leb4311

I try to get in the mindset of, "this is going to be a fun experience, and I get to talk to someone whom I really admire!" I find taking that approach relaxes me, and makes for an overall more enjoyable experience. Also, if it's a hard question, don't feel bad about taking your time to think. In my opinion that conveys that you are thoughtful, not lacking for information. You got this

Or, instead of a Master's, you could try getting a research position in a lab either part time or full time. This way you at the very least aren't spending money, and quite possibly could even get paid. After I graduated I became a project coordinator in a psychology lab where my time is split between coordinating grants for my boss, and doing research with the grad students and postdocs. I am really happy I went this route because I have met so many people in the field, and will also leave here with quite a few publications. If you have questions, or want more info, please feel free to PM me. Best of luck! Oh, also, I have a friend who just started the Master's program at Wake Forrest, and it seems like a good spot.

What health psychology did you apply to at Berkeley/which POI? I didn't think they had that area?

That sounds really cool! Text analysis is becoming a very lucrative tool for gaining psychological insights in a more objective fashion. It's also a really cool form of big data. Our IDA projects center around understanding the associations between factors that lead to psychological well-being in adolescence and prospective health behaviors and health outcomes in mid-adulthood and later adulthood. In a nutshell, we are trying to build the literature on how psychological well-being is associated with physical health across the lifespan. For example, one project I'm keen on is using 7 datasets to look at whether perseverance at age 16 is related to 7 different health behaviors and indicators at age 30, and health outcomes such as cardiovascular disease at age 50. Also, on a bright note, I have finally submitted all of my apps! One step closer to that PhD... =)

I emailed the PI's with my excitement of having submitted, and I received positive responses across the board (especially from the ones who were particularly positive in the first place). I would just recommend keeping it brief.

Whewww, seriously feeling much much better! That's awesome you are doing text analysis research! It is such a powerful and useful tool, especially when talking about 11 King James Bibles worth of content Quants to the rescue indeed! What kind of questions are you studying using the text analysis? Have you checked out all the text analysis research going on with social media? There's some pretty cool stuff, and really cool ways to leverage and combine multiple data sources such as linking Twitter with CDC county level data. This team is one example: http://wwbp.org/

Even though this post wasn't directed at me, it was so helpful and uplifting! I have a lot of experience with a technique known as integrative data analysis (i.e. pooling data across studies), and am currently learning how to write syntax in Mplus for SEM (along with already being skilled in writing syntax in SPSS). Since I have such specific experience though, it's been a little tricky for me to talk about other aspects of quant. in my personal statements. Your post has brought me back down to Earth though, so thank you!