I began planning (at least I thought I was) on getting into a graduate program about January last year when I was still in my final year of undergraduate studies in London. The reason why I applied to graduate school is still unclear to myself until this day. Perhaps it was peer pressure, since almost everybody I knew at that time were applying on getting into one of the top ten graduate programs in the States. I thought if I hadn't applied, I might have a tough time career wise in the future competing with them in the ever competitive job market.

Most of us applied to the States to have a change in scenery. With the high-tech boom taking place in the States at the time, I guess we just wanted to be close to where it the action was taking place. With that in mind, I started looking into different programs offered by different universities.

What I did look for in a university was the program it's offering, the quality of faculty teaching and research, the tuition, and last but not least, the location. Once decided, try not to miss the application deadline – one year in advance usually. It will be another year's wait for most universities if you miss the deadlines.

There I was, scrambling for all possible resources regarding graduate schools. I would visit, daily, the university career resource center, university library, and the most effective of all: the Internet. (I have listed a number of sites where one can get sufficient information on grad schools at the end of the passage.)

Most universities required four pieces of information from their applicants: transcript, recommendation letters, personal statement and GRE scores. The first was easy, since I knew I was going to graduate with a decent degree. Three years of hard work (and hard cash) actually did pay off.

When it comes to recommendation letters, this is when I realized I should have done a better PR work during my 3-year stay in college. Giving expensive French wines to academic advisors suddenly didn't seem at all a bad investment when what you're asking for is a good reference. Suddenly, you question yourself: "Why isn't my advisor a hot shot who did his Post Doctoral work at the university that I'm applying to?"

The faculty you apply to will use these reference letters in their considerations and place significant weight on them. It helps tremendously (armed with a decent grade, of course) if your reference letter is actually written by a respected alumni of the university, or even better, the department that you're applying to. The battle is won if manage to get such a reference letter.

I chose 3 academic staff: my personal advisor whom I've seen less than 10 times during my stay at college, my project advisor whom I actually seen slightly more than 10 times and the course director whom I hardly ever saw. I chose the third since no one else in the department actually knew I existed thus far. If you already possess working experience, the more senior your referee in the company, the more clout it gives to the reference.

That being done, I began writing my personal statement. Writing a personal statement is just like writing a cover letter and resume when applying for a job. You have to tell the university you're applying to why you're applying to them, what make you suitable for a place, and how you will take advantage of your degree once you graduate. In other words, brag about yourself and your potential. Unless you're in the top 5% of your university or a very senior member management at your company, you will be sorry if you do not "play up" achievements, your character and other contributions you've made to extra-curricular/community circles. But never claim glory for feats unaccomplished. They always have a way to find these things out.

After a series of semi-serious self-study sessions, I registered for the GRE (Graduate Record Examination). This test is required by most, if not all, graduate programs in the states, and from what I understand, a number of universities in Europe too. (Management School applicants will need to sit for the GMAT test.) Guidebooks on the exams can be bought at most major bookstores, and online guides can be found on the Web.

The GRE consists of 3 parts (for an engineering graduate degree like mine): Analytical, Numerical and Verbal. Analytical test consists of 30 logical game theory type questions that can be answered fairly easily if sufficient exercises are done beforehand. The Numerical test is just a set of simple math questions that have to be completed in a fairly short amount of time. Then there's Verbal, which I gave up on as the only way you can excel in this is to actually read and memorise words from the dictionary. I always wondered how often the word "plethora" would be used in one's lifetime?

The GRE test can be completed in written form or as a computer-based exercise. I took the computer-based test and the disadvantage of this form would be there's no BACK button. You only have one chance of giving an answer and no turning back post factum.

I did fairly well in the end.

With all the required material available, I sent them off to the universities. From this point onwards, all I can do is pray. It's always advisable to apply to a number of universities, two at the least. The number of applications received by colleges is enormous nowadays, and competition is stiff. (And I thought getting a job is tough!)

My relief came around June, when I was still in London and already thinking of continuing my employment with the company I was working with at that time. What I received was a FedEx envelope consisting of documents required to obtain appropriate visas and housing information. At last!

Here I am, eighteen months later, writing this article from department's computer lab. I will be graduating in four months time, hopefully. It's been quite a ride.

For more information regarding graduate degree applications, please visit the following sites for more information: GRE Test, University Ranking, Council of Graduate School