Feeling discouraged about getting accepted into slp grad programs

[sabrina62995]

Hey guys, this is my first time on here. I was wondering if you all could give me your honest opinions on if you think I have a shot at getting into a graduate program in Speech-Language Pathology- specifically USF/UCF/FIU/FSU. My GRE scores are a 4 AWA, 149 Verbal, and 146 Quant. My GPA is a 3.48 and I only have about a month of experience. But, I have 3 great letters of recommendations from professors and I think my Statement of Intent is good. Now, I know none of what I just said sounds (is) competitive at all. But, do you think I have somewhat of a chance of getting into... something? I've heard about Nova but the tuition is really expensive. I graduate in May 2020 too. I know I should probably take a year to bring up my GRE scores and get more experience, but (for some reason), I feel like I'm on a time crunch. Ugh, this has already turned into an essay too. I just want to see what you guys think... Thanks everyone.

Edited October 2, 2019 by sabrina62995

[letsgetthisacceptance]

I think you have a chance.You still have time to retake the GRE.  Are there any other schools you are interested maybe outside of Florida? My biggest piece of advise is to apply at places all around. 

[speechiesophie]

Hi 

I am a current undergrad student and worry about taking the GRE because I don't test well. I was wondering if you would mind sharing your experiences with the universities you listed? I plan on applying to the same ones and would love some insight. 

Thanks!

[Radamel]

On 10/2/2019 at 4:54 PM, sabrina62995 said:

Hey guys, this is my first time on here. I was wondering if you all could give me your honest opinions on if you think I have a shot at getting into a graduate program in Speech-Language Pathology- specifically USF/UCF/FIU/FSU. My GRE scores are a 4 AWA, 149 Verbal, and 146 Quant. My GPA is a 3.48 and I only have about a month of experience. But, I have 3 great letters of recommendations from professors and I think my Statement of Intent is good. Now, I know none of what I just said sounds (is) competitive at all. But, do you think I have somewhat of a chance of getting into... something? I've heard about Nova but the tuition is really expensive. I graduate in May 2020 too. I know I should probably take a year to bring up my GRE scores and get more experience, but (for some reason), I feel like I'm on a time crunch. Ugh, this has already turned into an essay too. I just want to see what you guys think... Thanks everyone.

Hi there Sabrina! Hope I am not late in replying. I am new to THEGRADCAFE forum, wish i could've found it sooner. First off, I would like to give you words of encouragement for I know the field is competitive. I have been applying to Graduate School for 3 years now and I have had no luck  I was starting lose hope and not feel I was competent enough. I even considered changing career, but I just didn't see myself pursing any other career. Lately, I have needed to work on myself by staying positive and not to mention making sure I worked on prereqs such a lettters of recc, SOP, grades, etc in order to increase my chances to finally getting accepted. I would like to mention that my hometown university waived the GRE scores from graduate programs because test centers are currently closed. I would call universities you applied to and ask if they followed the same rule and explain to them that it was your plan to retake it, but due to the circumstances you were unable too   On another note, in several occasions I contacted schools regarding the GRE and to be honest some school do not focus solely on the GRE portion. There are a lot of other factors that play a role in your application.. volunteer hours, gpa, SOP, interview portion, etc. So take a breath, take it easy and pray for the best. Don't lose faith!

[sabrina62995]

On 3/27/2020 at 11:00 PM, speechiesophie said:

Hi 

I am a current undergrad student and worry about taking the GRE because I don't test well. I was wondering if you would mind sharing your experiences with the universities you listed? I plan on applying to the same ones and would love some insight. 

Thanks!

Hi there! I am currently a senior at USF graduating next month and love it. I attend their Sarasota-Manatee campus. I have never had any issues and the majority of professor's there are great. I'm not sure about UCF and FIU since I've never been to either of these though. As for FSU, I was recently accepted into their graduate program and will begin in August. I hope this helped, and best of luck on the GRE!

[sabrina62995]

On 4/3/2020 at 6:03 PM, Radamel said:

Hi there Sabrina! Hope I am not late in replying. I am new to THEGRADCAFE forum, wish i could've found it sooner. First off, I would like to give you words of encouragement for I know the field is competitive. I have been applying to Graduate School for 3 years now and I have had no luck  I was starting lose hope and not feel I was competent enough. I even considered changing career, but I just didn't see myself pursing any other career. Lately, I have needed to work on myself by staying positive and not to mention making sure I worked on prereqs such a lettters of recc, SOP, grades, etc in order to increase my chances to finally getting accepted. I would like to mention that my hometown university waived the GRE scores from graduate programs because test centers are currently closed. I would call universities you applied to and ask if they followed the same rule and explain to them that it was your plan to retake it, but due to the circumstances you were unable too   On another note, in several occasions I contacted schools regarding the GRE and to be honest some school do not focus solely on the GRE portion. There are a lot of other factors that play a role in your application.. volunteer hours, gpa, SOP, interview portion, etc. So take a breath, take it easy and pray for the best. Don't lose faith!

Thank you, Radamel, for the kind words! I appreciate all the support. Good news, I got accepted in FSU's grad program! You are correct though- schools do not focus solely on the GRE portion. Also, welcome to the grad cafe! Try not to spend too much time on here though. Although this site can be beneficial in comparing your scores to others accepted into programs you're interested in, I found myself logging on here everyday only to get more disappointed. I appreciate all of your advice, and wish you the best of luck on getting into graduate school as well!

[sabrina62995]

Hi everyone- I'm writing on here to update you all of my recent acceptance letter. I got accepted in Florida State University's SLP graduate program! I also got waitlisted from the University of South Florida's program, but that's fine with me because FSU was my top pick. Please do not get discouraged if your GRE scores are not where you wanted them to be. Sames goes for your GPA. I strongly encourage everyone to gain shadowing/observation experience within their field of interest, and try to get LoR's from professors. (All of the programs I was interested in recommended this). The application process is time consuming and grueling, but THAT is the hardest part. I've heard from multiple people that getting into a program is the hardest part itself. Please don't give up! We all can do this. :)

[Radamel]

10 hours ago, sabrina62995 said:

Thank you, Radamel, for the kind words! I appreciate all the support. Good news, I got accepted in FSU's grad program! You are correct though- schools do not focus solely on the GRE portion. Also, welcome to the grad cafe! Try not to spend too much time on here though. Although this site can be beneficial in comparing your scores to others accepted into programs you're interested in, I found myself logging on here everyday only to get more disappointed. I appreciate all of your advice, and wish you the best of luck on getting into graduate school as well!

Congratulation Sabrina!!!!  So extremely happy for you!!! On another, you are right about the downs of spending too much time here! I interviewed with RMUoHP last week. It is my top school because of their medical focus. I find interest in adults and aspire to one day work in the hospital setting. This is going to sound dramatic, but I honestly have not been able to get good sleep since last weeks interview. I had another one this week with CAU for their Miami campus and have also not be able to stop thinking about it. I've been on a waiting game for almost 2 weeks now. Praying and hoping for the best. I saw your post about obtaining shadowing hours/experience.. so true. I believe that makes a resume stand out. I graduated with my bachelors in 2014, been an SLPA ever since and I shadowed a former supervisor at an LTAC hospital back in 2017. The years are passing and I am hoping I could use my shadowing hours to my advantage before they consider them "old hours". I also have been looking into Baylor University and NYU (have you heard about these programs?) because their deadline is in June. I am hesitant about applying to Baylor because I have seen on here that a good number of ppl have already been accepted so I'm not quite sure if I should spend my time and money in applying if the online cohort has already been accepted... ?