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hrj_BA

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Everything posted by hrj_BA

  1. Hi! I'm also someone on the same boat. Not applying this cycle, but I think what you should consider is that even if you fall below average on the reported data, you need to remember that this is an AVERAGE of ALL accepted students. Meaning that while some will be above, others will be below. Don't discredit yourself just because you don't necessarily fit the bill. GPA is only one metric of admissions ? good luck to you!
  2. This is cool and the first I'm hearing about it! I wonder how they will decide on admissions? Probably based on their pool of applicants? I think echoing off other people's sentiments, I would be most worried about internship matching, but I'm sure with the number of VA hospitals in California some connections are probably already in place. Thanks for sharing! Not going to apply this cycle but it would be cool to do a PhD not to far from my hometown!
  3. Does NonPOC just mean...white?
  4. Excited to hear about your new plans! I thought your insight on the prestige of law was interesting. It always confused me on why a lot of classmates wanted to practice law JUST for the prestige of becoming a lawyer, especially with the job market for them these days. I hope the career transition doesn't make you lose your passion for advocating for people, even if it is in a different capacity than what you first started out as. As for your initial post, I want to say a few things that might not be helpful at the moment. I think you really have to get the research experience from the lowest level to REALLY know what you want. You may find that you hate research while doing it. Personally, I found that even the banalities made the process interesting and worthwhile. I think you could reach out and try getting a volunteer position at a research lab if that's feasible for you. Also try and volunteer at some sort of social cause, and compare the two to see which interests you more. I worked as a research assistant and at a juvenile detention center at the same time, which made me realize I couldn't do without both the clinical/outreach and the research. Life kind of finds ways to answer your questions for you, if that makes sense. If you want to focus on community type work, I don't even know if a doctorate is necessary. LCSW's can do a lot of that, and might be more worth your time. You could work at a crisis center if you want to focus on abuse/trauma. If you want to the doctorate, a psych post-bac could be the way to go. They make them just for career changers, you will take classes and get research experience if you pick the right program. At the worst, it would be 1 year of your life that you tried something new and you can change your mind. Of course, there is the ever looming question of funding, so it would depend on your current financial situation too. I don't think an MSW/LMFT program would be the best in a doctoral admissions standpoint just because clinical experience is not as heavily weighed for PhD programs. You want to focus on the research aspect, and getting a theoretical psychology background. Sorry if I missed anything, it's quite late but my sleep schedule is awful so Ithought I might as well make some use of it. Hopefully it helped a little bit at least.
  5. Hello Everyone, always a pleasure to get help from everyone here. I am pretty much freaking out right now and have no one to turn to that would understand so any insight is appreciated. TL;DR: Next 2 years in either: A) full time research job bordering responsibilities of a lab manager in unrelated clinical psych research with opportunities for independent projects or B.) Non funded terminal master's program to compensate for low undergrad GPA I need some advice about what to do moving forward. Ultimately, I want to get into a clinical psych, possibly counseling psych PhD program. However, I know I'm lacking in several areas and I'm kind of at a crossroads about what to do next. Background: I graduated from a mid-tier UC spring 2019 and worked at as a research assistant at a psychology department I consider to be pretty rigorous (R1 midwest school) for a year. I didn't get any significant experience, if anything I was doing more as an undergrad RA so I wasn't completely set on staying. I tried to increase my responsibilities/ opportunities to get deeper in research but my PI was understandably too busy and couldn't really help. I left after my mom fell ill right around when quarantine went into effect. I just didn't feel right being so far away so I moved back without a job. She's doing a lot better now so I feel okay venturing into the next steps of my career, but I'm not sure what to do next. My GPA isn't great, I went to 3 different schools during my undergrad and I think it averages around 3.4 for cumulative, 3.6 for psych only. GRE was 163 V/155 Q which is okay and pretty much average for most of the programs I want, but not stellar enough to surpass my other average stats. I don't have publications or posters. I have finally gotten a job offer at the psychiatry department of a well known med school, but the problem is the research isn't at all related to what I want to research in the future. The PI wants to help me in preparing me to be more competitive for grad school though, which I really appreciate. I could use the money right now because I'm pretty much living off savings at this point. She said she would want a 2 year commitment. My other option is to do a terminal master's in psych to improve my GPA and build my research skills that way. It does scare me to be in debt, and the possibility of credits not matriculating also makes me unsure. This would also involve a 2 year commitment. I got into one last year but decided not to go because the PI I got also did not really have any research that would translate to what I want to do. I wasn't really sure why he picked me at all if I'll be honest. Am I going about all of this wrong? Like does research fit have to be identical or can I get into programs I want if I just sell things the right way to future PIs? If I end up getting publications would that somewhat override the less favorable parts of my application? Thank you so so much if you have read all of this. Don't be afraid to be brutally honest. Clarity would be better than this sense of overwhelming dread I have of making bad decisions.
  6. Thank you for the suggestion! Always on the look for new potential PIs. Don’t be surprised if I take you up on your offer! Yes with the current climate I’m considering just even volunteering with a lab once human subjects research opens back up (in person). I COMPLETELY 100% agree with your standpoint, which is why I am heavily leaning towards not applying this cycle or even the next, even for “lower” programs. I know PhD admissions is never for sure but I’d be shooting myself in the foot if I applied to a top program right now. Those are programs I’d apply to if I felt as though I could gain significant experience within the next few (3?) years. I’m happy with myself that I am learning to taking it slow and waiting for my time to shine, even though sometimes I’m stricken with inferiority that some classmates are getting into professional/graduate programs already. So happy that people are so willing to help (: it is so nice to hear positivity
  7. Hi everybody! Thank you so much for your help. You guys are so awesome and good to know there's others with psychopathy interests out there! Most people give me weird looks but I think it's something that needs to be looked into more. The programs I feel have a good research fit are UNLV, Rosalind Franklin, U. New Mexico (match/lower reach?) UW Madison, UCSD/SDSU, CU Boulder, and Northwestern for high reaches. I am also interested in John Jay, Fordham, and Emory. There is also UBC Okanagan and Brock University in Canada if anyone knows anything about PI Dr. Angela Book, but I'm unsure where I stand with the Canadian guidelines. I would appreciate any advice on these programs. I am still at the job I've held for a year and have been trying to push for additional projects/responsibilities since December with nothing to show for it. My PI was very busy (I would say busier than most just because right now she's leading multiple colloquiums) and had me meet with a grad student, but the commitment didn't seem to add anything to what I'm currently doing and really didn't fit in with my schedule anyways. I also asked directly with my lab manager because our research group is involved with a couple of other institutions, but that was also a dead end. I really want to jump into authorship so I am looking into new positions, but COVID has definitely not helped with that. No posters/conference presentations either, which is discouraging because it seems like everyone already has those. Do you guys think that a study coordinator position might have higher efficacy in getting me into a more independent/leading role? I've been referred to a hiring manager for a position that I think I have a really good shot with, but of course that doesn't really mean anything. That question is more for my ego than anything haha.
  8. Hello everyone! I am a psychology BA graduate (class of 2019) from a mid-level UC thinking about applying to PhD programs. That being said, last cycle I applied to terminal MA programs and only got an interview and acceptance into one, which makes me feel like I should wait until I have substantially more research experience. I want to research the evolutionary adaptivity of psychopathy, and its relationship to cognitive deficits & heuristics/biases. Maybe throw in some functional brain imaging in there too. GPA: ~3.4/ 3.6 psych GPA GRE: 163 V, 155 Q, 4.5 AW Here is a very general rundown of my research experience: - 1 year as a full time paid RA. This sounds good on paper, but I haven't gained any new skills besides administering standardized assessments, which really doesn't seem all that important and I feel as though it makes me no more competitive that I was last time around. - capstone research project (graduation requirement). Learned data analysis software and obtained significant results - 6 months as an undergrad RA in a spatial navigation/attention lab. Learned how to EEG cap/apply electrodes, some experience with analysis of change of rate of physiological measures. - 3 months as an undergrad RA in a molecular biology lab, learned biotechnology and DNA sequencing skills Wondering if anyone has some input. Any and everything is appreciated (:
  9. Currently, I am interested in a few different topics, but am kind of having a hard time finding literature or even the proper vocabulary to describe what I would like to study. The best way I can think about putting it is the development and cognition behind causal reasoning, particularly maladaptive biases related to causal reasoning. Ideally, this would be under a behavioral genetics (twin study) frame work. To elaborate, many people have trouble and extrapolate incorrect/illogical patterns from everyday observation and behavior, like in the cases of the gambler's fallacy or the post hoc fallacy. I am interested in seeing if these errors in reasoning are evolutionarily advantageous (like how they relate to temporal discounting/ Life History Theory) and how so, if they have an effect on criminal activity and antisocial tendencies among other facets of psychopathology, and whether there are neural correlates (neuropsychological deficits) which can reliably predict where these kinds of errors might come from. I have emailed several faculty members I am interested in working with, but they all seem to read only the first sentence about wanting more experience and not so much with discussing my actual question. If anyone has better words for the concepts I am trying to describe (mostly evolutionary and cognitive psychology paradigms), any researchers in mind, or just general advice, I would be more than happy and thankful to hear any and all feedback. Thanks and best of luck in all of your pursuits (:
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