“… Which of these [application] components matters the most to universities? The secret, according to many education experts, is that there really is no secret. Most graduate admissions committees take a holistic approach to selecting candidates. They may have certain thresholds for GRE scores or undergrad GPAs, for example, but as a general rule they look at the complete picture.” …
“Grad school” is a term used a lot to mean many different things. When I say “grad school” here I usually mean academic/research/scholarship-based programs, at the end of which is usually an MA, MS, or PhD. But some people also include professional programs - MPP, MPH, MBA, even law, medical, dental, etc. school. The problem is that there’s so many different types of schools and what “matters” is going to be really specific to what kind of school you’re applying to.
That’s why I find that Kaplan Test Prep survey to be kind of suspect - they say they surveyed “grad school admission personnel,” but only in professional degree programs are there “admission personnel.” IN traditional academic programs, it’s the professors who decide who to admit every year. Besides, the survey only asks what they look at first, not which one they weighted most heavily (those are two different questions). Were I choosing a new grad student, I would probably look at the transcript first just to determine a base level of competence/achievement, but research experience and the personal statement would be the most important factors in my decision, probably followed by recommendation letters.
Also, only in some programs does work experience even matter. Obviously for an MBA, MPA, international affairs - your work experience will matter. But if you are applying for a PhD in molecular biology, the fact that you spent the last 4 years managing a Target is not going to matter to anyone; they’re selecting on the strength of your research experience and interests.