ellieotter

Guys I'm in my first full week of doc classes and seriously in the middle of theories the "holy shit I'm actually getting my PhD, this is actually happening" hit me like a ton of bricks. The impostor syndrome is strong yall

I think it can depend on how much you feel you can accomplish in a year. It took me at least a year to build up from doing grunt work to being able to get on research projects and gain the independence to conduct my own. For sure at least a year, but two would be a good safe zone I think

I actually interviewed at Southern Miss this app season! It's a great program feel free to PM if you have any questions about my experience applying there!

Yeah @8BitJourney and I both went through similar app processes and I know can be super helpful if you have questions! I notice your location says the South which is my neck of the woods. If you're applying to programs in the South/Midwest then I probably have some insight. I didn't apply to many big city colleges (NY, SF) so 8Bit may have better advice for that area You definitely have some resources here if you need them. Good luck!

Just curious but what program are you considering? I'm starting my PhD in counseling psych this fall and I applied to programs that had a correctional/forensic/law emphasis so I know the process to applying to that type of counseling program

I know of a person who had been diagnosed with ADHD in childhood and had documentation of it and was allowed 8 hours instead of the normal 4 for the general GRE. I'm not sure how you go about getting the accommodations set in place but I'd probably just call your local testing center and see what they say. Good luck!

Hi! I also remember you from this past cycle I think that Counseling programs are a little more flexible when it comes to taking a current masters student to their doc program upon completion of the MA degree. I received a MA offer from a counseling program whose PhD program I had applied to and strongly considered accepting it. I made sure to ask the likelihood that I would get into their PhD after the MA and they told me that many MA's in their program do transfer smoothly to their PhD if they keep a good reputation within the program. BUT it is always a gamble since you have to reapply and that year may be extremely competitive. I would make sure to ask how your chances would be and always keep a eye out for other programs you could see yourself at. Good luck!

Like others have said, it all depends on your educational path BUT I can tell you that I went through something slightly similar. I was accepted to a PhD in psych and was missing a prereq that my new schools required. They offered me a spot in the program but I had to finish the prereq by the end of this summer. Luckily after talking to my advisor who happens to be the DCT, I was able to take it at my local community college instead of moving to my new school early. I think you would just need to talk to the departments you're interested in and see what the best path is but just know it is possible to get in even if you're missing the classes they want

Make sure to look at conferences that may be specific to certain "areas of interest" For example, the National Conference in Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology is a great conference that is every two years if you are interested in child/adolscent psych. I didn't even know it existed until early last year but luckily had enough time to submit and attend. There are some amazing conferences are out there, you just have to do some digging

I will be coming into my PhD program without a MA. Granted, I did not come "straight from" undergrad as I took two years off before applying. I considered applying while I was a senior in undergrad but backed out last minute due to feeling unprepared and overwhelmed and I am SO glad I did. Instead of applying for MA/PhD, I applied to a RA position in a somewhat relevant area of psych and worked on getting research & clinical experience for a year, then the past year was spent doing more research while applying to grad programs. I applied to 12 or 11 (I honestly can't remember if I submitted #12), 9 PhD's & 3 MA's. I received interviews to 3 PhD's, waitlisted at 1, and received acceptance to 2 PhD's and a conditional acceptance PhD if I completed the MA in their program in a timely manner. I also was accepted to the MA's I applied to. I will say that consistently at interviews, it was about 50/50 on the applicants interviewing with/or without an MA. Not having an MA didn't keep me from receiving a full assistantship either which is great so I had an overall positive application season but I did have to work VERY hard to get my CV to look like it does, something that may have been a tad bit easier if I had done an MA first. That's my story

Just a bit of advice from a GRE procrastinator, make sure to schedule it as early in advance as your finances will allow. Last year they were re-doing the website and it crashed for like two weeks making it impossible for a lot of us to schedule appointments. It was definitely a preventable stress! I would also say take it as early as you can JUST in case you have to retake. I took my first early August, bombed it, but still had time to study and retake late October. Good luck!

@shadowclaw yeah it was extremely upsetting and caught me completely off guard. I have worked with this company off and on my entire undergraduate career so since 2011. Never once been written up, always covering shifts, never asked for more money or hours. My coworkers are so unbelievably upset too so its nice to know that at least my departure isn't being celebrated. I'm looking into a few things now and hopefully can find something just to at least cover a couple bills till August. Thanks for the advice Only a few more months and I can forget all about this crappy week and look forward to my focusing solely on my education, right?

I work part-time at a retail shop and was informed today that they need to cut down on employees/hours and since I'm the only employee not intending to work through the fall they were going to have to let me go now even though they said I could stay through the summer like a month ago... I am so upset. I have some money saved but this job was covering bills until I moved. Who's going to hire someone who is about move states in two months, you know? ugh not a good week

I've known some who have offered the same services and did well. If hadn't had the mentors or lab to get feedback from during my app season, I think I would've benefited greatly from something like this and feel confident in saying others probably would feel the same. Good luck on your future endeavors if you choose to do this, I think it's a great idea!

I totally relate to this. I had a swollen area on my thyroid and after blood tests, multiple ultrasounds, and a biopsy and a few hundred dollars later, I am totally fine. Turns out it's just a benign mass. Although now I notice the swollen area constantly and its made me so self conscious that I want the mass taken out Hoping your MRI leads to positive results!