The first thing to know is that graduate school in the sciences is generally free. More on that below.  The second thing to know is that you do not need a Masters in order to get a PhD.  Some places do not offer Masters degrees, so you go straight into a PhD program.  Some do offer Masters degrees, and you can stop with a Masters or go onto get your PhD.  It just depends on which university you apply to.

The third thing to know is that graduate school is significantly harder than undergraduate, mainly because it requires independent research, which has no preset goal or path forward. You have to be comfortable muddling through, trying to define the questions you want to answer, the questions you can answer given the limits of time and geologic data, and the questions. 

While many grad school application deadlines are in February or March, some are months earlier. It pays to start investigating your future research interests and potential graduate schools no later than the summer between your junior and senior years.

Getting Into Graduate School

You generally need a solid academic record, good GRE scores, and three letters of recommendation to get into grad school.  Click here for more information on GPA requirements, taking the GREs, getting solid letters of recommendation, and choosing whether to apply for Masters or PhD programs.

Picking a Graduate School

There are three huge decisions to make when picking a graduate school:  

1. Which area do you find interesting enough for research; 
2. Which schools feature faculty that do this research; and
3. Where in the country/world would you like to do graduate school?  

For more advice on each of these issues, please click here.

Funding Your Graduate School Education

Although graduate school in the sciences is generally free, there are a few caveats to consider, and there are some scholarships that outstanding students could apply for. Please visit here for learn more on funding your graduate school education.