Tutor Panel Offers Advice to Grad-School Bound Students

With the deadline for graduate school applications impending, three tutors on the California campus offered an informational discussion panel for juniors and seniors looking towards their next chapter. 

Last Monday afternoon, tutors Dr. Drew Rosato, Miss Claire Murphy (’20) and Mr. Andreas Waldstein (’19) discussed the practicalities of proceeding to a higher education, specifically one with a focus on the humanities, and answered other questions related to the topic such as, “Should I go to grad school?”, “Do I want to enter into a field with limited job opportunities?”, and “How do I weigh economic and career costs?”

The trio began by discussing the value and benefits of higher education, and drew a sharp contrast between graduate school procedures and the methods to which Thomas Aquinas College students are more accustomed: One should not expect graduate school to be a continuum of his TAC education, but should be open to new perspectives and ways of thinking. “If you do go into grad school, go in with a humble attitude and be willing to profit from the good things, even though they are very different from the way we do things here,” Mr. Waldstein encouraged his audience. “You should be very open to the new ways of learning and the new kinds of intellectual virtues that you can get.” 

Tutors also provided a brief rundown of what a student should expect from the graduate school lifestyle: coursework, lots of writing, a dissertation, and teaching requirements. “Very often, teaching will be a part of the program requirements, and getting that experience is very valuable,” explained Miss Murphy. Eventually the discussion segued into advice for a strong application, as well as the types of schools to consider. “You should not just go by the reputation of the school,” Mr. Rosato emphasized. “You should ask, ‘Is this going to be a good fit for me and my interests? Is it a place where I can grow as a thinker?’” 

Later on, in the question-and-answer portion of the talk, Miss Murphy echoed his point with her own twist, noting that “It is better to pick community in a school over just a ranking of the prestige”; to which Mr. Waldstein eagerly added, “On the other hand, do not have the mentality of only trying to hit ‘the safe schools’; keep an open mind to going into secular academia and bringing the light of Christ out into the world.”