Yaris

As a queer man I enjoyed living in Edgewater, and found myself going out in Rogers Park and Andersonville much more than Boystown. In addition to being much more affordable than Boystown, any of the Far North neighborhoods also tend to be safer (with the exception of northern Rogers Park, near Howard). Apartment People ( https://www.apartmentpeople.com/) is a pretty convenient resource for finding housing. Just for comparison, I paid ~$950 for a 1BR in Edgewater, two blocks from the "gay beach" (Hollywood). Anywhere around Belmont runs at least $1200+ for a decent 1BR. Studios run about $100-200 cheaper in their respective neighborhoods.

For-profit universities (such as Alliant) generally don't have the best reputation. I would suggest seeking out specific faculty in PhD programs that conduct research with LGBTQ populations, as they have their own hands-on experience and expertise with the populations they work with. Also, if you're open to Counseling Psychology, there are numerous faculty that work with LGBTQ populations given the social justice focus that is common in many counseling psych programs.

For-profit universities (such as Alliant) generally don't have the best reputation. I would suggest seeking out specific faculty in PhD programs that conduct research with LGBTQ populations, as they have their own hands-on experience and expertise with the populations they work with. Also, if you're open to Counseling Psychology, there are numerous faculty that work with LGBTQ populations given the social justice focus that is common in many counseling psych programs.

I'm in my last year of a counseling psych program (on internship), and my experience has been that the counseling psych students' research interests are (broadly) more focused on career and multicultural/social justice issues. By comparison, the clinical psych students I've taken classes with tend to be much more focused on psychopathology (as kita mentioned) and neuropsych. That being said, both concentrations are required to take neuropsych and a subset of other core classes. With regard to internship, counseling psych students have traditionally skewed more toward university counseling center settings, but there are so many individual difference factors that come into play when deciding between applying to clinical or counseling, such as pursuing a research mentor who shares similar interests. More info on match stats between clinical and counseling students can be found here: http://www.appic.org/Match/MatchStatistics/ApplicantSurvey2016Part2.aspx. As schizometric mentioned, both clinical and counseling psych lead to the same licensure as a state-licensed clinical psychologist.

I'm in my last year of a counseling psych program (on internship), and my experience has been that the counseling psych students' research interests are (broadly) more focused on career and multicultural/social justice issues. By comparison, the clinical psych students I've taken classes with tend to be much more focused on psychopathology (as kita mentioned) and neuropsych. That being said, both concentrations are required to take neuropsych and a subset of other core classes. With regard to internship, counseling psych students have traditionally skewed more toward university counseling center settings, but there are so many individual difference factors that come into play when deciding between applying to clinical or counseling, such as pursuing a research mentor who shares similar interests. More info on match stats between clinical and counseling students can be found here: http://www.appic.org/Match/MatchStatistics/ApplicantSurvey2016Part2.aspx. As schizometric mentioned, both clinical and counseling psych lead to the same licensure as a state-licensed clinical psychologist.

Hi Soflostudent,
 
Let me start by first saying, I was in a similar position (with different interests) last year. I was in my senior year, and although I had prepared significantly and always knew I wanted to go to grad school, I was disillusioned. I sat down to write personal statements for schools, and just felt as though I couldn't accurately discern what it was that I wanted to do. SO--I took time off, got a research position (one that would set me up nicely for graduate school), and soul-searched. I saw a career counselor at my school, took personality tests, read books about careers, researched my options. Just to give you an idea I was thinking about English, Public Health, and Education...it was a rocky time of discernment. I also talked to SEVERAL people in various fields that I was interested in, oh and the kicker, I stopped reading the negativity on message boards.  Being out of school, with less responsibilities also helped.
 
So my advice, like Mr. Bugles', is to go back to the root of your interest in psychology. What got you amped up about it in the first place? Also, definitely research different fields, talk to professionals and professors in other departments. I made a list of what I wanted in a potential career as far as day to day responsibilities. Another thing--don't think of picking a career as a life-long sentence. So many people have a career that evolves over their lifetime. Maybe you want to first try dietetics and then go into some kind of health psychology--something like that. It definitely helped me when one of my research mentors told me that she finally figured out what she wanted to do 15 years AFTER her doctorate.
 
So take the pressure off yourself and explore a little bit! I would recommend contacting someone in the dietetics dept at your school and just asking these questions!!

Just got a phone call from my POI at UMass Boston's Clinical program as well. There are 20 slots available on 2/24 and 20 slots available on 2/28 (that's a lot of interviews!). Super excited!

Just got a phone call from my POI at UMass Boston's Clinical program as well. There are 20 slots available on 2/24 and 20 slots available on 2/28 (that's a lot of interviews!). Super excited!

Third time really is the charm... after being rejected the last two cycles I applied, I just received an offer from one of my top choices. So excited!

Third time really is the charm... after being rejected the last two cycles I applied, I just received an offer from one of my top choices. So excited!

Third time really is the charm... after being rejected the last two cycles I applied, I just received an offer from one of my top choices. So excited!

Third time really is the charm... after being rejected the last two cycles I applied, I just received an offer from one of my top choices. So excited!

I accepted the interview at the first school that extended me an invite, and explained to the second school that I had already accepted another interview on that date. They were very accommodating and I've set up a different date for the second interview. Granted, the first interview was at a higher priority school so I'm not sure if I would have tried to reschedule if it was the other way around.

I initially planned on using this waiting period to get back to the gym and start being healthy again... then Sporcle happened.