EveryDay

Yes, I do agree with that.

This is the right attitude. I know we are all anxious, which is 100% understandable, but it worries me seeing how some people are blocked by the expectation, and unable to keep on working while waiting for this. It is very likely that our careers will be a constant wait for results (i.e. grant, publication, etc.). Many will hate me for saying this, but if this kind of thing impedes your work, then this is perhaps not the field for you.

I wish I had never started this. This crap will put a load on my marriage. Just working and having free evenings was such a better life that I didn't appreciate. My field is going to be overloaded and dead-end by the time I graduate anyways, there's no point in any of this. Maybe if I was smart enough I could actually get stuff done.

Oh wow, finding an apt like that would be hard, but I'm glad you got one! We opted for Chelsea, since they have very dog friendly apartments. I'm used to 2hr+ commutes, so the 1hr it takes from there to BU won't bother me.

I know you want clinical, but I'm in experimental and might as well give you my results: got accepted into a good school without publications my first try, then got accepted into a better school with 2 pubs. Indispensable? Doubt it. Helpful? Definitely.

So, I'm in a different field (cog neuro, psych), so I understand if you don't trust me. I was 25 when I graduated undegrad due to many uncommon problems. I applied to grad school (Ph.D), got in straight out of undergrad, and then declined my admission so my wife could get her masters. I thought that having a leap 2 years was the end of the world (I already felt like a failure for graduating late), but I got a job that strengthened my application and helped me focus my research interests. Am I bummed that other people I graduated with are halfway done now, and I'm just starting? Sometimes. But I am mostly glad that I got into a better school, with a more solid background, and a verified focus. Thinking back now, I would have been miserable just going to grad school on my first shot studying a topic I'm now not interested in whatsoever. So, I understand why you're against it, but it's something that can easily work in your favor.

I feel you. I am lucky that my wife will be able to work, but the uncertainty is killing us (and we have a dog). $1700-$1900 seems about right, unfortunately. However, I think some newer areas of Chelsea run lower for what looks like good apartments. The commute is slightly longer, but I think it might be worth it for you guys. Also, do you have a car? That's a hindrance. I hope things work out for you guys! It looks like you have many great ideas so far.

Traveling, tying some last knots at work, and catching up with some papers I asked my POI to recommend. Trying to find an apartment has been the hardest thing so far, though.

Hi everyone. I see a lot of good tips here, and me and my wife have gotten good advice on housing so far. That said, I'm still a bit confused, and would like a straight answer about the following if possible: what areas should I completely avoid/are unsafe? I hear sections of Chelsea, Roxbury, and Dorchester are a no go for that, but I'd like to get more input on it. I'm going to BU, by the way, so I'm trying to stay within a 1 hr commute time in public transportation. Thanks!

I'm not big into podcasts, but I do think Freakonomics is pretty cool. I know it's not psych, but it helps me find different ways to understand topics, so then I can import that versatility to psychology.

I don't know if this is true for econ, but in psych it's because students pay for their masters. It's a good income source for the university, whereas Ph.D.s tend to be "free" for the student.

I will be attending BU too! Psych BBC Ph.D. My wife and I are pretty pumped and nervous. Boston was always one of our top cities where we wanted to live.

Man, you guys make me feel like an underachiever haha You all are going to such great schools. Congrats again!

Thanks @WillComeTrue! I hope we get to hear good news from you soon!

Hey, happy to hear that so many of you are going to great places! I just accepted an offer to attend Boston University's BBC Psych Ph.D! Now I shift the nervousness from having to wait on app results to figuring out the best way to move my family to one of the most expensive cities in the US! haha

For most stuff that I've dealt with in neuroscience the student license is more than enough. That's specially true in his case since he's never used it, so the next 4 months will be spent getting comfortable with the basics and such (getting comfortable, as you say). Does his lab use Matlab? I know many labs are shifting to an all-Python workshop. Also, I agree with the above: Psychtoolbox would be useful. If he's doing neuroimaging, playing around with SPM12 and batching processes would be a good exercise later on. Honestly, Matlab is complex enough to keep you busy for 4 months without ever touching a research toolbox. I hope that helps a bit. EDIT: By the way, I do like that Matlab class that @eternallyephemeral posted. I took part of it, and it's great for beginners.

It depends on how you feel about that school. If you think you can do better, then settling for whatever Ph.D. program you can get into might demotivate you later into the program. That said, I did the same thing (chose an RA position in a prestigious institution), and did only marginally better in my apps. This is after almost 3 years of really relevant work, publications, and LORs from a very well known researcher. This process can be random at times, so even if you're gaining experience in a top school you might not do a lot better. Then again, you might. My point is, you have to decide on what's a good fit for you. If you're not fully content with the doctoral program you might be accepted into, then it might be better to take an RA position. If anything, it might help you polish your interests even further, which is good.

That makes sense, thanks for the info! I recently became a permanent resident, so I'll check out the deduction situation depending on where I get (and if!). Not expecting much anyways.

I'm assuming you would also get education credits during tax season, which would make the situation better, right?

Hello everyone, I hope this request for opinions doesn't violate any forum rules. I am a former B.S. in Psychology with intermediate experience in statistics (no undergrad math). I have been extremely interested in decision making for years, and recently I've been trying to study neuroeconomics in order to branch from the neuroscience that I love into that economic topics that interest me. Problem is, I'm not sure anymore if I want to do a cognitive neuroscience Ph.D. in order to study and apply this, so I've been looking into pure economics (I'm also concerned about budget cuts and overwhelmed job markets in science). I have a couple of questions, if anyone cares to chime in (I'd appreciate it): 1) I know economics deals with important amounts of data. My personal experience is just 3 years of neuroscience data analysis and programming, which might not be very relevant for my transition (apart from generalized sense of quantitative thought) . Has anyone made a transition from psych/neuroscience? How did you manage to do it? 2) Given my lack of official math, what would be the best way to close this gap? I've thought of taking individual classes at my local U, but I would rather not get another undergrad degree. I've also been thinking of trying to get a econ-related job in addition to taking classes. Do you think this is possible with a psych undergrad degree? 3) What kinds of data heavy jobs have you guys gotten with an economics degree? Any insights would help me a lot, and would be very appreciated!

Hi everyone. Has anyone heard back from OSU Cognitive Psych post interview? Also Boston U's BBC? Thanks.

I'm with you. Last time I got interviews in a good percentage of my schools, without publications or super relevant experience (I got accepted too). I decided to wait for various reasons. Two years later I have a couple of publications, several conference posters, relevant experience in a strong group, with renowned people writing LORs for me, and I only got one interview (and possible rejection). I will say that fit is very important, so even if you're great you might not get accepted. But that is already covered by the "contact your POI ahead of time" section. In any case, I did everything that people mention here (and I encourage everyone to do so), but the process feels like a crapshoot for me now.

I submitted something to the Organization for Human Brain Mapping (Geneva), so hopefully that goes through. I don't know if that applies. It looks like everyone is going to be busy soon. That's great!

What program within OSU? Thanks.

Not a problem, it's not a nice thing to see this late into the admission season.