Freudian_Slip

I'm on a waitlist and just wanted to clarify something that I think many people believe (I know I did). Just because someone turns down an offer doesn't always mean a spot necessarily opens up for a student on a waitlist. In some cases, it seems the waitlist could just be a formality, or the offers that were rejected in your area may go to another area of the department, and that area might be able to take someone off their waitlist. At the school I'm waitlisted at, they extended quite a few offers, and the majority of people turned them down. From what I was told, the graduate school obviously has to back all of the original offers, but then if they get turned down from the offered students, they (or the area at least, perhaps not the department as a whole) may lose all of those spots. So if they extended 8 offers let's say, and 3 people accepted where they were maybe looking for an area cohort of 5, you would think there were be at least a couple spots open for someone on the waitlist. However, at least for the school I'm talking about, they just ended up being able to take the 3 who accepted. Obviously it's extremely frustrating that they wouldn't take someone off the waitlist when they clearly had a large number of offers to back up with funding. I'm not sure how representative this program is in terms of doing that (and it may also vary by year), but I just wanted to mention this since I know many people on a waitlist assume their fate lies with someone turning down an offer--and that may be the case at many schools, but not at all...so unless you were specifically told that by the program, it may not be the case.

I mostly assumed for apps that it meant courses taken while a matriculating undergrad. However, one of my apps said "all undergraduate coursework completed" or something like that and so I included some post-bacc classes in my GPA and just put an asterisk with a note that it included post-bachelor's classes. I would generally assume they're referring to while you were getting your bachelor's, but if any post-bachelor's work was relevant and/or would look good from a GPA standpoint, you obviously want to include those transcripts (they usually require it anyway) and perhaps note it somewhere else in your application aside from the undergrad GPA.

Do you mind sharing which area you were?

Just wondering if anybody here who interviewed in the Social area has heard back post-interview?? Feel free to PM also..thanks!

Wow, your research credentials are amazing. Pretty surprised you've gotten no offers. Are you applying to all top programs? Your GRE is low, especially for clinical, though not terribly low. It's possible at some schools your app is not making a cut off point for further review because your GRE is too low. I would think for Clinical you'd want 325+. Your GRE or maybe poor research fits/not as relevant research experience would be first 2 things I would consider. If you're applying a 4th time, though, I would really throw the kitchen sink at it and see what other maybe auxiliary things you could do to improve--like GRE Subject test, more programming/stats skills, etc. Also would make sure your SOP's are looked at by faculty etc.. You have to really candidly assess your application at a microlevel and see what can be improved I would also try to email some of your POIs at the schools you applied to and see if you could get any feedback, in addition to your faculty mentors. This year was my 2nd cycle with no offers apparently forthcoming, so I feel your pain. Don't give up!

Someone posted an interview phone call around late January. Their interview weekend is late-Feb, I believe. I emailed my POI and did not get a response, so I'm assuming rejection. I don't believe they waitlist without interview.

Person of Interest...ie faculty you apply to work with

Just wondering if the person who recently posted an interview for UVA's social psych would mind sharing details: Was it a general invitation or PI-specific? Do you know if all interviews have gone out? You can post here or PM me. Congrats/Thanks!!! And if anybody else applied/has any news, please chime in

No problem, thanks. Harvard has got to be one of the most ambiguous, unsystematic, frustrating programs. PIs can't tell you if they're taking students before you blow a $100 app fee and the time to complete your app. Seemingly no formal interview weekend. PIs can email randomly anytime within a month period. Grrr..

@TenaciousBushLeaper Do you know if POIs are still reaching out, by any chance? Seems like it's a broad window based on last year, but since several have received interviews scattered over the past 10 days or so, I don't know if that window's closing soon..?

I think with the Quantitative, the overall percentile is a little misleading. People going into graduate school in Psychology--the ones we're actually competing with--aren't typically as strong in math, and that national percentile is taking into account people going to grad school in fields like Mathematics, Physics, Economics, Engineering etc. that are going to have way more undergraduate education and skill in Quant than an average Psych major. I got a 159 in Quantitative first time I took it (75th percentile) and while that wouldn't seem amazing, it's about 95th percentile for Psychology, if you look at the statistics ETS provides, and is basically right there with all of the mean scores for the very top schools in my area. It's very rare to find a mean Quant score in Psychology that's even 160...the highest I've seen which was from a top-2 Clinical program was around 162 in past years. So when you're considering your Quant score on the GRE, I think you have to think of it relative to the field and whom your competing with as well.

Applied to both and have heard nothing. However, they both typically notify in late January, so it's expected. If they stay true to form, I think there should be something next week from both, but if they're behind it could be following week. Would you mind PM-ing me your other schools? Interested to see if we have any others in common

If you're talking about AFTER applying, then it's what @artsy16 said: you could have contact from your POI, from a grad program coordinator, or some other possibility depending upon how the school's admissions process is arranged. BEFORE applying, it's true some people (I don't what %) do reach out to their POIs. This could be just to find-out if they're taking students for the upcoming year, though, if that info isn't on their web page. Some of these emails could develop into pre-application informal phone or Skype chats, which could probably give the applicant an advantage, but I think that's a pretty rare case. I emailed several POIs before applying to find-out if they were taking students and/or express my fit and overlapping interests, but it was nothing beyond a couple friendly emails maximum--and most of it could be accomplished through your Statements, which you did. Plus, if you already have 2 interviews out of 8 programs with potentially still some to go, I'd say you're doing just fine--so don't worry!

Shinobu Kitayama at Michigan? More Social psych than Clinical I think, but you can also look at his Google Scholar profile and check out co-authors.

Wow this thread quickly devolved into a tangent. I can't see how an MA can hurt you, but it may not help as much as some might think. Admissions committees probably often see lower undergrad GPAs then high MA GPAs and could thus be susceptible to thinking the latter are inflated (though they may just reflect the student finally getting things together and developing maturity later in their academics). More of the benefit from the Masters program, though, would seem to come from further opportunities to acquire research experience, get strong letters of rec, and publish/present at conferences--all things which you can do anyway in a full time RA/lab manger role out of undergrad (and hopefully being paid to do so, without incurring any potential debt from a masters). As for the application consulting, if someone really needs much more than a few pointers from a mentor etc. in forming their statements and other materials, they may not have the intellectual maturity, analytic skills, and writing ability that will be needed to succeed in a PHD program and a research career beyond anyway. So the disproportionate advantage (or cheating if you want to be more extreme) as some might call it will eventually catch up if the person doesn't really have those skills in the first place. To the undergrad example a poster gave above, I'm not banking on the person who had to take the SAT 8 times or who had a staff of private tutors throughout high school to do very well at a great university, even if those advantages might have gotten their foot in the door. I don't think you can outrun or cover up your true ability forever in life, no matter the special advantages you may have in the short term.