Questions before applying to schools

[spartyon1867]

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Hi guys!
I'm a junior right now so I'm starting to prepare for applying to schools, and I just had a few questions...
1. When should you take the GRE?
2. How many schools should you apply to, just to be safe?
3. How should you pick which schools to apply to? I am planning on applying to 5 in-state schools, but my counselor advised me to apply to more schools. I'm pretty much set on staying in-state, but I guess it wouldn't hurt to look at some other schools... My question is how to narrow it down? There are so many to chose from and I have no idea where to start!

Thanks for the help!

 

[CaptivateIt]

Hey,

1. I took my GRE about 2 months before I applied. Just allow yourself to have some time to study before you take it.
2.I applied to about 5 in state schools and no out of state. Im in Texas and I denied most of my interviews. Got into my first choice before I received interview dates for the others. I did alot of research on the stats for the admitting of the schools I applied to. I think it depends on your stats and the average stats from the schools your applying. If your worried apply to some out of state to be safe and have a "safe school".
3. I think alot of which school you choose depends on location and price. You'll get a degree either way. May be more respected at the elite schools but thats also hard on your wallet and difficult to get into. I decided to go to a school very near my family and not too bad of tuition.


Hope that helped!
Good Luck!

 

[NeophyteParkour]

1. I took it a month before I applied. Give yourself time to study for it. If you have classes during the fall semester, then ideally take it during the summer.
2. I think the average student applies to ~10. I applied to 9. It gets more competitive every year. Some of the schools I got rejections from had reported GPA/GRE averages below what mine were...nothing is a guarantee.
3. Location, expenses, pass rate, opportunities (ie research or specialties), financial aid, etc are all factors. If I could go back in time, I would apply to PTCAS and non-PTCAS schools, instead of just the PTCAS ones. If expenses are a factor, like for most people, look at the prices of schools before you apply. Some of them will cost you $40-50k per year. There are cheaper alternatives.