Dibbels81

I was in a similar situation. I had a undergrad degree with a sub 3.0, and a Master's degree with a very good G.P.A. My GRE scores were decent (155, 153). I applied to six grad schools this past year, and was admitted into two of them. I would recommend against doing another Bachelor's degree, and instead apply to a post-bacc program. Most schools only require about 7-10 classes for admission consideration. A second bachelor's degree isn't necessary.

You're golden. It's not as competitive as people have made it out to be. Heck, I got into one and I'm still not quite sure what a speech pathologist type person does.

The University of Illinois, where I'm attending this Fall, offers a "medical only" option that enables you to pursue two medical internships instead of the typical one school, one hospital. It's one of the reasons I applied there.

Bad HS grades are never a deal breaker. Worst case scenario is that you go to a community college for a couple of years. Assuming that you dominate at the CC, you can reapply to UOP and most likely get in. Get your academic act together before you move on to college, whether it is community college or not, because D's on the transcript in college could in fact be a deal breaker.

Nevada State College offers both of those classes online. NSC is cheap, about $150 per credit for out of state students.

I would suggest researching and applying to schools that are in the process of obtaining ASHA certification, like Elmhurst college. They would probably have a small number of applicants and would like to add some international students to their ranks.

Are you sure that you can't get those observation hours when your grad program begins?

155 Q, 153 V, 4.5 AW. I was an out of field applicant with 12 post bacc classes under my belt. Last summer t I tried to find some volunteer work, but to no avail (didn't try overly hard). I applied to six schools (2 admits, 1 WL, 3 rejects). So, I don't think extensive volunteer experience is necessary, but I'm sure it will help. Don't burn yourself out with it, though. I think a high GRE score will look better than having stalked a SLP around for a few weeks.

I'm registered at a small, cheap school called Nevada State College where I did my post-bacc that is offering a 3 credit, online, non-lab chemistry class called Chemistry, Man, And Society. Total cost is less than $500.

No, their classes don't require a proctor. They may have changed the format of their artic class to in-person only this past year, however.

There's a small, recently accredited school in Las Vegas called Nevada State College that offers an online post-bacc program. Cost is only $100 a credit. I took 12 total classes, and will be attending a top 10 grad school in the Fall, so there was no problem with transferring the credit. Just a heads up.

How were your Statements of Purpose? Post one of them here if you feel comfortable doing it. I've noticed some glaring spelling errors (loosing), that could have literally spelled your doom if they found their way onto an application. It seems that with your extensive volunteer experience, you should be at least be getting on some waitlists.

Don't despair, there's always another option. If your student loan debt is crippling enough, you probably would qualify for the Income based 25 year repayment plan. 150000K student loan on a 70k salary would equal about 600 bucks a month in payment. The payment goes up or down depending on how much money you made the previous year. Plug your numbers in this calculator and see if you qualify. http://studentaid.ed.gov/repay-loans/understand/plans/income-based

Assume $110 a month payment per 10k borrowed. My personal comfort level is 50K total loan amount. From what I gathered, starting salary should be around 60k a year (medical side, West coast). Uncle Sam is going to take 25% of that, and depending on whether or not you have state taxes, another 5% or so. So 60K X .7=42K take home pay. Even with a budget of 2k a month, you still have a lot of room to make extra payments on the loan. When the checks start coming in, resist the urge to buy the new car, the nice condo, restaurants, babies, etc. Continue to live that spartan college existence and you can be debt-free within a few years of graduating.

From what I've experienced this application season, your sexy Y chromosome will not give you any advantage in admissions. I'm an out of field applicant but have finished 12 post-bacc classes (3.83) and had a decent GRE (155, 153, 4.5). I applied to six schools (3 rejections, 2 waitlists, 1 acceptance). I'm extremely pleased to be going to grad school this Fall, so I don't consider my application season a failure. There are simply way too many highly qualified applicants in the application process that would lead to something as silly as having a PP give an advantage.

Negative. I applied to schools during my post-bacc program with two prerequisites (and a biology) in progress this semester. I have been accepted to one school so far, so it did not negatively affect my application. I'm sure they will ask for an official transcript when the semester is finished to make sure that I completed them.

Regarding the student loans, the federally subsidized loans are the loans that do not accrue interest while in deferment not the unsubsidized loan. And they are available to grad students; I have a Master's in Music, and have a bit of subsidized loans left over from that. I think the 10 year payment plan is for suckers; SLPs should make enough $ where we can pay 3x the minimum monthly payment, and be debt free within a few years of graduation. Remember, federal loans, subsidized or not, still have a 6.8% interest rate. That can really add up. Things like new cars, homes, vacations should be put on hold for a few years. Delayed gratification!

Thanks again. I'm an Illinois native so I'm quite aware of the winter situation, though I may have softened a bit living out here in the desert. My family lives in the Chicago suburbs, so having the option to relocate during the second year is pretty cool. Can't wait to dive in.

Thank you, that was quite helpful. For grad school, it's all about the placements, so having multiple options is good. I'll be moving from Las Vegas, so I assume Champaign is just as exciting as a town?

Working abroad is one of the reasons why I'm pursuing SLP. Here is a nice site from a SLP who has worked around the world, with a list of various requirements and whatnot. http://adventuresinspeechpathology.wordpress.com/

I've been accepted into U of I, and waitlisted by two others, so it looks like U of I for me. Any current undergrads or anyone else out there that could give me their opinion of the program? How are the externship possibilities?

The University of Illinois was ranked #11 in the latest rankings, so I would consider that a high ranking school, right? I grew up near Northern, it's a great place if you love to go cow-tipping. But going to grad school for free must be pretty tempting. I've been accepted at U of I and will probably end up accepting my admission offer, but feel free to decline that Northern invitation because I'm currently on their waitlist (FYI, I love cow-tipping).

Checked my status on the website this morning--rejected! Quite surprised and very disappointed, as I thought my interviews went well. Fortunately, I've been accepted to the University of Illinois, and most likely will be attending there. Best of luck to you ladies. Dan

I'll be heading to the airport tonight. I look forward to meeting everyone. Come up to me and say hi, I'm easy to pick out (tall guy). Dan

Perfect, thanks.