pink_freud

Hi yes that is normal. It is implied that you will be interviewing with your POI. You will also interview with other faculty in your program (ie other Clinical Psych professors) as well as grad students in your lab and in other labs. Be ready to do lots of talking and telling the same stories over and over again. Someone asked if someone else would grab you... no, that doesn't typically happen. However, I interviewed somewhere and the POI was interested in me, then said "I think it would be good if you interviewed with my collaborator" who was someone I wasn't prepared to talk with at all, and then I received an offer to be co-mentored by the two of them. TLDR Interview weekends will keep you on your toes, be ready to be flexible and talk about your work with anyone/everyone.

University of Pittsburgh will finalize its list of applicants during the second week of January and will inform those selected shortly thereafter. The interview weekend will be February 17 and 18. I am a student there and received this information from the department - I remember how stressful it was to be waiting around to hear back from schools so am hoping this will help you to enjoy the holidays! Happy to talk about the school and program if you are interested.

Hi there, I applied to clinical psychology PhD programs last cycle - this is slightly different from biology, as all of my programs were mentor-based (no lab rotation, I had to click with a particular person), but I think I may be able to provide some help. I had a lot of concerns about sending emails as well. I emailed all of the advisors I was interested in. This helped me to gain some information on what type of PI that individual might be, and sometimes they would send along recent grants they had received or proposed that were not available on their website - these websites often are not very updated. I gave them a brief background on my academic experiences (tailored to each professor based on what skills I have matched their lab), mentioned why I was interested in their lab, and then asked them a question at the end to get the conversation rolling, i.e. what work is currently occurring your lab that is not available on your website? will you be able to accept a graduate student to begin lab rotations in fall 2017? (make sure this isn't available online). I did not send my CV, but I know friends who did and were equally successful. I felt that a small blurb about my academic background within the email was sufficient, and they will see your CV when you send it along with your application. Remember these professors are busy and so maybe they will not even read it. When you ask professors to write you letters of rec, they will want to see your CV. Everyone I interviewed with remembered my email, but perhaps this was especially salient because they were actually interested in me. I am not sure if the professors I emailed who did not invite me for an interview remembered the email, but I do not think the email hurt my chances. The admissions committee is completely separate from the PI, and so whether or not you send an email will not influence their decision directly. It could influence your PI's decision, and they can then fight for you with the adcom, thereby helping you indirectly. The email can show that you are open, motivated, comfortable talking to professors. As long as the email is friendly yet professional, it can only help. I do not know how biology interviews work, but I met with all of the professors I was interested in working with at interviews, as well as some of the professors they collaborated with, and then directors of the program, chairs of the department, etc. I hope this helps! If you want to see the initial emails i sent, send me a PM and I would be happy to send them to you.

Taking gap years has definitely become the new norm. On my interviews, the ones straight from undergrad were very infrequent...could also be a clinical thing. Echoing @artsy16, I felt like the odd one out as the one coming straight from undergrad, and multiple people confronted me asking why I was doing that which I was not anticipating. I am also worried about being the baby. I think you will be great, age is just a number, and remember that the younger ones are feeling awk about their age too!

I would recommend emailing the director of the masters' programs and inquiring there directly. Be completely honest about what you hope to gain from the program and what your background is, and where you hope to go in the future. They would be able to provide you better advice, especially since the psychology and neuroscience divide has become blurred in recent years.

Hi there! Yes you are qualified! I recently applied to clinical psych grad programs (2016 cycle) as a senior in undergrad - and successfully was accepted to my top 2 programs. I did not have any publications, but had the manuscript in prep like you. I would def include that on your CV, and also consider writing a senior thesis if possible. You have all of the credentials necessary for sure, it is now all about research fit if you are interested in clinical science programs (it sounds like you are based on your heavy emphasis on research). If you definitely see yourself attending graduate school, I would recommend applying! I would say during my interview season it seemed like taking gap year(s) was the new norm, but going straight to grad school is not unheard of, and can make a lot of sense for those who are certain...especially given the internship year tacked on to the end of your program. Hope this helps!

Congratulations on your acceptance to Pitt! I will be starting at UPitt in the Fall of 2016 as well (PhD in psychology). I grew up in the suburbs of Pittsburgh and then went out of state for university. 1. You are correct - those neighborhoods are exactly what I would recommend. I would stay away from Oakland, as this is where all of the undergraduates live and it can be noisy. Oakland is also where campus is so it is nice to get away. I don't own a car, either, but there is a really good public transportation system in Pittsburgh using buses (well, good for the US anyways!) You can take a bus from any of those neighborhoods and get to Pitt's campus in about 20 minutes or less. Also, my PhD package included unlimited public transportation , which I am pretty sure is the case for most of their programs. 2. I do not know your personal preferences for this question. I have lived abroad several times - once I secured something sight unseen, and once I stayed with a host family as I looked at places. There are pros and cons to both. I would recommend you utilize these two sites for off-campus housing at Pitt. These are listings from students who attend Pitt and are looking for a roommate in their apartment. If you don't find anything, you can even make a posting here yourself and provide some info about what you are interested in. Pitt. http://www.ocl.pitt.edu/roommate-request-listing?field_request_type_value=All&&field_monthly_rent_per_person_value=&field_request_lease_term_value[value]=&field_request_lease_term_value2[value]= 3. Almost all of the apartments listed on the above website are furnished or semi-furnished. 4. Pittsburgh is a very reasonable city to live in. I would say rent can range from about $500-$1400/month depending on the location and size. For example, Shadyside is definitely on that upper end of the price range, whereas Bloomfield prices are still pretty low. Cost of living can be Googled. Hope this helps! CMU has a great off-campus housing website: https://offcampus.housing.cmu.edu/property/search And Pitt has one that is even better in my opinion - it is people who are looking to rent out a room (so you would have roommates who are also students) and you can search based on neighborhood interests: http://www.ocl.pitt.edu/roommate-request-listing?field_request_type_value=All&&field_monthly_rent_per_person_value=&field_request_lease_term_value[value]=&field_request_lease_term_value2[value]= Hope this helps - congratulations on your acceptance to CMU! Hi there! This might be late, but I will respond anyways on the off-chance that it is helpful to you or someone else who happens to pass by this... I am attending Pitt, so not sure details of CMU's packages, but I know CMU undergrads get public transportation included in their tuition. If this is the case for you, then the bus system in the city proper is excellent and so you could easily live further away than walking distance without a vehicle. (I would suggest Shadyside, Squirrel Hill, Bloomfield) However, walking distance can be nice. If you DO want walking distance, I would say Oakland is your best bet. The con of Oakland is that it is where all of the undergrads from Pitt and CMU live, so can have that undergrad-y atmosphere. Some parts of Squirrel Hill might be walkable to CMU, but as its name suggests, it is quite the hill. See my other comments on this thread for off-campus housing options via CMU or Pitt. Hope this helps! Hi there! This might be a late response, so not sure how helpful this will be, but I would recommend looking at the websites I suggested to @ The Rakshash earlier today on this thread. (http://www.ocl.pitt.edu/roommate-request-listing?field_request_type_value=All&&field_monthly_rent_per_person_value=&field_request_lease_term_value[value]=&field_request_lease_term_value2[value]=) Pitt students are used to people moving in and out of the city over the summer, and so you could possibly find a roommate via this site. If they wanted to talk to you to get to know you perhaps you could Skype or Facetime in, (I have done this before when I wanted to live in a shared apartment space abroad but couldn't be there physically) and maybe virtually see the apartment too.

Hi z-nut! Welcome to Pittsburgh! The engineering programs at CMU are fantastic - congratulations! My father received his PhD in chemical engineering from CMU and just absolutely loved it. Says things have only gotten better.

I grew up in the suburbs, but am excited to get to live close to Oakland! It's a wonderful city and has only been getting better as I have returned on breaks during undergrad Also has amaaaazing restaurants .

Yay glad someone finally started a Pittsburgh thread! I will be starting at the University of Pittsburgh this fall!

I will be declining an offer from Northwestern Feinberg (clinical psych).

School Name: University of PittsburghDate ACCEPTANCE Received: 3/8/2016Type: Clinical Psychology, PhDNotified via: PhoneFrom: PIAdditional Info: I am absolutely THRILLED to have been accepted to this program. It was always one of my favorites and became #1 when I felt really comfortable during interview weekend (crazy, right?!) I was officially given an offer and unofficially accepted. Still waiting for an official email with the stipend package and the fine print. Happy to discuss details privately and/or talk about application/waiting/grad school life! YAY!!!!!

I interviewed for a program that also has some logistical "hoops" that I would need to jump through. My best advice would be to ask the DCT for the contact info for students who currently travel to a practicum site you would be interested in. Maybe there is public transportation there and you could get work done on the bus? Maybe they have discovered some tricks that have made the situation better? Getting this insider info is crucial, because then you would not have to think of it in the abstract, but would be able to hear about first hand experiences.

sure. i will PM you. if anyone else is interested, please just PM me.

School Name: University of Pittsburgh Date interview invite received: 1/22 Degree: PhD Program: Clinical Psychology Notified Via: Phone From: POI Interview Date: 2/19-2/21