spookycat

Sorry, this is a lengthy reply but this is a complicated question! Also, this is my story, I'm not insinuating anything about your applications, just sharing what I went through and what helped me! So, this is my second application process. The first time I did not hear from a single one of the 10 schools I applied to, and this year I have 2 interviews out of 5 programs. I had a wide breath of research experiences in psychology (worked with cognition, social anxiety, and eventually substance use) and had clinical experience in social anxiety, substance use, and working with families. I have a high GPA, 4 years of research experience, and independent research project and poster presentation, as well as some papers in prep (not first author or anything like that, but it's something). The biggest difference for me this year was the type of programs I applied to. Some programs are so competitive that if your GRE scores aren't in the 80th percentile, your applications are essentially ignored. It's a harsh truth, but some schools (and we all know which ones) get 700+ applications each year and there's just no way that they can spend the time going through each one to see whether your experiences make up for areas that aren't as strong (ie GRE scores and GPA). I don't know how you did on the GREs but mine were not in the 80th percentile, so these schools I applied to the first time were out of my league by miles, and none of my mentors were open enough to tell me this. That being said, now that I'm applying to programs that my GREs are more standard for, my application as a whole is taken into consideration and I've been able to show that I have the skills and experience that make up for a bad quant score. I think the most important thing is being able to relate all of the research you've done together and apply it to what you want to study. So personally, I'm studying substance use and was able to explain how my experiences in cognition and social anxiety were valuable to my goal. It's vital to relate it all together, to show that you are able to gain specific skills and knowledge from every experience that you have, and to show that all of your breadth as well as in-depth work have come together to point you towards your goal. ALSO, don't give up hope yet on hearing back from schools! Good luck to you, and I hope that somewhere in this very long-winded story there are answers to your questions!

I have a very similar problem - my "reach" program was my top pick, naturally. The program is great, the research fit with my POI is so perfect, and I would be over the moon to do the work she's doing. (Not to mention the school has a great football team, is in a great location, and I would always have things to do in the area). The perks are endless.. But my GREs are lower than their averages and I haven't heard anything. *Insert sad music here*

Thank you, I am completely over the moon - which is exactly why the thought of not wearing my ring is so sad to me! I don't want to pretend that I'm not engaged just to impress someone, thank you this is a very good insight!

This was mentioned in passing earlier, and now I can't stop thinking about it (as with everything related to this process). I recently got engaged, and thus wear my engagement ring at all times. Is it not a good idea to wear my ring to interviews? I wouldn't take it off in any other context, but now I'm wondering if this is something I just haven't heard of as a young person who is only recently engaged. Thoughts?

Has anyone heard anything from Washington State? The calendar that's floated around here listed their deadline as Jan 15th, but I'm wondering if anyone had prelim phone interviews or heard something early. (Read as: I'm going crazy, am completely impatient, and just want the wait to end lol)

Hello all, I have a super specific problem/fear and appreciate any help I can get on the matter! So I live in a state at an elevation of essentially 0, and am interviewing at a school which is an elevation of 7,000 feet (which is 2,000 feet higher than Denver). The problem is that I get altitude sickness, and am terrified of not having time for my body to adjust and ending up feeling sick/faint/whatever and not being at the top of my game for interviews. I'm considering flying in the night before the interviews (which start in the evening) so that I can have around 24 hours for my body to adjust and thus not faint or throw up on anyone. What I'm worried about is that my POI will think I'm a crazy person for doing something like this, and/or that this will make things more difficult for them as they have offered me housing for the time period of the actual interviews. I would clearly not ask them to house me during this extra day and am more than willing to scrape together the money to have the extra night. But I'm also a bit worried they will think that this shows I'm not cut out for the geographical location.. Any thoughts/advice? Has anyone else had to account for altitude sickness at interviews?

Honestly at this point I'd so much rather just receive rejections (or interviews ?) and at least know where I stand than have to wait anymore. I feel like rejections will be horrible, but at least it's over and you can deal with it and then focus on interviews, you know?

I would also recommend constantly searching through any listings your university has of staff/research/etc positions. I had a dead-end job for 6 months after I graduated before finally finding and applying for a paid research technician position that looked really good on my applications. Don't give up if you don't find something right away - there are always stragglers who put applications out at seemingly random times due to positions opening etc. I also found it helpful to ask any mentors you have at your university if they have or know of anyone in the department that has paid positions related to research for after you graduate. Most professors know that students looking at graduate programs will be on the lookout for these positions, but if you put yourself out there they may be able to find something for you or send you an opportunities they hear about. A lot of departments send emails through faculty asking if anyone knows a student/post-bac who would fit the job they're looking for - I had my mentor send a few different types of opportunities my way over my senior year and beyond. Definitely not guaranteed, but I don't think it hurts to get your name out there (and show letter writers again how dedicated you are to continuing research ?).

I've heard of like 1 person getting an invite on the weekends and my brain has turned this into an excuse to continue to check my email constantly and have this website open all day. There is no escaping it for me ?

Does anyone have any advice on the color of a suit for women? I have heard that black is the only professional option from some people, and currently have a light grey suit that I'm guessing I'll need to switch out for black. I have short black heels that I planned to wear, and don't want to look like I'm dressed for a funeral but would rather look like that than have interviewers thing I'm not dressed enough because my suit is lighter.

I just had a phone interview, so I can lend a hand here. I was asked to elaborate more on experiences I had, as it's hard to sum up everything you do in a CV. I was also asked about specific aspects of my application that weren't ideal - namely that my quant score isn't great. I was asked why I got this score and how my application shows that I can overcome that. So prepare to talk about the good and the not so good of your application. I also got the chance to hear about the POIs research, her lab, the university, etc. in depth and talk about what I would want to work on should I start in the lab right now. The most important thing is to just be confident and personable, ask lots of questions to show you're interested and prepared. Good luck!!!

When you didn't hear back from your top pick program before break and know you have to wait

School: University of Wyoming Type: PhD Date of invite: 12/21/18 Type of invite: Email from POI after preliminary phone interview Interview date(s): 2/17-2/18 I haven't seen anyone else saying they'd heard from the university, so I'm wondering if invites are up to the PI? Is that a thing?

SAME. One of my PIs said I'd hear back "by the end of the week" and I'm like ? ? ? (as if I haven't been checking my email every 30 seconds all week saying "well she said BY the end of the week so maybe Tuesday isn't too early??). At this point I'm not sure if my brain will survive long enough to actually get into a program lol.

What area specifically are you hoping to study? Some populations are harder to get access to, especially without a graduate degree as I'm sure we have all found. I've found it helpful to get experience in things close to what I'm interested in, which has slowly gotten me into the positions I actually wanted. For example, if you're interested in neuropsych or something, maybe get experience in a cognitive lab. Or if you're interested in working with families, maybe work with in a lab that focuses on development or vice versa. All that being said, I think (depending on the type of program you're applying to), most PIs are aware that it's hard to find a lab nearby that focuses on exactly your interests, and that it's even harder to get into some of those labs. I think the most important thing is being able to relate the experiences you have with what you want to do, should you be invited into their lab. My mentors really emphasized that if you can explain how your interests have grown and how you've gained things from less than relevant research, then PIs will still be impressed.

I wouldn't recommend it personally.. I know it's nerve-wrecking, but this is a crazy time for PIs too and while some PIs may be kind about it, others may find it annoying. I know the professors I've worked with in the past say they don't like and don't respond to emails until they have something to say, at which time they'll be sending emails themselves. I know it's horrible waiting, but we're all in this together!

They only mentioned interview invites, but I doubt rejections will be sent out sooner - it sounded like they've only gone through the first round of looking at applications.

I work for a clinical psych professor at University of Nebraska (thought I'm not a grad student there), and he told me that the department wouldn't be sending out notifications until at least Jan 3-4th when we get back from break. Hopefully this puts some people at ease if you haven't heard back from them yet!

I wouldn't take this as a rejection!! Maybe they just had other interviews later and can't give you any news until after they've talked with everyone. Also maybe they are just still deciding between people they interviewed - lots of possibilities! Hope everything works out for you!

I had a preliminary phone interview with Wyoming on Monday, and my PI said they'd be letting us know by the end of the week if we were invited to interviews. Not sure if that's everyone in the department (or if you also had a prelim interview) but I haven't heard anything since!

I just had a phone interview and there was a question that tripped me up (ignore the tears). I was asked about a SPECIFIC research article I had read in the past year that had interested me that was NOT from my PI's lab - they wanted an author, a pub date, and details, etc. I was able to summarize some articles that I had used in a paper I'm working on, but I couldn't remember any names or dates off the top of my head under that pressure. Hoping this doesn't cost me the interview invite, but who knows what others had prepared? Learn from my mistake - PI's already know their own research, and probably aren't interested in you rattling off their articles that you've memorized. While it's obviously very important to know what they've written and how it relates to your own interests, at the end of the day it makes sense that they want to know you've done other reading.

Needed some encourage mint today! Anyone else feeling extra pressure since this is the last week before universities begin their breaks? Realistically I know many programs haven't sent out interview invites yet, but the panic voice in my brain is still on red alert lol.

It's all about the programs you apply to, honestly. I have a VERY low quant (below 50th) and I still got a phone interview with my program. However, I would take some school's statements of "not having an official cutoff" for GREs with a grain of salt. If you are applying to programs where the average GRE for applicants in the past was in the 80th percentile or above, realistically they will probably continue to take applicants with very high GRE scores. These numbers are averages of course, and there's always a chance, but the best plan is to be strategic about what programs you apply to. Many programs really aren't as concerned with GRE scores and can offer you a fantastic education, but the Ivys may not be as interested, simply because they get so many applications every year that they do have to cut people based on test scores. I don't mean for this to sound discouraging, and I hope it doesn't come off this way - my first round of applications I reached way too far, and didn't hear from a single program. This year (with he same abysmal score) I got a phone interview from one of my top two programs within a week of applications being out, because I was able to look at schools whose main focus was not GREs. Don't give up hope!!

I've taken up cross-stitching something personal for 8 girls that I'm hoping to have in my wedding. How do I still have time to check this website every 20 minutes? Also, I'm always eager to share my children as well, so here is my first born son and the heir to any fortune I may come into.