“Different” Graduate Programs

We always hear about the popular graduate programs such as business, education, social work, and psychology.  In reality, there are hundreds of different graduate degree subjects, and variations within in each subject.

Here are some of the lesser known graduate degree programs, the purpose of the degree, and where you may be able to obtain one.

1. Outdoor Education – Both Masters and PhDs are awarded in this particular field of study.  This particular program forces students to go beyond the traditional textbook learning style and test their limits in other capacities.  A Masters in Outdoor Education provides the degree earner with the skills and knowledge necessary to advance in such professions as recreation directors, park directors and physical education instructors.  Two schools offering these masters programs include The University of New Hampshire and La Trobe University.
2. Women’s Studies – This masters degree program focuses on sex & gender as they relate to societal issues.  The general Women’s Studies graduate program will equip its graduates with the tools to serve as social advocates, writers, social policy workers, or even politicians.  Visit Smith College for more information about a program in this field.
3. Peace Studies – A Masters in PhD in Peace Studies will prepare its graduates for mediation in all aspects of life.  The connotation is that the course material applies to political conflict resolution.  However, Peace Studies graduate degrees provide the theoretical and practical knowledge for graduates to work in general business or education settings.   Here is a listing of some of the  Peace Studies Graduate Programs in the United States.

Marketer’s Guide to Tracking Leads Online (Simple Version)

Many graduate program sites now serve more of a business purpose than basic school and contact information.  The “adapters” in the grad school realm are now attempting to lead site visitors down a lead generation path.  As the recruiting field becomes more competitive, graduate program Marketing Departments are reallocating  their  spending  and putting more emphasis  on internet marketing activities.

To the novice, this practice can be extremely overwhelming.  How much should you bid on certain keywords?  Is it better to put more money into ads on a niche site than spend it all on search engines?  Is a low CPC always the best option?

These answers can all be obtained for free (almost).  Currently, Google Analytics is offered as a free tool to help marketers answer these (and other) common online marketing questions.  Microsoft has a similar product in beta, and Yahoo! recently purchased IndexTools, which will both serve similar purposes.

The set-up is simple: 1. Sign Up for an account 2. Enter your website(s) 3. Paste the provided JavaScript code onto the web pages you wish to track.  After completion of these three steps, you will be able to view out-of-box reports that will help you understand who your visitors are and where they are coming from.

Beyond the basic implementation, graduate program marketers can also set up goals in the Admin console.  By using goals, a marketer can assign a dollar amount to a “lead” and track it back to the referring source.  This practice allows for a better understanding of what advertising outlets are worth the cost.  You may be paying $0.50 per click on a search engine which gives you 5,000 visitors/month, but notice that only 5 of those 5,000 visitors filled out a lead form or submitted a contact request.  You may also notice that the site which resulted in  $15 per click converted to 150 leads during the same time frame.

In the epic, and seemingly endless, battle for prospective graduate students, marketing departments must be prepared and armed with knowledge of how to best obtain enrollments.

Choosing a Graduate Program

Posted on Gradschools.com

As soon as you begin the process of choosing a graduate school, you will realize there are certain aspects of a graduate program that are vitally important to you.

You will want to learn a particular subject, and might want a precise specialization or research interest to be available. You might want a certain location or access to a city or a region of the country that is optimal for your field. Price and the competitiveness of different programs are also factors in the decision process although at this stage you should continue giving yourself a wide range of options in both categories.

Deciding on these basic requirements will help you eliminate programs that don’t fit the basic criteria you want.

Sources for comparison

Even after you’ve eliminated programs that don’t fit your basic criteria, you are still likely to have many choices to make. You need to know how to investigate and compare programs.

One good place to start is the program’s website. Browse through the information available. Read about the institution’s graduate programs, the faculty, the admissions requirements and program features, the facilities, the location, and any other information you can glean from the website. Some will be far more useful than others. Request further information and contact someone from the school if you have questions that the website does not answer.

Talking to people is going to be one of your most important sources for information after that which you receive from the school itself. If you pursued an undergraduate education in the same field, your professors will probably be more than happy to share their knowledge and advice. They were once in your shoes and want to help you as much as possible. Ask them what schools or programs have the best reputation and facilities in your field. Ask them what professors are well known for their work in your field. You could even ask them for general advice on the process itself.

You can also obtain a wealth of information from professionals already working in the field you plan to study. Most people will be happy to take at least a few minutes to help an interested student. Find people working in the field or professors at local schools who would have knowledge of different graduate programs. If you can get contact information from alumni of the programs you are considering, those people can often be the most help in determining the benefits and challenges of a particular program.

If you currently have a graduate school advisor, that person is obviously one of the most important people you can talk to in order to obtain more information.

For direct comparison, you may also be able to find graduate school rankings in newspapers or magazines that compare different programs. Various books may also offer advice.

No matter whom you talk to or which sources you use, always make sure to take a balanced and realistic look at the information provided so that one lopsided opinion doesn’t influence you more than it should. Weigh what people say to you.

And overall, enjoy the process. While it can seem overwhelming at first, it’s vital that you give this selection the time and energy it deserves in order to find the best fit for your graduate education.