I have in the past briefly entertained the thought of going to a graduate school after graduating from Cornell. Although I am currently a junior Information Science major, I have recently developed an interest in marketing and advertising and may want to pursue this in the future. Last week’s event revolving around applying to graduate school helped me to explore this opinion in more depth.

I really appreciated Sara running the event as not only did she talk about the general process of applying to graduate school such as obtaining recommendations early on from professors and bosses at work, but she also shared her personal experiences in changing from one career path to another through graduate school. Additionally, Sara made sure to pay special attention to each student at the event by giving specialized advice or asking certain people by name about their view on a topic being discussed. In my opinion, it made the entire discussion about graduate school feel more personal and relevant to each person as we each shared our experiences and possible goals for life after Cornell. It was also nice having the opportunity to provide new information to Sara about current graduate school applications and discuss it with her in addition to learning from her, as when I was researching a graduate program I was interested in, I noticed that the application required a video-recorded interview, which acts as an alternative to a Skype or in-person interview where unprepared applicants receive a series of questions and are required to video-record their responses. I appreciated that the entire event was more like a casual open discussion than a miniature lecture due to the personal nature of the event’s focus.

Although I am still on the fence regarding graduate school, I highly enjoyed the event and will keep in mind Sara’s advice and experiences while completing the rest of my Bachelors at Cornell and considering my next steps after graduation.