than one page, place your name as the right or left-hand header on every page.

You'd be very surprised how many people forget to label each page of their application. It usually works out fine, as we can take it upon ourselves to label any materials submitted together. However, it really saves time and can prevent a big headache if you label each page with your name and birth date (another good individual identifier). We don't recommend using your social security number as an identifier--there's no need to broadcast that number in more places than necessary.

Numbering the pages of your submissions is an excellent idea, particularly if you are submitting a long writing sample. You don't want someone to drop your work and then have to go to the effort of deciphering which page goes where--or worse, put your story back together in the wrong order. The horrors!

We part ways with About.com when it comes to a few points:

* Informal school transcript. Each application requires a formal transcript, sent from your university, but also include a copy of your informal transcript.

We do not recommend that you send copies of any documents unless they are specifically requested by the school. In our case, we do not accept or review unofficial copies of transcripts or test scores, so there is no need for you to send them unless asked to do so.

* Do not staple materials as the admissions committee will separate all pages to make copies.
* Use paper clips to attach pages and a binder clip to secure the entire packet.

We don't mind stapling so much (it's better than losing unlabeled pages of your application--which you can avoid by labeling all pages!), and we would caution that paper clips have the unfortunate tendency to get the wrong papers caught in them (shuffle up a stack of paperclipped materials and you might see what we mean). Binder clips offer the best of both worlds.

Finally, we recommend against submitting your materials in a fancy folder or binder. We want all applications to receive the same consideration, so we package them in our own folders. Your academic and professional accomplishments and individual personality should come out in your essays and work samples, making fancy formatting unnecessary.

You can see from this post that all schools have different approaches to the graduate admission process. From your essay to your application formatting, everyone wants something different. This can make it hard to apply to a lot of schools, but persevere. In the end, your qualifications--not your presentation--should speak for themselves.