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socneuro

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Posts posted by socneuro

  1. On 2/13/2019 at 11:09 AM, psychotheatre said:

    Hello,

    So I am weighing the options of accepting a lab manager position or *attempting* to land a post-bacc research fellowship. The latter would be much more competitive, but also much more substantive and involved (from my impression).

    Specifically, I am looking to Yale's ESI-Prep, Columbia's Bridge to PhD, and MIT's BBS Post-Bacc Research Scholar Program in Neuroscience. The manager position is at a well-known school.

    I would say statistically/on-paper I am a competitive applicant (strong GPA, good letters of recc., some research experiences). These programs *appear* to serve communities for which I am not a part of (namely, Black and Latinx students; I am Vietnamese American); though I am first-gen, low-income, and the Asian demographic has very varied educational attainment outcomes depending on ethnicity (Vietnamese/SE Asian being among the lowest among Asians, and lower than White).

    I am looking for advice whether it's worth to try to my hand at these fellowships and reject the manager position offer (I would apply to other lab manager positions that may have a later timeline that allow me to hear back from these post-bacc programs). Or perhaps advice in how to frame wanting BOTH accept the position, and apply to these post-bacc research fellowships--Is this asking to have a cake and eat it too?

    Wanting to hear any opinions/or advice. Thanks :)

    Hello! 

    I feel like it depends on a few things: length of the commitment, salary, who you'll be working with.

    I assume the goal is to apply to graduate school. If there's a lab position open in a lab where the PI works closely or is the PI that you're interested in applying to for grad school, I'd say work there since the letter of rec will be a lot stronger by someone they know and work with and will be a great networking opportunity. 

    Some programs have a year long commitment, others are 2 yrs +, I've even seen some lab project coordinators with only a 6 month commitment. The question there really depends on when you want to go to grad school. Are you delaying to save up money or trying to get in as soon as possible and just beefing up your CV?

    Either program / lab manager position you choose, it'll look good on your CV. I will say some lab manager positions are different than others. Some only want you to do office work and answer phones, while others will actually mentor you and help you get on papers. If the position you're looking at is more of the office type than I'd say definitely turn that down as you ideally want to get as much experience as possible and not just at office tasks. You can always ask the PI what your tasks will be and if they're open to starting new projects with you and have opportunities to get on papers.

  2. Hey all!

    Just thought I'd share my good news. I applied to 6 schools this cycle, received official rejections from 2 schools, and expecting the other 4 to all be rejections as well since I've had no interview requests. I started applying to lab manager/lab coordinator positions and I've already gotten 2 interviews so far! I haven't officially gotten the jobs but I feel so much better after not getting any interview invites prior. I really thought my application wasn't good enough and honestly debated giving up on ever going to grad school, but just getting these interviews have really made me more excited and I'm definitely gonna work on my apps and try again next year!

  3. Feeling kind of unsure with what to do next as far as career goes. Haven't been invited to an interview yet by any of the schools I applied to. I'm debating if the academic route is even worth it at this point. I mean if it's this hard to get into grad school, it'll be even harder to get into a career. I want to go into social neuroscience but my mom is suggesting I do something else with my bachelor's like go into marketing. I feel like I'd hate business life but I really don't want to keep applying year after year and be rejected year after year. I don't see myself doing anything but academia, but I'm afraid I'm just not good enough for the field at this point.

  4. 28 minutes ago, B_Allen said:

    has anyone heard from Stanford Psychology yet? Also does anyone know when they begin sending out invites for interviews?

    Nothing yet! I was honestly expecting to hear back from them before the others since their application deadline was so early, but I guess not.

    42 minutes ago, itsannat said:

    I applied to nine schools and have only heard back from one.. starting to get very nervous. Anyone else in the same boat? The one response was an interview invitation but still very nervous. 

    40 minutes ago, davidfreire20 said:

    I'm in the same boat right there with you 

    Same except no interview invites. I made it to the short list at one school, but ended up not getting an interview. I'm starting to look into other options like lab manager positions at this point and lowkey debating if this is even worth it. I really don't want to have to apply again since it was so expensive this time around. Also, I know that if it's this hard to get into grad programs it'll be even harder to find a career when I get to that stage. It just sucks since academia is really the only career I can really see myself doing. Ugh I wish this process wasn't so long! I'd rather just know already if I got rejected by all the schools.

  5. Just now, vallaboop said:

    Looking for advice! I am trying really hard not to sound desperate and annoying while trying to remain calm and not jump to the worst case scenario. While doing a lit search for work (I am a research assistant for a psychiatry department of a prestigious hospital associated with an Ivy league medical school) I came across the work of a professor at a university in New England. Her work is pretty much an exact match to my research interests and I got incredibly excited. The deadline for this particular PhD program was January 1st, however I contacted the program director and asked if it was still possible to apply. The programs website stated that in certain circumstances they would continue to accept applications after the deadline. The woman I spoke with was super nice and incredibly helpful. She told me to reach out to the POI and see if I was a good fit for the lab. If this was the case then she would authorize the late application. I contacted the POI via email explaining the circumstances, my research interests, a little bit about myself and a copy of my CV. She answered almost immediately saying it was great to e-meet me and it sounded like we have incredibly similar interests. Then she asked if I was available to talk on the phone. I answered right away thanking her for her quick response and telling her that unfortunately I was booked for the rest of the afternoon but I would gladly make time to talk the next day (this was Monday). She never responded so I reached out yesterday to follow up. I told her I realized I was a little overeager and I didn't provide other times I was available. I let her know my schedule was pretty open this week so she could just let me know what time works best for her. Additionally, I told her that I would be in her area starting next week to do research interviews at a local mental health center and I would be more than happy to stop by her office to meet in person. She has not answered. Thoughts?? I am worried that I came across desperate/annoying and that I might have blown my chances. I also realize sending my app a week after the deadline was probably a detriment. However, I looked at her CV and realized that she was a consultant on a study I work on and she has published two papers with people I work with (small world!) which could potentially work in my favor as well. What should my next step be? Should I just sit back and cross my fingers? Any advice is greatly appreciated!! This is not my first rodeo with PhD applications and my confidence is taking a hard hit each go round. 

    I wouldn't worry just yet if its only been a day or two. Professors do get busy or the email may have gotten buried in other emails. I'd probably wait a week and if there's no response then email again. After that I'd probably stop emailing so as to not be harassing at that point. If she responded the first time though it sounds like she's interested! I wouldn't think saying your busy one day would hold you back much as most people understand that people get busy every now and again. I think it's probably more likely that she just got busy herself.

  6. 32 minutes ago, gillis_55 said:

    Hey guys I have a question about applying to POIs that know each other. I've received Skype interview invites from 2 POIs who work closely with each other (let's say A and B). Supervisor A mentioned Supervisor B when she was going over her projects. I didn't say in the moment, "Oh yes I'm applying to him too!", but should I email her and disclose that I am interviewing with him as well?

    I don't think it's necessary. I also don't think it'll hurt or help you either way since it's assumed that you'll be applying to people that have similar interests. Almost all the schools/POIs I've applied to have worked together/collaborated at some point. I'd say It's expected that most of the people you're applying to will know each other. I'd probably lean more towards not saying anything though as to not give the impression that you favor this other PI you're applying to (even if you don't have a preference).

  7. 12 minutes ago, socpsy said:

    In the meantime I'm trying to brush up on my SPSS and R skills so I can at least say I know it well.

    I’ve been brushing up on SAS, and tried learning python but wow is python confusing. I’ve also started learning MATLAB and the language reminds me of SAS a bit so I feel like it’ll be an easier transition. The only thing is, I feel like there’s a big difference between learning syntax and actually learning it (through working on projects and such) and since no one in my current lab uses MATLAB I don’t think I’ll really be able to learn it :/

  8. 16 hours ago, HIP613 said:

    Yep, a poster on Friday

    4 hours ago, socpsy said:

    Same!

    I'm also presenting on Friday!!

    1 hour ago, socpsy said:

    Could the person who posted their interview for the UNC Social Psych program send me their POI? :) 

    I would like to know as well!

    ---

    Also, I was just curious since I'm not really feeling as hopeful with this application cycle, has anyone given any thoughts to backup plans? I was thinking a paid postbac research assistant/lab manager position, but not sure how I would be able to afford living off its salary - I also know they're competitive and a lot of them have requirements to know programming languages that I don't know (Python, Matlab). I really only know SAS, STATA and a little bit of R, so not sure I would qualify for a lot of the positions. There's also a lot of unpaid labs I could join including the ones I'm in now, but I'm not sure how I'd afford living off unpaid labs and maybe a minimum wage side job to have some money coming in. 

  9. 22 minutes ago, beepbopboopityboop said:

    I'm not familiar with how to use gradcafe (just discovered it today), where do the items on the "Results" page come from? I'm wondering whether that 13 figure is credible. Thanks!

    At the top of the page in the blue tab, click on "results." It shows people's acceptances, rejections, and interview invites for the past 25 entries. You can click on the blue links that say "past one day, two days, seven days or month" to see more entries. If you scroll down, there's two posts from UCLA (only one in social psych dept) and in the notes section it says 13. I'm thinking they might be in one of the labs there to have the info. 

  10. 15 minutes ago, rainydaychai said:

    Ugh, all of you guys getting official interview invites already and almost all of my programs have historically made offers in the first week of January (and no one's heard from the one that makes offers this week). Knowing you have go to through the holidays waiting is almost as bad as getting rejected right off the bat! I just wish I had at least one formal invite in my back pocket. Can anyone commiserate? 

    I can so relate to this! Only 7 more days for any grad program to give me the best Christmas present ever - starting to give up on that one though. I know it’s still early to lose all hope since social depts just started reviewing apps but I’m second guessing everything in my app like what if X wasn’t good enough?? I hate this waiting game!!

  11. 15 minutes ago, Psyhopeful said:

    Did anyone apply to Stanford? My application says incomplete, missing official transcripts, but I could swear I only had to upload unofficial ones, and that it said complete when I submitted. I’m just wondering if they just don’t update their portal, or if my application was never looked at because it’s considered incomplete. Did you have to upload official transcripts in the application?

    I applied to Stanford! I sent in unofficial and official. It says "received" for unofficial, but it doesn't look like they received my official ones either. I didn't upload official to the application since if it's in your possession it's no longer considered official, so it wouldn't be possible. I sent it from my university and I got a notification from my university saying that Stanford had received it, so I'm not too worried about it. They may just not update. I also haven't heard from anyone yet on Stanford reviewing applicants yet. I might give them a call on Monday just to make sure though.

  12. 5 hours ago, loffire said:

    How are my fellow socialites doing? I know it's been tough seeing other departments dole out interviews. Hope you guys have been keeping busy!

    Just had my last final yesterday so i’d been keeping busy with that. Now finals are over so time to binge watch every show ever and hope it’s a good enough distraction! 

  13. 9 hours ago, ResilientDreams said:

    I don't know about LGBT issues in particular but I do know that three professors at Dartmouth just got put on leave because of sexual harrassment and rape allegations. 

    https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/15/us/dartmouth-title-ix-lawsuit/index.html

     

    I heard about that! I’m a little worried that culture is still lingering even with them gone. I mean 3 of them?? There’s just no way 3 of them get away with it for so long without a whole culture and system there supporting it. I figured I’d still apply and then at interviews see if anything seems off I guess.

  14. Hello! 

    So, I'm a part of the lgbt community and I've lived in a big and fairly liberal city all my life and now that I'm moving, I'm really nervous as to what it'll be like. I'm applying to UCLA, Dartmouth, University of Pittsburgh, UNC at Chapel Hill, Stanford, and Columbia and was just wondering if anyone knew if the programs/cities were fairly accepting? I'm not really worried about NY or LA since they're big cities and liberal, but I know Hanover is a fairly small town and not sure how liberal/conservative they are. I also have no idea about Chapel Hill or Pittsburgh either. If y'all live near there, visited, or have heard anything, please let me know!

    Feel free to ask about other cities/programs as well and hello to any other lgbt people on this site! 

  15. 7 minutes ago, PsychWannabee said:

    Clinical person snooping here, and, yes, you all are definitely holding it together a lot better ?

     

    6 minutes ago, higaisha said:

    Wish I applied to social, less anxiety and neuroticism on your threads compared to others haha;). There's a reason people say clinical psychologists have to be somewhat crazy to do what they do.

    lol don't worry guys I'll be a lot more neurotic come January/February! Only calm at this point because applications haven't even gone under review yet ? Can't be rejected if they haven't looked yet!

  16. 11 hours ago, light1996 said:

    Hi Everyone!

    I've been following the thread for a while but decided to just make an account. Have any of you applied to neuro programs? I applied to both psych and neuro programs at UCI, UCLA, UCR, UC Davis, UCSD, Berkeley, and Stanford. I applied to 2 different programs at 3 of the schools so that makes 10 in total. I'm super nervous. I just graduated with a BA in psychology at UC Irvine and did research (and I am still doing research) in a neurobio lab. I have a 3.98 GPA and and got GRE scores in the lower 160s. I'm nervous about not having any publications but I hope my research experience makes up a little bit for that. I don't know what else to say. My essays were pretty good. I had my PI read them because he's read a lot for UCI's INP program and he said they were really impressive compared to what he's read. I hope I have a chance and I am anticipating potential interviews.

    I have a couple questions. I know schools interview potential candidates. What are the PI interviews then? Do they occur before the grad interviews? Should I be expecting that or should I worry if no one contacts me?

    Hello! I applied to UCLA and Stanford's social neuro program! Also, I have almost the same gpa and gre scores so I think you're good with that! About the publications, from what I heard from most faculty members it's not a requirement or even expectation for admission. However, if you do have publications it looks really good and helps you stand out. I think faculty members will care WAY more about fit than how many publications you have, but I guess it really depends on the PI.

    Also from my understanding, PI interviews usually occur during the school interviews as part of the whole process. Some PI's do pre-interviews to help narrow down their selection of people for school interviews. Also, it depends on school funding - some schools may not be able to fly everyone out to the school so some schools may do only skype/phone interviews. It really depends on the school. I wouldn't worry if you don't hear directly from the PI before you get a notification from the school. Also, it's way too early in general to start worrying - I'd probably start worrying late January/early February. 

    Hope that helps!

  17. 1 hour ago, SJK01 said:

    How are clinical programs with 12/1 deadlines already extending Skype interviews. I'm about to fall off my rocker. My applications haven't even gone "under review" except for Rice.. Whose deadline isn't even until 12/15 ?‍♀️

    I was surprised by that too! esp during finals! It's a little early to worry at this point but damn I wish I could know already!! Also none of mine are under review either yet or at least I haven't gotten an email about it - I should probably check the application portals just to make sure though.

  18. 1 hour ago, loffire said:

    oooh we have a huge overlap of schools! i applied to all the same except columbia hahah  care to share POIs?

    sure! 

    • UCLA: Dr. Eisenberger, Dr. Parkinson, & Dr. Lieberman
    • Dartmouth: Dr. Wheatley, Dr. Meyer, & Dr. Wager
    • University of Pittsburgh: Dr. Inagaki
    • UNC: Dr. Muscatell & Dr. Algoe
    • Stanford: Dr. Zaki
    • Columbia: Dr. Oschner

    Honestly, I feel like Stanford and Columbia are my last resort schools since my interests are not as closely aligned for those, but I'd be happy to get into any of them! 

    I assume we have a lot of the same, but who did you choose for POIs? 

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