EdNeuroGrl

When I have talked to people on the faculty side, one of the major problems students have is that their interests are too broad. To them it seems like students that haven't thought out what they want to do are naive and not prepared for life as a graduate student. On the extreme end of this, I know researchers (especially in psychology research) who will not take on students who do not already have a working knowledge of the methods of inquiry (eg running fMRI studies) to the data analysis and have a handful of publications. When I've talked to these professors, their reasoning is that they are trying to get tenure or something like that and cannot afford to take on the risk of a graduate student that doesn't know what they're getting into. Since psychology especially has become ridiculously competitive, these trends are becoming more common. It is not impossible to get into a program that will let you find your place after admission, but they are unusual. So... what to do with this... Talk to someone who you would be interested in working with, ask them what they think makes a competitive graduate student, or what they look for. Ask a few previous professors, etc. I think even if all of your statistics are perfect you have wonderful letters etc. if your SOP does not reflect that you know what you are getting into and that you can identify and pick up the skill set you will need, your whole application will flop hard. Some areas are more forgiving, but talk to someone who knows the field, OR look at some of the profiles of recent admits. I have emailed a few of them and spoken to them, they've shared their CV's. So I know where I stand and how risky it is for me to apply now. You may want to do the same. This forum has a results search button at the top of the page. Click on it, and search for people in your field and at the programs that you have interest in... For me, that got me in contact with a person who had just been admitted to the #1 lab I want to be in. We chatted and I got to see what sort of qualifications this PI values. I hope that is helpful. Were I in your shoes (and I have been) I would take the time to commit to growing skills. You may have to make a sacrifice or get a master's in a less competitive program, take out some loans... unfortunately, I blew 3 years before I finally figured out what was keeping me from getting into programs.

That is pretty typical. I will usually approach a new PI by reading a few of their papers and then writing them an e-mail thanking them for their work and reiterating some of the points you find super interesting or have ideas about. I never mention that I'm looking at them to be a PI for me at this point. There is some strategy for this. First, unsolicited complementary emails of this sort in reference to their scientific contributions are EXCELLENT sources of evidence for them when they are gunning for tenure or some other evaluation process for salary or some such. You are giving them something valuable right to the start and asking nothing from them... and lets be honest, you love their work anyway (I hope) so you are actually being honest. Also, who doesn't like to hear that their work has drawn admiration? If the person responds positively, yay! Good first impression! If you get an opening start a dialogue that has nothing to do with your application process. You may not get an opening like this but if you do, take it. Otherwise, in a separate e-mail thread ask them about their receptiveness to your application. Perhaps you can bring up a project you're thinking about doing and ask them their thoughts... there are lots of possibilities. The problem I have with the basic mode of inquiry is that it really doesn't set up much room for genuine dialogue. How would you respond if you had a bunch of graduate student hopefuls e-mailing you the same thing over and over again? Yes it is important to contact them. However I won't contact them unless I have something meaningful to talk to them about. :-)

I've always got the same advice when doing this kind of search... look at the people publishing what you want to do, track them down and look at their program. I also worked with someone who looked at the developmental effects of THC on the developing rat brain for her dissertation, that was at University of New Mexico's Psychology department. They do a lot of substance abuse, but unless you're looking at rat/animal models, they don't do a lot of developmental research. Legal restrictions and all... it is going to be hard to do research in that area for some time if you are looking at human research. In any case, many times you can track down researchers but they aren't associated with a university or any place that you might get a degree at. These are great people to try to make social connection with. Get a phone call or try to email with them, they are likely going to know who is who in the field and provide you some insight about your area of interest that you can't get anywhere else.

Another option is to take an online course. Coursera for example can provide you with a certificate that you took the course and often they are taught by professors in major universities... it may not be a super great option, but at some point having the skills will be more important than checking it off your transcript. :-) I have done this for a bunch of my statistics graduate courses because the courses aren't offered but I need to have the skills for some other project.

Your stats look good, not sure how SLP works specifically, but most grad schools will want some sort of GRE. I am sure you know your field better than I. What I really suggest you think about is what you'll do if you don't get in. I am going into my 3rd application year in 5 since getting my bachelor's degree. Had I known what I know now back about 4 years ago, I would have saved myself the time, but that's not really relevant to your specific situation. However, from experience, I have learned how to make back-up plans. Several of them, all of which will get me closer to my goal, and none of them involve me giving up. The more solid my back up plans, the less anxiety I feel in taking these risks. In any case, it may help.

Get lots of sleep the night before, do not stay up to cram... terrible decision, can be backed up by much evidence in the education literature. Don't cram or go in sleep deprived. For all of the questions, get good at reading between the lines, seeing the short cuts to getting the most accurate answer possible. I did a prep course and was very happy with the resulting improvement in the scores. Hone your strategies :-)

Um, the NIH is doing an AFNI boot camp in October, but it's expensive. But ultimately you're going to have to do some volunteer time in a lab that does fMRI in your interest area before getting a paid position. If you want the training, try the boot camp I mentioned or check out private research facilities. It is a hard area to get into, I don't know where you are in your current program but you may want to ask around your own university and see if anyone is collaborating on projects using fMRI. These will be your easiest ways in. For example, my university doesn't have any fMRI facilities, but many researchers in our Psychology department collaborate with a private facility that only does brain research. Would love to hear from others and how they got through this challenge.

It is a really tough situation to be in! I have been burned by being too hesitant, so now I try to get to the problem before it festers and I am really unhappy. :-/ Usually there is a way to turn things around that is much easier the sooner you bring it up... Hope it goes well :-)

Hi, checking in with you all. Anyone got more firm plans for applications? I just started the pre-writing for my essays, anyone else? I am using Graduate Admissions Essays 4th Ed to help me with writing and the like. It was a pretty good read and offers some advice for getting letters of rec and all the extras to have a good application. Also, is anyone else here NOT on their first round of applications? I'm having to battle a lot of anxiety because I've been through this a couple times before and would love to hear from people who have gone through the same thing. I know my chances are MUCH better this time around, but I'm still really banking on success in the face of previous failure and that's no small hurdle.

I would talk to your faculty adviser and the PhD student you are working with. I would be blunt and see if you can explore some other options. Another thing I have heard A LOT is that it is really common about mid way through to start hating your thesis/dissertation. Keep in mind that someone had to think the project was worth-while in the first place to approve it. ALSO keep in mind that null-results in science are still useful and should in principle be held as just as important as positive results. You can work through the project and present it as it is. You may want to go back and read through some of the literature that got you interested in the topic and that may help you get fresh motivation and perspective. When you said: "my PI thinks I have enough data, and I disagree with her. I'm worried because I can just imagine myself presenting this at the seminar and thesis presentation next year and I will be totally uninterested because I don't see the point anymore." Why do you think collecting more data would have any impact on your interest in the project? Why don't you look at what you have and see if it is useful as enough? Your PI has been through this sort of thing a few times, and does deserve some of your trust.. I would think through some of this, make a list or discussion points, then call a lab-meeting and see if you can get everyone on the same page.

I have a few types of ivy, an orchid, some sunflowers, and a couple catnip plants. The picture is one of my 2 plant windows with my room mate and one of my cats. If you tend to forget about plants or tend to keep your apartment dark-ish (shades drawn etc) I suggest an ivy of some type. They can handle neglect to a pretty good degree, and if you water them regularly and give them a good amount of sun they make great window decoration. They ivy in the picture was given to me about 2 years ago and over the past year has done about 5 more passes across my window. Orchids are hard to kill if you forget about them, but you can over-water them and if you don't give them lots of sun they won't flower... they do flower about once a year unless you trim them at the right time then you can get 2 or 3 flowerings a year. Catnip is great and hardy if you are in a warm environment and can give it regular watering and high levels of sunlight... it will grow like a weed actually. I have to trim it back and shape it every 4 to 6 months before it takes over my kitchen window (shown in the picture). They are useful if you have cats or like catnip tea (similar to mint). My sunflowers have been the most challenging to grow, they require a LOT of water... I've had to give them a good dousing about twice a day, but they're about to flower and are beautiful. Ultimately it depends on your needs and how thoughtful you are with watering and the like.

Any plans on calling for bloggers for the 2015-2016 season... Don't know how it works precisely but I tend to write to work things out and I expect to have quite the pile of things to work out for this application year. I'd love to have an outlet that might help people out. :-)

Hi all I am not sure if this has been covered before but I would like some perspectives on this topic. Some background: My learning disability is an ongoing thing I have to work with and adapt my learning to, sometimes I struggle but I always find a way to get where I need to. However, it is also the reason for the somewhat problematic undergraduate GPA (3.3). I am getting my Master's now and have a 4.3 (24 credits in, all core classes complete in 2 semesters), doing great, etc... I am applying to PhD programs in Neuroscience, Psychology, and Education A HUGE reason why I got into this area has to do with the process I went through as an adult coming to terms with and learning about how learning disabilities work. My interest areas are in how brains learn and interface with educational processes. All of the programs I am applying to are obscenely competitive, however I am only applying to places with a very close research match. I seen a few resources that say not to mention any problems that may be ongoing... that is, only mention the problem if it is over and done with and will not cause problems in the future. Otherwise, this may be perceived as a liability in your ability to be successful as a graduate student. Frankly, sometimes my LD does present problems, not ones that I can't overcome, but I do stumble a few times before I get my feet under me. I don't doubt my ability to be an amazing researcher... but I don't want to do or say something that might present a reason for the applications committee to doubt it. On the other hand, I personally feel like these struggles have demonstrated my ability to handle adversity and set-backs, to adapt to many sorts of situations and challenges. Much of science and writing is fundamentally about perseverance, adaptability, and flexibility... scientists who don't have these skills burn-out... I have them and this is one way I can talk about them... *shrug* BUT I am still worried that people will see "learning disability" and think that I am less intelligent or less able to succeed... especially since I want to study neuroscience... there is a feel in the neuro community that only the most intelligent are successful, and having reason to doubt that is enough to get you passed over... Thoughts?

First emphasize the things you did that align with the programs you are applying for. The strategy I've been told to use is to give the letter writer a copy of your CV, some highlights of courses you've taken that you did well in that also align with/prepared you for the work in whatever program you're applying to, and a draft of your SOP. This allows them to write a letter that is specific enough and that compliments your own SOP. I'm not sure about drafting a letter, I've never been asked to do that.

So, digging into applications and colleges and narrowing down POI's. And I have a big problem. My significant other will only move with me if I end up in the Seattle or SF Bay Area. It is a hard line, there is not much room for compromise. I wish I could roll with it more, but his support through my Master's and the past several years has been one of the big reasons I have been able to succeed. Frankly, he has become very important to my life. And I hold no expectation that a long-distance thing will work, and most of the support I need really requires a physical presence. So, the only school in those areas that I have any interests aligning with faculty is Stanford. On the bright side, my interests are very close to the faculty I intend to apply to. The other 3 schools I'm applying to... all East Coast and Mid-West... I will be thrilled to get in anywhere, and I will have to leave one way or another. I am just really dreading that I'll have to make that decision.

You should go with a fairly simple CV for graduate applications. Look at CV's of people in your field and those who you want to work with. Imitate their style as that will make it easier for them to get what they need from it during applications. There are many good places to get advice on how to put one together... like here: https://career.berkeley.edu/PhDs/PhDCV Often colleges will have something akin to career services that will help you with this for free. Also, try approaching your adviser/mentor to review your CV to make sure it looks professional.

Couple comments... Are you sure your GRE's are within 5 years? I know that I took the new version when it rolled out and if I have to apply next year again I'll likely have to retake the GRE... just something you may want to look into. What program in Stanford are you thinking about applying to? I will be applying to the GSE DAPS program.

I am working on my Master's on my way to PhD, and have no funding. I just had to rack up a bunch more debt. Also, because I need a bunch of research experience and no one pays around here unless you're a PhD student or have lots of experience, I have to volunteer what spare time I have. This means any part time gig is out. Money is a big deal and can be prohibitive for a lot of people.

I've got a 157 quant and I'm not planning on retaking the GRE's. My minor is also in statistics and I am getting really good scores in them. I have also maxed out the quantitative paths in both the College of Education and the Psychology program. There is absolutely no reason for anyone to doubt my quantitative ability. Sooo... as far as I can tell a 157 quant is not so low it will not make it over a cut-off, even in the most competitive schools. For me, since I'm so strong via my coursework and experiencee applying that experience in real research I just can't justify putting myself through the GRE gauntlet again. And everyone I've asked about this particular issue agrees with my particular reasoning... I have no idea if that helps you in thinking about your concern... as usual the answer really is soft and going to be decided based on your own situation, AND the programs you apply to... You have a lot of experience and evidence that you can handle the graduate work... from what I've been told, people really look at GRE's if the person doesn't have much experience and particularly if they don't have any graduate classes under their belt...

I may have several posts as I learn more but right now, I wish I had known that it is absolutely essential in my field to have about 2 years of experience working in a human neuroscience lab. This is doubly true if you are coming from a non-neuro undergrad major, and triple if your background is in a social-ish science (like Education). Had I known, I would have started as a sophomore or junior at my undergrad college, these labs existed, I just didn't know I needed to get into one. I was working in a cognition lab, running my own studies (I've done 2 now start to finish), and even managing fairly large lab... However the crux of the experience thing is very much that I needed work on human imaging projects... nothing else will do. Had anyone told me this I could have saved 4 or 5 years. I actually got the advice from a "mentor" of mine, not to focus on methods so much because those are things you pick up in whatever lab you start in. Wish I had ignored like 85% of everything that guy said *sigh* hind sight. Second, if I could advise my younger self I would tell me that the marriage is not going to get better... ever... And to not get bogged down in homeownership and other things people expected of me then. I'm sure there's tons more, but that work experience thing... I have trouble believing that no one told me eventhough I asked... I had to actually sit down with a researcher at a conference and chat with him and push the issue to get a straight answer out of him. ... ... ... why is it such a secret?

Best advice I've ever had in this area. Read some of their most relavent work. Send them an email about it, how you liked it, some important points, say you really appreciate their contribution. Don't talk about your application or that you will be an applicant. IF they write back, then you can ask some preliminary questions. But keep it short, if you have ideas about their work and extensions start off with that, it makes a much better impression. Another source of good information: Find out their current and past graduate students and email them. Ask them questions. They are more likely to respond, and more likely to give the information you need as a potential student. The contact depends on the department or field. In psych/education/neuroscience and most hard-science areas, some initial contact is very good for you. And as long as you are polite and brief I do not think it will harm you. I also recommend the book: I know the feeling about narrowing the list and that's where knowing your topic and area of interest comes in super handy. The best advice I've gotten here is to look up who is doing what you want to do... don't apply to the college but apply to the researcher/group/lab you want to be in. I also recommend the book: Graduate Admissions Essays. I think it will help you a lot in answering your questions