A graduate school is a school that awards advanced academic degrees with the general requirement that students must have earned a previous undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. Many universities award graduate degrees; a graduate school is not necessarily a separate institution.
Producing original research is often a significant component of graduate studies, including the writing and defense of a thesis or dissertation. The term "graduate school" is primarily North American. Additionally, in North America, the term does not usually refer to medical school (whose students are called "medical students"), and only occasionally refers to law school or business school. (The latter types of programs are often collectively termed professional schools).
Those attending graduate schools are called "graduate students", or in British English "postgraduate students", or, colloquially, "postgraduate". Degrees awarded to graduate students include master's degrees, doctoral degrees, and other postgraduate qualifications such as graduate certificates and professional degrees.
Although graduate school programs are distinct experiences from undergraduate degree programs, graduate instruction (in Australia, the United States, and other countries) is often offered by some of the same senior academic staff and departments that teach undergraduate courses. Unlike in undergraduate programs, however, it is rare for graduate students to take coursework outside their specific field of study at graduate or graduate entry level. At the Ph.D. level, though, it is quite common to take courses from a wider range of study, for which some fixed portion of coursework, sometimes known as a residency, is typically required to be taken from outside the department and college of the degree-seeking candidate, to broaden the research abilities of the student. Some institutions designate separate graduate versus undergraduate staff and denote other divisions (often called School of X, e.g., diplomacy)
Canada
In Canada the Schools and Faculties of Graduate Studies are represented by the Canadian Association of Graduate Studies (CAGS) or Association canadienne pour les études supérieures (ACES). The Association brings together 44 Canadian universities with graduate programs, two national graduate student associations, the three federal research-granting agencies and other organizations having an interest in graduate studies. Its mandate is to promote graduate education and research in Canada. In addition to an annual conference the association prepares briefs on issues related to graduate studies including supervision, funding, and professional development.
Admission
Admission to a master's program generally requires a bachelor's degree in a related field, with sufficiently high grades usually ranging from B+ and higher (note that different schools have different letter grade conventions, and this requirement may be significantly higher in some faculties), and recommendations from professors. Some schools require samples of the student's writing as well as a research proposal. At English-speaking universities, applicants from countries where English is not the primary language are required to submit scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).
Admission to a doctoral program typically requires a master's degree in a related field, sufficiently high grades, recommendations, samples of writing, a research proposal, and typically an interview with a prospective supervisor. Requirements are often set higher than those for a master's program. In exceptional cases, a student holding an honours BA with sufficiently high grades and proven writing and research abilities may be admitted directly to a Ph.D. program without the requirement to first complete a master's. Many Canadian graduate programs allow students who start in a master's to "reclassify" into a Ph.D. program after satisfactory performance in the first year, bypassing the master's degree.
Graduate students must usually declare their research goal or submit a research proposal upon entering grad school; in the case of master's degrees, there will be some flexibility (that is, one is not held to one's research proposal, although major changes, for example from premodern to modern history, are discouraged). In the case of Ph.D.s, the research direction is usually known as it will typically follow the direction of the master's research.
Master's degrees can typically be completed in one year but normally take at least two; they typically may not exceed five years. Doctoral degrees require a minimum of two years but frequently take much longer, not usually exceeding six years.
Funding
Graduate students may take out student loans, but instead they often work as teaching or research assistants. Students often agree, as a condition of acceptance to a programme, not to devote more than twelve hours per week to work or outside interests. Various universities in Canada have different policies in terms of how much funding is available. This funding may also be different within a university in each of the disciplines
For Masters students, Funding is generally available to first-year students whose transcripts reflect exceptionally high grades; this funding can also be obtained in the second year of studies. Funding for Ph.D. students comes from a variety of sources, and many universities waive tuition fees for doctoral candidates (This may also occur for masters students of some universities). Funding is available in the form of scholarships, bursaries and other awards, both private and public.
Requirements for completion
Both master's and doctoral programs may be done by coursework or research or a combination of the two, depending on the subject and faculty. Most faculties require both, with the emphasis on research, and with coursework being directly related to the field of research.
Master's candidates undertaking research are typically required to complete a thesis comprising some original research and ranging from seventy to two-hundred pages. Some fields may require candidates to study at least one foreign language if they have not already earned sufficient foreign-language credits. Some faculties require candidates to defend their thesis, but many do not. Those that do not often have a requirement of taking two additional courses, minimum, in lieu of preparing a thesis.
Ph.D. candidates undertaking research must typically complete a thesis, or dissertation, consisting of original research representing a significant contribution to their field, and ranging from two-hundred to five-hundred pages. Most Ph.D. candidates will be required to sit comprehensive examinations—examinations testing general knowledge in their field of specialization—in their second or third year as a prerequisite to continuing their studies, and must defend their thesis as a final requirement. Some faculties require candidates to earn sufficient credits in a third or fourth foreign language; for example, most candidates in modern Japanese topics must demonstrate ability in English, Japanese, and Mandarin, while candidates in pre-modern Japanese topics must demonstrate ability in English, Japanese, Classical Chinese, and Classical Japanese.
At English-speaking Canadian universities, both master's and Ph.D. theses may be presented in English or in the language of the subject (German for German literature, for example), but if this is the case an extensive abstract must be also presented in English. In exceptional circumstances, a thesis may be presented in French.
French-speaking universities have varying sets of rules; some will accept students with little knowledge of French if they can communicate with their supervisors (usually in English).
United States
Admission
While most graduate programs will have a similar list of general admission requirements, the importance placed on each type of requirement can vary drastically between graduate schools, departments within schools, and even programs within departments. The best way to determine how a graduate program will weigh admission materials is to ask the person in charge of graduate admissions at the particular program being applied to - such persons are often happy to discuss the department's admission process.
Admission to graduate school usually requires a bachelor's degree. High grades in one's field of study are important — grades outside the field less so. The Graduate Record Examination standardized test is required by almost all graduate schools, while other additional standardized tests (such as the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT), Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT), Dental Admission Test (DAT), Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Subject Tests, Law School Admission Test (LSAT)) scores may be required by some institutions or programs. In addition, good letters of recommendation from undergraduate instructors are often essential, as strong recommendation letters from mentors or supervisors of undergraduate research experience provide evidence that the applicant can perform research and can handle the rigors of a graduate school education.
Within the sciences and some social sciences, previous research experience may be important; within most humanities disciplines, an example of academic writing normally suffices. Many universities require a personal statement (sometimes called Statement of Purpose or Letter of Intent), which may include indications of the intended area(s) of research; how detailed this statement is or wh
University of Glasgow :: Faculty of Education :: Graduate School
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