birdy-bear

@Lindsc237 already hit all the major points out of the park, so I second everything they said and only have a few points to add. As mentioned above, ABA is a science, and your ABA agency has trained you in one application. It sounds like you might be more interested in more naturalistic ABA applications--check out Early Start Denver Model, Pivotal Response Training (similar to: Natural Environment Teaching, Enhanced Milieu Teaching), and Positive Behavior Supports. I think you'll find these applications to be more naturalistic and person-centered and less robotic than the application you describe. 
I'd also recommend shadowing BCBAs in other settings if you can. I work as a BCBA in an ABA preschool, and most of your concerns don't apply in my setting. We are (almost) entirely clinic-based, so I very rarely go into family homes. The majority of my clients are 3-6, so crisis behaviors are typically not as dangerous to the client or myself as they are with older clients. I collaborate with an SLP and another BCBA, and get to be in constant contact with our technicians (since we're all on-site), so I think everyone feels a lot more supported and connected than in-home technicians and clinicians tend to. And finally, the majority of instruction in our preschool is embedded naturalistically into typical preschool routines (science, art, circle time), so it doesn't have the "robot instruction vibes" that get conflated with ABA.
As far as looking into programs, I'd recommend finding professors doing research on those naturalistic ABA applications listed above, and working your way back to programs from there. If you do end up staying in Hawaii, check out Dr. Jennifer Ninci! She does research with little ones and her work might be up your alley. If you are looking into programs on the mainland, a school psych/ABA or social work/ABA program sounds like it could be your speed. Alternatively, I did a SPED/ABA program and was really pleased with the person-centered focus of my education. University of Oregon (Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre in School Psych) and Saint Louis University (MSW with an ABA focus) might be good programs to look into as you start your research!

I credit the Hello PhD podcast, along with the Grad Cafe Forums, for helping maintain my sanity during the application and waiting process. The hosts discuss bi-weekly topics from the perspective of scientists, but the discussions transcend any particular field and are useful (I think) for anyone currently in or considering a grad program. This week's topic--choosing the right grad program--seemed especially apropos:
http://hellophd.com/2018/02/087-how-do-i-choose-a-phd-program/
What other podcasts--related to your particular field, being a grad student, or otherwise--have you been using to occupy your mind during the waiting period? What are your other strategies for filling the void?

Hello, everyone!  As you all bask in the glow of your recent acceptances and await your next round of offers (I'm rooting for you all!), I'm hoping you out-of-fielders wouldn't mind sharing your experiences with a newbie... 
 
Like several others on these boards, I only recently stumbled upon the wonderful profession of SLP, and the moment I began researching the field of SLP, everything clicked into place... It's truly everything I've been looking for in a career!  I hope to apply for the Fall 2014 cycle.  I've been poring over the forums (you all are so helpful!) and swimming in Google searches, but I feel lost in the deep end trying to decide where to start!  What's the best route into SLP if you're starting out-of-field?  What was your own experience?  In particular:
 
1.) If you chose to complete a post-bacc before/while applying, why did you decide to do so?  Which program did you choose, how long did it take, and how did you choose that program?  And if you don't mind my asking, what was the damage ($)?  Are you glad you chose this route? Rinse and repeat those same questions if you chose to complete a leveling year. 
 
2.) If you decided to apply for programs few to no prerequisites, which schools did you consider and/or apply to?  What was your major as an undergrad, and how did you gain experience in the field?  Are you glad you chose this route?  If you've already begun your program, do you feel prepared and on par with your peers?  Is there a bucket list out there of schools with limited or no prerequisites?
 
3.) This question is unrelated, but it seems like programs tend to be geared toward clinical/hospital settings or school settings.  I am most interested in working in schools (or potentially early intervention)--is there a bucket list out there of the best programs for this focus?
 
I have some momentum launching me into the field--a high undergrad GPA, strong testing abilities (so, ideally, a good GRE score), and two years of experience working with deaf children in India and Nepal.  I'm looking into opportunities to shadow local SLPs, and there is a wonderful deaf school in my community where I hope to begin volunteering.  What else can I do to learn more about the field, prepare myself for a Master's Program, and/or strengthen my application?  
 
Phew, I hope this doesn't feel like another round of essays!  I'm so appreciative of any guidance you all can provide. 

I agree with @t_ruth and @ZeChocMoose: finding academics whose research you're interested in and working backwards to the universities is a good way to get started! You might try reading abstracts in the Journal of Early Intervention, Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, and Early Childhood Education Journal. If you find something you like and want to read more, researchers will sometimes make their articles available on ResearchGate or provide full copies upon request. If you're interested in a SPED focus, you might try looking at publications coming out of Vanderbilt, Kansas, UT Austin, UO, and UGA. These are just a few institutions who have faculty doing interesting work... Or interesting to me, at least!
I also agree with @t_ruth that you might be unlikely to find many folks researching infants in ECE. Most ECE programs bill themselves as covering ages 0-6 or 0-8, but in my experience, these programs tend to focus on ages 2-6. 
I attended Harvard about a decade ago, and at that time, HGSE wasn't known for ECE. I see they've introduced an early childhood initiative since then, so it may be different now, but the "big name" schools aren't necessarily where you'll find the strongest ECE programs!

Hi, karish11!  I'll likely be completing a handful prerequisites this upcoming year, so I've been looking into post-bacc/leveling options myself.  If you're open to taking classes on-line, I've found Utah State's post-bacc to be the top recommended program on these forums.  People also seem to dig Longwood, Vermont, and Idaho as on-line options.  Portland State and University of Washington have been the most talked-about on-campus options.
 
I've seen you around the forums, so I'm sure you already know this, but for the sake of lurkers and other future applicants: each of these programs has a different set of courses, and each Masters Program has a different set of prerequisite requirements.  It's important to check that you're taking the right courses for the programs you're applying to!  I'm only applying to one school with prerequisites (which has five required classes), so instead of uprooting to a new city, getting a secondary bachelor's in SLP, and depleting my entire life savings, I (think I) am going to take the handful of classes I need on-line, probably at Utah State.  Some of these programs (particularly the on-line options) will allow you to take just the classes you want/need as a non-degree student; in others (particularly the on-campus options), you'll join a cohort, sign up for the long haul, and wind up with some kind of certificate or degree.  Here's a compilation of post-bacc/leveling programs I've found so far, complete with links.  Putting this list together helped me to finally organize this mass of information--hope it helps you, too!
 
On-line Post-Bacc Programs: 
Utah State (12 courses/35 credits, recommended 3 full-time semesters)
University of Alaska Anchorage (7 course offerings, though not every class is offered every semester)
East Carolina (but we missed that boat: must e-mail on March 1st for a spot)
Eastern New Mexico (has synchronous/asynchronous class scheduling)
Florida State (6 courses/24 credits, can do Post-Bacc anywhere but must reside in FL for Masters Program)
Idaho State (12 courses/37 credits, has on-campus and mixed option)
La Salle (10 courses/37 credits, has on-campus and mixed options)
Longwood (9 courses/27 credits)
SUNY at New Paltz (9 courses/28 credits, has on-campus option but limited seating)
Tennessee State (6 courses/20 credits)
Texas Woman's University (application was due March 1st AND finals must be taken on campus--yuck)
The University of Montana (10 courses, fall/spring semesters, has synchronous/asynchronous class scheduling)
University of Nebraska, Kearney (10 courses/32 credits)
University of Vermont (8 courses)
University of Wyoming (10 courses/31 credits)
Kean Univesity Pre-Professional Program (8 courses/25 credits, has on-campus option)
 
On-Campus Post-Bacc Programs (all completed in one year as full-time student):
CSU Fullerton (12 courses/36 units, 3 semesters, credential in Speech/Language/Hearing)
CSU Long Beach (51 units, 3 semesters)
CSU Los Angeles (14 courses/57 units, 4 quarters, preparatory certificate)
Chapman (10 courses/30 credits, 5 terms, preparatory certificate)
Portland State (12-16 courses/45-60 credits, 3 semesters, earn B.S. in SLP)
Minot State (13 courses/40 credits, 3 semesters) 
Kean Univesity Pre-Professional Program (8 courses/25 credits, on-line or in-person, 3 semesters)
Metropolis State University (8 courses, 2 semesters, leveling certificate)
University of Washington (12 courses/65 credits, 5 quarters, earn B.S. in SLP)
East Washington University (12 courses/34 credits, 2 semesters)
Idaho State (15-16 courses/38-41 credits, three semesters [final semester is on-line])
La Salle (10 courses/37 credits, typically takes 18-24 months to complete)
UT Austin (9-10 undergrad courses as non-degree student)

Hi @ARemi4! I've worked the past couple years as a BCBA in a clinic setting, and I'm about to start a PhD in Special Education under a BCBA-D. I can offer you my perspective, but I think the answers to your questions will depend on what you're looking for in a program and what you want to do after you graduate. Take my advice with that large grain of salt!
1. Your intended profession: If you intend to stay in academia as a researcher, doctoral student, or professor, I'd recommend choosing a strong program in your intended field, one that would provide you with research experience and that has professors whose interests align with yours. If you want to work as a school-based BCBA, I'd recommend considering Education programs that include teacher certifications; it's difficult to get a job as a school-based BCBA without classroom experience, and teachers will take you more seriously if you've spent time teaching (even if it's just student teaching). If you want to work as a BCBA in any setting (e.g., schools, clinic, home), I would strongly recommend considering non-ABA programs with an ABA track (e.g., Education or Psychology programs with coursework in child development). The coursework in most ABA programs does an excellent job teaching how to teach, but not necessarily what to teach. In my Master's program, the education-specific coursework (e.g., speech and language, curriculum development), in conjunction with the ABA coursework, trained me to be a much better provider than I would have been with the ABA coursework alone.
2. Pass rates: The BCBA pass rates for every program are posted on-line here. High pass rates are a pretty good indicator of a high quality program, and vice versa. 
3. On-campus vs. on-line programs: On-line programs are becoming increasingly popular, but if you can swing it, there are definite benefits to an on-campus program. Brick-and-mortar programs tend to: (a) have a higher pass rate for the BCBA exam than on-line programs, (b) provide clinical experiences across a variety of settings and/or populations, (c) offer opportunities for research experience (which I found to be invaluable in day-to-day work as a BCBA), and (d) have more/better funding. Plus, if you think you'll eventually want to pursue a Ph.D., your experiences and contacts in an on-campus program are likely going to give you an advantage over on-line programs.
4. Practicum/field experiences: For each of these programs, find out how you'll complete your 750-1500 hours of field experiences. Will the program provide you assigned fieldwork placements, or will you have to seek out your own placements? Will they assign you to one setting/population or a variety of settings/populations? Will you be completing supervised independent fieldwork (1500 hours), practicum (1000 hours), or intensive practicum (750 hours)? Will you have to pay for supervision, is supervision included in tuition, or will you get paid for your fieldwork experience? Do students tend to complete their hours in conjunction with the program, or begin accruing them after they graduate? Will you have opportunities in your placements to train on all components of a case, from intake to discharge? Depending on what you want to do after you graduate, the answers to these questions will help guide you to a good fit.
As long as your program has a verified course sequence through the BACB (i.e., can be found on this list here), you should be good to go. I honestly don't know what the ABAI accreditation is used for, but my Master's program is not on that list, and it's never been a problem. Hope this helps!

Got a research gate account and found out I'm coauthor on a conference paper I never got told about. It was from an REU five years ago and they never let me know. It's not in my current field at all but I'm not complaining!! 

My partner and I have both been accepted at two of the schools we applied to together! Which means now we will be able to make a decision rather than just going to wherever we were both accepted. Also at one of our schools we've each received higher paying fellowships! Now here's to hoping our visits will help us in our decision process.

P.S. If you feel comfortable doing so, please talk to your supervising BCBA about your history of domestic abuse and getting reassigned to younger, smaller clients that don't make you feel scared on a regular basis! I've only had one bigger client with severe/dangerous challenging behavior at my current agency, but I checked in frequently with his technicians to make sure they felt comfortable and safe; they were well aware that they could remove themselves from his case at any time. No compassionate BCBA would require you to stay with clients that make you feel unsafe, especially considering you're working 1:1 in the home without backup and you're smaller than your clients!

@Lindsc237 already hit all the major points out of the park, so I second everything they said and only have a few points to add. As mentioned above, ABA is a science, and your ABA agency has trained you in one application. It sounds like you might be more interested in more naturalistic ABA applications--check out Early Start Denver Model, Pivotal Response Training (similar to: Natural Environment Teaching, Enhanced Milieu Teaching), and Positive Behavior Supports. I think you'll find these applications to be more naturalistic and person-centered and less robotic than the application you describe. 
I'd also recommend shadowing BCBAs in other settings if you can. I work as a BCBA in an ABA preschool, and most of your concerns don't apply in my setting. We are (almost) entirely clinic-based, so I very rarely go into family homes. The majority of my clients are 3-6, so crisis behaviors are typically not as dangerous to the client or myself as they are with older clients. I collaborate with an SLP and another BCBA, and get to be in constant contact with our technicians (since we're all on-site), so I think everyone feels a lot more supported and connected than in-home technicians and clinicians tend to. And finally, the majority of instruction in our preschool is embedded naturalistically into typical preschool routines (science, art, circle time), so it doesn't have the "robot instruction vibes" that get conflated with ABA.
As far as looking into programs, I'd recommend finding professors doing research on those naturalistic ABA applications listed above, and working your way back to programs from there. If you do end up staying in Hawaii, check out Dr. Jennifer Ninci! She does research with little ones and her work might be up your alley. If you are looking into programs on the mainland, a school psych/ABA or social work/ABA program sounds like it could be your speed. Alternatively, I did a SPED/ABA program and was really pleased with the person-centered focus of my education. University of Oregon (Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre in School Psych) and Saint Louis University (MSW with an ABA focus) might be good programs to look into as you start your research!

I agree with your comment wholeheartedly. I'm reading a lot of assumptions from the original poster, but not enough first-hand evidence. I think you're trying to make yourself feel better if you turn down an Ivy and that's perfectly fine – but go to visit day, talk to professors, and get insight from students to see how it's really like.

I also want to point out that an undergraduate's experience at a particular school may be very very different from the graduate student's experience at the same school. (In addition to all the things that change with time, advisor, department, etc.). I feel like the type of student that would excel and thrive as an undergraduate where I did my PhD would be very different from the type of student that would excel and thrive as a graduate student there. I felt like it was an excellent and nurturing place for me as a graduate student. I don't think I would have done very well as an undergrad there at all and I am very glad that my undergrad school was very different than my PhD school.

The Hello PhD podcast had two back-to-back episodes on Imposter Syndrome! I highly recommend this podcast, even if you're not in the hard sciences--I credit Hello PhD and the Grad Cafe Forums for being my two sources of sanity through the application and waiting process.  
http://hellophd.com/2017/04/070-imposter-syndrome/
http://hellophd.com/2017/04/071-practical-advice-overcoming-imposter-syndrome-dr-maureen-gannon/

The Hello PhD podcast had two back-to-back episodes on Imposter Syndrome! I highly recommend this podcast, even if you're not in the hard sciences--I credit Hello PhD and the Grad Cafe Forums for being my two sources of sanity through the application and waiting process.  
http://hellophd.com/2017/04/070-imposter-syndrome/
http://hellophd.com/2017/04/071-practical-advice-overcoming-imposter-syndrome-dr-maureen-gannon/

I think the other key piece you're missing here is that you can turn down any program, including an Ivy league program, but if you applied to this program believing it was a great fit, you owe it to yourself to make sure that your conjectures about the program are actually true. It seems like you have a lot of preconceived notions about what an Ivy league school is like, but not enough interaction with the actual people and program to base them on. As someone mentioned above, even within a single school, the culture can vary widely from program to program. Visit the program, try to check your biases at the door, and you might surprise yourself with what you find.

Hi raincoffeecats. It sounds like you have a really big decision ahead of you to make. Hopefully some of what I have to say can help.
Like you, I've been working for about 4-5 years as an behavior therapist. (Like an RBT, but not officially. The states I've worked in haven't required the credential because they hire off experience, but I am currently in the process of applying for it so I can work in different states. But literally no different in terms of responsibilities.) I have to be totally honest with you: I love it. When I began to think about grad school around this time last year, there was no doubt in my mind that I wanted to get my masters in ABA.
For me, it really is one of the most interesting jobs in the world. I've worked other jobs, and being a behavior therapist means walking into a totally new situation every time, even with the same clients. I get to help make positive change in their lives. And having the behavior analysis background, it requires a good deal of careful observation and problem solving to address problem behavior and turn it into something positive. Frankly, I love the challenge that this field poses.
With that said, if you aren't 100% sure you want to pursue ABA as a career, I don't recommend that you do it. It is a very challenging field to be in and requires a great deal of personal motivation and interest to sustain. Still, I wouldn't count yourself out just yet. From what you wrote, it sounds like you have some misconceptions about ABA (It's okay, everyone does.). ABA is a science, yes. It is a science just as much as medicine or psychotherapy or nursing. Yes, the application from animals to humans is discomforting. But think about classic psychology experiments on mice and monkeys (e.g. Harlow's study on "contact comfort" in infants using infant monkeys). It's not just ABA that is rooted in animal research; most scientific fields with clinical applications are. That's just the history of it. Secondly, I personally disagree with you in regards to ABA lacking empathy or connection. I think being able to teach someone how to take care of themselves or how to make friends or how to get to work using the bus is one of the most empathetic things I can do as a human being. And, even though I'm speaking from the therapist's perspective, I think it goes both ways. As an example, I used to work at a group home for adults with severe autism and intellectual disability a few years back. I had one client who, when I walked in at work, would take my hand and look to see what color I painted my nails. It seemed trivial to me, but it made them smile from cheek to cheek. And because I was in school, I would sometimes come back to that job after being away for months, and without fail, this client would look at my nails the moment they saw me. The thing with autism, is that people who have it see and experience the world differently. But, with that said, they still want to do all the things we want to do. They want to have friends, to follow their passions in life and do what is meaningful to them, fall in love, and have a generally happy life. While autism can actually bring some creativity to the table in terms of how this is accomplished, it can also hinder accomplishing these goals. And that's why I think ABA is important and valid. Personally, I think that if someone doesn't know how to brush their teeth because they have autism, we should not be saying that "forcing them" to learn how to do that (in a way where they can understand) is wrong. On the contrary, I think it would be extremely inhumane to forego teaching them to brush their teeth and allow them to get gum disease because we don't want to "force" them to learn how to take care of themselves.
How a therapist chooses to teach them though, varies from person to person. Being respectful (and knowing what "respectful" looks like for someone with autism) is not something that can always be taught and understood at first glance. It is something that takes a significant amount of time and dedication to learn, and frankly, mistakes. I have found myself (and also, from other professionals I know) that involving yourself or at least being aware of autism advocacy is a great way to do this. There are many resources out there, but a couple of places I would look are the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network (ASAN) and Operational Meaningful Life. There are many others, which I'm sure you will find in your travels.
Which brings me back to your situation. I don't know if you've delved at all into advocacy, but I think you should give it a chance. What motivates me and a lot of professionals to join the field is not always the pay. For most, it's being aware of the injustices that are carried out against people with autism and other disabilities, and being able to do something about it. Half of my job as a behavior therapist is to educate parents about ways they can help their kids, resources that are available to them, and helping them to understand how their children see the world. Crazy that, at 22, I'm given this huge responsibility. But it's something I spend a lot of time on, because I personally need to know that what I'm doing is helping. That's empathy and compassion; ABA is just a tool to help me put that empathy and compassion to good use.
Look. I can't tell you for sure whether being a behavior therapist or a counseling therapist is right for you. But being someone who, at this point in her life, is so certain of this career choice, maybe you can start to ask yourself the right kinds of questions to get to where you want to be. And I sure as hell don't know a thing about counseling psychology; that's for someone else to answer to. Regardless of what you choose, both of those fields would allow you the chance to change someone's life for the better, and it's something you should be proud of.  I wish you the best of luck moving forward with your decision.

I think the other key piece you're missing here is that you can turn down any program, including an Ivy league program, but if you applied to this program believing it was a great fit, you owe it to yourself to make sure that your conjectures about the program are actually true. It seems like you have a lot of preconceived notions about what an Ivy league school is like, but not enough interaction with the actual people and program to base them on. As someone mentioned above, even within a single school, the culture can vary widely from program to program. Visit the program, try to check your biases at the door, and you might surprise yourself with what you find.

@sprklinthe I get that this can be a sore subject, but that's actually why this thread was made. I didn't get in anywhere last year and it hurt. Luckily, there are multiple places to discuss that (and the worry when waiting) on this forum. This thread was specifically created so that there would be a place for those with admissions to let off stress without making those still waiting feel bad. 

Best of luck with your programs! Hopefully, you'll be joining us in worrying over the decision process soon enough! <3 

As others have mentioned, "Ivy" is a poor proxy for "stress-y and pressure cooker." Go visit all the departments! I think "too stress-y" is a good reason to turn down a good school, if you have more relaxed options that still graduate most of their students into the kinds of jobs you would like to do. I have been associated with both Ivy/near-Ivy and big state schools (albeit sometimes as an employee or undergraduate)...and the environment I found by far the most negative was at a big state school. At the problem place, I didn't like how only some people got all-fellowships packages, while others had to teach a tremendous amount for their funding. It added this really unpleasant competition gradient; even if all the fellowships were external, the differential results produced nasty results for camaraderie. When you feel yourself saying, "Wow, I miss that stressful New England University that has a (not unfair) reputation for having mean students and faculty, because people were so much nicer there," something is wrong. Don't underestimate the ability of departments to build their own cultures, which may be way better or way worse than the result you would get if you averaged the climate of every department at that university.
Of course, know your field. The two schools you listed as pseudonyms for your non-Ivy choices don't fill me with confidence, especially as compared to Princeton, rather than a "lower" Ivy...I've never heard of a graduate field in which Temple is really the best. That said, I don't know the comparative rankings of any sciences, or most of the humanities or social sciences, either, so I hope that's not too much of a dig against the school. (If your example was, say, Cornell vs. UCSD, I would be much more enthusiastic because I can name academic fields in which they are exactly equivalent.) Try not to pick a school that doesn't graduate its students into good jobs—academic or not—over one that does, but the one that is best for your graduate field of study may very well not be the one with the lowest undergraduate acceptance rate.
That said, I have turned down Ivy—in part because that department was so weird, demographically ($$$ people!)—so just like, go on your visits, try not to pre-judge, and see what you can figure out once you have more evidence about how much you like each place.

I felt the same way as you when looking at my options for PhDs. I urge you to actually visit the school and get a feel for its culture and environment before making a decision. The school in my case isn't an "Ivy" but in my field, the Ivy League aren't necessarily the best. It is the #1 school in my area of science and it's a private school similar to the Ivy league schools.
I was very anxious about the visit and the first event was breakfast where everyone introduced themselves. Everyone went to Ivy or other top tier private schools. I thought I had made a mistake. But actually spending time with people in the department over the two day visit, I learned that every worry and concern I had about this school was wrong. The department was like one giant family! I loved my 5 years there as a grad student and I am very happy that I visited and got to know the program before making a decision. I strongly believe that the resources available to me at this school helped me get to where I am today. I don't think the students at top tier schools are that much different than other schools but they just have so many more tools to succeed. I can discuss it further in private messages if you want.
But my main message is to not get "prestige shy" and doubt your own abilities. Don't rely on stereotypes of these schools and especially not stories from other people who attended the school in different departments or different years. Schools vary a lot internally within departments and they change over time. Definitely get yourself out for an in-person visit if possible and decide for yourself. 

I think the other key piece you're missing here is that you can turn down any program, including an Ivy league program, but if you applied to this program believing it was a great fit, you owe it to yourself to make sure that your conjectures about the program are actually true. It seems like you have a lot of preconceived notions about what an Ivy league school is like, but not enough interaction with the actual people and program to base them on. As someone mentioned above, even within a single school, the culture can vary widely from program to program. Visit the program, try to check your biases at the door, and you might surprise yourself with what you find.

The Hello PhD podcast had two back-to-back episodes on Imposter Syndrome! I highly recommend this podcast, even if you're not in the hard sciences--I credit Hello PhD and the Grad Cafe Forums for being my two sources of sanity through the application and waiting process.  
http://hellophd.com/2017/04/070-imposter-syndrome/
http://hellophd.com/2017/04/071-practical-advice-overcoming-imposter-syndrome-dr-maureen-gannon/

The Hello PhD podcast had two back-to-back episodes on Imposter Syndrome! I highly recommend this podcast, even if you're not in the hard sciences--I credit Hello PhD and the Grad Cafe Forums for being my two sources of sanity through the application and waiting process.  
http://hellophd.com/2017/04/070-imposter-syndrome/
http://hellophd.com/2017/04/071-practical-advice-overcoming-imposter-syndrome-dr-maureen-gannon/

I credit the Hello PhD podcast, along with the Grad Cafe Forums, for helping maintain my sanity during the application and waiting process. The hosts discuss bi-weekly topics from the perspective of scientists, but the discussions transcend any particular field and are useful (I think) for anyone currently in or considering a grad program. This week's topic--choosing the right grad program--seemed especially apropos:
http://hellophd.com/2018/02/087-how-do-i-choose-a-phd-program/
What other podcasts--related to your particular field, being a grad student, or otherwise--have you been using to occupy your mind during the waiting period? What are your other strategies for filling the void?

Received my acceptance to the HID M.Ed Special Ed program at UT Austin!