In response to a weak job market, the numbers of applications to
UCLA’s graduate programs are significantly higher in 2003
than in years prior to the current recession.
“If you look back at the past 20 or 30 years, when the
economy is bad, grad school applications increase,” said Jim
Turner, assistant vice chancellor in the graduate division.
An increase in the number of applications to graduate school was
noted as a nationwide phenomenon last year. And for the second
straight year, most graduate disciplines at UCLA have experienced
marked rises in applicant numbers.
As of April 8, applications for the College of Letters &
Science had increased almost 10 percent from the past year. Some
programs saw more than three times as many applicants, such as
Hispanic languages and literature.
“A lot of people want to wait (to enter the job market)
until the recession ends,” said Roger Farmer, professor for
the economics department.
Ed Leamer, senior economist for the Anderson Forecast, said that
in light of the job market, graduate schools may be a good option
for students graduating with bachelor’s degrees in June.
“The job market is likely to be weak for at least the next
half year, maybe a full year,” Leamer said. “It’s
not a bad idea to stay in school and get an advanced degree,
instead of entering a weak market.”
The benefit of an advanced degree is specifically relevant to
engineering students.
In years past, engineering students were scooped up by the
employment field. Yet with the collapse of many technology
companies, more students are going on to get graduate degrees,
Turner said.
But students unable to find a place in the work force may find
there is no place for them in graduate school, either.
Graduate programs are not admitting any more students than they
would accept normally.
“At UCLA ““ and I would suspect many other
institutions ““ even though we had a 22 percent increase (in
applications), departments were not admitting many more
students,” Turner said.
“Each department has its own student support economy, and
they don’t want to admit students whom they cannot
support,” he added.
Some graduate programs may not even be interested in admitting
students fresh out of college.
Thornberg said some may favor students who have field
experience.
“You aren’t going to get into a quality M.B.A.
program without two or three years of work experience,”
Thornberg said.
There is also the issue of whether a student is properly suited
for graduate school.
Turner said that in many cases, the quality of graduate work a
student does is more important than the income he or she loses by
not working.
But it is not beneficial for students to attend graduate school
if it is not related to their long term career goals.
“I don’t think grad school is for everyone,”
Turner said. “It’s got to be something you personally
want to do.”