peacebyinches

Hey fellow buckeyes, I just accepted my offer, will be in cognitive psychology.

my scores were amazingly dead on accurate (took the test in November) Also, I found it funny that you immediately were looking up the tables online on your phone, because that's the exact same I did lol. I even asked the test administrator person about my scores before I left (which in retrospect was really a naive thing to do). I didn't drive home until I found a concordance table online and even then I went back home and searched a jillion message boards and blogs about GRE scores.

Yeah, as much as standardized tests are despised, the makers do a very good job at making it painfully difficult to "crack" or "master" these tests. I took the SAT twice, first time I took it was basically for practice - I did not prepare at all and I was pretty tired the day I took it as well. I was always planning on taking it another time, the first time was just to get the feel for it and see if I had any serious difficulties with any part. Then after a whole bunch of preparation (going through several SAT prep books, taking an SAT prep class and taking several SAT practice tests) my score on the verbal section was the exact same and my score on the math part decreased by an amount equivalent to me guessing correctly on one less question than the first time I took the test. As harsh as it sounds, these kind of tests are really just figuring out the level of verbal and mathematical competency the taker has. Getting better scores on these kind of tests aren't up to a person "learning some new words" or "memorizing math questions" they are up to a person improving their entire language and quantitative competencies, which can be a really time consuming and difficult endeavor.

Considering I had a massive amount of spare time in the months leading up to the test I probably should have prepared more, but easier said than done right? One thing I noticed for me was that there was really no point in studying extensively for the verbal part, even if I had tripled the amount of preparing I did for the verbal section I doubt my score would have been a whole lot better. (I got 86% percentile if it matters) How much can you really improve your vocabulary and reading comprehension in a few months? I bought a book that had 800 "commonly seen" GRE vocabulary words and I don't think I explicitly learned the meaning of very many words at all. I only got 69% in the quantitative part and I definitely should have prepared more for this section. I was rehashing some basic math principles at the very last second and I do remember seeing a problem or 2 that made me go "wtf is this??" and a few others that took me entirely to long to figure out. I scored a 4.5 on the writing, a score I may or may not have been able to improve with preparation. My biggest issue with this part was having only 30 minutes to write each response. I feel I am a strong writer when given enough time (which for me may be longer than average, but that's just how I write I guess). Sitting down and practicing these responses in a timed manner was so unbelievably frustrating for me, it took me at least 15 tries to actually finish a timed response successfully. I would get a prompt, brainstorm, start writing and 10 minutes later only have 4 sentences typed and give up. Since I was not very prepared in a timed setting, I ran out of time during both of my responses so the end of my conclusions looked something like: "The author of this article provides evidence based on flawed assumptions and [*omfg 10 seconds left!*] whisch , its implications are they improvement needed more " So that probably didn't help... haha. Anyways, I wish I did more practice tests in a structured manner, but I also feel like people over estimate how much they can improve their GRE scores through studying, especially in areas they are already strong in.

Absolutely, email him! Same exact thing happened to me. I arranged a time for a phone chat, he forgot, I emailed him something benign (but obvious) like "I guess we didn't have a chance to talk today, I'm free all day tomorrow if thats more suitable ", he emailed me 3 minutes later asking if he could call in a half hour, which he did and, well, that, is it.

It is definitely an unfortunate situation to be in (I'm the OP of the other thread) and its becoming increasingly frustrating for me. I don't know what your situation is financially, but hopefully you have some help from parents, savings, loans etc... in the mean time. Personally, I would be royally screwed without the generosity of my folks right now because somehow I ran through all my savings (which I really thought was a considerable amount... guess I was wrong) quicker than I thought. One idea I had recently though is substitute teaching. Sure, its not a dream gig but it certainly beats being mop-boy at a grocery store or fry cook at Burger King to me at least. I've also been brainstorming some ideas for people like us stuck in employment no-mans land.... some are better than others, but remember its brainstorming... haha Substitute teacher Tutor Temp agency work Do odd jobs people post on Craigslist (help someone move,drive them to the airport, walk dogs, write articles for up and coming blogs/websites etc...) Do tons of paid research studies (as the person being studied, not as the researcher) and marketing research studies/focus groups Participate in a pharmaceutical clinical trial (I'm actually somewhat serious about this idea, I've seen certain Phase II drug trials that offer over $6,000 for doing basically nothing... except the whole be a guinea pig thing... haha) Enter tons of writing contests, hope to win one Work as a beer server or concessions person at concerts/baseball games occasionally Sell a bunch of stuff on Ebay Sell sperm (or eggs), hair Any other ideas? (even if they are a little crazy haha)

I apologize for taking so long to reply, I appreciate the advice, all of you. I understand that times are tough, blah blah, but I would rather go homeless than return to working as the lowest peon at a major retail company again. I would be treated with more respect as a hobo than a sales associate at T***** (fill in the blanks). I have worked a variety of jobs that result in similar levels of respect and treatment as well, so I know that other retail and food service positions are no different. I appreciate the pep talk but it simply will not happen, I have swallowed more pride than is healthy for any human being already, but anyways... I'm unfortunately still looking for a job, but am beginning to explore temp agencies, as I feel they can give me a temporary, but not exhausting (physically and emotionally) environment as an administrative assistant or data entry clerk. Hopefully I find something; I'll keep trying until I do. Also, I am not really sure how to go about offering a tutoring service, my specialty would be psychology and neuroscience, but not many high school kids really need to know about those subjects. Any advice?

While I am not accepted to any schools for Fall 2012 yet (since its December still) I have been applying to a lot of schools and assuming one of the numerous programs I applied to accepts me, I will be going to graduate school (for psychology if it matters) next fall. My issue right now is that I am currently unemployed and my savings are running out quicker than I realize. I am desperate for some advice on what to do, my internet searches haven't helped much at all. I want to get a job, but am aware that it may not be in my best interest to get a "career-type" job since I would be leaving the job this next summer (in like 6 months or so). I also am adamant that I do not go into a minimum wage type job. I know it may sound conceited, but I am not going to do a demeaning, bottom rung, low pay job, having graduated college (with honors, good grades, a research internship etc...). I have already played that game. I worked as a manual labor stock-boy at Target for about 7 months, where my coworkers were mostly in high school or had no education, and my bosses were younger than me and never attended college. The job was basically hard physical labor, in between getting yelled at by customers. I really would like to get a research assistant type job, but is this a feasible goal since I would basically only be able to work there for a few months? I don't even care about the pay, I just want a source of income that doesn't involve being on my feet for 8 hours straight and being treated like I'm a moron. If any of you have been in a similar situation or have some advice for me, it would be immensely appreciated!