“If there is any leader in the country who thinks it is going to go back to where it was a year ago, they are lying to themselves. … Right now, everything is in emergency mode.” That was Terri E. Givens, the chief executive officer of the Center for Higher Education Leadership, talking in September to Inside Higher Ed. Suffice to say, universities have not been immune to COVID-19’s impact.
Although there are still many things unfolding in this evolving situation, here are five factors prospective students should keep in mind as they consider: “On balance, is now the best time for me to pursue a graduate degree?”
1. More people applying, but for more or fewer seats?
Whether someone has just earned their undergraduate degree or has years of experience but is now facing a shaky job market, going to grad school now can look like a good option to ride out the storm. Which is why — as we’ve seen many times over the years — typically in a down economy, application volume to grad school tends to grow.
How this precisely plays out remains to be seen; we’re still early in the 2020-21 admissions cycle. But places like Columbia Business School have already signaled they’re anticipating more applications: They recently announced plans for a one-time 20% increase to the size of the 2021 J-Term cohort — their accelerated MBA program that begins each January — due to increased demand. And more broadly it’s been reported that MBA application volume is already showing signs of spiking.
Conversely, Harvard Business School saw about 200 fewer students than normal in their fall 2020 class due to their having offered deferred admission to all admitted applicants. So will the fall 2021 class immediately have 200 fewer seats available to new applicants? Or will Harvard expand its class size, as they have acknowledged they’ve discussed? Time will tell. But two fair questions to ask admissions officers are first, are they planning for any changes in their typical class size, and second, will any seats be already taken by those who deferred from the previous year?
2. Changes to the school research process
There are many ways prospective students can conduct program research, but in spring 2020 the pandemic altered several important potential touchpoints. Curtailed, taken online or outright eliminated were things like campus visits and special events for admitted students; in-person events like admissions fairs and coffee chats with admissions staff, students and alums; and in-person interviews. As of fall 2020, many of these changes remain and will need to be navigated by prospective students.
At Grad School Road Map, we know from years of experience that the biggest mistake prospective grad students make is not doing adequate research before applying. In the midst of a pandemic, some traditional ways to learn about a program may not be available, but the crucial step of doing extensive research up-front remains.
3. Standardized test shifts
2020 has seen the GRE, GMAT, LSAT and TOEFL offer new online options — unthinkable to many admissions professionals pre-pandemic. Even the MCAT temporarily shortened its total exam time. And some graduate programs relaxed their typical requirements around these tests — even in some cases outright waiving them as an application requirement. Some programs have extended these policies for those applying for a 2021 start.
More broadly, there is increasing impetus to reduce the importance of or even eliminate standardized testing altogether. This would be a sea change in higher education, impacting not only admissions decisions but also things like school rankings, which often place a heavy weight on a program’s average score.
We would not recommend selecting what schools to apply to purely on their standardized test policy; by itself, “they didn’t require me to take one” is not a good reason to apply. But whether a program requires a standardized test, and if so the degree to which the score factors into their admission decisions, for now remains one of many things applicants should consider in determining where to apply.
4. Online learning — here to stay?
The pandemic’s broadest impact on the education world has been the shift — from preschool all way through doctoral programs — to online formats. This has carried over to the fall 2020 semester in many programs, in some cases providing hybrid models while in others fully online. Widely reported COVID-19 outbreaks on college campuses have led to some leaders backpedaling from plans for in-person instruction, and already some universities have announced they will continue with remote instruction for the spring 2021 semester.
While this may not be the moment when online learning fully takes over higher ed, prospective graduate students should expect that online learning will continue to be increasingly prevalent even after the pandemic subsides. A comfort level with learning in that environment will be all the more important.
5. Program delivery differences
Ideally, a graduate degree is as much about what happens outside the classroom as what happens inside it. Even though the pandemic’s status could (and hopefully will!) be different many months from now, it’s still wise for prospective students to consider the effects on how graduate programs are being delivered.
For example, many schools this fall are ending their in-person instruction at Thanksgiving. Will learning in a possibly compressed semester be as rich? What about hands-on learning that can take place in a lab, on-site in industry, through experiential opportunities, and even international programs — if those are scaled back or eliminated, are you OK with that?
Finally, consider the impact on the recruiting and hiring side: It could remain all virtual, and that may include any internships as well (as was widespread the case in summer 2020). On-campus recruiting and “road shows” to major hiring cities could remain at a standstill. And more broadly, where will the economy be when you would complete your degree; how could that affect your career prospects?
Clearly we all hope that the months ahead will bring much-needed positive news about COVID-19. But given where we are today, we have to consider and weigh out the possibility that how graduate programs will be delivered could be a moving target.
Conclusion
Having worked with thousands of prospective students, we can tell you that very rarely is there one perfect, 100% ideal time to pursue a graduate degree. There will almost always be circumstances that will make the timing aspect challenging. But this decision — a highly personal one — is best made by weighing out all the factors on both sides. And right now, COVID-19 cannot be ignored.
The bottom line is if you feel confident that, given what is known now, you can and will excel in the current overall learning environment, and that pursuing graduate study now is a pragmatic choice given your overall goals, we would encourage you to move forward.
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Hyperlink index:
Terri Givens quote: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/09/09/what-college-presidents-say-about-leading-covid-19-era
“A shaky job market”: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2020/09/01/layoffs-continue-and-furloughs-become-permanent-job-losses/
MBA application volume showing signs of spiking: https://poetsandquants.com/2020/09/14/mba-applications-soaring-at-many-business-schools/?pq-category=business-school-news
Harvard: https://www.hbs.edu/mba/admissions/class-profile/Pages/default.aspx
Harvard acknowledging discussing expanding class size: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZluCFkbgkA
Biggest mistake: https://gradschoolroadmap.com/the-biggest-mistake-prospective-graduate-students-make-by-dr-don-martin/
GRE: https://www.ets.org/s/cv/gre/at-home/
GMAT: https://www.mba.com/exams/gmat-online
LSAT: https://www.lsac.org/update-coronavirus-and-lsat/lsat-flex
TOEFL: https://www.ets.org/s/cv/toefl/institutions/update/
Reduce the importance of or even eliminate standardized testing:
In some cases providing hybrid models: https://www.businessbecause.com/news/coronavirus-latest/7155/us-business-schools-hybrid-mba-programs
Some universities announced already remote learning for spring 2021:https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/09/10/coronavirus-cal-state-will-continue-virtual-learning-for-spring-2021/
Ending in-person instruction at Thanksgiving: https://www.thecut.com/2020/07/will-colleges-reopen-in-the-fall.html
Internships online: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/06/08/corporate-america-is-taking-internship-online-this-summer-some-experiences-cant-be-replaced/
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