+Whiskey

No idea on a scale for you Paul, but are you on researchgate? If not (and if you've tried every other search method available to you - don't waste others' time), research gate is probably the ideal venue to crowd source this.

Agree with everyone else that this "dreams shattered" narrative is a little dramatic. You just need to retake the GRE, and as you study for it, focus more on how to learn the test than a list of words. Understanding the ins, outs, and consistencies in every verbal section of every GRE will boost your score more than memorizing hundreds of new words. It's also the easier and more entertaining strategy for test prep. Princeton Review books are the best for this route.

Agree with previous posters. Your experience will help and your lack of publication record won't hurt. I'd like to add: Retake the GRE! You will need better than above -average scores to be competitive, especially in clinical programs. Study like it's your job and retest.

I wholeheartedly agree with most of the above advice and would like to add: Get some sleep! Sleep can be so important to curiosity and motivation but it's so often overlooked. Get some rest. And then try to gauge and be honest with yourself about what amount of genuine rest is most efficient for YOU. Good luck! I know it's weird and maybe counterintuive to work fewer hours when you're facing difficulties.

Sometimes focusing on coming up with something original has the opposite effect. Maybe you're just freaking yourself out. Keep reading, become knowledgeable on the subject (if you still want to, that is), but try to relax a bit. Get adequate rest. Realize that this is a small part of a big career. Celebrate. YMMV, but I come up with good ideas when I'm curious and able to really comprehend what I'm reading, and being stressed and/or sleep deprived is a detriment to both. At the end of the summer, or especially sooner, emailing to say you'd like to help but you feel behind or not ready to contribute something revelatory isn't a huge failure on your part, and I can't imagine he/she would think so as long as you're up front about it. Good luck and congratulations!

Congratulations! I had two kids in my four years of undergrad, and I'm starting an awesome PhD program in the fall. It will be difficult, but honestly I think having young children in grad school is probably easier than having young children in many other careers or phases of academic careers, due to having a bit more flexibility than say.... a new lawyer or an assistant professor. If I were in your position, I would learn everything I could about the resources that will be available to you and the policies that will affect you right away. At some schools, you can sit down with someone for a personal consultation to sort all that out, which can be very helpful and specific. Your school probably has parent groups you could check out to get info from people who have had babies as grad students at your institution, and hopefully even in your department. Also, I wouldn't necessarily wait to tell your adviser until you arrive in person visibly pregnant. There might be advantages to letting him/her know as soon as you're ready to share the news with other acquaintances. When I told my adviser that I'd be moving cross-country to join the program with two young kids, he immediately put me in touch with other parents in the department, who've already been invaluable sources of information. Sharing the news and getting some support in place before you arrive might soften your landing and spread out the stress of the first term a little. Good luck!!

Due to a luggage mishap (long story), I had to interview at a top choice PhD program wearing a horse dress and moccasins. And when I say "horse dress" I mean a dress with little horses printed all over it. Yellow and blue ones. I joked about my outfit with grad students and other prospectives, but I didn't waste what little time I had with my POI talking about my clothes. It was a west coast interview, so a lot of people weren't wearing suits, but I was definitely the only person with animals printed on her clothes. I don't know if the story got around or not, but I did get the offer. Hopefully your attire won't be a deal breaker either. Good luck!

Moving expenses? I wouldn't have asked, but my POI wasn't encouraging me to ask for the moon. It's worth a shot.

I've seen everything from $10,000 - $40,000 for social programs, depending on public vs private and cost of living. The APA's Graduate Study in Psychology has funding numbers for programs.

I have three top choices and an interview at one of them. I applied to 11 programs and have 2 invitations to interview weekends. I haven't heard from any of the other 9 programs, but I've seen phone interviews and/or invitations to a couple of them, so those might be implicit rejections. Congrats EastCoasting and good luck to everyone!

I'm planning (hoping?) to begin a PhD program in the fall, and I have two young children. They will be 2 and 4 when I begin. I agree with previous posters that extraordinary time management skills are a must! I have a super supportive husband who does a lot of the cooking, cleaning and childcare. Personally, I don't think I could do it without him. I strongly recommend NOT scrimping on self care. While balancing two young kids, a full time course load, a TA position, and two independent research projects, I still make time for a reasonable amount of sleep (6+ hours, for me), nutritious meals, and time with my friends and spouse. It can be done. And I've found that when I do not eat and sleep, every single other thing suffers. For example, if I'm up against a deadline, so I choose to only sleep 4 hours or so for a few nights and eat out of bags, everything I do takes longer, I make more errors, I'm irritable with my sweet kids, I forget to take the trash out, etc., etc., etc. Everything just goes to hell. It's much better for everyone for me to take care of myself and use the hours that are set aside for work very efficiently. It took me years to figure out how to do everything well at the same time, though. It's not easy. Though my situation is different, I do have a couple of friends who have had babies during grad school, and they're doing okay too! Overall, I think everyone agrees that being a student parent is tough, but so worth it. If you really want to have a demanding career and a family, there's no great time to have young kids. It probably won't be easier during the pre-tenure years. It may not be possible after. I think you just have to do what you feel is best for you and your family. Good luck!

*sigh* Can the person who heard from Social Psych at WUSTL pm me your POI please?

Their website still says invitations will be extended by the 25th, and it's probably not super common to call on a Saturday evening. Don't count yourself out yet!

I read journals, the Observer, follow the APA and APS on facebook and visit lab websites of places I want to attend.

I mentioned at least two per school in statements, but I always picked a favorite. There was always one person I really, really wanted to work with and one or two more whose interests aligned with mine well enough that I would be happy working and collaborating with them and that made me think that the department as a whole would be a good fit. I think I wrote a paragraph on my favorite POI and a paragraph on the one or two others who were reasonably good fits for each school, making the preference pretty obvious.