Graduate school is often quite a different experience than undergraduate. Students are more autonomous, which for many can leave them feeling lost or without guidance.
There are many resources, however, to which a student can turn to find tips, tricks, and commiseration, all of which can greatly improve that graduate school experience. This is a list of the top thirty graduate school blogs.
Best Graduate School Blogs
1. Gradshare is a graduate student blogger community. The articles on grad share are, as their writers, very diverse. The writers are from a wide variety of programs and have a multitude of perspectives; however they all have one thing in common–they're graduate students.
Highlight: The Power of Intention
2. College Puzzle is published by Stanford professor Michael W. Kirst. The blog is focused on providing students with advice and insight into the college world at all levels, especially on financing and the multiple different paths students might travel and find success.
Highlight: Federal Financial Aid: A Student Guide for Successful Applications
3. AMS Grad Student Blog is a collaborative blog featuring the writings of graduate student members of the American Mathematics Society. The blogs cover a wide range of topics primarily dealing with math, but also sometimes with issues often faced by graduate students as a whole.
Highlight: Mathematics vs Statistics
4. Google for Students is a google resource blog for students featuring information on how to use Google's powerful suite of tools, including powerful search techniques, and information on maximizing the usefulness of Google Drive. The site also shares information on how to get a job at Google, and what working there is like.
Highlight: Advanced Power Searching With Google
5. HackCollege This blog focuses on helping students of all levels adapt to the circumstances of higher education. This blog offers commentary on everything from folding clothing, to covering the latest productivity apps.
Highlight: How to Fold a T-Shirt in 5 Seconds
6. Leiter Reports: A Philosophy Blog is one of the most respected blogs for philosophy grad students, or anyone that is just interested in philosophy. The blog covers publishing traps, news in the philosophy community, philosophy in politics, and coverage of the top printers of philosophy in the English language.
Highlight: Best Philosophy Publishers in English
7. Thesis Whisperer features articles targeted at graduate students that share advice from the author who has been a graduate student, on all the ins and outs of writing a thesis. Topics are diverse, from interacting with your thesis advisor, to proper ways to go about research, and other strategies.
Highlight: How to Complain and be Heard
8. Graduate Student Grant/Fellowship Blog shares information regarding grants and fellowships for graduate students. This is a good resource for people looking to bring in a little extra aid, or find strong fellowship options.
Highlight: Institute of Historical Research Mellon Dissertation Fellowships
9. Student Branding is a blog covering the topic of how to brand yourself as a potential grad student, a grad student looking for a fellowship, or a grad student about to complete their degree and looking to enter their field. The blog also covers strategies for high school students entering college (with an added view toward graduate school).
Highl. ight: Midterms, Interviews, and Preemptive Fun
10. Creative Writing MFA Handbook is a blog devoted to providing students with insights and strategies about Creative Writing Master in Fine Arts programs. The blog features content on how to get the most of your grad school experiences and classes.
Highlight: Applications, Acceptances, Waitlists, Rejections
11. Human Rights Doctorate is a blog focused on the experiences, studies and ideas of a student pursuing his doctorate in human rights. The blog features many modern human rights concerns, as well as looking back at historical situations and offering advice and insights to others looking to pursue a graduate degree in the field.
Highlight: Senegal's Chambres Africaines Extraordinares to Judge Habre
12. JD Law Students Blog is a place for law students to share their experiences, insights, and advice regarding earning a JD. The blog features content on many topics, from events and activities the students enjoy, to study methods and encouragement.
Highlight: A Costly Shame Spiral
13. PhD Blog is written by a PhD student who is studying the influence social media has on the identity development and doctoral practices of PhD students. The blog serves as both an outlet for his research, and his thoughts on how PhD are positively and/or negatively affected by social media.
Highlight: Twitter Timelines and the Art of Skim
14. Chemistry Grad Student and Post Doc Blog is the blog of the American Chemical Society and is geared toward providing resources and insights to graduate-postdoc students.
Highlight: Thinks I Wish I Knew Four Years Ago
15. Grad Cafe is a collaborative blog for graduate students and those considering graduate school. The site shares advice and strategies for applying to graduate school, and what to do once you get in, how to evaluate multiple acceptances in order to determine the best opportunity for you personally, and more.
Highlight: Playing Hard to Get (by Accident)
16. University of Texas Grad Student Blogs are targeted primarily at UT grad students, but the blog also features articles by students that contain advice pertinent to a wide range of grad students.
Highlight: Take Your Professor to Lunch
17. The George Washington University Graduate School of Education and Human Development features blogs by grad students at GWU that deal with numerous issues facing grad students such as interacting with professors, reflections on lessons learned throughout graduate school, the process of maturing as a graduate student into a professional, and many other relevent topics.
Highlight: Reflecting on Graduate School
18. Grad School Jungle is a blog by graduate students intended to help other graduate students navigate the sometimes murky waters of graduate school. The blog debunks myths, shares strategies, and also includes articles on pressing issues in graduate education today.
Highlight: The Truths of Reading
19. Auburn University Grad Blogs feature articles from many different types of graduate students at Auburn University, from those that have done the academic chain of highchool>college>graduate school>PhD to students who are going back to school with the intention of advancing in their career or changing it altogether.
Highlight: Defcon 20
20. Harvard Grad School of Education Admissions Blog features content produced by students, staff, and distinguished guests geared toward helping students through the grad school process, whether it be applying, or beginning the search for employment once nearing graduation.
Highlight: In Search
21. The Professor is In focuses on helping graduate students make a successful transition from grad student to professor, especially those who are still grad students when they begin taking on teaching responsibilities.
Highlight: Addressing Search Committee Members
22. My Graduate School publishes content on successful methods for applying to and preparing for graduate school. Articles range in topics from selecting the perfect school taking both price and quality into consideration, to avoiding major pitfalls that can hurt your chances for acceptance even after you've submitted your applications.
Highlight: Letters of Recommendation for Grad School: Beware the Bad Letter-Writer
23. University of Michigan's Rackham Graduate School Blog features articles from students on everything from applying effective teaching methods to writing a strong thesis or dissertation.
Highlight: Learning How to Teach
24. UNL Political Science Grad Student offers grad students, potential grad students, and former grad students advice on succeeding at every stage of the graduate school experience. The blog also offers reviews of various conferences and advice on interesting professional resources on top of providing valuable insight into the world through the eyes of a graduate student.
Highlight: Game Theory Program
25. Rutgers Grad Student Blog offers readers the insights of current graduate students at Rutgers University. The blog serves the purpose of fostering a sense of community within the Rutgers programs, giving prospective students insights into the various programs, and offering general advice to any and all graduate and potential graduate students.
Highlight: The Hidden Virtues of Wasting Time
26. Ohio State Graduate School Blog features practical advice on all aspects of graduate education, from financial advice for periods both before, during, and after graduate school, to achieving optimal outcomes in the beginning or advancing your career.
Highlight: Steps You Can Take for Career Outcomes
27. Notre Dame Graduate School Professional Development Blog features experienced grad students and professors writing content geared toward helping each other navigate the often complex and difficult questions that inevitably arise throughout the graduate school experience.
Highlight: Blog Your Way to a Healthy Writing Habit
28. The Grad Student Way is the blog of "Ryan the Graduate Student", a 5th year PhD student who dabbles in career counseling in addition to his studies in cellular and molecular pathology. Ryan offers practical advice on this blog that can be applied by graduate students in a wide variety of circumstances.
Highlight: Top Ten Things to Never Say to Your Thesis Advisor
29. Nuts and Boalts is a blog of the Berkeley School of Law. The majority of content pertains to law students and features news and statistics from the legal and law school worlds, but there are also articles on the effective use of social media and other technologies.
Highlight: In Defense of Citizens United
30. Plotzk is the personal blog of a graduate student. The blog features the thoughts and musings on her struggles and triumphs both as a writer and a student.
Highlight: The Trouble With Writing
