For many liberal arts-minded Bearcats, the decision of whether or not to pursue a graduate degree may be one that leaves them feeling that they have few places to turn to for advice.

Students who still have to decide what the next step after Binghamton University is may feel lost ‘ but staff members at Harpur College say the best tool for a student to take advantage of is the faculty itself.

While the first step in looking into the graduate school process is often visiting Harpur Advising, the office will usually direct students to faculty members in the department of their major to speak more specifically about their future career path.

‘It is very important that students get to know the undergraduate faculty and that the undergraduate faculty get to know the students,’ said Lawrence Greenfield, director of Harpur Academic Advising.

According to Greenfield, not getting to know the faculty puts a student at a ‘disadvantage,’ in that professors’ letters of recommendation for him or her will not be as strong as those for a student familiar with faculty members.

‘Graduate school is very much a part of the world of the faculty,’ Greenfield said. ‘Preparing for graduate school is a little different, a little less specified [than applying to medical or law school].’

Hinman College Faculty Master and English Professor Al Vos agreed with Greenfield on the importance of getting to know the faculty.

‘Any student who wants to go to graduate school should have a mentor,’ Vos said. ‘They need to find a mentor amongst the faculty whom they know and like ‘ Students who have ambitions for graduate school need to be proactive in seeking out the faculty.’

Because graduate school programs vary so much between disciplines, Vos said it is the faculty who are the most knowledgeable for graduate schools, stating that the members are the ‘most unutilized’ resource at BU.

‘Binghamton students are very bright and talented, but they need to know that admission to grad school ‘ just like admission to law school and med school ‘ is very competitive,’ Vos said. ‘Students need to make a realistic assessment of their qualifications, and the faculty who know them best will best help them make that assessment.’

A popular resource for English majors toying with the idea of graduate school for journalism is Mary Haupt, who teaches writing and editing courses within her department.

When students come to her for advice on choosing a graduate school, Haupt usually refers them to the Dow Jones Newspaper Fund Web site, where students can search for schools by location and then further narrow their search down by program.

‘I think if you’ve used your time productively, and it shows that you’ve given some thought to what you really want to do and if you’ve gotten some experience, maybe done an internship, I think that’s going to matter as well,’ Haupt said.

Seniors at BU agreed with Haupt when it came to experience and extracurricular activities.

‘Grad schools are looking for somebody who sticks out to them,’ said Micah Towery, a creative writing and Greek major at BU who will be pursuing an MFA in poetry at the City University of New York at Hunter College next year. ‘Know what your programs value. Know what the professors there are interested in, and try and cast yourself as fitting in with that vision as much as you are able.’

Erin McNamara, a senior finishing a double major in English and Individualized Entrepreneurship Program, agreed with Towery on the importance of activities outside the classroom.

‘I’ve looked for internships and I’ve realized how competitive the job market is,’ said McNamara, who will be attending Columbia University in pursuit of a master’s degree in humans rights studies. ‘I’ve had a fellowship for the past three years and that helped me a lot. I also started a group on campus called the Progressive Student Coalition and just general leadership stuff on campus. I’m also an RA, so I think that helps a lot.’

And twin brothers Aaron and Wesley Sattler emphasized individual research as an important experience for a science major going onto graduate school, as students pursuing a doctorate in a science have a somewhat different type of educational experience than others.

‘In graduate school, you’re doing research so you get paid to go [to school],’ said Wesley.

But for other students, the cost of graduate school is the most stressful part of the experience.

‘Funding is the biggest problem I’m having,’ said McNamara. ‘Most schools won’t fund master’s students ‘ they’ll give you loans but they don’t have a lot of scholarship opportunities.’

Still, Vos may be correct in terms of students not using the faculty to their advantage.

‘I didn’t use the school at all, I just I did a lot of my research on the Internet,’ McNamara said. ‘I looked for students who were currently enrolled in the programs I was interested in applying to and I e-mailed some of them to see what they liked and didn’t like.’