Valerie

I'm off to East Lansing in the fall to start my PhD! Yay!

First, congrats on your admit- the Psychology department at UIUC is amazing. I did want to chime in though and say that UIUC is not in "easy" school to get into as an undergraduate, especially for residents (contrary to what you said, it is not nearly as difficult for non-residents to get in). I would know, as I am from Chicago and I have my B.S. in psychology from UIUC. I had an awesome experience, mostly because the the amazing graduate students there...seriously! So there are definitely many bright undergrads that I would wager will be pretty integral to your/your advisors research program(s). For context, I will also be starting my Ph.D. in psychology in the fall at another big R1 school (I have a few offers that I am currently deciding between)! Much of my success has been because of very intelligent and supportive grad students in addition to the faculty, so don't totally knock the undergrads, some of us 'get it'! Sorry for my rant. Let me know if you have any questions about Champaign-Urbana!