gellert

Is anyone else having problems with Embark not letting them submit because it says all the required fields haven't been filled out? Like...what? Nothing else is required! Unless they're talking about uploading a writing sample, which isn't required for my department anyway. Also, what did everyone do for employment history? Did you just list those random non-academic retail jobs you held in college if you haven't worked as a paid RA?

^ No confirmation here, but I asked one of my profs and she said she got a notif and submitted.

Good plan. And good luck!

^ Mm, I'd say yeah, anything over 3.7 GPA doesn't matter, but the point I was trying to make is that 3.5 is the cut-off for looking at SOPs, CVs, LoRs, etc. It doesn't REALLY matter if you have a 3.7, if the rest of those facets are stellar. They'll take a look at your application with a 3.6 GPA same as they would if you had a 3.9. 3.7+ GPA just becomes icing; the real meat of your application is elsewhere. Bottom line: 3.5 GPA won't get you rejected outright, even when compared to a 3.7 GPA. A 3.2 might.

Don't feel guilty, really, don't. It's not a big deal. And it seems really stressful now but things'll work out. In a few months this whole debacle will feel like nothing when you've got your acceptance letters rolling in.

I just bought the Jekyll & Hyde one for a friend. What an awesome gift!

I think you should bring up your concerns with her about this. Tell her precisely why you're worried, and say that you are continuing to look into the licensing issue (while explaining why you don't feel it's presently relevant to your case) but that right now you do still intend to apply, and given this does she feel she can still comfortably write you a strong LoR? Give her an out, say it's all right if she can't, that you understand and can ask someone else, but that you wanted to check in with her.

I went from really truly terrible scores to 1450+ (old GRE) after studying for only three weeks, so you can definitely do it! I recommend Barron's for verbal and Princeton Review for math. I didn't actually study verbal at all (it's my strong point) beyond just glancing briefly over the Barron's top-500 list, but from what I could see (and what I hear) their list is the most comprehensive as well as the most advanced. Barron's math is much more difficult than what you'll encounter on the real thing, but if it helps you to master than and then feel confident with real GRE math, go right ahead. If you'd rather work with lower-difficulty stuff, check out Kaplan (very easy math) or Princeton Review (very similar to what's on the real test).

I don't feel comfortable putting that much potentially-identifying information on the web linked to this account, but I can give you some vagaries! 1) GPA/GRE don't matter beyond a certain point, even for Ivy League schools. I'd say if you're above a 1350 GRE and a 3.5 GPA, don't worry about it, you'll make cutoffs. (You'd probably still get at least looked at with a 3.3 + GPA, but aim for 3.5 or over to be safe.) Keep in mind that there does exist a correlation between higher GPA/GRE and acceptance, but research experience is still the most important part of your application. It just so happens that there's ALSO a correlation between lots of good research experience, fit, and high GPA/GRE (because the type of student who would possess one is likely to possess the others as well). But I think if you're over 1350 + 3.5, truly stellar experience/SOP/LORs can get you in compared to 1500 + 4.0 with less stellar fit/experience. 2) Having publications is nice, but not mandatory (yes, even for an Ivy). I know there are members of this board who will claim you have to practically have two first-author pubs to get accepted, but fortunately, they're incorrect -- at least as far as straight-from-UG applicants go. What you want, bottom line, is to be exceptionally qualified given your other circumstances. So if you're straight from UG, yes, most of your competition will be publication-free. So wouldn't you think that HAVING publications under your belt would put you over the edge? (Again, not the 5+ publications some people here seem to be advocating -- I almost suspect trolling, haha -- but at least one paper and a poster or two.) Frankly, adcomms know how the publication system works for UGs, and they know that the fact your prof threw your name on the author list could mean nothing more than the fact that you existed and your prof is nice. Also, student journals aren't worth much. So the only publications that're going to make much difference are first-author posters that you presented at well-known conferences and first- or co-author publications at top journals with LORs which speak to you actually having contributed substantially to the idea and interpretation -- not just the grunt work or analysis -- of the paper. THIS can put you over the edge, but it's not going to be typical, not at all. This changes if you've been out of school for a while and have a Master's or paid RA experience. In this case, yes, I can see why people would say you need 5+ publications to be competitive ... because most people with that experience still won't have that kind of CV, and you want to be exceptional. POIs have no problem accepting students straight from UG, but you want to be so experienced and qualified that they think, "wow, if he/she did THIS much just in undergrad, imagine what he/she will achieve at our program!" 3) Research experience! Most of your competition, even at Ivys, will have experience limited to data entry and handing out questionnaires and coding video interactions. This will usually be 1-2 years worth, plus an honors thesis. Which, you know, that's great -- but if you want to stand out, you're gonna want more than that for an Ivy. Think 3 OR MORE years of experience designing and leading projects, working at every step of the process (from idea conception to implementation to procedure to analysis to interpretation to publication). This could be in UG or it could be as a post-bacc RA, but either way you want 3-4 years minimum of this kind of high-responsibility work. And you want LOR-writers who can speak to it. Just an honors thesis won't be good enough to be competitive (though it will certainly not hurt). You want that kind of involvement as a steady factor across your entire CV. The more directly relevant this work is to the research interests of your adviser, the better -- though you can spin just about anything into relevance. 4) SOP should be amazing, really identify your fit with the faculty, and show-but-not-tell. Work a narrative into it, using experiences to highlight your best qualities. Also acknowledge your weaknesses but then talk about how excited you are to learn more about whatever measure/topic is you're not yet totally-fluent in. Save talk about grade drops or poor tests scores for LOR writers. You want to use your SOP to talk about research ONLY. It'll sound a lot better in Tenured Prof of Awesome's letter than it will if you're trying to make excuses for yourself between Paragraph About Research Experience and Paragraph About Perfect Fit. 5) LOR writers should know you very, very well and be able to say more than just that you were a good student and got an A in their class. To be competitive at an Ivy, you want at least one letter-writer saying you are quite literally the best student he/she ever had, for X reasons, giving Y examples. The other two don't have to be quite as superlative, but if they are ... again, doesn't hurt. 6) Networking. At my school, my adviser only invited to interview people whose letter-writers were profs he knew personally. This obviously varies between POIs, but it's something to keep in mind. Even if you just talked to your POI for thirty minutes at a conference, check back in with them through email. Mention it in your SOP. Find out who they've worked with in the past and learn about THEIR research as well to show that you have a truly in-depth understanding of your field. 7) Other/EC Experience = unimportant. Icing on what should be, if you have #s 1-6, an already-flawless cake. Source: I sat down for a nice long chat with my adviser, who is a department chair at a top psychology R1 institution and Knows Things.

I don't remember. I usually keep the confirmations in a folder in my inbox, but I know for a fact there have been times that I've accidentally deleted them. So I really don't know for sure. I emailed one of my LOR writers and she says she thinks she did Brown, but then again, she's done 100+ letters so I should probably check and make sure. ETA: The app system is back online! If you sign on to the general online application and click "check status," you can see if you reccs have been received. (And, luckily, it appears that mine have indeed been submitted!)

neon glow

Wait, so if we did put the recommender info in, like, two weeks ago and saved the application, were our recommenders notified or not?

If you don't feel comfortable discussing it with him, it might behoove you to go to your school's counseling center and ask someone there who's trained in matters like this for advice. (Or, most schools have offices specifically set up for this kind of thing, like a women's rights center. Even the LGBTQ center at your school might be able to help.) One of those people can tell you either a good way to bring it up with him if you decide that might be helpful, or how you should handle things with him in the future if you want to just ignore it, or paths to pursue if you want to file some sort of complaint.

The very basic definition of sexual harassment comes down to whether or not it makes the individual uncomfortable. Do you feel safe bringing it up with him and mentioning how it makes you feel? Could be that he's just being friendly and doesn't realize it's unsettling for you, and if he did he'd stop immediately. But you should ALWAYS trust your instincts about this. If it's making you that uncomfortable, don't mark it off as "nothing" even if a thousand people come in here and comment and say you're making too big of a deal of it. The fact of the matter is that it is upsetting you and it's due to someone's behavior (I am assuming, perhaps erroneously, that you are female, now) and the existence of a sex and power divide further complicates matters. On that same note, if you DON'T feel safe talking to him directly, then don't -- again, trust your instinct. I've found in my experience that I can tell the difference between friendly-wink and creepy-wink (and so can most women, generally). If you've got that nasty feeling in your gut about this, don't ignore it.

opposite day

So did I. Hopefully that suffices.

Results survey seems to indicate most programs get back between 6-25 January for the main tide. There are a few outliers on either side, of course, but I'd say December and February results are likely to be anomalous.

Is anyone else having a problem with the app inspector on the fin aid form telling them they haven't answered questions ... when said questions are irrelevant to them? It wanted me to fill out a third row of fellowships to which I'm applying. Weird.

Just submitted my Chicago app! That's 3 down. ETA: And now Harvard is submitted as well.

^ I think it's pretty field-specific. It sounds like in the humanities, for example, it's looked down upon a bit more. In my field (psychology), it's as good as required (yes, even that you directly state 'I am fascinated by the work of Professor X in Y lab'). In fact, if you don't mention a POI/lab in your SOP, you plain aren't getting in. As far as referencing scholars from a school who have influenced you but who aren't your POI (be it that they are retired or deceased), I'd go for simply making a very straight-forward statement about how you have been positively influenced by these theorists in your own approach to your field. But as the others said, don't couch that in a whole lot of superlatives. Just mention that you found their work illuminating or persuasive, and move right along.

I'm applying to a few clinical programs this year (others are social or neuroscience): Vanderbilt Minnesota Wisconsin Florida State Good luck, everyone!

I'm applying to a few different disciplines (I'm applying based on research interest rather than program type), but my social programs are: Harvard Brown Cornell Yale Ughh fingers crossed, eh?

^ Woo, Chicago! I've done everything but mail in my supplemental info packet, which I guess I'll probably have to expedite. Meh.

Never been in this situation myself, but here's the best advice I have: Why were you unaware about the drugs in your car? Depending on the reason, if you explain that, that could help. Either way, address the speeding (as well as the drugs or being in such a situation where you didn't know there were drugs in your car) and talk about what you've learned from the experience. Try to spin it into something positive as much as you can, while remaining humble and without sounding like you're trying to make excuses for yourself.