The selection of an appropriate graduate school for a prospective Master or Doctoral student is a very important step in fulfilling ones educational goals.  These series of posts are meant to help students decide various options available and some tips on deciding which schools may be viable choices.

Establish your financial plan

Most often graduate students are totally self-supporting with respect to the tuition and regular living costs.  If you are in a position to obtain financial help from your immediate family (or have some savings) you will be well ahead of the game.

Because of the great costs involved in obtaining a graduate degree, an individual should plan well ahead to see if such a venture is financially viable.  As with prospective undergraduates, Financial Aid Forms will need to be filled out if you are hoping to get grant monies.  Such monies, like Pell Grants are FREE money and are awarded on a first come-first served basis.  Thus, the more quickly you get this information in, the more likely you will receive aid (provided you are eligible).

While no one like to incur debt, some financial aid will be given out in low interest student loans.  These will be re-paid over an extended period of time beginning 6 mos. after you graduate or terminate your education.  Because the information needed comes from your 1040 tax form, it is really advantageous for you to be declared as totally self supported.

Though many students work during their undergraduate years, it is not a very good idea to do this when pursuing a graduate degree.  The academic and performance expectations are so great that one will not receive the utmost benefit from their education.  Thus, it would be better to lay out a year or two to work, stashing an educational nest egg away.  This way, you are in a better position to attend a school you really want, rather than what you can afford.

Be prepared to stay longer that one year.  While a Master's degree is set up for an academic year, often the person will discover that "remedial/review" courses need to be taken (often for no credit for the degree program).  This is contingent upon scores from your entrance exams.  Be prepared to take up to 15 extra hours of such course work (usually in theory and history courses).

Plan to graduate at the end of the academic year.  Graduating in the middle of the year puts one in limbo.  Orchestral positions are just starting to be posted and academic vacancies rarely open for the second semester.  Many graduating masters students start doctoral work at this time.  However, you should look for any and every employment opportunity in the professional field.  The reasons for this are discussed in a later section.

Deciding When to Get Your Graduate Degree

There are varying opinions as to when to go to graduate school.  Some people recommend going on immediately to the next level.  While this does have some merits, it is not advisable for everyone.  If you have obtained a BM (Performance Degree), then it may well be to your advantage to continue your studies.  However, if you are in a position to play in a semiprofessional or regional orchestra, it may be desirable for you to wait (provided there is someone within driving distance that can still assess your performance proficiency).

All too often there are young adults that have obtained a Bachelor, Master, and Doctorate without any break.  This is a very unwise decision.  You will find out that you are not being hired because of being over qualified with no experience (if you are wishing to go into secondary education or college teaching).  It is essential that one gets some sort of professional teaching/playing experience if teaching in academia is a goal.

In academia, the screening is much more arduous than in the performance field.  Not only does one have to perform well, but one must have exemplary writing and conversational skills.  Even so, search committees are very hesitant to hire someone who passes the above criteria, but hasn't obtained any "real world" experience.  Yes, it seems to be a "Catch 22", so any experiences you can get will best serve you in pursuing a position in collegiate teaching.  Be creative, develop a private studio, pursue local junior and community colleges for adjunct work.  For creative people that hustle, one can make a nitch.  Also, don't be hesitant to move to a larger metropolitan area; such a locale makes things much easier (students, gigs, etc.).

Graduating undergraduates are usually "burned out," especially those pursuing education degrees.  The academic demands are much more rigorous and often call for an extended time frame of up to 5 years to complete the undergraduate degree.

If you graduate with a BME, it is well worth your while to teach for a few years.  The benefits are numerous, a) the responsibility of holding a job greatly aids in your maturity, b) you will have the opportunity to make a living while setting aside monies for your future education, c) the years you wait will give you a valued perspective about what you really want to accomplish and the importance of receiving the utmost from your educational experiences (mainly because YOU are solely responsible for your educational expenses).

Some states require that teachers receive graduate training (or else have a completed Masters) within a certain time frame-usually 5 to 10 years.  Others, like Oklahoma, have no such requirement (our public school education system isn't ranked 47th in the nation for nothing...). I believe that one should not wait longer than 5 years to go back, the optimum is 3-5 being that will give you sufficient time to develop you educational philosophies, and allow you to get some sort of financial base set.