AspiringScholar17

@PhDorBUST FIRST OF ALL, CONGRATS FOR GETTING ACCEPTED INTO FSU!! WOOHOO! You can breathe a little bit easier now knowing that you have a place somewhere come September! : D @HerbieLove As for info on MSU, thank you for that! It is definitely comforting knowing some of the in and outs of these application processes! Hope you get in your applications soon and hear fruitful news ! @Brooke2016 Congrats to you too! Do you mind me asking what school you got admitted into? And YES, I assume you are in line for some decent funding given the time and date of your acceptance! Here I am, waiting for Cincinnati, NE, and MSU to somehow fast-track time and let me in on their phd good news, haha. I have a month to wait, but I guess I'll keep myself busy by doing work! I have not heard much and/or read much about Northeastern in these forums...I wonder if its a difficult program to get into compared to the others :|

@OmarComin'@PhDorBUST I usually also do AirBnB, but I heard the hotels for ACJS are booked 7 years in advance, so they get rates that were contracted 7 years back; hence, making them more affordable. The guest hotel was only $199 a night -- I say "only" because the hotel rooms for other conferences are way over $250/night. I am staying with a colleague of mine at ACJS, because God knows us students can't even afford $199/night on our own -- after all, there is alcohol money to consider into our budget If anyone is indeed attending, let's legitimately plan a few hours within the conference dates to touch base and meet up. It would definitely be cool to see the people we've been supporting and encouraging. I know for a fact, you've all been quite supportive to me. ALSO, if we do know which schools we'll be attending by then, it would be nice to sit down and chat about potential living accommodations for the upcoming PhD semester -- hopefully we all get in to a program! Just to check again, I think some of the common schools that we all applied to were Cincinnati, Northeastern, and MSU? I can't wait for the wait to end. Cheers to that, anyone?

@PhDorBUST im not applying to Sam but know someone who just finished his phd there! If you want to contact him for info on the program or anything else under the sun related to Sam, let me know! I can most definitely dm you his email as for cincy: do they normally have interviews? I know from reading these forum pages that uci (cal. Irvine) has interviews and visitations. The anxiety struggle is too real haha

@PhDorBUST this is my first time going to ACJS and KC! I'm staying w a colleague of mine at the conference host hotel. Would be super cool if we could meet at ACJS!

@PhDorBUST i hear ya! Anyone going to ACJS? Would love to meet up and grab some drinks w those who are going! Hopefully we'll hear back from our schools by late march and have positive feedback to show for it!

Just to piggyback off of @PhDorBUST, was the interview and/or visitations paid for by the schools or was it out of pocket? Im also waiting to hear back from UCin, UCI, MSU, NE, and UTD. Any info on the admissions processes and funding packages offered from those schools would be GREATLY appreciated! thank you all!

Good question...I'm awfully curious as well. Perhaps the members from the 2016 forum can fill us in?

We are indeed playing the waiting game now! Haha, it definitely feels better knowing that we are all in this together. Time for constant updates whenever we get them! : ) Hoping for Cincy, MSU, and NE to offer me admissions! UCI and UTD are my alternate choices, but of course, the more options the better! MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone!

@RoadtoPhDCONGRATS! Woohoo! That's exciting! I just submitted all of my January ones -- so the waiting game is official on! Waiting game ft. Cincinnati, Northeastern, MSU, UC Irvine, and UT Dallas! I wonder how many people they accept and when they'll notify us. Also, whats the interview process like? Do they have the right to waive your acceptance if your interview goes south? haha the nervousness and anxiety struggle is real.

Just did my second GRE exam and most likely my last. Luck had me being sick w the flu during my GRE endeavors this time around, so while i wasnt able to grab a high score, it was slightly better than my first: This time I did 152V, 148Q, and x for writing. My writing score hasnt come in yet , as i just finished my exam, but i suspect it to be around 4.5/6. My first round scores had my writing at 5.5/6 and since im submitting both of these scores, they should see that it wasnt just a fluke. 3.2 undergrad, 4.0 grad gpa. 1 peer-reviewed publication, 1 non peer reviewed publication, 6 under review, 3 in progress, and 3 conference presentations. Plus affiliations w two external research organizations. What do you guys think my chances are of being admitted? Applied to NE, MSU, UCincinnati, UCIrvine, and UTDallas. Made valuable connections w NE, MSU, and Cincinnati, but as we know, numbers probably speak louder than words. Have everything submitted! Just waiting on the reference letters to chime in. NERVOUS but excited! Social support and encouragements greatly needed and appreciated. Will repay w just as good social and emotional support!! : D

@GradGirl90 I agree with everything @RoadtoPhD said! My mentors also mentioned that graduating from a well known school is great, but if the professors that supervised you aren't very enthusiastic in publishing, your chances of landing a job would be no different if you were to go to a less known institution. That being said, the schools you are interested in all seem to be reputable places -- especially in the Crim&CJ department. It's just my two cents, but I think you should still apply this year. I did my first ever GRE (or any standardized testing for that matter) last month and, although I did sub-par (V149/Q146/A 5.5), the people I spoke to at ASC all said that they look for scores ranging from mid/high 140s to mid/high 150s. Obviously, the higher the better; however, give it a try! Who knows, you might land a decent score. I only studied for about 3 days and managed to get what I scored. If luck is not on your side this year, you can always apply next year as well, but why not give it a try this time around as well! The faster you get in, the faster you can finish and graduate! While doing things hastily is not in anyone's best interest, if you're just worried about GRE scores, I'd say give it a try and go from there. I'm in the midst of writing my Statement of Purpose essays and it's driving me insane. Trying to make everything perfect is a tiring process -- especially when the end results are still imperfect, haha!

@GradGirl90 No need to thank me -- we are all in this stressful ride together! : ) I wish we all get into some of the programs we apply for. Cincinnati is also one of my top three choices. I spoke to the faculty there regarding reference letters and yes, it is way more credible getting a letter from another scholar because it proves that you're serious about research and academia. For some reason, academics aren't super fond of practitioners (lawyers, etc.). This doesn't mean that if you get a great letter from that lawyer, that your application will look bad. But if you had the option, I'd go with three solid professors and/or researchers that can talk about how qualified you are as a doctoral candidate. Given how competitive these programs are, I'd rather be safe than sorry. But if the lawyer is all you have going for you in terms of a third reference, I wouldn't worry too much about it! It's better to get an amazing letter from the lawyer than a mediocre letter from an academic. From what I've heard and gathered, GRE scores are not considered very highly. That being said, if you do really bad on them, that won't look good on your total package -- no matter how great other things are. But if you score in the mid/high 140s to mid/high 150s, you should be okay. The higher the better, but mid/high 140s - mid/high 150s on verbal and quantitative should be "safe" scores that don't bring your application down. Personally, I'm not going to go to a school that doesn't give me full funding. I find that such an insult, given that I'll be publishing and researching under the school's name. If a school doesn't offer full funding, it's a polite way of them rejecting you -- or so I hear. From what I've gathered, FSU doesn't fund all of their students, so they expect some of those non-funded students to reject their offer and go elsewhere. I'm also applying to UCincinnati and the faculty there told me to "sell myself" with the statement of interest letter. Tell them why you are qualified, why you would be a good fit to the program, and what makes you stand out. I'm going to mention that my GRE scores are on the softer side of the spectrum, but they should still consider me based on my publications, research experience, GPA, etc. Oh and yes, do consider the length of the program. I was considering SUNY but after hearing how long their students take to graduate, I dropped it from my list. There is no way I'm going to do 6 years of PhD when I can do it elsewhere for 3-4. Unless of course, the school's offer is way greater and ranking much higher than the others. If we both get accepted and ultimately choose to go to UCincinnati, that'd be amazing! I loved the faculty there (at least those that I met at ASC) and could see myself enjoying my time there as a doctoral candidate. But if I get into MSU or Northeastern, I might have to really think about where I want to go. Here's to hoping I have options come late Jan/early-mid February! Happy Thanksgiving btw!

@GradGirl90 hi there! We are all in the same boat here when it comes to being nervous and anxious about admissions, but it seems like you have a good GPA (both MS and undergrad) as well as good connections. It's normal to have no publications under your belt -- so not to worry! I know cincy takes a holistic approach to applications so make sure you have a good statement of interest/purpose and good references! I agree w @crim_phd in saying that maybe 3 academic references would be better. But other than that, just do your best on the GREs. I did quite mediocre according to most standards, with the exception of my analytic writing score. Make sure your statement of intent essay is tight though. That can compensate for your GRE scores if it comes to that point! Just do your best :-) im sure itll all work out in the end.

@OmarComin' im so sorry to hear about what you and your dog had to go through. Glad that things are shaping better now...! My thoughts and prayers are with you! Keep us updated! @aml149 good luck on your defense!! Im so excited for you!! @crim_phd id rather not say, but to clarify: it wasnt that they werent uncaring, but in comparison to the other schools, they didnt seem as enthusiastic. Again, its nothing on them. I just felt more attention at the other schools, thats all.

Hope you all had a great ASC and had meaningful conversations with some of the faculty at the schools you're applying to! My interests are now narrowed down to: (1) Northeastern; (2) MSU; (3) Cincinnati; (4) UC Irvine; (5) UT Dallas; (6) Cambridge Hoping to get into the top three with good packages. I feel like the packages will determine where I end up choosing to go. The faculty at Northeastern didn't seem super caring as the other two (MSU and Cin), whereas Cincinnati seemed really interested, caring, and passionate about their students. PS. My writing score on the GRE came out. Got a 5.5/6 (98th percentile)! Thank God for that...giving how my Verbal score was 149 (42nd percentile) and 146 for Quantitative (24th percentile). If I do get in, it's because of my research experience and GPA. My GRE scores are just deplorable. Hoping to do them one more time in December and this time, hoping to be in the 150s range!

@aml149 he said don't bother as in don't do it because they won't even look at it! I'm not going to do it because, again, why bother when they're not even going to look into the video essays @OmarComin'and yes! Thank you both!! I will retake it in December and if I don't do well again, that's okay! I'll submit my applications and hope for the best! ASC bound! Excited

@aml149 that's great! I plan to submit all my applications in mid-december as well (before Christmas)! I spoke w Dr. Sullivan about the video essay and he said not to worry about it. It's a new system the school is trying out - not the department - so he said that they're (the committee) probably not going to look at it. Im trying to quote him verbatum from my memory but he did say not to worry about it, as in don't bother. PS. Just did my GRE (first standardized test ever as im from Canada) and i did meh... V 149 ; Q 146 . These are the unofficial scores that are given after the test but i figure these wont change. I think ill be getting a good grade on the writing though (i figure 5-6)! These are pretty mediocre scores...and it's not that im incompetent, but my nerves got the best of me and i lost a lot of time before of it. thoughts? Retake in early december? Sigh...

Anyone applying to Maryland and/or Penn? I was considering Penn but I heard that they only want people who are interested in neurocriminology/biosocial. anyone know about their programs?

Sounds good to me! I hope the call goes well! Don't know about you all, but I'm very tired and stressed already! Haha, and it isn't even December yet.

@aml149 spoke w dr sullivan and you're right, he's an incredibly nice man. Very professional and caring. He told me not to worry too much about the GREs and to just work on my statement of interest. He also told me to drop by the reception at ASC! Speaking of which, anyone else attending? Should we do an informal get together on one of the nights? Thoughts?

@aml149 I sure hope so! I honestly don't think my GRE scores will be strong. While i'm hoping for around the 50th percentile, given that i only have a month to prep, I think i'll fall short of that mark. At this point, I just want to have a number in place so I can ask around and see what my chances are realistically. Given that we're not expected to have publications yet at this level, i'm honestly banking on them seeing my work ethic and determination through my publications. Hopefully they don't judge me too severely based on one test score. UCin is also one of my top choices. I'm going to call Dr. Sullivan next week to ask more about the program. nervous!

@sdiaz1924 good luck! Just go in confident and you'll be okay! If youre considering doing your phd as well after your masters, ill be happy to give you more information in a few years!

@OmarComin' critical crim isnt really well loved here as well (for probably the same reason in the states), but it definitely is cool to have a school where the core faculty members are vested in that area! @aml149 i dont think you have anything to worry about! Most applications wont have publications, or as nearly the high GRE score and academic credentials (degrees) as you do! Your gpa is really high and you clearly display great qualities of a scholar -- the heart of what these programs are looking for! I was just lucky enough to get one published and 5 currently under reivew. My undergraduate GPA was only a 3.2/4.0, and although my grad GPA is a 4.0, i dont think ill score as high as yourself on the GREs. Which is why im really hoping the admissions committees see my publications as positives to push me over the edge in filling in where my other academic scores fall short! Are you both going to ASC? We should meet up for coffee or drinks!

@OmarComin' you seem to have a solid score and a great GPA! Although it's easier saying now than when we are waiting for responses, I feel like you'll get in anywhere. Those are pretty decent scores on the GRE (considering all they want is at or above the 50th percentile) and your GPA is high. While I'm not too familiar with the critical criminology population in the States, I know a school in Canada that is known for Critical Criminology. Let me know if you're interested! Being a resident of Canada, I know a lot about my country's crim programs but not so much about the ones in the States! Just emailed MSU about GRE scores and all they want is at or above the 50th percentile -- which im estimating is around 150-155 on both sections. I have a month to study for them, so here goes!

@sdiaz1924 Cincinnati has recently emerged as one of my top choices too! I'm going to have a hard time debating between UCin, NE, and MSU if I'm admitted to all three! That is the dream... Did you do your GREs already, by any chance? Gosh...I'm super nervous. They say that 50th percentile is a requirement, but the application is looked at as a whole. What does that concretely mean? Doesn't the word requirement mean "must" in order to be admitted? Haha, just me being nervous and anxious about applying and the results -- excuse me if I sound a bit silly and asinine. It would be super amazing if we got into both UCin and NEU! Which one would you pick if you were admitted to both?