poor_salieri

You can have the best stats in the world. If a program requires you to have post bacc coursework, then you have to have post bacc regardless. Your only bet is to check the particular programs that might offer the ability to either not have to take post back, or have a few classes that you can take at that college (or a played course at another college) before going into the major. You would probably have more luck with private schools as they often have more flexibility with the perquisites. I think a few colleges in Boston had an option of taking summer courses and then going into the grad program.

Do you have any speech and language related experience? Like volunteering for shadowing? If not maybe you should try and get some to help.

Depends on where you apply, what the school is looking for in terms of the class as a whole (i.e. Diverse class), and the other students you're applying against. I dont think your GRE scores are low (certainly not super high), but if you can't raise your GPA you might want to make sure that you have some strong experience, work it all into a great statement of purpose, and find some really outstanding letter of rec writers who believe in your ability to succeed.

Your writing score is too low. Look into Magoosh or other program that focuses on writing FOR the GRE (I.e. You may be a good writer in "real life", but you're not including the things that the GRE wants in order to give you a higher score). You're quant and verbal scores are fine, but NY is too competitive to get into with a 3 AW. You may not even make it past the school's cutoffs for your entire application to be considered if you don't receive a 4 AW. Good luck!

In my grad school some of us received merit scholarships and others GA positions. Both provided financial support, but the GA position provided something that a straight scholarship could not - the ability to connect with some of the professors and clinical staff. When you're looking for a job in the end that's one of the more important things. So take a deep breath, try and schedule some you time every week - maybe on a Saturday or Sunday night for an hour, and then just do your best to make it work. You may surprise yourself with how fast and quickly the time goes. It'll be tough, but maybe you'll make a mentor in the end.

Did you check ASHA finder for schools with stats closer to yours? If you want another chance, try casting a wider net or apply to a program that accepts SLPAs (if you are one or could apply to officially be one).

Hi. I am going to be honest with you, you are going to have a difficult time getting accepted based on your GPA alone. While in general 3.6 is strong, in this competitive field it's not that strong, especially coupled with your very low undergraduate gpa. It also sounds like the GRE has been difficult for you. So, I have heard triumphant stories about people who apply and apply and after 3-5 time are accepted, so it's possible, but takes a lot of time and money. So I'm being honest in case you have another interest or field you'd like to pursue that isn't as competitive at the moment. Not telling you to give-up, just want to level with you so you don't have false hopes. However, if you are adamant about becoming a SLP, and have the time and means to wait it out, here are some ideas: 1) Take more post-bac courses but aim for closer to a 4.0 2) Cast a wide net of schools you apply to the have stats closer to yours (however even schools that accept lower stats may still be challenging as all schools have a larger pool of students to select from then spots, but there is always a chance with the waitlist) 3) See if you can enroll as a non-matriculated student, get good grades, and transition to a Masters or matriculated student 4) Ensure other areas of your application are strong, polished, and present you as a strong candidate who, despite a less the stellar performance on/in X area, has turned it around or grown from those experiences (& provide examples). Have people read and provide constructive feedback on your statement of purpose and edit and refine your resume. It's unfortunate that the competitiveness of this field has made it a numbers game. I've seen many, many people who would make great SLPs stopped due to the competitiveness (either because of their stats or just becoming jaded by this part of the profession), so don't think for a minute you 'can't' do it, but be realistic with where you see yourself in a few years and what path will best get you there.

Don't waste your time or money. I got into many schools, some with scholarships, with the almost the exact same score and breakdown (4.5 writing score). That's a solid score, now make sure other areas of your application are strong and present you as a unique candidate. GRE scores are not often the 'make or break' factor once you MEET the threshold many schools want (e.g. Combined 300 with around 150 in each and at least 4 writing).

Try and 'live like a student' for a few more years. In essence, rent a more affordable room vs renting a more expensive studio or 1 bedroom. Maybe set aside a budgeted amount of money of fun/wants, but don't go overboard. Budget and prioritize spending to pay more than the minimum on your loans. Snowball your loan payments- if you have multiple loans. So make the minimum payments on all your loans, but pay more (what your income/budget will allow) toward the smallest loan. Once that Loan is paid off, pay the minimum payment on all the loans, but add the payment you were making on the loan you just paid off toward the next smallest loan in a snowball effect until your loans are paid off.

Hi. This isn't answering your question, but what colleges allow students to retake courses they received Bs in? I am genuinely curious as I have heard of students talking about this, yet I haven't heard of an undergraduate or graduate college in my area (CA) allowing students to retake classes unless s/he received a D or below ( I mean you're stuck with Cs if you get them). I'm just curious if this is just college specific or region specific.

Go with the more affordable school if you like the atmosphere, the professors seem invested, and the program vibes with you (e.g. Big/small classes, professors just teach or teach and do clinic, etc). Unless the school is located in an area with very limited diversity you can tell your clinical ptacticum advisors that you'd like a placement with more diverse populations right at the beginning of the program so they can select a clinic that may include that. You can find diverse populations in every setting if the school has that type of diversity in the location. While not every University gives the same education, regardless of requiring some of the same course work, it has less to do with rankings and more to do with the professors, the school's teaching/learning approach and how that fits or doesn't fit with you. All accredited programs should include aspects of working with diverse populations including assessment/diagnostics class, aphasia course, child language, etc.

I went to a more expensive private university in a bigger city. I received a large scholarship, but had to pay for living expenses since I moved far from home. I lived like a peasant and with paying for partial tuition, rent (a room in a house), supplies, and basic living necessities I still managed to have around $50,000 in debt (6 semester grad program). I can't even imagine some of the students who had to pay around 100,000+ for tuition/school expenses alone. Do I think it's worth it? For me no, but it may depend on the type of person you are. I moved far away only to move back to my home area, so while I made connections at grad school, they didn't benefit as much as ones nearer to where I ended up would have. I also didn't think the quality was better- the education really depends on learning styles and whether you click with the professors and the style of learning the school promotes- not really big name college vs smaller not big name college. Also at bigger universities or in cities with many schools you may be competing with other classmates and other schools for clinical spots. So although many people want to go to those schools thinking that they will get good medical expenses, we may or may not end up getting your ideal placement. I also am more conservative with money and don't like to have debt (aside from school I don't have any). While I know there are loan repayment opportunities, I don't want to be paying my loans for 5 to 10 years + only to not have that work out or to still have a large monthly payment (which is why I didn't pick the most expensive school I got in to). And the interest can make it difficult to see a dent put into your loans. If you do decide to spend a lot on grad school the best way to pay it off would maybe include some of the following: -part time job, fellowship, or assistantship to make small payments while in school (or reduce the needed loan amount) -continue to live modestly for a few years after graduating to make extra payments toward loans -live with family or friends for a few months after to make a large dent in the loans

I got into Vanderbilt and my GRE score combined was 312. I do not think your GRE will make or break their decision. They are selective, but they are a private school and can look at the individual and the package that applicant has as a whole. They're definitely going to be looking at other things like your letter of rec, your essay, and your extracurricular activities in addition to your stats. You can see from the gradcafé admission page that students with strong stats don't always get into every school.

I agree with a lot of the other people's posts regarding the, "Would I really go to the school if I got in." It's OK to have one or two schools that might be "dream schools" in the sense of they cost too much and what you think you could afford, or big move, but you also have to think if you apply to 6-7 schools that are 100 K plus, and you wouldn't be able to afford that without substantial financial aid many, including if you affordable options would be wise. I'm a CF now, and reflecting on the last couple years of seeing my friends getting to school or not get into schools, I don't think that people really understand that there aren't any "fallback schools." I've seen people with less than stellar stats get into higher ranking, "prestigious" universities and I've seen people with 4.0's and a well-rounded background not get into in ranked state schools. A lot of the time it also comes down to cost, is someone willing to pay a lot of money for a particular school/location. It really just depends on what the school is looking for, and the other applicants. You can do your best to figure it out, but no one ever knows for sure. The advice I wish I could've given myself is to really look at the fit of the school and not just things like location or rank, which are the more superficial things that we all think of initially. But really concentrate on the professors (teaching style, research, availability to make connections), the other students, class-size (this is big to me looking back), the support I would get, my support net (too far from friends/family if that would be difficult) how they run their in-house clinics and their external placements. I feel like on the website a lot of schools try and sell themselves with the type of externships they offer (especially medical placements). However, when it actually comes time for the Extertal internships there might be only a few spots and if you have a class of 50 and only 5 students can be placed at those sites, the rest of you just have to kind of have to "deal with it." I think that was hard on a lot of people who selected schools based on the fact that this school or that school advertised certain concentrations or externship experiences.

I actually think that looking into an SLPA job opportunity, if it is not that expensive to do so, would not be a bad idea. The reason being that it can give you more experience in the field (fit), help you when writing your Admissions essays, and help make connections with people to write letters of rec in the field. I am from California too and did my undergrad in communicative disorders. I know people who applied to grad grad school and didn't get into any places in California just because it is really competitive. Some of them reapplied after year or two of being an SLPA, and I think that their resume was a lot stronger. It really just depends on the school and the other people applying. Looking into OT and PT might be an option as well.