First Things First: Setting Up An Accountability Partnership

 

In the first part of this series, I discussed how an accountability partner can dramatically improve your chances of getting your applications in order and being successfully admitted to your graduate program of choice. If you’re a college student, it is high-time to start mining your social connections for candidates – classes, clubs, organizations, even online forums.

But first things first…. How do you identify good candidates for accountability partners? Here are a few tips:

1. Where are you in the grad school admissions process?
   Different stages of the admissions process requires different levels of support. Do you need someone to help you narrow down your areas of interest? To identify and research grad programs that may be a good fit? To simply cheer you on throughout the process? To check in with to see if you’ve accomplished your weekly goals? Or to remind you of your weekly priorities? Consider whether your goals may call for different personality types. If so, then you may need to seek out an accountability partner or two (or three!). Or better yet, form a group!
2. What time frame are you looking at?
   Deadlines are critically important. And it may be important to you to follow the same timeline. If you’re applying in December and your accountability partner isn’t applying until next year, you may be mismatched with your timeframes. While you’re focused on getting your weekly tasks done, your partner may blow it off because they feel like they have more time to get everything together. For the best results, consider adopting an accountability partner who’s working along a similar timeline.
3. Who do you know?
   Based on your needs in Question #1, do you have someone in mind for your partner, or are you starting from scratch? What resources (networking groups, online forums, etc.) do you have for finding a partner?
4. How much can you commit?
   It goes without saying that partnerships are two-way streets, where you give your partner as much as he or she gives you. What can you offer, time- and resource-wise to your partner? Can you commit to meeting at regular intervals? Do you honor and respect your partner’s time by keeping your commitment to meetings? Do you have any resources to offer your partner? Test prep materials? Interview tips? Don’t be stingy with sharing!
5. What are your preferences?
   Do you want to communicate only by email, or do you want in-person or phone check-ins? Do you want someone who is applying to a similar program as you, or does it not make a difference as long as you share similar goals to get into grad school? Be clear about how often you want to check in with each other.

Once you’ve answered these questions for yourself, you’ll be in a great position to start evaluating potential partners. With email, text messaging, online forms, and social media, such as Facebook, the process of keeping in touch and staying accountable to each other has never been easier.