Underwood International College

Pursuing a graduate degree overall is a very different experience from getting an undergraduate education. Graduate school is much more focused in terms of subject matter, and students are required to produce something that is their own - something creative, new, and that contributes information or knowledge to the field. The emphasis is on carrying out research and synthesizing new ideas based on information acquired from the research. In graduate school you will be expected to write professionally, publish your work (in the form of academic articles or as a book), and orally present your work to others in your field. You will also be required to write a thesis, which is a comprehensive description of the work that you did. Your thesis will be evaluated by a committee of professors and a decision about your graduation will be based largely on the quality of your thesis. This applies both to Masters and PhD programs. Masters programs typically take one to two years, while PhD programs take between four and seven years, although the time varies between fields and also between individual students within a single field. A graduate student usually works independently but is often sponsored by a faculty member. In some fields it is necessary to obtain a Masters degree before entering a PhD program, while in other fields it is possible to go straight into a PhD program after graduating from college.

IMPORTANT :: Start the application process as early as possible - it always takes longer than you think it will take.

Application Requirements for graduate school

Generally, applications are due in late fall/early winter but the exact deadline will vary from program to program.

Some general requirements for entry into graduate school in the United States are listed below. However, these requirements may vary from program to program. If you are interested in a particular program at a specific university, it will be necessary to visit the website of that program to obtain the exact application requirements.

2011 Revised GRE Format
The Educational Testing Service (ETS) is revising the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) for students living in Korea. The split test will be eliminated; instead the entire GRE will be computer based, which means it is now offered monthly with faster score reporting.

New Question Format
The testing format has been overhauled and will now focus on reasoning and critical thinking rather than memorization and calculation.

Verbal Reasoning :: Antonyms and Analogies, which test vocabulary out of context, have been eliminated. The Reading Comprehension section has been updated to include new question types that highlight sentences in the reading passage and multiple choice questions with multiple correct answers. In the two other sections, Sentence Equivalence and Text Completion, crucial parts of a sentence or paragraph will be omitted and you must determine how to fill it in.
Quantitative Reasoning :: The new test will emphasize data interpretation and real-life scenarios whereas computation will be de-emphasized, evidenced by the on-screen calculator that is now offered. In addition to multiple choice questions, the test will also include Numeric Entry questions, requiring you to input your own answer.
Analytical Writing :: Tasks are more specific, now requiring a more focused response on a single topic. A choice in topics will no longer be available.

Test Format

SECTION	NUMBER OF QUESTIONS	ALLOTTED TIME
Analytical Writing	One "Analyze an Issue" task and one "Analyze an Argument" task	30 minutes per section
Verbal Reasoning (One or two sections)	25 questions per section	35 minutes per section
Quantitative Reasoning (One or two sections)	25 questions per section	40 minutes per section

Scoring
According to the old version of the test, the Verbal and Quantitative sections of the GRE exams are on a scale of 200 to 800 with 10 point increments. With the revised version, the scoring system will be a 130 to 170 point scale with 1 point increments. This will make it easier for schools and institutions to compare you to other candidates. The Writing section will continue to be on a 0 to 6 point scale with half-point increments.

IMPORTANT :: The revised GRE will commence in August 2011, but due to the changes, scores for tests taken in August and September will not be available until mid-November. Starting in December, the regular 10-15 day reporting period will return.

If you must have your scores before November, it is highly recommended that you take the current GRE as either a split test in Korea (The last day for Analytical Writing is May 6th 2011 and Verbal/Quantitative is June 11th 2011) or the computer-based exam outside of Korea (for example, in Japan). For more information about taking the current split or computer based GRE, please contact the Korean Regional Registration Centre:

Phone :: 82-2-1566-0990
E-mail :: RRC@egios.com

Registration, Fees and Testing Dates Registration is now open and available at http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/register.

If you would like more information, please go to http://www.ets.org/gre/
Free and priced test prep is available now at www.ets.org/gre/revised/prepare

The GRE (Graduate Record Exam) Subject Test score
The Subject Test score is not required for entrance to many graduate programs in the United States but is required for some. When deciding on programs to apply to, students must check the requirements for each individual program to determine if the GRE Subject Test is necessary.

There are GRE Subject Tests in the following categories:

Biochemistry, Cell, and Molecular Biology
Biology
Chemistry
Computer Science
Literature in English
Mathematics
Physics
Psychology

Subject Tests are given in Korea - in Seoul, Gwangju, or Daegu - in the paper-based format in October, November, and April. The fee for the GRE Subject Test is approximately equal to 150.00 USD.It also takes six weeks to get the results of this test so it is recommended that you take it in April of the year before you plan to attend graduate school. Otherwise your scores will not be ready by the time you submit your applications.

For more information and for Subject Test registration, please visit the following link :: http://www.ets.org

TOEFL score.

Official transcripts from your undergraduate institution.

Three letters of recommendation.
It is important that you select referees who you believe will write not just good letters but outstanding letters for you. This means you should choose referees who know you well and who have confidence in your future. It is also ideal to choose referees who are well known and reputable in their field of study. It is not necessary to choose only professors. If you have done extracurricular work with someone outside of school who can write a strong letter for you, it is acceptable to include that person as a referee. Also, it is important that you ask for your letters of recommendation well in advance of the application deadlines so your letter writers will have enough time to prepare and submit an excellent letter. Do not wait until the last minute! These days, most letters of recommendation are submitted electronically so it is also important that you inform your letter writers about the process of submitting a letter.

Statement of purpose (SOP)
The statement of purpose is a brief document that describes your long-term career goals and how pursuing a graduate degree will allow you to meet those goals. The statement of purpose is critical because it tells the admissions committee who you are, what you have already done towards developing your career, and what you plan to do with your education. Your statement of purpose must highlight your strengths and minimize your weaknesses. This statement is usually meant to complement your CV or resume and should highlight the major achievements that are listed on your resume, elaborating on them and filling in detail. It is likely that you will not be able to write a single SOP and submit it to all of the schools you are applying for. You will most likely have to prepare a template SOP and then modify the template to include specific information that is relevant to each individual school that you apply to. It you apply to 10 schools, you will effectively have to prepare 10 SOPs, although each will be a modified version of your template.