The application cycle is in full swing in early December, when I’m recording this podcast. In reflecting on the many applications that my colleagues and I review here at Accepted and the problems we help our clients deal with, I thought it might be a good time to discuss things you shouldn’t do - mistakes that can really hurt your chances of admission.

We’ve also prepared an “Unchecklist” that you can download and review at your leisure. The Unchecklist contains the Toxic 16 + one bonus. Make sure none of them poison your application efforts. Click here to download your copy now!

1. Waiting until the last minute to start. [2:00]

After you receive your test score and select your target schools the application process is still a marathon, not a sprint. How long will it take? That depends on the degree program, but typically three months ahead of time is a great time to start working on applications, and two months still works. However, when you get down to a month prior to deadlines for starting work, it gets a little dicey in terms of time crunch.

If you work with an Accepted consultant, waiting until the last minute means there is less we (and you) can do to optimize your application. Delay limits the opportunity for us to review your overall profile, and can lead to a rushed application, which does not allow either you or us to do our best work. Applying is a detailed, difficult process whether you are working on your own or with a consultant. The essays require writing, rewriting, sometimes distancing yourself, and then returning to the essays. There are the boxes to fill in, the recommendations to procure, and perhaps a video to create.

And of course, there’s the exam (MCAT, GMAT, GRE, LSAT, etc), which I’ve been assuming you already took. In reality, we talk to so many people who take the exam at the last minute thinking they will apply right after and they bomb it – the low score throws their whole timeline out of whack. Get your tests done early (at least 6 months before you apply), so when application cycle swings into gear, you’re satisfied with your score and the test is behind you.

2. Focusing on your past instead of your future when choosing schools. [4:43]

Graduate school is to a certain extent about changing you. Sometimes applicants are so stuck on what they’ve done in the past (“I’m an Indian male engineer. What schools accept lots of applicants with that profile?”), they fail to think about which schools will prepare them most effectively for what they want to do AFTER they graduate.

3. Putting too much emphasis on the rankings. [6:35]

Rankings are great storehouses of data, but the absolute rankings are not the elements you should be focusing on when you choose where to apply. You should be focusing on:

• Your future goals and how well your target program will help you achieve them.

• Your qualifications vs the class profile of admitted students.

• Your fit with the schools’ culture, values.

• Your personal preferences: Do you want rural or urban, warm or cold climate, a particular geographic location?

Rankings should come into play if they measure something that is really of value to you, like how many women are on the faculty and a ra...