adela

So uh, I thought I'd chime in with an update.
 
I survived my first semester. Went through a rough patch of I dunno- impostor syndrome? My self-esteem took a dive. I thought I was doing terribly. My adviser helped me through it though. I'm really grateful to have a supportive program. By the end of the semester I felt okay though. I made it, anyways.
 
The new semester is starting though. I'll be super busy with a number of commitments going on.
 
I might explode. We'll see how it goes. I'm excited. 

^I get why some people would not like to have their picture taken and put online - safety issues.  That doesn't seem to be the OP's motivation, though; s/he just said that they feel like they'd be stared at like an animal in the zoo, which is quite frankly ridiculous.
 
I understand this in the context of social networks (I personally do not like having my picture up on Facebook, although it's all but unavoidable at this point), but not for professional stuff.  It's very very common for grad student pictures to be featured on the website, and if you go into academia, it's almost universal for faculty members to have their pictures featured on the departmental website.  People like being able to associate a name to a face - especially if they want to look for you at conferences or something.  It's not really being displayed like "an animal in a zoo"; it's satisfying the perfectly human drive to want to associate a name with a face.
 
But if you are completely against it, don't just skip orientation - go and then explain that you are uncomfortable being photographed.  There's no figuring it out involved - be direct, like an adult, and explain the situation.

Apply to Master's programs that have a Thesis component. You'll have hands-on research experience, you should be able to publish your Thesis at least as a poster presentation at a conference, and you'll gain additional statistics skills. There are some funded Master's programs in existence (I went to one). PsyD programs vary widely in their quality of education; the ones that are well-regarded by the psychology community (APA-accredited internship match rates over 80%, good EPPP pass rates, etc.) are often just as competitive as PhD programs. 

I use CeraVe actually! This past winter was very dry, and I switched to it. Good choice for sure. Thanks for the other suggestions as well. I imagine the harsher winters might call for further experiments with my skin care regimen.

I think that's correct. Definitely not important to the extent it would be for a PhD program. My research interests for my MS aren't too closely related with my potential advisers, same for the other school I applied to and got into. I think the fact that I AM interested in research, was specific about what topics, and have research experience helped me along. 

Oh god. Wool socks. Can do. They seem so cozy.

Hey folks! I've been compiling an initial long list for Clinical Psych PhD and/or Counseling PsyD programs I may apply to for Fall 2015. The main filter I'm using right now is based on finding an adviser doing research focused on LGBTQ populations. I've been surprised by how difficult it is to find these researchers and was hoping to start a thread that highlights these people's work in one place. After several weeks of research, here's who I've found so far:
 
Bryan Cochran PhD, University of Montana David Huebner PhD, University of Utah Paul Kwon PhD, Washington State University Margaret Rosario PhD, CUNY Melanie Brewster PhD, Teacher's College Columbia University Michael Lau PhD, Teacher's College Columbia University Tania Israel PhD, UC Santa Barbara Perry Halkitis PhD, NYU (Not LGBTQ specific, but HIV AIDS specific) Marvin Goldfried PhD, Stony Brook Amos Zeichner PhD, University of Georgia (Emeritus) Note that I'm listed faculty who actually publish research on LGBTQ issues. Many researchers list this as an interest, but do not actually publish work on this topic.
 
If you know of any faculty in clinical or counseling programs doing this research, please add them to the list! Thank you!