How Many Grad Schools Should I Apply To?

[bahu]

Ignoring application fees, what is a good number?

 

[QuantCoach]

all of them. No seriously, ignoring application fees there's literally no loss in applying for more

 

[Lukee]

all of them. No seriously, ignoring application fees there's literally no loss in applying for more

Please forgive my ignorance, but doesn't applying to tons of schools put a big burden on your letter of recommendation writers or are you able to submit them yourself?

 

[QuantCoach]

I just gave my recommendation writers a list of schools I would be applying to beforehand, they most likely just used the same LoR for every school. You don't submit yourself, each school sends an email to recommendation writer, everything after that is behind the scenes but they probably fill a brief survey about you and attach the letter.

 

[MikeLawrence]

all of them. No seriously, ignoring application fees there's literally no loss in applying for more

this

 

[Andy Zhang]

Please forgive my ignorance, but doesn't applying to tons of schools put a big burden on your letter of recommendation writers or are you able to submit them yourself?

In case you're worried about burdening them, you can always gift them a Starbucks gift card or something as a token of appreciation for writing your recommendation letters. I've done that plenty of times.

 

[marcusaurelius]

Having applied very recently, I would say what works best is the quality of the letters... I had one recommender put the address and name of said-director of admissions at the top of each letter. I prepared everything to be as easy as possible on their end, and it seems like it paid off quite handsomely. Perhaps was this futile? Who knows, but if a recommender is willing to go the extra mile, it gives that much more credibility to the rest of the letter.

I had planned to apply to 15 schools, and ended up finalizing my apps for 6 schools. Don't underestimate how tiring the application process is.

On that note, submitting a letter isn't too tiring at all for recommenders, so that wouldn't be too problematic if you choose to do so. I would argue that, in retrospect, focusing on the quality of the app is most important. The two schools I had put in the most effort into (talking to alumni, admissions, doing research, attending presentations) gave me the most scholarship money out of all offers I received.

PS: I had offered a box of chocolates/mini-gift to my recommenders and all refused, saying it was only normal for them to support my candidacy. Once I got my offers, I emailed them and told them that if they have any upcoming students with a similar profile to mine, I would be glad to speak to them. I suspect the thrill of knowing they've placed their students/ex-colleague into a solid program with scholarships is more thrilling than a small gift. Hope this gives you ideas and helps your app process!

 

[ferdyanggara]

Having applied very recently, I would say what works best is the quality of the letters... I had one recommender put the address and name of said-director of admissions at the top of each letter. I prepared everything to be as easy as possible on their end, and it seems like it paid off quite handsomely. Perhaps was this futile? Who knows, but if a recommender is willing to go the extra mile, it gives that much more credibility to the rest of the letter.

I had planned to apply to 15 schools, and ended up finalizing my apps for 6 schools. Don't underestimate how tiring the application process is.

On that note, submitting a letter isn't too tiring at all for recommenders, so that wouldn't be too problematic if you choose to do so. I would argue that, in retrospect, focusing on the quality of the app is most important. The two schools I had put in the most effort into (talking to alumni, admissions, doing research, attending presentations) gave me the most scholarship money out of all offers I received.

PS: I had offered a box of chocolates/mini-gift to my recommenders and all refused, saying it was only normal for them to support my candidacy. Once I got my offers, I emailed them and told them that if they have any upcoming students with a similar profile to mine, I would be glad to speak to them. I suspect the thrill of knowing they've placed their students/ex-colleague into a solid program with scholarships is more thrilling than a small gift. Hope this gives you ideas and helps your app process!

hey @marcusaurelius can i dm you? im about to apply for fall'24 / '25, have some questions in my mind, thanks!