SLPgradstudent

What's going on Maryland? Seriously, don't you know it's April?

Congratulations @gingin6789 and everyone else who has made their final decisions! Isn't it a great feeling?

Having worked in this type of setting, I agree 1000%. ABA works, but it's hard work.

We have 2 cats, although one still acts like a kitten. We're not moving (yay!) for me to go to grad school, so it's a non-issue for us. I would add though, cats can be destructive too. Our "kitten" (2+ years old now) likes to chew on everything and anything he can and generally likes to knock things over. Probably still not as big of a problem as some dogs, but it's not a given that cats will be behavior free. I love our kitties though, and wouldn't give them up for anything! Great stress reliever.

That's how I felt about it, but then again, I only applied to 2 schools. I knew going into the application process where I most wanted to go. I put the most time, energy, and consideration into that application, and it seems to have paid off.

See, as far as I know, no one has received funding decisions yet for my program. At least that's the impression I was under, given the information provided in the various emails since I was accepted. We'll see, I guess!

I wish I knew the answer to this. I really hope that accepting an offer before funding decisions doesn't affect the chances being offered funding. That seems unethical if you ask me. But whether or not this is in fact what actually happens, I have no idea. I would be curious to hear other's opinions though.

Me too! University of Maryland! It was my top choice, and I only applied there and one other school (which was more expensive), so I didn't see any reason to wait. I'm still waiting to hear about funding, but hopefully that will come soon. Even if I'd gotten off the waitlist for my 2nd choice school, it would still have been much more expensive than UMD, even unfunded, so there was no reason to hold off. I'm a little surprised that more people haven't committed already, but I guess some people have to wait to see what they can afford.

First of all, you are not too old to be entering this field. I am 29, turning 30 this year, and I'll be starting in the fall. So I've got a few years on you. Also, a lot of the people I did my 2nd bachelor's with are switching careers, have families, are in their 30s, 40s, or even 50s. If this is what you love, what you really want to do, then don't give up. Also, my stats are in my signature, I don't have a stellar cumulative GPA either. I agree with @Rorororosy & @SLPCeli, you're a competitive candidate with a good shot of getting in. If you don't get in this year for some reason, I would give it at least one more round of applications. Take a GRE prep class, spend the year boosting the aspects of your application that you aren't satisfied with yet. Also, I worked at a therapeutic riding camp too!

This is the advice I have heard over and over again. I was pretty surprised when I saw on ASHA's website that some PhD offers are NOT funded. @esopha, agreed. If I were to do a PhD someday, it would be after getting my MA and then some clinical experience. At this point in my life, I don't think a 6-7 year combined MA/PhD makes sense for me. But the thesis option is certainly something to consider as we pursue our MA, if PhD might be in our futures.

Great idea @esopha! There should absolutely be a program forgiving student loans of people who become professors. @racoomelon, I think that some people doing PhD's in SLP get funding, but not all. If you look at ASHA for any given school, it will say how many of their PhD spots are funded. Although I don't know how many years would be funded, out of the potential 4-7+ it generally takes to complete a PhD. It's expensive to run SLP graduate programs, so it doesn't really surprise me that some PhD students can't be funded. Sad though, when it seems like almost every other field funds their PhD students as a matter of practice.

Great post @MangoSmoothie! This is exactly the information I was looking for, but couldn't find. It does seem like a big part of the problem is the shortage of PhDs in the field. The reasons for that are many, but it needs to be addressed regardless.

I'm referring to GAs specifically (TAs fall under that). I know people are waiting for information about multiple sources of financial aid though, including FAFSA, scholarships, etc. I'm not expecting to get a scholarship, since they seem few and far between, but a GA would be great. I'd like to avoid taking out loans if possible. Yeah, so basically what @racoomelon said!

It feels amazing! I wish everyone could have this experience, I really do. I was scared I wouldn't get in anywhere, because I could only apply to 2 schools this cycle. It was a huge relief to get in. Even better that I got into my top choice!

Has anyone gotten funding information yet? When do you expect to hear something back? All I've gotten so far is the MCPS scholarship application. I hope we hear back this week!