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sdt13

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Everything posted by sdt13

  1. Actually, I don't know if this is good. I just remembered I have a meeting first thing in the mornin with my supervisor, as well as have to invigilate an exam right after (also with my supervisor). While I will obviously share the results, part of me is afraid finding out in front of him.
  2. I feel lucky to be on the west coast. Ideally I will just wake up and it will be afternoon on the east coast and I'll have the results....but that's only if I can actually sleep Monday night @_@
  3. I'm from the states, if you consider that international
  4. My supervisor and I talked about this during my interview, although I am in a more formal 2 year MSc. + 3-4 year PhD. We spent my first year trying to further enhance my profile so that I could apply at the beginning of my second year. I don't know if it's the same everywhere, while my professor wanted to nominate me (and offered me his nomination for our lab), I still had to have my department accept me as their nomination for SSHRC, followed by a review at the university level before sending them off to Ottawa. I am also an international student from the U.S.
  5. Was on the website the other day and it said announcements are currently scheduled for March 31st.
  6. Did you attend the CPA-SP pre conference this past year? I was there and it was super tiny, so chances are we must have crossed paths in some way! (if you attended, that is)
  7. If this is something you are concerned about, set up an academia.edu account. When anyone accesses your profile from google, you will be notified of the location of the person (e.g., what city/state) and what key words they used to find you. If you have such a profile, chances are professors may be more likely to view that (at least first). Also, when I applied, there was always a "trend." Right before I heard back about interviews, I noticed I would get hits from the same city/state within the week...it was interesting.
  8. One general piece of advice for anyone seriously considering Canadian universities, make sure to try and stay in contact with your POI. This will show them that you are seriously interested. Also, don't be afraid to actually tell your POI exactly how interested you are. Now, in the first email don't profess your love of them or the program in a creepy fan-girl/desperate sounding way, but get to know them a bit more (provided they are interested…not everyone is or has the time, but your effort is important regardless) and if a program is really in the top let your POI know. This way they know you are serious and will be willing to put in the extra legwork (if necessary) to try and take you. Also, don't be discouraged if you hear back later than everyone else. For example, two of my three Canadian POIs didnt contact me with a formal interview or decision until March-April because, despite being their top-choice candidate, they were afraid to approach me without funding. In fact, my supervisor now didnt interview me until April 12th or so because he was sure I wasn't going to choose somewhere else (he actually told me during our first face-to-face meeting that he was surprised I chose his program based on the other schools I applied to).
  9. This was honestly the easiest part. I flew into Vancouver without so much as even printing off a Visa application. I only brought along my acceptance letter and a copy of my funding, handed it to the agent, and within 15-20 mins he stapled my visa into my passport. And I do hope to stay. Because my program is split into MS + PhD they only issued me a visa for 2 years (covering the MS) forcing me to renew (FYI: a work around to this is to have your advisor write you a letter stating that you are definitely guaranteed to stay for X amount of years). I've been looking into it and apparently, especially as a U.S. citizen, it is relatively easy to gain permanent residency after completing your master's or at least 2 years in a straight PhD track. In fact, I was talking with one of my lab mates who told me that his friend basically only had to sign a paper (now it's probably not THAT easy, but easier than you would think). This may vary depending on which province you will be in, so look into the regulations for the specific provincial nominee program (the program that students are able to gain residency through without work experience).
  10. Well my research interests were very specific and so I only applied to schools with professors in my area. Out of 7 programs I applied to three Canadian schools, two of which were in my top 3. What really sealed the deal for me at my current program was the structure of the program and the perfect match with my supervisor. I'd say some of the benefits that I've learned about so far are the funding opportunities. I would say, hands down, the Canadian government (e.g., SSHRC/CIHR is probably akin to the NSF) provides way more opportunities for everyone, ranging from first year students to tenured professors. While I can't really benefit now, it is my expectation to apply for residency after I get my masters in the hopes of landing a job here as well. While I don't yet know much about the Canadian job market, from what I've heard it's pretty much the same as the U.S. However, if staying in Canada is not something you are considering, much more of your decision will have to focus on how the program fits your internets and needs. I certainly wouldn't dismiss the quality of Canadian Universities. While my program (i.e., social psych) is really small here, the professors are all incredibly well-known and highly respected in their specialities. Classes are top-notch and student focused (not something most people experience at research universities). I also like how my program is more distinctly divided into MS + PhD rather than straight PhD track because I have the opportunity to complete a master's thesis (whereas at my ugrad they just took comps). Because of this I have had more hands-on independent research opportunities than some of my friends who are second and third year phd students elsewhere.
  11. I made the transition to Canada from New York just this year (I'm a 1st year MSc student). If anyone is in a similar situation or has any questions about moving from the US to Canada, I'd be more than happy to help out in any way that I can :-)
  12. Things have been going well! While I have been here for over a month, the term just started this past Wednesday. I'm only taking one first year stats course, which I expect to be a breeze since I have a strong background in stats. I am actually really surprised at how quickly things are moving along. Within the past month, my advisor and I already developed several studies for my masters thesis research, which will take place over the next 2 years. In addition to that, we have already started a second (albeit related) line of research that we will also begin this fall. Despite all of this, for the past week and a half I have been feeling really weird about being in graduate school. I dont know if it's because the excitement of moving is wearing off and I now realize the cultural differences (while not too many between the US and Canada, there are definitely some) or by the fact that I'm so overwhelmingly busy so early. Fortunately, my advisor is super fantastic,completely supportive and extremely caring, so that helps.
  13. As an FYI, my university just sent this to all international students: Please note, there is currently a strike action alert on the Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) website. On Wednesday, August 21, 2013 the alert reads: "The Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers (PAFSO) union is currently taking strike action. PAFSO union members responsible for processing visa applications have been walking out of offices in Canada and overseas without advance notice. Posted processing times for both temporary and permanent resident visa applications do not take into account work stoppages. Anyone applying for a visa should anticipate delays and submit their application online as far in advance as possible. To avoid delays, please submit a complete application. Some countries require additional documents that may not be listed in your application package. Find out if you need to submit country-specific documents by consulting the website for your visa office. Contingency plans are already in place to ensure all offices remain open and are providing at least a minimum level of service. Priority will be placed on urgent humanitarian applications. CIC continues to closely monitor the situation. Visitors, workers and students can apply online for faster processing. The Department aims to process applications as quickly as possible, and encourages visitors, workers and students to apply online or through a visa application centre (VAC). Electronic applications give CIC much more flexibility in moving case processing to offices with the capacity to handle them. If you have already submitted a paper application, please do not submit an electronic application as this will not speed up processing."
  14. I don't know about how difficult this would be now (or if the circumstance I am going to describe is unique to this person), but there is a faculty member at my undergrad university who studied chemistry (or some sort of hard science) but then went on to MD/PhD. I don't think he had a broad psychology background, but he did his PhD in health psychology. Now he is a practicing doctor who also runs intervention studies/manages a health care research center. If this is the type of work you are interested in, it may be easier to pursue/transfer to something like health psychology. However, this will not be as clearcut for clinical psychology. However, as long as you pursue a clinical PhD, you have the ability to practice as a licensed therapist if you chose that route (even in a research program, you are going to receive extensive clinical training as laid out by APA standards...at least this is my understanding).
  15. Before jumping into AMOS, I would suggest learning the basics in more in-depth, especially regression if you want to learn SEM/Path analysis. For SAS, I found the Little SAS Book to be useful when I took a course that covered it (although the course focused only on the introductory level, not really in-depth). I would also ask why you are interested in these two programs specifically. AMOS is licensed through SPSS, while SAS is a whole different program (and from my experience, programs gravitate toward one program). I'm not sure why you chose SAS, as I have never seen that being used in psych (only cognitive sciences), so I would check to see if other programs that are more commonly used fit your needs or are more marketable (e.g., STATA, MPLUS, R). My knowledge of SAS meant nothing when applying, but my in-depth knowledge of SPSS was considered invaluable (especially using Syntax).
  16. If you have absolutely no or very few courses in psychology, there is a great chance you will have to do a post-bacc or complete a masters in psychology (I was told a generic masters in psychology is useful in these situations). If a program is lenient enough, they may accept a really good score on the Psych GRE. Most programs expect you to come in with a general knowledge of psychology with the understanding that graduate school is where you will define your more specific interests and learn new skills to apply that knowledge. Many programs even lay out which courses they expect you to have coming in so you may want to look for that section when researching different programs.
  17. As everyone else has said, bring as little as possible...maybe just pencils and your ID if you can. Even if you did print out your confirmation, they most likely won't let you bring it with you anyway.
  18. I think it depends. I had a similar issue, whereby I was working with an assistant professor/senior lecturer (his title changed to the latter when applying) and I was told that his letter would not be as well respected at most schools. This was a problem for me because he was my undergrad advisor, I had TA'd several times with him, worked in his lab for 3 years and did my honours with him. Despite this, I was still told to be careful by many. However, what helped me was that he is considered an 'up and coming' researcher and is respected within a small group of researchers (which happened to be in the same field I was applying). Everything seemed to work out really well since he knew most of the professors I applied to work with, as this letter actually came up in several interviews. I should also note that I had 2 other professors who are extremely well-known within this same field. I would say, if he is the person who knows you best, then definitely have him write you a letter. I would take a great letter from a lecturer over a mediocre one any day...especially if you have two others to supplement it.
  19. I'm not sure about your field, but I was told that if you want to work in the U.S., you have greater chances with a U.S. PhD. I was also told (and know quite a few who have done this) people with U.S. PhD's are not hindered at all really when applying abroad. I know several colleagues of my advisor who have U.S. PhD's and have gone to Canada, the UK, Korea, and China without too many issues.
  20. It averages out to be about 9-10 hours a week both semesters. I don't think I need to regularly attend the course itself for the fall (both are in my area), but the description strongly emphasized a heavy grading load at the end of the semester (i.e., when I will most likely also have an exam). Both of these courses are taught by the same professor, who also happens to be my advisor. On top of this, I will be taking one stats course (which I've technically already taken as an undergrad), running at least 2 studies, and co-supervising an honors project. For the spring, one course I was assigned to TA is completely out of my area and it happens to be the one to take the most time (~135 hours/semester). The other one is grading papers for an area I'm familiar with. On top of this, I will be doing mostly the same as above, but will be taking 2 courses instead of 1. This is the semester I am worried about most because I have no idea how I was placed in this TA-ship out of my area. The professor requested someone with extensive knowledge, but In fact, coming in I do not meet all of the requirements for this area so I have to take a supplementary course on this topic at the same time.
  21. I use my iPhone for some of the purposes you mentioned. While I'm sure you can get similar features on androids or whatever else is out there (admittedly I am an avid iPhone user since the first gen. so can't speak to anything else), I have been using google maps to help me with the bus schedules in my new area. Not only does it give me the schedule, but the buses here only stop at request and even then, the stops are marked with a small sign with the number, so I use the GPS function in google maps to help me figure out when I need to request a stop. It's been very helpful in learning the layout of my new city. As far as usage when biking, I have a bike mount that I use which is pretty cool. You can attach it to the handlebars so you can use it as a real GPS rather than stopping when lost. I am also a big fan of the iPhone because of iMessage and FaceTime. I used them a lot before, but now that I am abroad, these are a huge asset when communicating with friends back home. The biggest downside, however, is the battery life. I had an iPhone back in the States and it didn't seem to be a problem, but since I got a Canadian iPhone 5 the battery only lasts about 3/4 of a day. This may be due to my increase dependence on it, but if you plan accordingly it shouldnt be a problem (e.g., make sure your phone is charged when going out for awhile and anticipate using the GPS function...my phone died on one of the first days alone in my new city and I ended up getting pretty lost)
  22. I would in fact leave the iMac in my office, as that is where I anticipate spending most of my time. Why be wary exactly? I've never had officemates before so I'm used to treating my office almost like a second home so I wouldn't have hesitated, but maybe that's a very naive approach?
  23. Hi everyone, At my school, things are a bit different whereby we have to apply for TA-ships, as they are not guaranteed nor forced upon anyone who doesn't want them. I have an extensive background as a TA from undergrad (I was a TA for ~10 classes at various levels from grading to teaching labs), and I believe because of this I was offered 3 courses for the upcoming year (1 fall, 2 spring) where most students only get 1, if any. I just received another offer for the fall, so I was wondering if TAing two classes each semester in the first year is manageable? Has anyone else had a similar experience?
  24. Hi there! I will also be attending UVic this fall for my graduate work. I actually got here on the first of this month and I absolutely love it! I am from New York so Victoria is certainly different given the school is basically in a forrest (as my advisor described), but the weather is absolutely amazing. I've started coming to campus already to get ahead start on research, but this place is practically dead except for the professors (even then it's pretty scarce), so I look forward to meeting fellow grad students!
  25. I currently have a 13 inch macbook pro, but am considering upgrading to a 15 inch (would like retina, but not sure) or a 27 inch iMac. With the macbook pro I would also purchase a 23-24 inch monitor for the office, but with the iMac I would keep my 13 inch. Any suggestions as to which combination may be optimal?
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