honeyrue

I had interviews my first round and did not receive any acceptances. The feedback I got back was that I did not have as clear and concise academic/research ideas and theoretical perspectives as the other applicants - so I just felt happy that it was something I could easily develop, and that it wasn't my personality or interviewing skills that were horrible. ? Everyone's experiences are different though. I know people who are still on their third or fourth attempt, while some people were accepted their first round! Good luck! ☺️

I'd recommend you apply to a MA program related to psychology. You can choose seek out extra statistics or data analysis opportunities to supplement your core classes. By doing so, you have the opportunity to boost/compensate for your GPA, create research projects/ products that interest you and will be interesting to you future mentors (e.g., publications, posters, conference presentations), build connections in your specific field and learn about the newest research, as well as gain additional statistic or data analyses knowledge on your own. It's a win-win-win.

To the Texas Austin poster - would you mind DMing me your POI? Thank you! And congratulations!! ☺️

I would not email. I think most POIs assume you'll still be continuing to work on products or research throughout the application/interview process! During an interview, they may inquire about what you've been up to since your application submission or you may be able to casually mention it at an appropriate time!

To the Harvard interview poster - congratulations!! If you feel comfortable revealing the POI initials or even just the concentration via DM, I would be very grateful.

What is a good way to respond positively to an interview invite? I missed the phone call and was told to send my response via email since the POI would be busy most of the day, but am unsure how to phrase my "yes" without sounding either flat/boring/serious or overly excited/totally insane?

I applied to BU, Harvard and Vanderbilt and have yet to hear back from any of them. Harvard seems to typically a bit later in the season (if past years are any indication). I'm unsure about BU or Vandy's time frame.

Me too, please!!

Same here! I am very interested in that program so - if the individual is here, please shoot me a DM with our POI!! And congrats!

Can I also get a DM about the POI? It's a top pick for me - so I am super interested in who is already interviewing. Congrats to whoever the individuals was who received it!

Yes!! Don't stress ~ I was missing a GRE score during my last application season, due to doing a re-take a bit later in the season, and still received interviews. It'll all work out!

I relate to this so much!! I check my apps like, twice a day to make sure I am not missing even a single GRE score (I'm not missing anything except one LoR... and yet, I still double, triple, quadruple check).

All schools/programs have their own time tables for admission seasons, and they can vary from year-to-year, even in the same school. But typically, early-to-mid January is when interviews start being extended (some schools may do slightly earlier, if their deadlines were earlier). These invites can roll out until end of Feb/early March. We've got a long wait ahead of us!

I am applying to 17 - which may be overkill (it is definitely overkill in terms of my bank account!)

Hi there! Though I am not super familiar with school psych PhD preferences in particular, I'd say definitely try to gain some research experience in the next year or two. While a paid research experience would be preferable for your quality of life, you could also reach out to professors at universities with similar interests to yours and seeing if they need any volunteer RAs. Sometimes professors will allow non-students to enter their labs if the individual is highly motivated and has academic goals for the future. For your interests specifically, maybe look into volunteering/applying at some children's research centers? Utilize your experiences as a teacher's aide and mentor to show them your strengths in working with kiddos!

I definitely have been trying very hard to make sure my research experience was well-rounded. I have a good amount of clinical experience, as well (I am currently in a clinical psychology master's, and work in three different psychological clinics, administering diagnostic psychological, academic, and cognitive testing, diagnosing individuals as fit, and writing reports). I'm hoping that the balance of the two will be enough to impress and that you're right on the top program acceptance! Are you applying this season? How has it been for you??

Hi, all! Super late to the game and definitely should be working on my actual applications right now instead of posting here but... ?‍♀️ Ya'll are intimidating with all of your great applications! I am currently applying for clinical PhD programs (with the exceptions of one general psychology PhD program and one clinical PsyD program - both have PIs who fit my interests pretty well, though), with a focus on child trauma/maltreatment/early adversity. Applying to: BU, Emory, Harvard, LSU, UC Berkley, UCF, Hartford, UMASS Boston, Memphis, UMKC, Chapel Hill, UNCG, Notre Dame, UPenn, Knoxville, UT Austin, and Vanderbilt (phew - what a list!) As for my experiences... I'm currently in a clinical master's program (with a 4.0) and have decent undergraduate GPAs (3.88 overall, and 4.0s for both of my majors). I have 2 years of full-time post-bacc research experience at a prestigious university, an additional year of per diem work for that same lab, and currently am involved in three research labs within my MA program. I have one peer-reviewed pub (though I am only 5th author on it), am currently writing a book chapter for a text book, have 8 manuscripts in various stages (some are under review, while others are still in the baby stages), and 20+ conference posters/paper presentations. I am also currently working at four different psychological clinics and have some teaching experience (as a GA, TA, and adjunct). I'm a little worried about GRE cut offs and algorithms keeping my application from getting into the right hands (a little above average with 159V, 154Q, and 4.5W), but have reached out to most of my POIs and have had generally positive and encouraging responses. Fingers crossed! Side note - this is my second application season! I applied to 6 clinical PhD programs in 2016 and was rejected across the board. Hopefully the last two years of kicking my own booty to gain research/clinical experiences and products will be worth it!