First thing's first: ask yourself, What do I want to do? This may be an obvious question, but there are several types of degrees one can get in the arts, all of which have different implications for your career. There's a masters in curatorial studies, masters in arts administration, masters in museum studies, masters in art history--finding which one best suits your professional interests is important.

One of the most common and, truthfully, misguided errors is that a masters in curatorial studies or museum studies puts you on the road to being a curator. Not true. A masters in curatorial studies is actually more like a masters in art administration, and gives you the experience you might need do the administrative side, not creative side, of museum work. Ask the salty dogs of the art world: if you want to be a curator, go for the M.A. or Ph.D. in art history. For those professionals who do have their eye on the administration or directorship of art institutions, the best candidates for the future of art administration, they say, get an M.A. in arts administration/museum studies, and an M.B.A.

If you're at a total loss as to where to begin your search for a program, you can start with mass directories and guides to the Graduate Programs, such as the College Art Association's very comprehensive Directory of Graduate Programs in Art History. These guides are really just a starting point--the rankings and profiles can be quite arbitrary (especially in the case of U.S. News and World Report), and I wouldn't recommend applying to any program just from a perusal of these guides. Don't forget, there are also graduate programs that aren't necessarily affiliated with universities, such as the Sotheby's Institute of Art or Christie's graduate programs. Keep in mind there's also great programs abroad, such as the Courtauld Institute's program.

From the guides, move on to the web search of the institution's own website. What courses do they offer? What are the core requirements, if any? Are there opportunities for travel? For teaching (TAing)? Print out these various pieces of information from the website, and keep a separate file for each school.

Once you have some programs in mind, find some (preferably recent) alumni from the programs you're interested in, and ask them about their experience: what were the program's strengths? What were the weaknesses? Were the faculty accessible? What was the relationship between M.A. students and Ph.D. students, if there are both? If there was a fine arts program too, what was the relationship between the M.A. and M.F.A. students? Did most students continue on to a Ph.D.? What were the facilities like? What were the resources like? If you could do anything differently, what would it be?

Also, it is always advisable to make a visit to your prospective institution and make an appointment with a faculty member who specializes in your field of interest. The faculty of a program can truly make or break a degree, especially if you plan to continue on to a higher degree. Try to read an article, essay, or (if you're really motivated!) book by the professor before your visit, so you have a specific grasp of what their academic focus is. *Remember to ask the professor what his/her sabbatical schedule is: the last thing you want is to find out that the professor will be away for a full year out of your two year program.

As you put prepare to put your application together, there's some things you'll need to do: schedule to take the GREs! And if you can, sign up for a class or pick up a book and prepare for it. Most of the art history or art administration programs require a GRE score--it is not going to the be the most crucial aspect of your application, but a decent score doesn't hurt.

You'll also want to get your FAFSA information together: while most Ph.D. programs provide stipends, most masters programs do not. Even if you're not sure exactly how you'll finance your graduate education, it's helpful to fill out a FAFSA form: Free Application for Federal Student Aid. They have a very helpful website. You never know--you could qualify for some really helpful financial aid. Put the financial aid information for each prospective program into a file for the school.

Most programs will ask for a writing sample--an essay of at least 15 pages or so, or a chapter from your undergraduate thesis, if you wrote one. Whether you are fresh out of your college and your thesis is a few months old, or if you've been out of school for a few years, I highly recommend that you go back and edit your writing. Chances are there's always room for improvement or expansion. As for your personal statement, have a college professor--preferably one who has taught in a graduate program him/herself--to review your personal statement. They know what these admission committees will look for in an application.

After you've sent in your application, some schools may contact you if they want to schedule a formal interview (this would be separate from your pre-application interview). In other cases, it is up to the prospective student to schedule a formal interview--if you have this option, do so.

Think ahead of time about what questions they might ask you, and formulate some articulate responses: one question an interviewer asked me which threw me for a bit of a loop was "What is art history?" The question is a lot less innocent and a lot more loaded than it sounds.