lizi01

Hello everyone, All of the programs that I'm applying to (right now 6, I hope to make it 8) don't require a writing sample. However, one of programs mentions several times that a writing sample is recommended. I translated my final undergraduate psychology project (which is a theoretical paper composed of 20 pages) into English. The professor that was my mentor for this specific project told me back then (2 years ago) that it's a good work which illustrate an original and interesting idea. However, it isn't perfectly written (I fixed most of the problems however I can't really tell, cause I'm not that objective:)). How important do you think a writing sample is for an application where it isn't required but optional/recommended? Could it really change anything? I would appreciate any comments regarding this. Thank you and have a great weekend!

Hi everyone, Last week I had a successful talk on Skype with a potential PI (at least I feel like it..). I was very nervous before the talk and it turned out to be just fine- She liked my ideas regarding her research and we developed them together, we discovered we had a lot in common and she gave me some tips regarding my application. My question is: Is it important that I stay in touch with her and update her on the progress (regarding her tips)? Or should I just leave it as it is and approach her only if I have extra questions? I know it’s kind of an uptight question. It is just that I’m not an American and I’m afraid to make minor mistakes of politeness. I’m very interested in the program and in her as a PI. I’ll appreciate every tip and advice (even if it’s just a “calm down”:P) Thanks a lot!

Thank you very much! It definitely helps a lot!

Thank you so much for your replies! So, basically meanwhile it’s better to put the effort on contacting more PIs than contacting students? Also, some PIs request in their website to send inquiry mails to a certain e-mail (which isn’t their own email). My question is: if they don't respond to this mail, would it be O.K to send the mail again to their own e-mail? Or would it consider rude? Thank you again! It’s good to know that I’m not all alone in this exhausting process J

Hi everyone, I'm applying to PhD programs in psychology in the states. I already sent some emails to PIs (and got an answer from some of them and some not), but I was thinking of sending emails also to PhD students/postdoc fellows that I find their research topics interesting and fitting to my own ideas. Is this a good idea? What exactly should I write in such an email? Can I also ask them if the PI accept more students? I would appreciate any advice. Thank you so much!