What do you need?

- get dressed and style your hair as if you’re going to school/work - even use the same perfume/ cologne as you normally do  (trick your mind into being motivated)

- plan things out - everything (plan out your week, day, meal, etc. you can make these as specific as you’d like. this will help you stay on top of your work as well as stay healthy, especially if you live alone.)

- make studying/ working the first thing you do each day - best if you can start in the morning (minimize the tendency to procrastinate)

- just start - don’t worry too much about perfecting or finishing anything yet (if you don’t start then there’s nothing for you to perfect or get done. and it will never get done)

- listen to old and simple (aka non-distracting) podcasts, Youtube videos, or café/ chattering white-noise, etc. simply leave them as background noise to create an illusion of being outside your room (bring the presence of people to you. my favorites lately have been slam poems from 2016, Mae Martin’s stages, and Awsten Knight’s crackhead podcasts)

- set timers, for both study sessions and breaks (so that you don’t overwork, burn out, or procrastinate. the Pomodoro technique works great here)

- take advantage of the comfort of your own home (light a candle, have crunchy snacks, play loud music, review notes out loud while pacing around, wrap yourself in a blanket burrito, study on your bed if you can focus there like me, etc. basically anything you can’t do in a classroom, office, or the library)

- if you miss your friends, call/ text/ facetime them, make a study group chat with them, etc. (that is what technology is for)

- choose recreational activities/ self-care for your breaks instead of going on social media (go on walks, make small art, play an instrument, stretch, take a nap, etc. I usually reach for my guitar, brainstorm writing ideas, or sketch very simple line art.)

- if you want to go on social media, do it during meal times - or the 15 minutes after your meals that you can’t work just yet (it also doesn’t make you feel like you’re wasting time)

- study in different rooms for a change of scenery (dining room, living room, the patio, etc. I have an armchair next to the window that I study in whenever I need some sunlight and don’t have to write anything down. however, if you need a designated place to focus on your work, you can also use these alternative spaces as designated “relax” or “creative” place for your breaks)

- use this as an opportunity to take care of yourself (get enough sleep, drink water, exercise, talk to your family, take your meds, be mindful of your mental health, etc.)

Feel free to add your tips. The current situation sure is unpleasant but it is unavoidable. All we can really do now is take care of ourselves, others, and try to make the best out of this.

Test your Skype. Or whatever other program you’re using for the video interview if it isn’t happening in person. Seriously. There’s nothing worse than losing half your time to technical problems. Also, consider using headphones so the committee isn’t listening to themselves echo through your room from your computer speakers. 

Re-read your writing sample/personal statement before the interview. They’re going to ask questions about both of those things. What I would really recommend is printing a hard copy and highlighting/taking notes in the margins so you have more to talk about regarding those documents when they inevitably ask. 

Be prepared to talk about other work you’ve done. They want to hear something they haven’t already heard in addition to more about stuff you’ve already submitted. Be ready to talk about what you’re currently working on, what you’re working on next, and where you think your interests might lead you during your doctoral study. 

Know why you’re a good fit for this department. It’s not enough to know why you want to go to grad school. You need to know why this particular program at this particular school with this particular faculty is right for you (and why you’re right for them).

Write down talking points and questions you have beforehand. Blanking on your research when asked a question eats up valuable time, and this may be one of the only opportunities you have to ask questions of faculty and current students that aren’t listed on the department website. It’s okay to say, “Let me think about that for a second,” and gather your thoughts before you decide how best to articulate an answer, but you don’t want to be reaching for the substance of it. Be ready to ask about anything important to your experience as a graduate student, whether it’s teaching opportunities or the possibility of interdisciplinary work. 

Treat it like an interview, not a casual conversation. Save the chummy stuff for when you’ve actually gotten to know these people. Approach the interview like a job interview, because that’s what it is. Cut back on slang and casual constructions like, “So I was like,” and “You know?” because it makes you sound like a teenager, and you want the committee thinking about your ideas, not whether you know how to be professional. 

Do not spend the entire interview playing with your hair, clothes, etc. It’s really distracting when an interviewee never stops moving, and the committee will end up remembering how you couldn’t stop touching your sweater and not what you were actually talking about. This seems minor, but it screams I’ve never done this before and I may not present well at conferences or other professional events. If you’re a nervous person or someone who tends to talk with a lot of gestures, do a mock interview with a friend so you can practice being still. Sit on your hands if you have to.

CLEAN YOUR GODDAMN ROOM. Look, admissions committees understand that a lot of students have limited living space and need to do their interviews in their bedroom or whatever. But for the sake of avoiding embarrassment and bad first impressions, take a test run and make sure your interviewers aren’t going to be distracted by piles of dirty clothes or empty packs of cigarettes or overflowing trash cans. Is that how you’re going to treat your communal office space if they make you an offer? Don’t make them wonder.

Study marathon 1/13

Revising theories of evolution and then heading over to the realm of physics and maths. Inspiring quote of the day:

Assiduity, it means sit down until you do it. Commit yourself to your work and study.