sabrono

Hey!! So I ended up being waitlisted at Elmhurst and rejected from Mercy, but SOMEHOW got in to 4 others and committed to Teachers College. I didn't end up finishing my application to Temple and SFSU just because I ran out of money lmao. I had a decent amount of research experience from undergrad and a background of working with multicultural/lingual groups so I think that had a good amount of pull with the NYC schools. Best of luck to you!! The one kind of specific piece of advice I have is to avoid spending the money on Brooklyn College entirely. Their whole application process was so disorganized (and expensive!) I can't imagine what their program is like, and I've heard the same from friends who applied to entirely different programs. I've called and emailed them several times and to this day I'm still getting emails about applying for financial aid, sending in immunization records, and registering for classes from BC as if I committed.

I'm super grateful to have gotten into Teachers College for grad school, but figuring out housing right now feels almost as stressful as applying for schools in the first place. I could try to find an apartment near campus and shell out $1500 a month for rent, but that money would probably have to come from a private loan of some sort since there's no way I could work that much during the program to make that kind of money. I have substantial loans from undergrad (letting an 18 year old sign a contract with Sallie Mae should be illegal tbh) so the idea of taking out even MORE private loans freaks me out. My 2nd plan is that I could live further away from Columbia in Brooklyn or Queens and save maybe $800 a month living with some old high school friends, but I'd still have about an hour commute by train every day. Third option is that I could live with my parents on Long Island for $free$ but commute about 2 hours each way every day. I also have no car at home so I'd kind of be stuck socially until either I win the lottery or a friend comes to pick me up. Is a 2 hour commute too long for grad school? I'd be commuting by train so I could definitely get reading or other work done, but I'm worried about how engaged I can be on campus when 4 hours of every day are spent on public transit. Also, has anyone else dealt with moving back home after having their own place for a while? I feel like that adjustment is going to be pretty rough too.

My backup plan was to teach English abroad (S Korea or Thailand) or to volunteer with CityYear! I actually was applying to both of those programs at the same time I applied to grad schools so I wouldn't have to scramble if I didn't get in anywhere. I also really didn't want a long stretch of doing nothing because I know I would drive myself crazy in the spare time. Teaching abroad especially in East Asia is a pretty good back up plan since a lot of the countries over there have amazing packages for incoming teachers. I have a friend who managed to put away almost $10k in savings while she was in Japan for 2 years and her school paid for her flight and housing (furnished!)

Just heard from Brooklyn College today! Wish they would've sent out notifications before the 15th since I already paid a deposit at another school, but anyways I hope me rejecting gets someone from the waitlist a spot

I'm considering it! If I hear back from them before the 15th I'm definitely going, just because their tuition is sooooo much cheaper than everywhere else. At the same time though, I'm not going to jeopardize my other offers by waiting around for Brooklyn to make a decision.

Has anyone made a group for Portland State yet?

I was accepted, but I haven't decided on whether or not I'm going yet- and it's really just the cost that's making me 2nd guess attending. I have a hefty amount of loans from undergrad (letting 18 year olds sign contracts with Sallie Mae should be a crime) and the loans I'd need to live in NYC and pay for Columbia would put me over $100k in debt. I do plan on going to accepted students day this Friday, so I'll probably have a stronger opinion about the program then! I'm also kinda nervous about the competitiveness of NYC and getting clinical placements. There are a LOT of amazing schools in the area, so I wonder if trying to get placements in specific settings would be an extra stress that could be avoided at a school in a less SLP dense area.

Still waiting on Brooklyn College! I interviewed on 3/6, and I saw that a super small handful of people got accepted already. I kinda don't wanna go, but they're the cheapest school I applied to and I'd love the option

I'm kind of in the same boat! I know Columbia's an amazing program and a HUGE name but I'm not sure if it's worth throwing myself into that much debt. I feel like the general consensus on here is that for SLPs the name on the degree doesn't matter as long as you have your CCCs, but none of us are SLPs yet so idk how much truth there is in that

1. I don't know if they have any particular focus for the application, but I think like most schools your GPA and GRE scores will be used as a cut off point to help narrow out the pool of applicants 2. Faculty is amazing! I'm closer with the professors that work mostly with undergrads obviously but the few graduate professors I've had the chance to work with were really great. IMO they keep up with current research more than the stereotypical SLP and it shows in the classroom. 3. I think it's pretty balanced! The on campus clinic isn't really medically equipped, but Temple has their hospital a subway stop away so if you want more medical experience I'm sure you could get it. The clinic gets a wide range of different cases (at least from what I saw when I worked there). I personally saw aural rehab, aphasia, stuttering, and AAC cases and I'm sure there were many many others.

I was an undergrad at Temple and spent a little bit of time in the clinic, so if you have any specific questions I can maaaaaaaaybe answer them!

Is anyone planning to go to accepted students day? I wish it wasn't on a Friday, I'm not sure if I can get the day off from work

Both are amazing, congrats!! Honestly, since they're both pretty similar I say go to whichever one gives you more funding.

Hey everyone! I'm super super excited about Portland State and I would've loved to be able to visit campus on their visiting day but I'm living in Philly rn so that's pretty much impossible for me. If you were able to visit, what were your general vibes/observations from campus? How was the clinic? I know they recently moved and remodeled it (or are in the process of doing so). Did you get to talk to any current grad students? Aaallllsssooo, did they say anything about when we should be receiving a financial aid package? It's been about 2 weeks since I've been accepted and I was kinda hoping to hear back by the end of this upcoming week so I had time to sit on a decision and figure out how much I can take out in loans to cover this without absolutely drowning myself.

Someone on the results page called the school today, and said they said we'd hear back by 5 pm tonight! Also, I don't know if you've been obsessively checking the portal like I have but the blue words that said "your application is currently under review" aren't there anymore, so at least SOMETHING is happening. Good luck!!!!!

One thing that someone at my school's career center told me was to have specific career goals and to relate them back to the program, and it really helped me structure my entire essay (and figure out which programs to apply to!). It shows that you're passionate about the profession and organized enough to have a plan. Basically everyone becomes an SLP because they love language and helping people, so just listing that as a reason for wanting to go to grad school isn't really enough. If you're super interested in a specific area of SLP like aphasia or pediatrics then definitely write about it, connect it to your past experience, and to the school's program or research from some of the professors in the program. For me, I knew I wanted to work with underserved populations or bilingual communities (or, ideally, both), so I connected it with my past volunteer/activism experiences and the multicultural emphasis that the schools I applied to had.

@BeachySpeechy When did your school send you your financial aid package? I was accepted to a school almost 2 weeks ago and haven't received anything about how much aid/when they'll let me know about aid. Did you have to wait until after you committed?

Still waiting on teachers college! Has anyone called to ask when they send out decisions? I know last year it was around the end of March

Idk how to ask about financial aid without being weird about it, but the amount of funding I get from schools is going to be a HUGE factor in deciding where I go. I was thinking of saying something like, "I'm still extremely interested in your program and am currently still considering my options. Do you know about when I should hear about any financial aid or funding?" I just feel so rude asking for them to give me money, but I really really need them to give me some money lmao

Sorry I’m super late but @Sga71494 summed up the interview perfectly! It felt almost informal, and I wonder how much they actually got out of it. You also got a short tour of the clinical space and student work rooms, which were honestly underwhelming. Was anyone else a little disappointed in brooklyn’s facilities? I know it’s a CUNY and obviously won’t have sparkling new technology, but everything felt cramped and severely outdated.

I personally don’t know anything about the area around La Salle, but I’ve lived off campus by Temple for years and I’ve never had any issues! North Philly doesn’t have the greatest of reputations, but Temple is really trying hard to compensate for that with a massive security presence off campus. You’re also near a lot of public transit and the rent is a lot cheaper than other neighborhoods. If you have basic city sense and don’t make a habit of walking around at 3am you’ll be fine anywhere in Philly!

My interview for Brooklyn is tomorrow! I'll let you guys know how it went. It's my first interview and I'm genuinely terrified.

I haven't, but on the survey page people didn't say they got their decisions until mid/late March

There's actually a TON of topics about jobs, backup plans, and reapplying on here already! Also r/slp/ has some good info too. Here's a few that might have what you're looking for https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/100483-job-options-pre-grad-school/?tab=comments#comment-1058543039 https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/95826-plans-to-pay-off-loan-debt/?tab=comments#comment-1058515251 https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/94252-advice-on-jobs/?tab=comments#comment-1058508975

Congrats to everyone with acceptances and interviews so far!!! Is anyone interviewing for CUNY Brooklyn next week? The interview invitation email said there'd be a writing sample, and I have no idea what to expect/how to prepare for that.