Lisa44201

One to the school, one to the department.....

I am not familiar with the program at Jacksonville State, so I can't comment on that particular part of your app. Having said that, yeah, your GPA is low, and that's going to hurt, but it was from Rutgers, and your overall GRE is pretty good. I'd hope you could get in somewhere (and kudos for not being geographically limited).

Pinkster12, meet Lisa44201. I got pregnant with both my kids while on two forms of birth control. It happens.

U Alaska (Anchorage/Fairbanks combined) has a deadline in March, I think.

No. Credits in grad school are not the same as in undergrad; it's a lot more work. I regularly took 18 credits in undergrad without breaking a sweat. I wouldn't dream of taking more than 13 or so at the graduate level.

As a mother of two small children (6 and 3), yes, it is possible, manageable, etc. etc. It is also challenging in ways that non-parents cannot begin to fathom - words cannot adequately describe the way your life will change. I cannot imagine that it would delay your graduation at all, nor set you up for failure in your future endeavors (there are enough of us student-parents out there to prove that it is indeed possible). If you find a future program gives you any flak because you have a child, that's a program you don't want to go to. It really is that simple. If your girlfriend does not have daycare options through her job, look into them at your University; they may offer you a discount, even. Also talk to other students who have kids; it's nice to know you're not alone in this adventure. You'll need to talk to your adviser at some point, too; especially if they have kids, they'll understand. You may end up reading your dissertation to the baby as a bed-time story; I distinctly remember reading GRE vocab words to my younger one; you all will be fine. Welcome to an incredible chapter of your life.

No problem I/O isn't personally my thing, but my Master's program also had an I/O cohort, so I get the gist of it. Good luck!

Not sure what your field is; for some, the GPA won't be that big a deal. If you can make up for it this semester, it'll average out. Take responsibility, and keep working.

It is very difficult to transfer at the graduate level, especially if the reason is because you're struggling with the program. Have you tried forming a study group? Talking to individual professors about what you need to do to improve your GPA in the specific classes?

I'd be surprised if the 490/152 filters you out; your Quant score makes up for it. The rest of your app makes up for it. I'm not sure about that letter from a grad student, though.

I'm not sure she will continue to use that sign off, unless you sign yours with Thank You. Honestly, it took me a minute to figure out that was snarky (disclaimer: I have trouble understanding nuance). Had I received an e-mail where someone signed off with a thank you, I would be confused about what, exactly, the author of the e-mail was thanking me for.

There are a lot of undergrads in my PI's lab (I'm at an R1, to boot), so I am fortunate to have lots of volunteers for research projects. Next semester, I will be training a few students on the basics of data collection; if there are one or two who are particularly interested in my line of research, I'll work with them on administering a specific assessment. I will also have them enter some data in Excel, while teaching them some fun Excel tricks (keyboard shortcuts, Macros, etc.). They'll get authorship credit on a poster (and hopefully a paper, if things go well) in return. After this project is over, I'll work with some other students on literature reviews, again in exchange for authorship on posters/papers.

It's somewhere between tacky at best and potentially harmful to your career at worst.

I cannot begin to express how important it is to get research experience as an undergrad, especially if you're looking at specializing in neuro down the road. It's important for Cognitive, too. You could potentially do an Interdisciplinary Major at Albany and create a Neuroscience degree between bio and psych courses; they also offer a Neuroscience minor, and have a Behavioral Neuroscience grad program. http://www.albany.edu/neuroscience/majors.shtml

I would not ask her to improve the letter unless you see blatant mistakes on it (e.g., she says you got a 3.0 in her class when you got a 4.0 - that did actually happen on one of my letters).

Check your department's Grad Student Handbook (or whatever it's called there). Different schools have different policies about grades; I attended a University where two C's meant an automatic dismissal. It may hurt you in the future, especially applying to a different program entirely - they'll want to see your proven track record in grad school, which is less than stellar. If you haven't taken them already, work like hell to ace your finals - points are points at this stage. Should you be placed on academic probation, you might be able to plead the case that the lack of pay put enough of a financial strain on you that it had an effect on your grades (unless you were told that you wouldn't be paid for two months). I understand your reasons for wanting to leave the program, but you need to figure out how to bow out gracefully. Good luck to you.

The job prospects in the field for a four-year degree are very, very limited. Grad school in psych is almost mandatory. Binghamton would be your best bet out of those three. At the undergrad level, you're not going to get a lot of experience working in neurosci - not in New York, anyway. The strength of Binghamton's psych department should put you in a good spot for grad apps. Have you looked at Syracuse? Rochester? I would suggest getting over the hang-up about Stony Brook;the strength of that department rivals Binghamton's. Albany has a good program, too.

Ignoring where this professor did or did not go to school.... what sort of letter do you think she'd write about your proven academic abilities? If she knows your capabilities more than anyone, and those capabilities equal a B-, I'd be thanking whatever deity you believe in that she said no.

If you ace your Masters coursework, it will help you - you need to prove you can do the work. Look for programs with a Thesis requirement - that will help fill in the gap with research experience, as well.

Wait a year. Extracurriculars don't mean a whole lot in Clinical - research experience is more important, and with no research experience and a low GPA, that's two against you.

What Kaister said. Aside from the rough start, the rest of it looks good on paper. Provided you write a good SOP and your GRE is good, I wouldn't worry. Don't use space in your SOP to explain the bad grades. Use it to elaborate on why you're a good match for Professor Awesome's lab.

5-10 words is more or less un-noticeable (unless you submit your apps electronically and they look at the word count); more than that, and you'll stand out for the wrong reasons. Think of it as a test of your ability to follow directions.

And ask quickly. Some schools have a deadline for withdrawal forms, after which time you cannot withdraw from a class.

How about, "I enjoyed your presentation. I have a few questions...." and have the last question be, "Are you accepting grad students next year?"

The GPA sounds like a departmental requirement. It is not something you can talk your way out of. They are not randomly deciding to kick you out of the program - you did not meet the requirements set forth in policy. Check your department policy manual for conditions under which you might be able to appeal an academic dismissal.