EveryDay

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.

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.

I'm starting this fall.... I'll be 30.

@lovemc Don't be disappointed! You got into a great school where I am sure you will be very happy
Lol yeah, housing is making me really nervous too! The problem for me, being the planner that I am, is the fact that you really can't sign a lease in NYC until you are 100% ready to relocate. Apparently, landlords don't take people who say, "I would like to sign a lease to move in in 1-2 months", very seriously. So my SO and I are going to be stuck looking at apartments sometime in late July to move in in August. Although, I guess I am okay with it since we will have the summer to just relax and enjoy a good 2-3 months of our last bit of freedom before things get crazy!  Luckily, we live in New Jersey, so we can just take a train to NYC when we are ready to start looking, I can only imagine not being able to see the apartment before signing the lease! I hope everything goes well though!!
@EveryDay omg what are you talking about?! You're going to BU, that's wonderful! I definitely don't think that makes you an underachiever! Congrats to you!!

just stopping by to say I was just admitted off the wait-list at my first choice after 6 weeks. Have hope and make sure you reiterate your interest!!
 
you guys are all awesome.

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

Congrats, @EveryDay! Boston seems to be a lovely city to live in, and also the program is phenomenal. Good luck going on forward with the program!!!

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.

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.

No, not a homework question... I'm not in school...
Does anybody know the answer? I am trying to determine if I should try to buy real estate in a certain city and I want to know if this city will be economically healthy for years to come...
Other than expected population growth, what statistics should I look at that have to do with the amount of money in the cities economy?
And I am trying to look 10 - 20 years into the future.

You are not taxed on your tuition waiver and you get credits for any mandatory supplies (or books etc.) that are specifically required for the course and required of every student. But I don't think you get much more credits than that. You get more deductions if you are a resident though---I file as a non-resident alien, so I can't take the standard deduction (I have to itemize, but there isn't much I can itemize). Smaller stipends and/or larger amounts of deductions will mean a lower effective tax rate!

Here is what I asked my POI and some of her students. You might need different things:
-Could I start reading up on things and preparing studies in the summer?
-How long do people normally take in the program?
-Do students go to conferences often?
-How is the competition for external funding?
-What is your supervisory style? How often do you meet with your students?
-Do your students have a lot of projects at different stages, or do they usually work one at a time?
-How do your students balance TAing, classes, RAships, research, and potentially teaching/internships?
-I asked a bit about going into industry, as its pretty common in my program. I talked about it more with the students though. Sometimes you don't want to go down that road with your POI.
-Do you prefer your students to work on campus? What do they normally do? Do students talk about their work with each other to get feedback/new ideas?
If you're not sure yet, you could ask what research they are working on that isn't out yet, what they're planning to do, or if they want you to come up with your first few projects independently. You could ask about collaboration with people at different schools, within the school, between their students, or across departments.
I hope some of that helps. There's probably many more things I forgot!

I didn't say GRE scores play little role in the admissions process *in general.* I mean his/her scores should be good enough to pass a cut-off of many schools and thus play little role afterward (not all schools, of course). Usually once your scores reach a certain threshold, POI cares much more about research fit and experience (that's why SoP is very important) than GRE (unless you get perfect scores like 170V 170Q 6AWA). If h/she has time and energy to retake the GRE and get higher scores, I'd say go for it. However, raising 155Q to 160+Q is much harder than, for example, 145Q to 150+Q. It is completely possible but h/she must be willing to invest a lot of time and energy for test preparation with no guarantee of success. Even though h/she can break 160 for both sections, there is still no guarantee of acceptance. All in all, I believe his/her research experience (at least in quantity) is very impressive and right now it's much more important to increase relevant experience/skills, find a perfect fit, and know how to sell him/herself in statements/interviews.  
 

I've done all this, and it seems like the more I improve my application, the worst my odds get. I'm on my third round of applications wth no interviews this year, when I always had interviews in the past. I just don't know what more I can do or if it's worth spending another year applying. 

This has been an interesting experience for me. I have applied for 11 schools, was rejected from one and got an upcoming interview in another school. The other 9 schools have not contacted me, which does not sound that promising. I am 27 and have a decent job. I am at that age where I want to start a family and have kids. If I do not pass the interview, I was thinking of going for my Masters in Social work and getting lischenced. Afterwards I will try applying for Clinical PhD again.
Do you guys think its a good idea to have Masters in Social Work before applying for PhD, or would it look worse?
 

I haven't heard anything since December 16th. Slow doesn't begin to cut it. The hopemeter is reaching an all time low.

This is my second and last time. My Plan B is to change careers completely. I landed a good research job, and there is no growth in what I want to do without a Ph.D.
Might move to one of those lucrative fields and complain about my job along with all of my friends.

This is my second and last time. My Plan B is to change careers completely. I landed a good research job, and there is no growth in what I want to do without a Ph.D.
Might move to one of those lucrative fields and complain about my job along with all of my friends.

That's what's confusing me as well. I'm secretly hoping that my POI just didn't call me and is waiting for the official email to go out in January. In reality, though, my hopes have gone down to almost 0.
I just want them to send me a rejection email so I can stop thinking about it.
Congrats to everyone that got an interview.

This is my second and last time. My Plan B is to change careers completely. I landed a good research job, and there is no growth in what I want to do without a Ph.D.
Might move to one of those lucrative fields and complain about my job along with all of my friends.