bibliophile222

I'm the only one in my cohort who doesn't have Facebook. Once in a while I feel a little left out because people will be discussing a cute picture someone posted or something, but everyone knows I don't have Facebook, so they'll tell me if there are any upcoming social events. It works--it's kinda fun playing the crotchety Luddite.

Yes, you guys have totally got this!
It's funny, I participated in an Admitted Students day yesterday giving my first-year perspective. At the end the admitted students said that they were actually less scared about the process after they heard all of our perspectives. Do you have any emails of current students? If not, ask for some! We are by and large very willing to help and share, and we are proof that although you may be overworked, stuffed with knowledge, flooded with debt, and feel like you have NO idea what you're doing...  
YOU'VE. GOT. THIS.
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Awesome list! However, you left out something I think is the second most important supply behind a computer, and that is a good planner/planning system. You can go electronic or physical as suits your personality, but make sure you have one! I never used one until I entered grad school, but now I would be utterly and hopelessly lost without it.

I know this is an old thread, but I recently met someone who told me this year was her third time applying to grad school. She is an excellent special ed preschool teacher & I believe she majored in CSD, so I was really surprised. 
I know SLP programs are competitive overall and very competitive in certain regions. I think the key is not to limit yourself to applying to one or two or even three schools. You’ve got to cast a wide net & apply to a lot of schools. Yes, applications themselves are expensive, but casting a wide net gets you into school then it’s worth it.  Also, if you start the process early enough you can apply for financial assistance with application fees.
For those of you who feel like you can’t move because of family, then I’d recommend scoping out online options - the numberof online programs is growing - or sitting down with your spouse and having a heart to heart. If you are really passionate about being an SLP, then perhaps it’s worth getting your family on board with a 2 year temporary relocation. SLPs, after all,  make decent money and you could end up helping your family’s finances in the long run. There are a lot of decent programs  in smaller cities with lower costs of living that do a great job training their students to be good clinicians but aren’t highly ranked because they’re not research powerhouses. Just my two cents. 

Big Mood. 

You can definitely find pet-friendly housing in the area--I have two cats and found a place. However, many places do not take pets, including what seems like most of the cheaper apartments. I saw postings for tons of apartments a couple hundred dollars a month cheaper than the one I got and almost all of them were no pets. What's your plan for apartment hunting? If you can, I'd take a couple weeks to look for as many places as you can. If you're willing to commute a bit rents will go down and it will be easier to find a place, as Burlington housing can be pretty competitive. I went to an open house with at least 15 other people. I found a place in South Burlington, which is still pretty close to school and not outrageously expensive.
As far as the facilities go, the pool is nice but the open rec hours are kind of sporadic. The gym is open until midnight and has decent equipment but is a little small, and the weird thing is that the locker rooms are downstairs and I'm not sure how the locks work for that (deposits, etc). There are cubbies outside the gym but I didn't feel comfortable leaving my computer in my bag. On the plus side, they have a program for grad students where if you pay for a fitness class pass and go to a certain number of classes a semester (maybe 30?) they refund the price of the class, so it's a great incentive to make it to your workouts.
And yes, Montreal is the closest big city, maybe about an hour and a half to 2 hours from my house depending on traffic. Just take I-89 to the border and it becomes Canadian Route something-or-other, pretty easy to get there. It's definitely easier getting into Canada than getting back into the US, since our border people are much more anal. If you haven't been Montreal is pretty awesome, and don't worry, everyone speaks English. Boston is about 3.5 hours away and Quebec City (which is absolutely beautiful and feels like you're in France, I highly recommend) about the same distance as Boston.
Sorry for the novella--hope this helps!

You can definitely find pet-friendly housing in the area--I have two cats and found a place. However, many places do not take pets, including what seems like most of the cheaper apartments. I saw postings for tons of apartments a couple hundred dollars a month cheaper than the one I got and almost all of them were no pets. What's your plan for apartment hunting? If you can, I'd take a couple weeks to look for as many places as you can. If you're willing to commute a bit rents will go down and it will be easier to find a place, as Burlington housing can be pretty competitive. I went to an open house with at least 15 other people. I found a place in South Burlington, which is still pretty close to school and not outrageously expensive.
As far as the facilities go, the pool is nice but the open rec hours are kind of sporadic. The gym is open until midnight and has decent equipment but is a little small, and the weird thing is that the locker rooms are downstairs and I'm not sure how the locks work for that (deposits, etc). There are cubbies outside the gym but I didn't feel comfortable leaving my computer in my bag. On the plus side, they have a program for grad students where if you pay for a fitness class pass and go to a certain number of classes a semester (maybe 30?) they refund the price of the class, so it's a great incentive to make it to your workouts.
And yes, Montreal is the closest big city, maybe about an hour and a half to 2 hours from my house depending on traffic. Just take I-89 to the border and it becomes Canadian Route something-or-other, pretty easy to get there. It's definitely easier getting into Canada than getting back into the US, since our border people are much more anal. If you haven't been Montreal is pretty awesome, and don't worry, everyone speaks English. Boston is about 3.5 hours away and Quebec City (which is absolutely beautiful and feels like you're in France, I highly recommend) about the same distance as Boston.
Sorry for the novella--hope this helps!

Today I found out I'm in the running for my top choice summer placement. It's really close, the largest hospital in the state, and would really help me get my foot in the door for future outpatient and inpatient positions. The sucky part is that I'll be competing against other girls in my cohort. The good news is that there are only three of us interviewing for two positions, so at least my odds are decent!

Have you tried just sorting yourself into Ravenclaw over and over again on Pottermore?

Wow really? I thought he went to Penn. I would Google it but I don't want to look at his face...

Princeton University Philosophy, PhD (F19) Rejected via E-mail on 26 Feb 2019 ♦ A 26 Feb 2019 report spam very sad, bigly sad, the most sad, yuge sadness.  

I overheard my mom talking to my grandmother about how proud she is to have me as her daughter. It lifted me up

Interviews are HARD!! It is also easy to be tough on yourself. I'm sure you are perceiving yourself as much worse than you actually did. I also am sure you're not the only person who thought that at your interview. Sending good luck your way!!

I purchased a pack of Pentel EnerGel Liquid Gel Pens because the package stated the ink was suitable for lefties (which I am). Love. For once I didn't look like half my hand was bruised as the ink dries super fast. Smooth writing and bright colors for color blocked notes.

Admissions can definitely seem like a crap-shoot sometimes. I've heard of people getting rejected from "safety" schools and accepted to higher-ranked programs, so don't despair just yet. Like @laura120 said, different programs may value different things. Stats aren't everything!  I was rejected my top choice (it was the cheapest and only one town over) and accepted at another school with the exact same ranking. I think in my case I didn't tailor my essay to school A, explaining why I wanted to go there, but I did for school B because it was part of their prompt. Also, the bitter/cynical part of me thinks that because school A was a state school and I would have had in-state tuition, they might have picked an out-of-state student over me so they could get more money (they've been doing a TON of fancy new building projects lately). The good news is that I am loving my time at school B, so all's well that ends well. You have an interview and several other schools to hear from, so don't lose hope!

Admissions can definitely seem like a crap-shoot sometimes. I've heard of people getting rejected from "safety" schools and accepted to higher-ranked programs, so don't despair just yet. Like @laura120 said, different programs may value different things. Stats aren't everything!  I was rejected my top choice (it was the cheapest and only one town over) and accepted at another school with the exact same ranking. I think in my case I didn't tailor my essay to school A, explaining why I wanted to go there, but I did for school B because it was part of their prompt. Also, the bitter/cynical part of me thinks that because school A was a state school and I would have had in-state tuition, they might have picked an out-of-state student over me so they could get more money (they've been doing a TON of fancy new building projects lately). The good news is that I am loving my time at school B, so all's well that ends well. You have an interview and several other schools to hear from, so don't lose hope!

Admissions can definitely seem like a crap-shoot sometimes. I've heard of people getting rejected from "safety" schools and accepted to higher-ranked programs, so don't despair just yet. Like @laura120 said, different programs may value different things. Stats aren't everything!  I was rejected my top choice (it was the cheapest and only one town over) and accepted at another school with the exact same ranking. I think in my case I didn't tailor my essay to school A, explaining why I wanted to go there, but I did for school B because it was part of their prompt. Also, the bitter/cynical part of me thinks that because school A was a state school and I would have had in-state tuition, they might have picked an out-of-state student over me so they could get more money (they've been doing a TON of fancy new building projects lately). The good news is that I am loving my time at school B, so all's well that ends well. You have an interview and several other schools to hear from, so don't lose hope!

I am annoyed at the people in other threads and on the results page who have been wait listed for a program and are announcing that people who have been accepted should hurry up and decide. The real kicker I saw said something along the lines of: if you got in can you please turn it down if you have other offers because this school is my first choice.
The sheer entitlement. 
Also annoying: people who got into programs they applied to but don't want to go there (?), so now they are bashing the only school that accepted them, that they applied to. Moaning and groaning about having to go through a second application cycle. Why did you apply if you were going to be a snob about it? So you could add it to the list of institutions you got to turn down? Jokes on you.
Being able to pursue a career in academia is privilege. It is not a given right. Whatever you think of yourself doesn't  allow you to feel entitled to anything. 
Everyone who pursues a career in academia works hard. Nobody owes you anything. You are not the smartest person in the room. 

Don't get me wrong, I am freaking out about not having heard from almost all of my schools, and I am obsessively checking emails/application status websites. But real quick, can we just talk about the insane price to apply to higher education. Its ridiculous that we have to pay so many duplicate fees when the information through CSDCAS is supposed to streamline the process, not just serve as an advertisement for what schools are available. I find the fees exorbitant, especially in a field where we have always been told to cast a wide net and apply to a large number of schools.
Quick run-down to make everyones wallets hurt:
Each CSDCAS application- $51 through Individual Schools personal graduate portal- ~$30-$75 Send individual GRE scores- $27*** Official Transcripts- $5-$30*** Thats an Avg. of ~$148 per school, not including the one time fee of $100 from CSDCAS
*** We have to to send individual GRE to practically every program, even though we already paid CSDCAS who apparently can't give out our transcripts  to schools (which means we all basically wasted $27). And then to top it off, we have to pay more for Official Transcripts per a handful of schools.
BONUS: We have to fill out multiple applications where some schools ask for additional copies of letters of recommendation, state licenses, online interviews, video essays etc. all outside of CSDCAS. 
 
I just don't understand the purpose of CSDCAS if it can't give the schools we apply to the main pillars of their assessments of students or if we are just re0entering everything anyway so the school can make profit.  I get that it helps smaller schools get their program out there, but it can't even format my Resume, or embed video submissions. Okay, rant over. Please tell me I'm not alone hating CSDCAS. 

Columbia University English, PhD (F19) Rejected via Website on 20 Feb 2019 A 20 Feb 2019 Dreams-- crushed. Hours and hours spent courting Columbia POIs-- wasted. To the poster below who wrote: "Columbia was my safety school"-- My eyes cannot roll far enough back into my head. Columbia University English, PhD (F19) Rejected via E-mail on 20 Feb 2019 A 20 Feb 2019 fu**ing finally Columbia University (GSAS) English And Comparative Literature, PhD (F19) Rejected via Website on 20 Feb 2019 ♦ A 20 Feb 2019 Received email telling me to log in for decision. GPA is for a recent standalone MA. Columbia GSAS English, PhD (F19) Rejected via E-mail on 20 Feb 2019 ♦ A 20 Feb 2019 Email to check portal. Disappointing. It says I will be considered for a masters without funding and hear soon from that--so it'll be cool to have another rejection to look forward to. Columbia GSAS English, PhD (F19) Rejected via Website on 20 Feb 2019   20 Feb 2019 To the person below who called Columbia their “safety school” ... eat poo Columbia University English, PhD (F19) Rejected via Website on 20 Feb 2019   20 Feb 2019 That’s really so adorable. They’re probably using my application fee as toilet paper Columbia University (GSAS) English, PhD (F19) Rejected via Website on 20 Feb 2019 ♦ A 20 Feb 2019   Columbia University English, PhD (F19) Rejected via E-mail on 20 Feb 2019 ♦ I 20 Feb 2019 report spam Columbia was my safety school lmfao but am very relieved to finally receive an email

I've been getting into minimalism lately because this is the perfect time in my life for an existential crisis.

I sent an email to an AO about my application status and why I have not received an interview invitation yet(politely, of course)
Then I dreamt that I received an email containing a cake recipe and a set of math questions, the AO replied " DO NOT BOTHER ME AGAIN UNTIL YOU FIGURE ALL THESE OUT"
I literally scared to death. 

This one is v inspiring. 
McGill University Linguistics, PhD (S19) Other via Other on 16 Feb 2019 O 16 Feb 2019 report spam @ McGill discussion. Another voice here; not an applicant to McGill. I sympathise with the frustration that a long and arduous application process brings, and with the psychological unrest that such a rejection can engender. However, this is a results page. It should not, I believe, constitute a forum for you to engage in the spirited venting of these feelings. This type of negativity reflects very poorly on all of us – please remember that these comments will remain in the results for years to come, for future generations of anxious, hopeful students to peruse. Remember, too, that this path – not unlike anything in life – is full of disappointment and rejection. If you can't stomach it in a civil manner and have the maturity to create a decent example for others, then perhaps you should indeed reconsider your devotion to a professional career in academia. Best wishes.