Customer Reviews

The African American Student's Guide to Surviving Graduate School (Graduate Survival Skills) (v. 4)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I did not like this guide for several reasons.

I bought it after the admissions process was finished and it was confirmed that I was headed to grad school.

The chapters do not give any information that is not readily found in other, better books (such as "Getting What You Came For") or on the Internet. I read a LOT of graduate school guides before, during, and after applying to grad school and all of them offered something new, except for this one. Unless you are a grand newbie to the whole thing, it's certainly not worth it and it doesn't offer a fresh look or anything like that.

Second, I was surprised that the book was by an African American because it took a stereotypical view of the middle-class black American: a devoted Christian, with strong family ties, etc. Constantly through the book it was suggested that readers turn to God or their church in order to cope with problems in grad school. I am not religious and I know a lot of black Americans who also are not, especially most of the black American grad students I know, so this confused me. Also, the book seemed aimed at an older demographic, like people who were returning to graduate school after having earned their bachelor's earlier in life and perhaps had careers, family, and other concerns. It didn't appeal to this 22-year-old going straight from undergrad.

Finally, I was a bit astonished by the lack of a fresh perspective (that of a black American) on the problems of graduate school, especially since that is the premise of the book. This could just have easily been "The African American Student's Guide to Surviving Life" or something else generic. Most of the fixes, as I remember them, were just general stress-handling techniques and not tailored to the experiences of graduate students, and there were very few anecdotes about the experiences of black graduate students who felt isolated or mistreated because of their race. There was NO mention of black American grad students who may have intersecting oppressions, like the special issues of black women, black LGBT persons, black disabled persons, poor black persons, etc.

Basically, I don't recommend. The problem is that there really isn't a good book out on the market that addresses the issues of black people (or people of color, or minorities in general) in graduate school. I guess as our numbers rise we may encounter more as more are spurred to write them.

I originally borrowed this book from a PhD student at my Alma mater. After reading four pages, the relevant information compelled me to buy the book for myself. The audience for this book is spiritual African-American baccalaureate students (or those who have already received their bachelor's degree). It demystifies the graduate school application process as well as provides information for navigating after enrolling and developing strategies to complete coursework. I highly recommend EVERY African-American baccalaureate student read this before deciding whether to go on to graduate school AND for those who completed their bachelor's degree some time ago and are considering going back for their master's degree.

However, the book has several distracting typographical errors.

I recieved this book in a timely manner without any of the run around of other sellers.

I found this book to be insightful, helpful, and downright funny. Isaac does a wonderful job of integrating needful information on what is needed to succeed in graduate school from entrance until ending - and her advice works. In her book, Isaac mentions that sometimes you are not admitted the first time you apply, but tenacity pays off. I was not admitted to my first school where I was seeking a PhD, but was admitted a year and a half letter after following Isaac's advising of steps on how to making one's application more competetive.

This book really encouraged me. It's an easy read, but worth every penny.