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I’m Not Sure What I Want to Do Next
That’s okay! It is common to feel like you aren’t sure what you want to do after you have earned your bachelor’s degree or if you are looking for a career change but are not quite sure which kind might be best.
In this case, consider one or more of the following as ways to explore what you want to do in the future:
- Talk to a career advisor
- Meet with a graduate school dean or other member of a graduate school
- Attend a Graduate School Fair
- Take a personality assessment or strengths/skills assessment and make an appointment with the Career Readiness office to discuss the results
- Conduct informational interviews to learn more about different types of jobs. This article from UC Berkley does good job of explaining informational interviews.
- Participate in an internship or service learning opportunity
If you know what you want to do but you aren’t sure about graduate school, consider taking one graduate course as a non-degree seeking student to see if it is a good fit. It is important to note that non-degree seeking students are not eligible for financial aid, and not all graduate programs allow students to enroll in one course at a time.
I Applied to Graduate School But Didn’t Get In
First things first, take a deep breath. You are not alone in this experience, and it is possible for you to be admitted to a graduate program in the future.
If you were waitlisted for a program, check out this article from Idealist.org for tips on what to do next.
In order to move forward, your next step is to identify the reason(s) why you were not admitted this time around. Get in touch with your admissions counselor or a contact within the academic program and ask for feedback on how you can be a more competitive applicant for the next admissions cycle.
Due to the high number of applications being received, many graduate programs do not provide personalized feedback. While this can feel frustrating, you might have better luck receiving a response if you reach out outside of the busiest parts of the application and admission cycles.
Expand each section below to learn more about common reasons for why students are not accepted, and how the issues can potentially be addressed.
- If possible, invest in a test preparation course that includes practice tests and is published by the makers of your test.
- Review the test preparation resources listed here.
- If you are a current MSU Denver student, review the requirements for additional funding through the Graduate School and Professional Licensure program.
- If you are no longer a student, check with our Alumni Relations office. Your local public library or the Auraria library might also have test preparation resources available to borrow.
- You will want to meet with your admissions counselor to identify best next steps.
- If you need to take or retake specific courses, ask your admissions counselor if there are any restrictions for how to satisfy these requirements.
- For example, is it acceptable to take these courses through a self-paced, online service such as StraighterLine?
- Before you enroll in a specific course, check with your potential graduate program’s admissions counselor to confirm you are enrolling in the correct course.
- Consider completing an internship or volunteering with an organization related to your chosen career.
- If you are a current student, or you graduated less than one year ago, the Classroom to Career Hub has resources to help you.
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- If you graduated more than one year ago, explore our Alumni Career Support services.
- Complete a graduate or undergraduate certificate related to your field. You will want to research whether this is an appropriate way to work toward your goal of enrolling in a graduate degree program.
- Earn professional development badges through LinkedIn Learning, which is free for MSU Denver students and alumni.
- If the graduate program is truly not right for your goals:
- Ask your admissions counselor or faculty contact for recommendations on what type of program might be a better fit.
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- Do some research on LinkedIn; find people who have the job you want, look at their account to learn about their educational experience, and research similar programs.
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- Conduct informational interviews.
- For example, reach out to folks on LinkedIn to see if they would be willing to discuss their educational and professional journey.
- Conduct informational interviews.
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- This article from UC Berkley has good information related to conducting informational interviews.
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- If you didn’t articulate your goals clearly, or didn’t express your qualifications accurately:
- Get help editing your resume and/or your personal statement.
- If you are a current student, or you graduated less than one year ago, the Classroom to Career Hub has resources to help you.
- Get help editing your resume and/or your personal statement.
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- If you graduated more than one year ago, explore our Alumni Career Support services.
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- MSU Denver’s Writing Center is available to current students and alumni.
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- Consider asking different individuals to write your letters of recommendation for your next application. If you want to ask the same individuals to write your recommendation letters for your new application, remember to provide an updated copy of your resume/CV and a more tailored list of your achievements as they relate to the program you are applying to.
I Need Advice
We get it, and we are here to help! You can email any questions to Sarah Goldenberg at [email protected], or follow the instructions below to schedule an appointment with Sarah in CareerLink.
How to Schedule an Appointment in CareerLink
- Log into Career Link
- Select ‘Counseling’ from the top right menu on the homepage.
- Click on the ‘Request New Appointment’ button.
- Select the ‘Type’ of appointment you are seeking from the first drop-down. Fill in the preferred date range, time and/or days of the week to help refine your search.
- Then click ‘Check Availability’.
- Select the advisor (Sarah Goldenberg).
- When the request box appears, add any relevant notes for the Career Advisor (optional).
- Click ‘Submit Request’. The advisor will approve the request and send a meeting invitation with an MS Teams link, if needed, to your MSU Denver email account.
- Accept the meeting invitation and save it to your calendar.
Contact Information
Email: [email protected]
Campus Location:
Administration Building (AD)
Suite 270