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It would really surprise me if anyone had-- last year they called with acceptances the second week of February. If you have any questions about PSU... feel free to ask, I might have first hand knowledge

I know that BGSU at least isn't doing anything admission wise while SIOP isn't going on, which is why Scott Highhouse wanted me to get back to him before then. There, at least, they seem to be very conscientious about the people on the waitlist. Also, we're getting to the season where people are accepting or rejecting admissions offers, so a lot of it is just whether or not the class is full... which some schools don't know yet.

Were you at the Friday of UIUC's official visiting weekend, or did you fly in on Saturday night for the pizza making party? Little creepy, I know, but I've been working for one of the professor's in social at UIUC for 3 years (So.-Sr. year), so was at the Friday festivities but had a bachelor party on Saturday so didn't attend those. Congrats on your decision! I have loved my time in SPO at UIUC, and the graduate students there are absolutely wonderful.

I've sent the e-mail officially accepting to go to Penn State, and am faxing in all the necessary sheets today after I get off work. Now... the hunting of finding a place to live begins! I think that I'll go back over the summer to look at stuff before I actually sign a lease.

I will be moving to State College, PA to go to Penn State! So, that means that spots will be open at BGSU and Purdue, and a spot off the waitlist at DePaul, Akron, and MSU. Now I just have to not get fat off their illegally high fat content creamery ice cream! I know DePaul said they had 103 Applicants and accepted 3 people. It's been such a ridiculous year for grad school applications, (though I know I don't really have that much room to talk). Illinois Ellie-- I'm assuming you mean UIUC? I'm a senior there now. I've been trying to figure out if I know who you are for weeks!

I got an e-mail last night saying that I'm on the wait list for DePaul... but I made my choice today, so it's kind of a moot point. =) Now to send a bunch of e-mails to schools with my decision!

Yeah, I applied to Akron because my boyfriend at the time lived in Ohio, even though it only fit decently with my research interests. It's a great program/school, but when I got into my top two choices that my research fits extremely well with, I don't think I would be my happiest there. I'll shoot you a personal message about the rest of that.

I just finished writing her an e-mail that [in much more formal terms] said that I didn't think it was fair to keep me under consideration because I was down to 2 schools and probably making my decision next week. That is a very weird feeling.

Oh, Champaign is an ideal place for some people-- just not for me, I'm finally moving in August. I really enjoyed growing up and going to undergrad here, but man the AZ weather we left was nice. You're right, the winters aren't bad compared to Minnesota and the Dakotas, but my program attracts a lot of people from the Southern states that still have a hard time acclimating to the climate... and even living here, I walk to class or work every day so it's still pretty cold. But, a lot of living in cold weather is learning how to dress, and a I think a lot of the time I like to deny how cold it actually is

Yes... but we also had days where the high was negative not taking into account wind chill. Winter in Champaign is more about the temperature, and the WIND, than the snow. But you know, I've only lived here for 16 years, I wouldn't know much about the winters

As a heads up, I got a phone call from Andrea Snell from Akron this afternoon. I'm waitlisted, and she "wanted to know my status." Unfortunately she called my home, not my cell, and it's too late to call her back today. Wait till Monday, I suppose!

WIth the schools I've applied to, this is how it works (so big 10 schools mostly) One you're funded with a TA or RA ship, you become an employee of the University, and all University employees are allowed to take University classes with tuition wavers. So, at least with what I am familiar with, it's how they do the paperwork with your funding that makes tuition go away.

I really liked Penn State; with the schools I have visited, it's my leading choice right now because the grad students are outgoing, friendly and supportive, and the faculty are the same way. The students have nights where they cook dinner together, go to football games together, etc. The faculty seem to really be in touch with their graduate students, and the fact that all of them mentor the students (they don't epouse the mentor-apprenticeship model) helps because it means there is always someone you can talk to if need be. They've just started running an assessment center, have awesome research, their budget isn't being affected by the state budget, and the faculty is so energetic and passionate. Cost of living is very affordable with the stipend, their practicum is first rate, and they not only encourage students to take internships but help in the placement. There is a great balance between I and O, and doing research with multiple faculty is encouraged (and required do to it with at least 2). I'm pretty sure you can see I've drank the Kool-Aid Have you heard anything from Akron yet?

This might be a tad on the long side, for which I apologize. As for getting into grad programs: I don't have the highest gre scores (I don't remember the break down, but it was below 1300) and i got a 620 on the psych GRE... and I also didn't have the highest GPA (3.61, 3.51 Psych) and I got accepted to Penn State, Bowling Green State, and Purdue, waitlisted from Michigan State, and haven't heard from Akron or DePaul. For me what really helped was getting my research experience with professors even outside of I/O psychology; I have worked in a social cognition lab with a professor for 3 years and am in the process of writing an undergraduate thesis with him. I have working in a Culture/Emotional Labor lab, as well as even a clinical psychology lab. My research experience proved to be extremely valuable when applying to schools. Also, start taking grad classes if you can: I know that I'm lucky in that I go to a large R1 with a prestigious I/O program, but for me what really helped were the quantitative psychology courses. I took the first year grad courses, worked my butt off in them, and got an amazing recommendation letter from that professor. I/O programs LOVE students who see math/stats as a great asset to their education, rather than something you have to do. Even something as simple as linear algebra (math 125 at my school) helps because you need to know it anyways for a lot of upper level stats. Also, I highly encourage taking I/O cluster courses, but also supplementing them with other courses. For example, see if your school offers courses human resources, labor industrial relations, or business communication; I'm currently in a class on training in business/industry as well as a course on the theory and practice of interviewing. I've also taken organizational communications courses through my communications department. I don't think you need to take an extra year-- you obviously have done the math, two extra semesters can't knock up your GPA that much higher. If you want to wait a year before applying to grad school, see if you can get a job as a lab manager or doing other sorts of research. As you can see, even with a GPA that isn't as competitive with other applicants, I did much better than I expected to when applying to graduate school. Now... I just have to chose which one. Apply to both Masters and PhD programs if you still feel weary-- you might surprise yourself. I sure did... As for why I chose I/O Psych: I came into undergrad thinking I was going to get my PhD in social psych. Working in the social cognition lab showed me that wasn't what I wanted to do, I wanted something more applied. I had I/O grad students for both Intro Psych and Social Psych, and their insight helped me a lot because before meeting them I had no idea that I/O psychology existed. It's not taught in most Intro Psych courses, which I think is very unfortunate. I've worked different jobs (while being a student full time) since I was 16 in a variety of industries, and so that also gave me a lot of insight to pull from of ways I wish I/O psych had been integrated into my experiences and how I wanted to change things. Research Interests wise, I'm more on the I side of things; my honors thesis is on personnel selection, but I also like performance assessment/appraisal/feedback and training. O-side I'm a motivation kind of person, and I also want to do work in quantitative and research methodology.

Executive House and Lion's Gate were both really nice... and I've gotten used to my quasi plush college pad that has a dishwasher and such. Executive house especially seems to have a lot of natural light, and also have balconies which is nice. Circlewood are big, but they lack the natural light thing-- though have LOTS of storage space. They're on the north side of campus, where as the others are on the south. The kitchens at Circlewood were the biggest, and smallest at Lion's Gate. They were all nice, it's just a matter of what things you value more. All of the above places do not allow undergrads, which is nice (though as a current undergrad, it feels funny to say that.)

Ok, here's the places we looked at: Executive House Apartments (On www.apartmentsstatecollege.com ) Circlewood Apartments ( http://www.arpm.com/homes/details.php?id=64 ) Lion's Gate ( www.lionsgateapts.com ) and a bunch of places by Falk Realty Management ( www.falkrealty.net ) I've been looking on craigslist too. I don't know who I'll be living with-- we started a facebook group for the prospectives to see who is coming. I'm up to living with people other than those who live in my program. We'll see.

That's so odd about DePaul. How did you find out about the decisions already being mailed out? I live in Champaign, which is only like 2 hours south of Chicago, so you get letters in like 2 days tops-- and I haven't gotten anything from them. Even if someone is just on the waiting list, I feel like it's better to tell them that they're on the waiting list than just not say anything/not provide any communication. With Colorado State I figured I was rejected because when I visited Penn State a girl told me she had been waitlisted there... but this whole limbo thing just is frustrating.

There's a very good chance that I'll be at Penn State next fall in a psychology PhD program. I visited a few weeks ago, really enjoyed the campus and the people. We went on a housing tour as well, and got a lot of information about apartments and such. I want to live with (a) roommate(s) though, so it's the waiting game of making a decision and waiting for other people to do so as well.

I applied to 7 Schools: Purdue, Penn State, Bowling Green State, Michigan State, Colorado State, Akron, and DePaul I've been accepted to 3, waitlisted at 1, rejected by 1 (not the one I was expecting, either) and haven't heard from 2, being DePaul and Akron. I e-mailed Jennifer Klein, the DePaul coordinator, and she never got back to me with any information. I've visited 2, visiting the 3rd acceptance over spring break (in 1.5 weeks) and will be making a final decision after that, letting the Universities know far before April 15. UIUC's visiting weekend is this weekend. They accepted very few (3?) people this year.