slpslidingaway

I'm part of the Neurolinguistics lab at PSU! It's awesome. My understanding is that PSU doesn't focus as much on the GRE as they do on the GPA and personal statement.

I just submitted my application! All my transcripts and letters are in, GRE scores are in, and now I'm just freaking out for the next few months. I keep rechecking to make sure I didn't make some stupid mistake, but too late now!

Hey, is anyone interested in swapping SOP for revision? I'm applying for speech-language pathology programs and would love to get/give feedback. PM me if you're interested!

Hey your scores are pretty good for going in cold! I think I have a really warped idea of what constitutes a good GRE score.

Ahhh nope my first deadline is December 1st. Oops! According to ETS, my quantitative score was in the 40th percentile but then looking at the schools I've seen "competitive applicants have a quantitative score in the 60th percentile, or a 150" so now I have no idea! I'm just hoping my verbal is strong enough to offset it.

I've been considering retaking my GRE, but I just don't think there is enough time. I'm used to doing a lot better on standardized tests but I did very little prep as well .

Just got back from my GREs! I wish I could have done better, but I think I did ok overall. I got (unofficially) a 161V and 150Q, so I hope that's good enough to get me into somewhere. Wish I had spent more time preparing, but oh well. I definitely don't think I have a) the time or b)the money to take it again.

I'm having so much trouble getting reference letters. I have two and I need one more. One person I asked said he as at capacity(which I hope is the truth and not just an excuse to say no) and I'm considering asking my French professor from undergrad- is it ok to have a professor who isn't SPHR? Right now I have an audiology and an SPHR professor and I'm considering asking the professor from the lab I work at.

So I had to postpone the GRE a little bit due to financial reasons and my first app is due Dec. 15th. One is not through CSDCAS and one is through CSDCAS, but it's a blue code (meaning it just has to be e-submitted, not that is has to be verified) and the non-CSDCAS one is for UT-Austin. If I take the GRE on November 6th, is a month enough time for the scores to be sent or should I plan on taking it in the next couple weeks?

I was working with the understanding that they write one general letter of recommendation, not separate ones. But I could be wrong. @anslpaday, hey there! Nice to see another PDXer around these parts.

I've already requested one letter from a class I did well in and I plan on requesting the others within the first two weeks of being back in classes (we start on September 29th). I've been drafting my SOP and studying for the GRE as well. And on top of classes? I predict that I'll be drinking lots of calming, relaxing tea this quarter. With whiskey. @onedayslp, feel free to steal it away!

Now that we're halfway through September and most of us are ready or getting ready to settle back into the school routine, I thought it would be good to have a thread where we can give and get support, complain about CSDCAS, chat about anything related (or not related) to applying to grad school. I know that right now all my nerves are hitting me full force about getting my application all ready by the 15th of November. My earliest application is due on December 15th, so I'm starting to get all my parts in order: getting my transcripts, asking for letters of recommendation, working on my SOP, and the GRE in October. Anyone else starting to feel the anxiety kick into overdrive?

Thank you! Congrats on your acceptances! Hopefully I'll be in the same boat in a year

No, not pushy at all! The only one I'm considering waiting on right now is the prof I'm working with in my research lab since she teaches mostly graduate students and she said she takes about two weeks. I'm hoping to have the rest set by the end of this semester so they have an entire summer to write a glowing recommendation for me . One last question: I have a professor from undergrad who I know would write me a wonderful LOR (she did it for an abroad program) but is in the French department plus I haven't talked to her for almost two years. Would it be awkward to ask her for another LOR?

Not gonna lie, I'm kind of having fun reading all the responses from other PSU people to try and guess which profs you are talking about. The things I do with my time...

Yes, my goal is to ask them by the end of this semester and September at the very latest. Thanks for all the advice everyone!

It's tough for me to estimate; maybe like 50-70? I'm having a little trouble with LORs simply because I am naturally kind of reserved and I think I just blend in really well. I've gotten some really good advice about getting LORs both from this forum and from other students at PSU. Basically I think if you do well in a class and go in for office hours, participate in class, all that jazz, the professors will write you a letter of recommendation and will take the time to get to know you before writing it too. If you decide on PSU, PM me and I can tell you the profs I've found to be the best.

@caterpillar, thank you! That really helps to ease my mind that a)it's totally ok to ask professors I'm not buddy-buddy with and that the writer isn't at PSU anymore. Good luck to you and your husband during this crazy application process- an assistantship is a pretty awesome accomplishment. @jesstrom, haha your reply loaded just as I was typing this out. I know logically it has more to do with the professor than it does me, so thanks for reassuring me that sometimes these things just happen. I'm really excited about the research lab opportunity; it's really interesting. Congrats on your acceptances to grad school!

Hi! I'm a current PSU post-bacc and I'd be happy to answer any of your questions. 1. Pretty big for the core classes, such as anatomy and physiology, phonetics and acoustics, etc. I believe elective courses are smaller. 2. A lot of the faculty here are more directed towards the graduate side of things and most undergrad classes that I've taken seem to be taught by adjunct faculty. Right now I can only think of one non-adjunct professor who teaches purely undergrad classes, but he's very nice and helpful and works really hard to make sure his students succeed. Graduate faculty also teach some of the undergrad classes too. I've liked pretty much every professor I've had here, but the classes are pretty large so you have to work really hard at standing out. 3. I'm not so sure about this one. They have an on-campus clinic, but I've done most of my SLP networking through my work or my mom's work (she's a special ed teacher) 4. This is a hard one for me to answer because I don't have anything to compare it to. I recommend the program because it's easy to get into if you're working to overcome a lower GPA but a big part of it for me was that it's close to home, since I'm a native Oregonian. Good luck!

@jesstrom, It's so tough in a big university, isn't it? I came from a small undergrad institution, so I'm used to my profs knowing me really well. It was just so disheartening to have a prof for two quarters, gone in for office hours, participated in class, etc. and then come the final, he didn't even know my name. This is also the one that forgot to give me a final grade. I just joined a research lab this quarter, so hopefully that'll help give me a boost. Thanks for the advice!

Yup, I am at PSU! I'm getting the 2nd Bachelors and hope to finish up by next year- in addition to the prereqs, I also have to take stats and two science courses since my undergrad science classes don't count. I remember you saying that one of the writers from PSU wasn't the best- any tips on avoiding that? Thanks for replying!

Hi! So I'm not applying until next year, but I've been poking around and am currently supremely stressed about getting my LORs. I've been doing really well in my post-bacc classes, but at this point I don't feel like my professors really know me well enough to write me a LOR. Most of my instructors don't even seem to know my name and one professor even forgot to assign me my final grade- I had to email him before I got it. I participate in class, ask questions, go in for office hours, etc. and it's been really frustrating/disheartening to feel so invisible. I'm really pushing this semester to be more well-known and chatting with my profs more, but short of being all Walter White as Heisenberg and "remember my name", I'm unsure about what else I can do. I guess I just blend in really well. When it comes to asking for LOR, is it acceptable to contact a professor who might not know me that well if I got an A in their class?

I started playing piano when I was 7 and singing in choir at around the same time. I'm also working on teaching myself to play the acoustic guitar. As far as languages go, I speak French as well and did my study abroad in France. I've actually found the musical background to be helpful in my courses! So interesting to read everyone's background.

I'm a post-bac at PSU right now and I know a fair bit about the grad program from speaking with the advisor, observations, talking to current grad students, etc.

I doubt they sent out all their acceptances at the same time, so there is still hope! Grad school is so stressful though- I'm not even applying until next year and I'm getting caught up in it all. Sending lots of positive thoughts your way!