K8eCastle

Hello from a current SLP grad student,
I’ve been right where you are now (3 times actually). And there’s no pretty way to say it……it sucks. Waiting sucks so much. But what sucks even more than waiting is the feeling you get when you get on this page and compare yourself to strangers. Strangers! You are 100% comparing yourself to someone you don’t know. And this comparison is supposed to “help you feel better.” Yeah right. If anything, you check this page to see that acceptances have been sent out to a school you applied to and now that pit in your stomach has arrived. Or maybe you see someone applied to the same school as you and you want to know their stats. Knowing their stats will not give you that sense of satisfaction. Your applications are in. It is now out of your hands.

My advice? Get off this website. It’s so hard to do. But honestly what’s the point of stressing yourself out more when the situation is out of your hands? And as for comparisons go, the person with the higher gpa could have horrible recommendations but you don’t know that. And the person that has a low gpa and gre could have the best personal statement known to man, but you don’t know that. So stop comparing. This process is about you. And if you really want to get in and it doesn’t happen, try again. I did and now I’m living the dream. 


Now please don't come back here.

C's are good? In what state? O_o

People forget that C means average. When you are working with kids whose academics are impacted by their disability, earning a C is great. 

For children with learning and intellectual disabilities who are placed in regular-ed class rooms (because of that least restrictive environment clause), C's are amazing!
Whenever my students make C's, I can not praise them enough and I am truly proud of them. Although I encourage improvement, that C really shows hard work and determination.  It is so easy for them to fall behind and fail their classes because of their neurological difference.
Do not take for granted how easy it is for you to learn and grasp information and make "commendable" grades. It is a real struggle to many.
As an SLP, please be aware that your students and clients will have weaknesses that you do not possess, and it is important to be compassionate and empathize with them.
So once again, for a learning/intellectual disabled child, C's are good in all states.

I have my interview with Oklahoma State tomorrow! Wishing you the best of luck!!

I got an email from the University of Central Oklahoma with instructions for how to sign up for an interview. They interview every applicant so it's not that big of a deal. I haven't seen anyone on here that is from this area but I figured I'd share here in case we have anyone lurking

Ideally, I'd like to interview in my pajamas.  True comfort.  

You're right! I decided to do the in person interview. Thanks and good luck to you!

They're not all the same. Each program has different opportunities for research, different clinics, and different professors. Do some more research and find a program that specializes in an area that you are interested.

Hi! I have retaken 2 CSD courses (scored a B-, B originally and got A's in both for the retakes) in them and my GPA is a 3.74 in CSD currently with the two retakes. My other CSD grades are very good! I have two transcripts - from community college, a 3.0 (which was my first two years out of highschool) and currently, at university, a 3.72 which is a huge improvement (and I think I can speak of this on my personal statement, and my grades really prove I've worked my butt off). I worked at a developmental center for 2 years, I just finished a job as an instructor for kids in a low SES demographic where I created lesson plans, and also have subsitute teaching experience. I currently volunteer in the CSD department at a hospital for 8 months now and have racked up around 60 volunteer hours (and have been given an opportunity by the SLP's to actually practice therapy on clients). I'm going to have really great LOR's, one from my prof who's on the admissions team, and one from a SLP who is a supervisor at my undergrad university / works at the hospital the admissions head worked at / knows all of my profs who are on the admissions team. The CSD department at my university knows me very well. I am bilingual, I have been an active member in my student org for almost 2 years now and am taking on a chair position this semester. My GRE scores the first time around weren't stellar - 144 Q, 153 V and 4.5 AW but I plan to retake them this semester before apps are due! SO, with all this information, I ask of you - what are my chances of getting in, given all my academic patches?!  
*ALSO: I am from the midwest.*
Thank you!
 

I'm applying to grad school this fall and I'm extremely nervous! Do you have any advice that you wish someone had told you when you were applying? Thanks in advance!

I'm applying to grad school this fall and I'm extremely nervous! Do you have any advice that you wish someone had told you when you were applying? Thanks in advance!

I love that question!
One thing is really think about if you would go to a school if you were accepted there. It sounds silly, but hear me out. 
When you´re applying, you´re a mixture of desperate and day-dreamy. You´re thinking, "I want to be an SLP so badly I´d do anything and move anywhere!" and you´re also thinking, "I´ll get a great job with a good salary after. I want to dream big" and you sort of throw pragmatism to the wind. SO, I applied to 6 schools that perfectly fit my profile. Two of them are private and crazy expensive. I knew the chance of getting financial aid would be pretty much zero. But while I was applying, I just told myself, "Get in first... pay for it later..." 
So, when I got my acceptances, and I really looked at the price tag I thought... there´s no way I´d be willing to accept this much debt. It was pointless applying there because $100,000 of debt was not acceptable to me. "Pay for it later" was a bad mentality that lead me to wasting around $200 in application fees plus paying to send 10 transcripts, and 2 GRE scores. So... about $300+ dollars total were wasted. I should have put that money towards schools I would have realistically considered attending. 
Hope that helps!