tspeechie

I live in California and I got my post-bac from the Utah State online program. It was straightforward, manageable, and at the time they didn't charge out-of-state tuition (big plus). I took two classes at a time, so it took me a while to finish it. I am currently in the CSUN campus grad program. I believe their online program is completely funded by tuition, so that's why it's so expensive. I hear good things about it though. One thing you might consider since you're working and have a family, is the workload expectation. The CSUN online program has cohorts. You begin and end with the same group, which implies you have the same load each semester. You may not have the flexibility of cutting back on courses if it gets too overwhelming. Although I seem to remember the program is three years, which may mean you take less a semester compared to the campus program. They may gear it more to working students. Not sure. I am married with an eight-year-old son. I understand your concern about balancing school with everything else in your life. Good luck to you!

I got a post-bach from USU's online program. I was accepted at CSUN for their campus program. I needed to take four undergrad classes at CSUN to satisfy their requirements for grad school. I did that my first semester and will begin grad classes this semester. One gripe I have is CSUN didn't accept my observation hours from USU. I had to do it all over again at CSUN. The observation class at CSUN is much, much more involved than USU. My advisor said they found the USU students weren't very well prepared for their clinics so they have all the USU online students take the observation class. In addition to the observation hours, it's meant to be a prep class for clinic on campus. The way the class is structured ends up being a ridiculous amount of work for a one-credit class. Things may change so this would be a good thing to ask a CSUN advisor about if you apply to their program. It's going to take me about 6-8 semesters to finish their program. The CSUN classes I had to take were: CD450(fluency), CD469O(observation), CD480(early speech intervention), & CD485(computer applications)

I did my post-bac through Utah State's online program. It's hard to say if it was hard to get into the program since I don't know who I was up against. Every year the pool of applicants will be different. I say try for what you want. You will live and breathe nothing but grad school once you start. So you want to be happy with where you end up, both on an academic and personal basis.

I would check with the schools you're interested in. You don't need to wait to complete all of your post-bac courses to apply. You either need a certain amount of credits completed or be in your last semester when you apply. I'm not sure which. I was still completing my post-bac courses when I applied to grad school.

I know it's hard, but try not to worry too much. I started in the grad program at Cal State Northridge this fall. My last sixty credits GPA was 3.44 but my CD GPA was 4.0. I had some experience from working in the schools for two years. I would say my letters of recommendation were fairly good but, having done my post-bac through the Utah online program, I had never met my profs. Frankly, my letter of intent wasn't the greatest for Northridge. I took the letter I wrote for another school and tweeked it because Northridge wanted a shorter letter. I didn't think it was very good. I was in the 36% for math on the GRE and 89% in verbal. Obviously my math score was horrible. I also applied to U of Washington, U of Maryland, and San Diego State. I got waitlisted at those schools and was accepted at Northridge. Now, why I got into Northridge I couldn't tell you. I thought I was a marginal candidate. Sometimes it feels like a mystery when you see other people on this site getting into schools you hope for with the same stats. Try not to compare yourself to other people. It all comes down to the admission committees, which means there's a lot of subjectivity to the process. Don't beat yourself up and assume, because of impaction, you don't have a good chance. Try for what you want but cast a wide net too. Good luck!

So far I like the campus. Since I did my post-bac online, I don't have much to compare it to though. The building where all of the CD classes are held is sort of an outpost at the corner of campus. I haven't had much time to do much exploring yet. This is the second week of school so it's all still a whirlwind in my head. Five classes is not fun. I am hoping for a medical setting.

Hi mangodelilah, I'm sorry I cannot address your prospective schools specifically but I do have some input. I got my post-bac from the Utah State online program as well. I got into Cal State Northridge and this is my first semester there. I was disheartened to find out they want me to take four undergrad classes (plus a clinic) before I can start the master's program. I actually have to redo all of the 25 observation hours earned in COMD5900 (apparently they find the Utah students lacking in that area). In addition to an observation class, I have to take Fluency ( I was prepared for that since Utah didn't offer it), Early Intervention (didn't I already have that?!), and Computer Applications in Communication Disorders (basically AAC). So, I thought I was going to hit the ground running in the master's program and instead I am taking five undergrad classes this semester. On top of that, that adds one more semester of school to my student loans. Not cheap! So, one other way to consider your options might be time and money. Which schools will require less makeup classes when you start? Maybe not the first consideration, but I am dreading the student loan bill when I'm done! A semester is significant, in my book. Good luck! P.S. Try not to wait until the last minute to get your apps done! I did and I thought I would have a coronary before it was all over. It's hard to squeeze it in on top of everything else you have to do.

Hi aicirtap, First of all, try not to freak out when you're on this website. Obviously applying to grad schools is stressful and frustrating. It's too easy to compare your stats to all the other people posting. Seeing people get accepted to "your" schools that have comparable stats to yours will drive you crazy. In some ways it's a mystery when it comes to what the committees are looking for. I have a 4.0 in my COMD classes and I've worked as a speech teacher for two years. I was waitlisted at 3/4 of schools I applied to. Was it my GRE score? Was it my statement of purpose? Who knows. It's good you're thinking of this early and planning on your next steps. In the plus column, you've got research experience, Spanish, and pysch. That's fabulous. Seek out instructors that can write you amazing letters of recommendation. Start working on your statement of purpose. Definitely highlight Spanish for SDSU. Give yourself plenty of time to study for the GRE. I was very nervous for the GRE and it wasn't as bad as I thought. Do lots of practice tests and get a couple of good study books. A lot of the test is strategies and time management. Learning strategies helped me quite a bit. Overall if you start early and work on the things that will over-shadow your GPA, the better. You may not be able to change your GPA much but you luckily already have other academics and experience that will help you. In the end, if you've done your best on everything else that's all you can do. Feeling positive and proud of your applications will give you peace of mind in case you don't get into your top school. Like I said, you may never know just exactly what the committes are looking for so do your best and don't beat yourself up if you don't get in. Oh, and apply to at least five schools to increase your chances. I think you can do it. Plan your attack and give yourself time. Good luck!

Anyone out there going to Northridge in the fall?

I am so happy for you! I'm sure you won't have regrets. I was waitlisted at SDSU as well and got an email this morning saying they aren't letting anyone else in. So you're a lucky one! Time to relax for a bit before the fun begins in the fall....

Email Carla Romero at CSUN. She has been quick to respond to my questions. She could probably tell you if they are done with their waitlist.

Hi leesta, It sounds like SDSU would be better for you on a personal level. Do you know if SDSU's program allows you to take electives that would give you more medical-based classes? Maybe by tweeking their program you can gain more on the med side without having to go to UW.

Hey NorcalSLP....... Why did you not stay at UW for grad studies? Thanks.

Hi glamclam, From all of the searching I've done on the CSUN website, I doubt there are research opportunities comparable to a school like SDSU or UW. I have looked all over and there aren't any areas on the website that speak of work professors are doing for research. I know CSUN gives you the option of doing a master's thesis, so I suppose that would be the closest thing to research you could do. I could be all wrong about this since I haven't talked to anyone at the school yet. This is just my best guess.... P.S. I wish the department had a better website! P.P.S. I noticed we are waitlisted at the same schools. Still hoping for word on those? Dr. Love at SDSU said she couldn't give me any information until Friday. I wonder if that is the deadline for the first round of waitlisters?

I could probably improve my GRE math score and rewrite my LORs, I guess. Other than that, if I don't know why I didn't get accepted in the first place I'm kinda in the dark. I have a 4.0 in my COMD classes and I am working in the field. Something about my apps just wasn't what they were looking for. I think I'll accept at CSUN and see what happens with San Diego. I honestly don't know if I can get any research experience at Northridge. I'll have to look into it. Thanks for your supportive posts, Gandalf and NorcalSLP!