StellaBa

I'm currently accepted to two PhD and two Master's programs in education. I'm freaking out because I can't decide which program to choose. The PhD programs have a pretty good fit, but I haven't spoken to my potential advisor about the details of the program. One of the Master's programs I'm accepted to is in Harvard GSE, and since I'm coming straight from undergrad, I think a getting a Master's at such a renowned school may be a great thing to do as well. I'm thinking of attending the Ed.M. Open house in Harvard GSE to get a better picture of the program. And since I would be travelling a very(VERY) long distance, I'm considering paying visits to the two PhD schools. The thing is, I would be visiting the two PhD programs when it is not visiting day. I'm not sure what to expect and what kind of information I can get when I go to a campus on a regular day when people are not expecting me. I will try to make appointments with potential advisors, but I'm afraid that's all I would get. Would the two extra visits be worth the cost and time? What can I expect when I visit a school when it's not visiting day?

I'm in the exact same situation as you are! I was rejected from my top choices of PhD programs in education but admitted to two fairly good PhD programs and Harvard's Master's program. The only difference is that I don't have a masters and I'm coming straight from undergrad. I'm wondering if spending 9 months in the Master's program will make a significant difference in my academic ability + strengthen my CV. My career goal is to have a job in academia, if that makes a difference. I also don't think I'm eligible for any fellowship so that's also a huge con for Harvard. I feel like I'm babbling, but I guess what I want to know is if all the time and money will be worth it. This is such a difficult decision!!

Hi everyone. I'm a non-US undergrad planning to apply for PhD programs for 2018. My field of interest is in developmental psychology. I took the GRE a few months ago, and got a 164(v)/170(q)/4(w). I'm pretty content with the verbal and quant scores, but a bit insecure about my writing. Some of my target schools are in the Top 5 (Harvard, Stanford etc) Should I invest some more time with GRE and try to improve my writing score? Or should I just focus on writing a better SOP? Thanks in advance!