SocDevMum

You would want to specifically mention this PI and how their research is a good fit to yours in your personal statement/letter of intent/whatever it's called in your field. Typically this kind of information comes mid way through your statement, explaining what kind of research you see yourself doing, and how the faculty and university are a great fit for that. Note: PI may have agreed you should mention them, but that shouldn't be interpreted as full-throated approval.  You don't know who is will apply and how good their fit might be. This is your opportunity to expand on what you have already discussed and make a personal connection though your official personal statement in your application materials

In the humanities, it may be field and program specific. (Also, in history, describing approaches to subject areas is a subtle way to name names.)

This may be field-specific - in psychology, at least at the PhD level (and often also at the Masters level), we are required to list exactly which PI we are applying to work with and how we fit in with that exact lab. It is expected that applicants will have done the footwork in advance and not waste time and $$$ attempting to apply to PIs who are not taking applicants for that year. Also, PhD (and hopefully Masters!) applicants are highly encouraged to actively reach out to current and alumni lab members before submititng an application, to check for exactly those kinds of personality quirks or concerns.
Other fields may not want that much specificity

As a PI, a writing sample might push an applicant over the top. I would especially want to see something like a GRFP application (two pages) or a conference submission or proceeding (5-10) pages. I would be looking for how the applicant writes (sentence construction, overall paper structure), how familiar are they with research writing conventions, how they situate their work in the literature (what do they cite, how do they weave citations in their writing), and whether they can write about their topic in a way that gets me excited (I agree with SocDevMum that you want to avoid jargon).
Also agree w/SocDevMum that most won't spend too much time on your writing sample. Ideally, your personal statement would demonstrate a lot of the things I mentioned above as well.

I submitted a research paper I wrote for one of my undergraduate classes. Anything research related, even a literature review, will suffice. Pick something you got a good grade on. 

IRT your SOP, I recommend that you keep your discussion of your GPA concise. You had a medical issue which you have addressed. Before you addressed the issue, your GPA was x (overall), since, your GPA is y (overall). I would not disclose the medical issue. One never knows if a department has just gone through a difficult experience with empathy and professionalism but is now thinking "Let's not do that again, at least for a while...!"
Similarly, I recommend that you not go into the details of why you changed from discipline to discipline unless you can develop a cohesive narrative that demonstrates intellectual growth towards psychology as a profession. This is not a suggestion to write a "Every since I was a ..." essay. I am suggesting that you tell the story of a serious minded student finding important questions and issues that can best be addressed in a psychology graduate program.
I would hit the mute button when it comes to describing your feelings about your past performance and your perceived inadequacies. To paraphrase a DGS who returned a SOP, "write it without the angst."

Question: Is there an opportunity to participate in your department's honors program for undergraduates?

All good points! One extra piece to consider is visa issues (I am assuming that you will be an international student?). I am unaware of (paid) RA positions in the US that comes with visa sponsorship. So perhaps applying straight to PhD programs would be "easier" from the immigration perspective.

Hi!
I am not sure I fully understand what you want to do in the future. But I will try my best to give you some possibilities:
- Your previous experience as a special education teacher can be very valuable in an EdD program, but if you don't want to go in that direction you don't really have to. Since you are already doing the master's, you can apply to PhD programs as well, in Developmental Psych or related areas. Your experience could make your application more interesting, as long as you have some research experience to highlight - from your master's for example, like your thesis or a publication.
- When you say lab assistant, are you thinking of a Research Assistant role, Lab Manager, or something different? In North America, RAs are mostly people with bachelors and it's a stepping stone for many to grad school. If you want to have a more advanced role in a lab, you generally need a PhD (so you can start as a post-doc or fellow), but there are people with master's as well - but usually people stay in a similar role for their entire careers, they don't move on to have their own lab.
But I think it all boils down to what do you want to do in the end? Do you want a purely research career and be independent and run your own lab/ studies - then you need a PhD. Do you want more exposure to the educational area and some research there - EdD. Do you want to stop at the master's and just work in a lab - then you can apply directly to work with a lab, you don't need additional degrees.
Just a small note - If you want to continue as a teacher in the US, I think you need additional certifications or at least equivalencies. I am not familiar with these requirements, so maybe someone with more experience here can help.

Hello there
Sorry to hear about the difficult experiences during your first undergrad degree, I'm sure the pandemic didn't help
But the good news is that you are not alone. Many people take a more circuitous route (myself included) to get where they want to go. 
If I understand correctly, your next goal is to get into a master's program? Is this a thesis/ research based master's or a more applied one? I ask because different types of programs look at different things. More applied master's might be more ok with a lower GPA, but it might be easier to get into a thesis bases master's if you are strongly supported by a faculty member or you become very productive in research (or if you work for that prof as an RA for example).
A more general advice that I can give you is that less than ideal academic history can also be addressed by your letter writers. While you can address it in your statement of purpose, you only have little space to do so there and you also don't want to draw a lot of attention to that. So your letter writers can talk more about how you've overcome obstacles in their letters and your future potential.
GRE scores are on the out, but some programs might still accept them and that can work in your favor if you get good scores. 
Do you have a sense of what path you'd like to follow after the psych bachelors?

Hi all! 
 
I've been trying to gather some resources for applications, so I thought I'd share: 
 
Information for All Application Materials: 
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1eZ1CMG-bZQlPtB6OkduFy0Qq2-uS-mjH?usp=sharing
And
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1INKBbyDCCNqSPDMIqK8kpdLk9k8Pqyof
And
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1pPBtq9yIuPieP4kOgJIL0QVZJDng7Xgd
 
Forums:
Society for a Science of Clinical Psychology - http://sscpweb.org/whats_new
Fall 2022 Discord - https://discord.com/channels/840023597229539338/840023597229539343
 
Advisor Directory (not really filled out much, but people can add to it)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KbEtWMWspYEfVw19xs3Sq3TVx4cFkQN0/view
 
Statement of Purpose Examples: 
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1qFBLNH3TAkOz7fIzXrfYxYV64D0OyEFS?usp=sharing
 
Full Guide for Clin Psych Careers and School
http://clinicalpsychgradschool.org/
 
Mitch Prinstein Advice Page
http://mitch.web.unc.edu/professional-development/
 
Queens University Advice Page https://www.queensu.ca/psychology/graduate-program/prospective-students
 
Mitch Prinstein “Getting Into Grad School” Video
https://youtu.be/f-5DjLRKCHQ
 
Mitch Prinstein BIPOC Grad School Panel 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcC9GrWeamk
 
Application Book 
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1433830116/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
Application Book 2 
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1462541437/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 
JOBS 
 
http://clinicalpsychgradschool.org/pbacc.php * 
https://www.socialpsychology.org/forums/jobforum/ * 
Reach out to companies / researchers you’re interested in **
https://psychologyjobsinternships.wordpress.com/
 
*TIP: When a job is listed on the HR website, it’s usually too late!! Employers often want someone quickly, and HR takes months to list positions. Usually they have someone in mind and have interviewed prior to even listing the role. 
 
**TIP: Reach out to potential employers! Research assistant roles have high turnover (1-3 years) because employees go off to school. The beginning of the summer (or a little before) is when employers will often start looking for new staff. If you keep reaching out, you’re bound to find someone looking for a new team member. 

 
SCHOOL GRE POLICIES (make sure to double check, as this may change when you apply)
 
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1SrWySd98Aqf0b0C_XN2KX_Uqt-9q0Hrem-ZX2w-dads/edit?usp=sharing
 
PROGRAM RANKINGS
 
https://www.socialpsychology.org/ranking.htm
 
https://mitch.web.unc.edu/files/2013/10/Admissions-Rates.pdf
 

Read some of their most recent publications. Ask about the current projects they're working on. Are there any grants in the pipeline? Be prepared to discuss your research interests and how they may mesh well with the work currently being done in the lab. Also, since they're PsyD, you can maybe ask about how much time students typically spend in the lab. 

Was this material related to your thesis or anything? If not, then it looks like you're being given the opportunity for credit of authorship by editing, which is not uncommon for undergrads, masters students, or PhD students without a lot of their own research already out there.  That's a gift  However, if this is supposed to have been your thesis or dissertation material, I would be concerned.
As to what you can contribute - clearly he/she wants you to review and edit the formatting issues outlined, so make sure to be thorough at that. As for content, this is an opportunity for you to go over the fine details of methods and theory, make sure that all the necessary pieces are accounted for, and look for ways to potentially expand upon the already written portions of theory and discussion/limitations. I would definitely not send it back without a thorough review and at least a few additions or suggestions to improve it. This is a great way to show that you are thinking critically about the material, that you are paying attention to small details, and that you are not afraid to find and use your own voice. If they hate your suggestions they will just toss them out - but if you don't do any, it will look like you didn't even try. 

Was this material related to your thesis or anything? If not, then it looks like you're being given the opportunity for credit of authorship by editing, which is not uncommon for undergrads, masters students, or PhD students without a lot of their own research already out there.  That's a gift  However, if this is supposed to have been your thesis or dissertation material, I would be concerned.
As to what you can contribute - clearly he/she wants you to review and edit the formatting issues outlined, so make sure to be thorough at that. As for content, this is an opportunity for you to go over the fine details of methods and theory, make sure that all the necessary pieces are accounted for, and look for ways to potentially expand upon the already written portions of theory and discussion/limitations. I would definitely not send it back without a thorough review and at least a few additions or suggestions to improve it. This is a great way to show that you are thinking critically about the material, that you are paying attention to small details, and that you are not afraid to find and use your own voice. If they hate your suggestions they will just toss them out - but if you don't do any, it will look like you didn't even try. 

If you don't want to do research at all, a PsyD might be better fit (but way more expensive). PhD programs are highly competitive, and even more so for neuropsych or other speciality concentrations of clinical psych. 
 
My two cents: I would apply to RA jobs and work for 2 years and then apply. If you will have 0 posters and 0 publications on your resume right now, you may be competitive in other areas (GPA, volunteering) but you are not very competitive on the research front. Many people work 2+ years in paid full-time research roles, which gives you some invaluable experience and also gives you more time to present posters, maybe even co-author or first-author some pubs. 
 
Just my two cents. I did come straight into my program after undergrad but was fortunate to have a very active mentor in my undergrad so I had already presented several posters and had what would become my first first-author pub in revision by the time I applied to grad school. 
 
 

To piggy back off what @Clinapp2017said, even PsyDs require research. Any PsyD program requires an original dissertation at the very least. The majority of university-based PsyDs (think Rutgers, Baylor, etc.) have a similar research expectation as balanced PhD programs. Some even have a mentorship model, with applicants applying to work with specific faculty. In order to be a good evidence-based practitioner, you need to be able to read and understand research. The best way to have a strong grasp of research methodology and stats is by doing. These skills are especially important in neuropsych because you need to be very familiar with psychometrics to be able to evaluate the reliability and validity of different assessments to make sure you are using appropriate tools (not every published assessment is created equal). 

One B is not going to derail your chances of getting into a clinical psych PhD. The main thing that they are really going to be looking at is your research productivity (posters, pubs, etc). As long as you meet the minimum GPA requirements, that's usually pretty low on the list. 

I would look up recently published journal articles within your area of interest and see where those researchers are working out of. However, keep in mind that there is usually quite a delay between when the research is done and then published. But you can then look at the faculty bios once you get the names. 

You've gotten some good answers so far. You might want to check out the Psych Grad Wiki to get an idea about specific research matches and funding: http://psychgradsearch.wikidot.com/phd-2022

Well the short answer is yes. The long answer... it depends :) I'm assuming here that you just started your search. Most decent programs fund their students, with tuition remission and a (usually small) stipend. Programs should have this info available on their website or maybe you can find out more from the grad admin. I personally would not recommend even applying to programs that are not funded.
What you need to do is identify which programs are a good match to you, your goals and your research interests. Since there are so many programs out there, it would be difficult for us to recommend any, unless you have more specific interests/ areas you'd like to share. 
Just keep in mind that the application season stretches out from now until the spring of next year, so if you are serious about this, you have to get moving on that list :)

I can imagine it's overwhelming, especially if the process in your home country is different. There is always the alternative to apply next year after you graduate as well - don' t fell rushed like you have to apply right now, if you are not ready and you think you might submit a rushed application. My opinion is that it's better to make a good first impression right from the start. A lot of applicants prepare for years for this, so you have to keep that in mind. Also, waiting might help with bulking up your CV with maybe a poster/publication, more glowing letters from your referees and so on. And a final thing - the application process can get costly, depending on how many programs you have on the list, so another thing to keep in mind.

This might be helpful. (psych grad wiki)

I second SocDevMum's note about working a gap year as a lab manager/paid RA. Often this gets you better experience than a Masters (and doesn't cost anything).
Also, what are you interested in studying? You might want to check out Ed Psych/Learning Sciences programs, depending on your area of focus...

I agree with this advice. Also, any of the good PsyDs will have a very similar to nearly identical application process to balanced PhD programs. I'm in my 4th year of a PsyD, and I followed this pattern--2 academic letter writers from my psych masters and 1 clinical supervisor from my post-master's job. Most of those who were admitted to my program were similar. 

I would say that at least 2 of your 3 letter writers need to be academic, and specifically the ones who can speak to your ability to do scientific research if you want to do a PhD. I don't know that I would choose the business prof as a letter writer unless he/she is your third one, after two academics in the field. A clinical supervisor could be a good third letter writer, if you are applying to programs that are at least equally split if not heavily leaning more to practice than research, but I really don't think you can avoid having two strong letters from the profs you had as a Masters student. 
If you are doing a PsyD, though, it might work, but I would defer to someone who is actually in a PsyD who can better inform you of the realities of their application process.

Why are you only interested in a PhD/PsyD? Your master's degree in general management will not let you do therapy. An MFT or social work program will. If you're looking to get a quality return on your investment, those are the programs that will do it.
You are not going to find a PsyD program in California that is worth the money. The 3 schools you named are all scams. APA accreditation is a bare minimum requirement.