MarineBluePsy

I think if your cohort is at least cordial then it won't be awful to go through classes and research together. However it doesn't always work out that a cohort ends up being friends. You have plenty of other options to make friends on campus as mentioned above, but you can also go off campus. If you're in a decent sized city there are meetup groups, free/low cost events in the community, volunteer opportunities, etc. There's no reason to allow your social needs to go unmet and keep hoping your cohort will suddenly vibe when there are other options available.

Well this is going to depend largely on where you're applying and how much emphasis they place on GRE scores. Some schools have hard cutoffs, others take a holistic approach, and for some it is just a formality. Also it helps to understand what the GRE does, it is designed to predict how well you will do your first year in grad school. If you've already completed a Master's degree or graduate level courses in your last year of undergrad and did well you can highlight this in your SOP as an indicator of your ability to handle graduate coursework despite the GRE score.

Wow it took forever to find this thread as I found myself wondering....what the heck happened. CONGRATULATIONS!!!! I'm happy to hear that after all of the stress, misery, and general suckiness that your hard work paid off and you are moving forward with your PhD. I sincerely hope your PhD experience is better than this one.

If you decide to apply to PhD programs, I would strongly suggest applying to a few Master's programs as well. As I'm sure you've gathered from the various posts here Clinical Psych has become extremely competitive and it is not uncommon for applicants to do multiple application cycles before being accepted. If none of the PhD apps work out this season, but one or more of the Master's ones does then you can expand your skills and boost your CV for future PhD applications. Yes, most Master's are unfunded (and scholarships/fellowships are very competitive), but some make it more feasible to work part or full time (and no I'm not referring to online programs, I would never suggest anyone attend one of those) and provide rigorous training.

I'd second the suggestion of state schools, adding that often they're designed for working students so classes would be evenings or weekends. Also, just as an fyi, you don't become licensed immediately after graduation typically. There are a number of hours that need to be acquired from field placements and each state has its own expectation of how many hours are required to get a license. So yes you start getting these hours in your program (these may or may not be paid depending on your program and state), but it is likely you'll need to accrue more once you've finished your degree. Once you've finished your program, I'd prioritize finding a paid option to finish up accruing hours as students I've seen that have gone the unpaid route face financial challenges that delay obtaining a license.

This sounds like a question that should be directed to your dad's insurance carrier. Ultimately you want to make sure they know where the car is in order to prevent them from denying coverage should something happen. Every state has its own laws regarding this and if the insurance carrier your dad uses can write policies in the state you'll be going to they will have some insight about how to proceed. If they can't write policies in the state you're going to then a change may be needed to make sure you're sufficiently covered, but that's also something they can likely advise you on. You can also browse the new states motor vehicles department website to see if there is a section regarding students from out of state that outlines expectations. Some states don't require students from elsewhere to change their car registration and other's do. When I moved for grad school I did both, checked the motor vehicles website for School State and they said students from out of state aren't required to change. Then called my insurance carrier, explained the situation and they could write policies in School State, but given the huge price increase I ended up switching companies anyway and just have to provide documentation that I'm still a full time student when the policy renews. So my registration and driver's license is still with Home State and this doesn't create problems with my insurance being written for School State and I will be returning to Home State as soon as my program is done.

I second nice casual with shoes you can walk in. You don't want to be hot and sweaty in business casual clothes. A notepad and a pen will be fine, although chances are they'll provide one as part of the welcome swag. Do bring water and a snack in case they don't provide anything.

I think this may be somewhat field dependent, but also wonder if part of the problem is many people who go into academia have only been in academia. So if you've never worked outside of that system and you don't collaborate with non-academics then its harder to be aware that things differ elsewhere.

I'm not sure what type of writing you do in your program or what sort of help you need but have found these books very helpful: How to Write a Lot by Paul J. Silvia The Glamour of Grammar by Roy Peter Clark Writing Empirical Research Reports by Fred Pyrczak

Well you do have a responsibility to "own the paper" as you suggest, but that doesn't mean your ideas are better than those of your PI. This is a great opportunity for you to find out which readings they'd suggest so that you can expand your knowledge on this area in order to better understand their logic. After doing that you're not required to agree with your PI's logic, and perhaps you'll have a different perspective that will lead to the development of an independent project. Or perhaps you'll find you like their point of view after all.

Ultimately its your decision to make. If you ditch the program you've already committed to and go to Columbia, maybe everything will work out fine and you'll proceed to a PhD and a great job later. Or maybe your area of research is small enough that everyone talks and when you apply for PhDs/jobs the PIs/departments you apply to work with will have in their mind that you back out of commitments at the last minute and will be reluctant to take a chance on you. It seems you'll just have to make a choice and hope it works out.

In your 20s I see nothing wrong with taking a year off after a major achievement like a PhD (this is fine even after a Bachelor's in my opinion). You literally have plenty of time left to join the rat race, save for retirement, buy a house, etc. In your 30s or 40s a year would be excessive so maybe 3-4 months would be more realistic. It sounds like you know you want to take the year off and you just want someone to say your reasons for wanting to do so aren't crazy. Your reasons aren't crazy. Your parents won't be here forever and spending time with them now (while they still remember you and can move about) is never going to be something you regret. The year off can also be used to really think about where you want to live and how best to enter the job market there. If you so choose, you can also work on your stutter. You can also enjoy some of the things that 20somethings who were less productive than you enjoyed routinely........sleeping in, taking a road trip, doing something stupid just because, binge watching some random tv show, travel, etc. You can also engage in some hobbies you've always been curious about and just plain relax. Be sure to journal about your year so when you're old you can remind yourself of all the fun you had.

If your goal is a PhD then once that's completed that is all anyone will care about. No one will care that prior to that you completed a Master's at an Ivy. You could stick with the program you've committed to and apply for PhD's at Ivy's later if that is important to you.

It's not disrespectful to ask for a deferment, but here are some things to consider: 1) If the program is offering you funding then that may be jeopardized. Not all funding types can just be "reserved" until you're ready and even if they can be it may not be the departments policy to do so. So if the program won't guarantee funding after your deferment then you may be responsible for funding yourself. 2) Even though your advisor is open to students staying an extra year, anything could change for them. They may take a sabbatical, get some other project that makes them less available for advising, get a better offer elsewhere, etc. Yes this could happen without your deferment, but if this happens while you're on deferment then you may be assigned a new advisor prior to starting and have to navigate that. 3) The program may not allow one semester deferments and require full year deferments instead. It is really going to depend on how courses are offered and the timing of other department milestones. A whole year off may or may not work for you.

I think its good to be thinking about this early and keep revisiting your strategies regularly to make sure your system is still working for you. In terms of your personal goal, my biggest piece of advice is to schedule this just as you would your classes and research. I keep an electronic calendar and I schedule all of my workouts, weekend events/activities with friends, mani/pedis, hair salon visits, etc. If its on the calendar I'm already committed to doing it and it reminds me that it is just as important as everything else. These things often can't be rescheduled and if I've prepaid then I'm going no matter how tired or not in the mood I am. Forcing myself to prioritize my self care in this way has served me well. Once there I always end up having a good time and then I don't feel like my whole life is nothing but school. As for your other goals I would say resist the urge to plan everything extremely far in advance because in grad school things change constantly and you're always learning about new opportunities. I started out just making a weekly plan and setting reminders for long term deadlines. Then I added a daily to do list and that seemed life changing. Then I started planning two weeks at a time and now I'm trying to expand to a month. I'm aiming to plan 2 months at a time, use a daily to do list, and set reminders for long term deadlines and I think that'll be enough for me. Also its impossible to do everything and that's ok. There will always be more opportunities in the future.

If I understand what you're saying correctly......your PI wants you to write the entire manuscript from their point of view and theoretical orientation and you have a differing opinion? I think the first question to ask yourself is who's paper is this really. Meaning is this something your PI has wanted to do, but lacks the time so its been assigned to you? Is this an independent project you proposed and should be doing the bulk of the work on? Was this an idea the two of you created together? If its the first one then it doesn't sound like its really your paper, but that the PI has a vision of what it will look like and that's what is is expected. Whether you agree or disagree with the papers position is likely not going to matter. If your PI gives you first authorship that does sound generous in this case and probably why others have mentioned you should be grateful. If its the second or third then it is possible that there is something wrong with the theoretical framework you're proposing. There's nothing wrong with you asking for guidance on how to make it better or if you should expand your reading in some way. It might help to consult someone else that is familiar with this type of work to get their input on what you're proposing and if its better or worse than what your PI is proposing.

Your schools website might have approximate deadlines for when such things are sent to students. You can also contact the financial aid office directly to confirm they've received everything they need from you and ask when they anticipate award letters being sent out.

I haven't been in your exact situation, but I do understand being stuck on a project you've lost interest in. Whether or not you'll be allowed to change projects will likely depend on a lot of factors.....your advisor's support, your programs milestones, available resources, etc. Have you talked with your advisor about the difficulties you're having with this project? They may be able to guide you in the right direction to get it finished so you're that much closer to being done with it. Or they may agree that its hopeless and help you find a more suitable project. If they prefer you to not completely abandon this project you could ask about beginning a side project that you're more interested in. Perhaps even the little bit of time devoted to that side project will boost your motivation to help you get through the primary project.

Anyone work with these types of stats or have taken a class on them and can suggest a good book for beginners? Given the way data collection is going on my current project its looking like I may have to go this route for the analyses and it'd be helpful to have some background on them prior to discussing this with the rest of my team.

I don't see why this would be a problem if you haven't even started the program yet, but you should reach out to the program to ask them what the process would be and confirm that its allowed.

Well you could find out where they post job openings or ask if they are accepting resumes, but it seems like if there were full time opportunities available that would have been mentioned when you asked about internship opportunities. You could also request a meeting for networking purposes and get some advice/suggestions on your current job search and see if he knows of any opportunities at his company or in the field or can suggest a professional association or conference that may expand your options.

Yes this is possible and I bet if you searched the forums you'd find posts about it. I did well in undergrad, but was not trying to be an honor's student and didn't do a senior thesis. Afterward I pursued a different career path for several years before my interests shifted and grad school became necessary. I did well enough on the GRE to meet minimum cutoffs for the Master's programs that I was looking at and went on to do well in the program I chose. Here I gained a little more research experience by volunteering in one lab, but didn't publish any articles or present a poster at a conference. After that I was accepted into a fully funded Clinical Psych PhD and it wasn't because I had better stats than the other applicants because I didn't. It was a combination of having acceptable stats, research interests, career goals, and fit within the department.

@Adelaide9216 I have also had a rough time in my program and have been horribly unsupported in my research training, but have never regretted attending colloquiums that are relevant to my area of interest. By doing so my motivation is renewed and I often chat with others about ways to improve my work or expand on ideas I have.

Well it seems like what the question is asking is in regards to the cost of your trip are you covering that yourself (#1), is someone else covering it such as a family member (#2), or is an organization/company covering it such as the University you'll be attending (#3). Has your PhD program mentioned anything about helping you with travel costs? If this isn't part of your funding then they are expecting you to go with option 1 or 2.

It'll depend on the acceptance requirements for those programs. Most programs have minimum GPA expectations and prerequisite courses so if the 2 classes you're referring to impact either area then yes that could be a problem. At a minimum programs may question your readiness for graduate school if you fail 2 classes the semester before you are to start a Master's program.