BakedPotatoSoup

I've been fortunate enough to be accepted into several Psych MA programs, but I'm torn between two because of location and funding. One program is giving me a full ride and a stipend, but the region isn't ideal for me, and it would mean living apart from my SO (east coast vs. west coast) for two years. The other program is in a very expensive area and would require me to take out loans and accumulate student debt (I have none right now). I've wanted to live in this area however, and my SO would only be a 1.5 hr drive away. I'm excited about both programs, and either would take me in different directions (applied vs. experimental), which I'm open to. The applied program (expensive one) would help me get a job after completing the masters but the other (fully funded one) would better prepare me for a PhD program. What should I do?

Reviving this thread to see if anything has changed in Williamsburg over the past several years. There's a pretty good chance I'm headed to William and Mary this fall, and I'm curious about the general price range for apartments off campus. W&M does offer graduate housing, but I'm exploring all my options. How is the city nowadays in terms of stuff to do? For the record, I'll have a car.

I applied to William and Mary, Wake Forest, SDSU, and Claremont for Psych MAs. I've been accepted to William & Mary and Wake Forest so far. At SDSU I've interviewed with 3 POIs and I've heard nothing from Claremont. I think my POI at W&M thought we were a really good fit so they contacted me early (about a week after submitting my app). My background and interests are relatively specific though. I really wanted to go to grad school in CA, but my east coast programs are pretty awesome research and funding-wise so I'm heavily leaning towards those. I guess I'll aim for Cali for the PhD.

Hey everyone! I’m an occasional lurker that is applying this year. Everyone on this forum really intimidates me, but I’m glad we can all converse and commiserate here! I graduated from undergrad with overall GPA 3.3 (because I determined too late that I wasn’t suited for/interested in medical school and pre-med classes destroyed my GPA) and major GPAs of 3.7 each. I majored in Psychology and Asian Studies (conc. in Japanese) and I want to research adjustment stress, coping mechanisms, and well-being in a cross-cultural context (mainly East-West) in a Social Psychology PhD program. I have two years of experience as an RA (one year in undergrad, one year volunteering) in labs not in my specific field of interest. I’m currently teaching English in Japan and conducting my own independent research on the expat population here. I’m planning on taking the GRE while I’m here (my best so far is V: 160, Q: 155, W: 4.5) because most of the programs that do research in my area (the few that I’ve found) are higher tier programs and I need to compensate for GPA. I can get two solid letters of recommendation in academia, but I would have trouble beyond that (I can get several from current employers though). I have 1 presentation and no publications. I’ve been strongly considering a year-long post-bacc or a Master’s program to improve my GPA and to secure more solid recommendations, but I’m trying to avoid repetition (since the programs I’m looking at award Master’s while in the PhD program). Any advice?

I have been out of school for 2 years, and am currently teaching English in Japan. I'm planning on applying to graduate school (Social Psych PhD) this year. When I was in college, I was a shy girl at a big school that didn't learn how to build connections with professors. After graduation I volunteered in two labs under two PhDs for a year and figured it out (These will be my first two letter writers). Now, I work with two Japanese teachers of English relatively closely, and they both are very complementary of my work ethic. I am unsure of asking either of them however, because 1) They are not connected to academia or my field and 2) both only have a decent command of English. I don't think admissions would be very kind if they received a letter full of grammar errors and awkwardly worded sentences. I'm strongly considering having the one I choose write their letter in Japanese and have it translated (I know a guy), but I'm not sure how it would be submitted. I'm sure it would be ideal to find a professor from undergrad, but at best I would get a "she was in my class and got an A" letter. These teachers are the ones that can speak most accurately about my current work ethic, but may or may not be able to connect it to research. Should I still pursue this as an option, or should I try to reconnect with a professor from undergrad and start building a relationship and ask them?

Hello Everyone I'm new here, and this is my first post! I finished my undergrad in Psychology this year (with another major in Japanese) and I'm currently volunteering at two Psychology labs (one Social, one Sexual Health). I'm trying to improve my profile before I formally apply to any programs. I want to go for a PhD, and I'm leaning towards Social psych, but I'm worried about employment (I'm not interested in being a professor, but I enjoy conducting and applying research) so I've been investigating other more applied branches of Psych (I/O anyone?). I also, like many others, want to go to the best programs out there, but seeing all of the brilliant posters here reminds me of how intimidating applying to grad school can be, haha. Here are my stats so far: Undergrad GPA: Cumulative - 3.32 (went through a rough patch when I used to be Pre-med), Psych - 3.77 GRE: Verbal -160, Quant -155, Analytical - 4.5 I'm coming out of undergrad having been a student RA in a developmental lab for about a year. No publications or conference presentations, but we'll see what happens this year. I'm preparing to take the GRE again and am trying to focus my interests to see if I need to look into other branches (I'm interested in non-verbal communication, motivation, secondary language learning in adults, depression, positive psych, adjustment to foreign cultures, and much more). This year I'm applying to a program to teach English abroad in Japan (I would be there for one year) but I don't know if it's a good idea or not. I'm not sure if my time would be better spent doing something else to prepare for graduate school. What should I be doing right now if I want to stay on the PhD path? Thanks for your help!