Pittsburgh - Hot Metal Bridge Post-Bacc

[MindOverMatter]

Hi all!

Has anyone applied or participated in Pittsburgh's Hot Metal Bridge Post-Bacc program? I applied this year and do not know what to expect. Is a phone interview involved? There is a wide window for acceptance notification ("Mid-May" to "Mid-June"). Thanks in advance for your thoughts!

[FakeImposter]

Remember, this is all anecdotal:

I applied to the program last year. I did not get in, but they told me I ranked 6th in the application process out of the 4-5 psychology students accepted that year. I felt I deserved to get in. I emailed my prospective mentor and they seemed all for it, but admissions decisions can be arbitrary and I got into a PhD program this year without doing a post-bac program. You'll get where you need to be, too. 

But to your other question, they were not good about notifying me about decisions on acceptance/rejection. It seems in 2017 they did not contact applicants who didn't get in, they only contacted the ones who did get in (or maybe they just didn't contact me). I reached out to them in June and they told me I was close but no cigar. A phone interview was not involved. 

[MindOverMatter]

Thanks, @FakeImposter.  Darn, so close! The intake is so small, it seems almost as competitive as a PhD. I don't know how many applications they see, but still -- pretty competitive. 

Congrats on the PhD admission. Can I ask if you have an undergrad degree in psychology? My UG degree is poli sci/sociology and I have an MSc in Social-Cultural psych (again, largely sociological). After studying independently, I want to switch to social-personality/affective - so it's a bit of a leap. I wonder if I don't get into a post-bacc program, how I would demonstrate interest/competency in these areas.

All (and FakeImpsoter) - Did anyone make similar field transitions? Any suggestions for how to spend a year in transition? Is post-bacc best - or maybe take an extension course or two? I have a job and it's not the most-interesting, but I'm a bit reluctant to leave for financial reasons.

[FakeImposter]

@MindOverMatter It's very competitive, but not as competitive as PhD programs. Hot Metal Bridge had maybe 150 applicants for 5 psychology slots? Compared to 200-300 applicants for clinical programs on average.

I have an undergraduate degree in psychology, so I did not make the transition you are making. But many people make the transition. My boss (I work in research) has a BS in Economics and is now a clinical psychologist. It's absolutely possible. To make this transition possible, you need to 1000% be involved in psychology research. This is how you'll get the letters of recommendation you need, and prove to PhD programs you are serious. While taking courses can help, there's almost nothing as valuable is volunteering (as much as you can) time doing research with faculty in a psych dept (e.g. 10 hours/week doing volunteered psych research). 

PhD programs value research experience almost more than GPA, GRE scores and university prestige. I say almost because those things are damn important, but what separates good applicants from great ones is what kind of research experience they have, how much they have, and if they can produce publications and presentations from said research. PhD mentors look to to see if your research experience "fits" well with theirs, and if it does, you'll be offered interviews.

[MindOverMatter]

@FakeImposter - Thanks for getting back to me. Appreciate your insight! This is very helpful and the most directive feedback I've had to date. It seems I've been focusing on areas of only secondary importance (GRE, coursework). Time to make some movement on research activities! Thanks, again.