gradschoolguru

In my experience, required interviews are quite common for Psychology Ph.D. candidates and can be extremely important in a final accept/reject decision. Learn more about interviewing for grad programs in Psychology here: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/grad-school-guru/201104/interviewing-part-1-the-basics

Social Psychology applicants: This blog post is a MUST READ for you. This is an interview with the former head of a social psychology program about Ph.D. student admissions: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/grad-school-guru/201111/insider-interview-phd-admissions-committee-chair

If the POI explicitly states that he/she does not want to receive emails from prospective students, emailing him/her could start a potential relationship off on the wrong foot. Great idea, Sigaba: "How about finding out the names of some of the POI's graduate students who are ABDs and giving them a call?" or send them an email. Current grad students usually know a lot about their advisor's future plans and whether or not he/she is looking for a new student.

One thing to consider is where this CV prompt is coming from. Is it from application materials that applicants from ALL degree programs at a University are given? Or is it directly from the department or program that you are applying to? If it is applicable to applicants in all fields, it makes sense that the instructions require you to include a wide variety of information. Some of it make be very relevant to certain fields, but to others it is not. For example, hobbies might be very important if you are applying to a leisure studies program, but not if you are applying to a math program. In this case, excluding "minor" categories that are not highly relevant to your area will probably not make or break your application. If the prompt comes directly from the department or program you are applying to, however, be very specific and follow the instructions carefully. Include all the information that is requested.

I agree with those who commented above. Keep your personal motivations out of discussions with a potential advisor. He/She will be more interested in your scientific ideas and your previous research in the area. These are the qualifications (not family circumstances) that will get you in.

One additional way to get to know your professors better is to jump at opportunities to become involved with activities outside of class that he or she might announce or suggest to participate in (e.g., volunteer activities, local event related to the course, university sponsored research conference). As an undergraduate, I remember a professor asking if anyone in our class wanted to submit their class project to a regional conference and present it there. I volunteered to do this, knowing grad school was in my future, and got to know that professor well in the process.

Have you thought of asking both and ending up with an extra letter? If you decide against having an extra letter, I recommend going with the professional who knows you well, especially if this person can and will write a glowing letter. If the letter author does not know you, it is likely that this will be evident in his/her letter. Good luck!

I recommend showing on your CV/resume that you have applied for a fellowship. See my recent blog post about how just applying for fellowships can improve grad school applications: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/grad-school-guru/201110/phd-applications-go-the-extra-mile

A great way to handle "plans for professional development" is to discuss ways in which you will enhance your marketability beyond what is required to complete your graduate degree. In other words, describe extracurricular activities related to your career path that you will participate in, conferences you will attend, online activity you plan to become involved in (e.g., blogging), efforts you will put into networking, etc. Think about whatever will make you a more desirable and well-rounded professional in your field.

Society for Personality and Social Psychology San Diego, CA January 26-28, 2012 Submission deadline has passed, but still great to attend if you are an applicant www.spspmeeting.org