The Best Graduate Programs: Humanities and Social Sciences, 2nd Edition

When I began thinking about pursuing an advanced degree in English, I had a lot of trouble finding any information. This book is not the best that will ever be published, but right now it is a pretty good resource in an area where there is almost nothing. Much of the reference materials sold in other books are merely directories of departments and programs - useful if you know what you want to study and where you want to go, but not really valuable if you aren't even sure graduate school is the best option for you. The kind of information that you need to obtain when you are actually applying to schools probably won't come from this book. What this book *does* do is to take a realistic look at what going to graduate school means, whether you should go at all, and if you decide to do so what you will encounter in the process. It is not going to tell you how to get into a graduate program in art history or archaeology, but what it will do is lead you in the right direction to finding the kind of information you need to consider those programs. It is a good GENERAL guide for those of us who weren't born knowing how graduate school works, and contains useful information that can help put you on a path to an advanced degree.

There is a pretty comprehensive review of how to get into graduate school. It not only focuses on the testing procedures and grades, but also on other relevant topics such as financing your education and even if graduate school will be right for you. The only lacking aspect was the fact that some of the information on contacting the programs was missing or outdated.