Educational psychology/Applied statistics PhD application advice

[OlderNWiser]

Dear all,

Looking for some application advice here. I graduated with an MS in Statistics from UT Austin back in 2013. Since then I have been working as a data analyst. I have been thinking about getting a PhD  in Educational psychology. I am interested in psychometrics and applying statistics to educational data. I also want to apply directly for a PhD rather than Master's. However I don't have a background in psychology or education and no research experience. I have a good Masters gpa: 3.86, but a weak undergrad gpa (around 2.8)and decent GRE scores( 99% verbal, 82% quant, 4.0 writing ). Can anyone give me any advice on what types of schools to apply to? Should I look for lower ranked schools and write to individual faculty to see if they will take me? Any specific programs anyone can suggest?

 

Thanks for any advice!

Edited October 28, 2019 by OlderNWiser
Better phrasing

[t_ruth]

Your data analyst work should bolster your application, depending on what you've been working on and how you speak about it. Your undergrad GPA shouldn't matter. Your GRE scores are good. I would do some reading in the meantime to see what you specifically want to study. This will dictate both where you apply and what you write about in your statements (and in large part, how competitive you are).

Feel free to PM me if you want more specific advice. I'm Ed Psych faculty at an R1.