huskypsych

Hi there! I'm currently finishing up my undergrad at UNL. Someone else asked me about Lincoln on this site, so here is the pros/cons list I sent them:
UNL Pros:
1. big school pride (Memorial Stadium has a larger population than all cities in Nebraska other than Lincoln and Omaha on football Saturdays)
2. People are nice, will do things for you like hold doors and make small talk about the weather
3. Professors are really engaged with students. I know most of my professors by first name, which is huge as an undergrad
4. Big research focus (my best friend got his undergrad in the English department here and got to do a funded research project with a professor)
5. Grad students can teach some lower-level classes
UNL Cons:
1. Big Greek life (probably applies more to undergrad)
2. We love our football team, but they're not actually very good lol
3. Can be difficult to find challenging enough classes (may be less true in english as it's a bigger department, but in the anthro department all the grad students take classes with undergrads)
4. Not a lot of money for humanities/social sciences departments
5. Expensive parking (might be covered for you?)
Lincoln Pros:
1. Good size downtown, right by campus
2. Lots of small breweries/coffee shops
3: Get some good concerts at Pinnacle Bank Arena
4: Close to Omaha for bigger city stuff
5: Cheap rent (I live in a furnished on-campus apartment with one roommate and pay less than $500/month including utilities)
Lincoln Cons:
1. Cold as fuck (and they'll make you go to class anyway)
2. Conservative state (the governor wants to bring back the death penalty, you'll see some pro-life rallies on campus, etc.)
3. You basically need a car to get around (too cold to bike half the year and campus is technically in a food desert)
 
Hope this helps! Also I'm not in English, but used to have a Women's and Gender Studies minor and really loved the women's poetry class I took!

Just wanted to note that though this seems like the most "obvious" reason why someone would get waitlisted, there are many potential factors that play into it.  Most clinical psych programs accept a small handful of students each year, certainly fewer students than there are faculty members. In a given year it may be that multiple faculty want to take on students, but due to various reasons (internal departmental decisions, faculty rotations/priority, grant productivity, politics, etc) some faculty may have greater claim over the limited spots to take on students.  Some faculty are upfront about this. Sometimes though, these things aren't settled in advance and so faculty may interview candidates only to say during/after the interview they're not sure if they can actually take one (yep...it sucks). 
This is all just to say that there are always other forces at work that factor into these difficult and sometimes political decisions. You could be a great match to a POI and an overall program, but still might not get an offer -- it doesn't mean you're not a good fit.  If you are on the waitlist, it means they want and will take you if they can. Or at least this is what I have gathered from my conversations with my supervisor (a tenured PI at an ivy league).  When my lab interviews candidates, often times applicants are all very qualified in similar ways, and so final decisions sometimes have to come down to minor details.  For instance, between two equally qualified/experienced candidates, we might ultimately make the first offer to the one whose prior research experience was vaguely/slightly more related -- even tangentially-- to upcoming projects.  It doesn't mean the other candidate wasn't also a great fit, it just means ranking is very difficult when you're dealing with a group of strong applicants, all very motivated, qualified, and unique.  
Anyhoo just wanted to throw this out there because I think its important to know that a lot goes on behind the scenes, and these decisions are anything but simplistic.  And plus, being on the waitlist is crushing and discouraging enough on its own without the added insecurity of wondering if you were a poorer match to your dream program and that you'll be likely to have fewer other options. 
*moonwalks away* 

Unfortunately, I don't believe that the Council of Graduate Schools resolution gives any deadline on programs to extend offers. We have to decide by April 15 (or risk losing the offer), but they can do whatever they want ?

Hard for me to say, since I've only gotten one acceptance so far, but that program's POI didn't reach out to me personally to say I've been accepted. I heard from admissions. It probably depends on the program on whether or not POIs reach out to applicants to inform them of their status. I'm sorry you got rejected though, especially after hearing what seemed like a positive message from the POI. ☹️

To the University of Washington poster on the results page, did you interview? And if so, who was your POI? Thanks!!

Someone should spill the T on the Denver interview questions (results page) to distract me from waiting to hear from one of my schools.... 

Officially accepted for University of Nebraska Lincoln for clinical! 

Someone should spill the T on the Denver interview questions (results page) to distract me from waiting to hear from one of my schools.... 

Someone should spill the T on the Denver interview questions (results page) to distract me from waiting to hear from one of my schools.... 

A counseling psych program should also give you training in assessment and diagnosis. Look at the course list and student handbook for the counseling program. In practice, counseling psychology and clinical psychology are very similar. 
Note: there is a difference between a doctorate in counseling and a doctorate in counseling psychology. I'm assuming the program is counseling psych?

I like the thought but it feels a little impersonal and formulaic? I'd invest in some body paint and record yourself singing the song (both parts). It's really not that big of an investment when you consider the application fees, interview travel, etc. 
 
(So sorry this happened! You're going to find your place ❤️ ) 

I like the thought but it feels a little impersonal and formulaic? I'd invest in some body paint and record yourself singing the song (both parts). It's really not that big of an investment when you consider the application fees, interview travel, etc. 
 
(So sorry this happened! You're going to find your place ❤️ ) 

I like the thought but it feels a little impersonal and formulaic? I'd invest in some body paint and record yourself singing the song (both parts). It's really not that big of an investment when you consider the application fees, interview travel, etc. 
 
(So sorry this happened! You're going to find your place ❤️ ) 

I'm a sex researcher and even I have to say...that's cringe...

I like the thought but it feels a little impersonal and formulaic? I'd invest in some body paint and record yourself singing the song (both parts). It's really not that big of an investment when you consider the application fees, interview travel, etc. 
 
(So sorry this happened! You're going to find your place ❤️ ) 

I like the thought but it feels a little impersonal and formulaic? I'd invest in some body paint and record yourself singing the song (both parts). It's really not that big of an investment when you consider the application fees, interview travel, etc. 
 
(So sorry this happened! You're going to find your place ❤️ ) 

I like the thought but it feels a little impersonal and formulaic? I'd invest in some body paint and record yourself singing the song (both parts). It's really not that big of an investment when you consider the application fees, interview travel, etc. 
 
(So sorry this happened! You're going to find your place ❤️ ) 

I like the thought but it feels a little impersonal and formulaic? I'd invest in some body paint and record yourself singing the song (both parts). It's really not that big of an investment when you consider the application fees, interview travel, etc. 
 
(So sorry this happened! You're going to find your place ❤️ ) 

I like the thought but it feels a little impersonal and formulaic? I'd invest in some body paint and record yourself singing the song (both parts). It's really not that big of an investment when you consider the application fees, interview travel, etc. 
 
(So sorry this happened! You're going to find your place ❤️ ) 

Rejected from my top choice today. Am wondering if it was unprofessional to attach this mp3 file to my response email. Lmk?

Exact same predicament last year - I took the job in my lab that I was in all through undergrad and my second application cycle has been much more successful. n=1 but still...I vote making money, not spending it

Exact same predicament last year - I took the job in my lab that I was in all through undergrad and my second application cycle has been much more successful. n=1 but still...I vote making money, not spending it

What do you want to do after your post doc? A TT position at an R1 has different expectations than a SLAC job that's teaching oriented, a data science job in industry, etc, etc. 

I actually had to make this decision last week! I had an interview scheduled for 2/25-2/26, but I knew that I was already going to commit to my first choice. It may seem like it's a bit rude to decline the offer, but it is probably best not to waste their time (or yours) if you do not plan in choosing that program even if you were to get in. In talking with the faculty member that I work with in a clinical lab as well as some grad students, I felt it best to kindly let the faculty member and grad student host know (on 2/21) that I'd accepted another offer and would no longer be attending. I have not heard back from the grad student (and honestly don't expect to), but the faculty member whom I applied to work with replied with congratulations on accepting a position and a kind note thanking me for letting her know. Hope this helps!

Hello,
Not sure if anyone who read this initial post and commented will see this, but I just wanted to circle back to this thread to express my utmost gratitude to everyone who provided their insights and opinions to me during what has been a very, very trying year.  I am so thankful for this thread and for the GradCafe community as a whole.  After a lot of deliberating, I decided to reapply to programs and aimed for ones that were fully funded, seemed to have high-quality training, and had a mentor/lab that was a great fit.  It was not an easy decision, and I knew that in many ways, the easiest and perhaps shortest option would be to stay at my current program and try to make it work with the help of outside mentors and research opportunities.  Yet with the encouragement, support, and guidance of my external mentors/supervisors, family, and this forum, I felt that this was ultimately the right decision and that if I did not get interviews, I would be happy knowing that I at least tried my best to better my situation.  I was surprised and extremely grateful that programs did not discount me right away and instead invited me to take part in their interview process.  Although I was very nervous to have to explain my story, I felt much more prepared, driven, and confident this interview cycle.  In some sense, my current situation contributed to a nothing-to-lose and everything-to-gain mentality.  
I am so relieved to say that I will NOT be returning to my current program this fall and that I will be headed to a new program that I hope will give me a strong foundation upon which to build my career.  If any of you ever finds yourself in this situation and would like to PM me, please do not hesitate to do so.  I know that each situation is unique and that the decision that made sense for me may not make sense for others.  Once again, a huge thank you to all for weighing in and for taking the time to share your thoughts and experiences with me.