How are Applications, Getting Ready to Start, Etc Going for Everyone?

[PsyZei]

I just had a meeting with my PhD advisor about what school might look like this coming fall and the overall gist I'm getting is that things are going to be a bit wild and fly by our seats.

I was wondering how everyone on Grad Cafe is doing? Those planning to apply this fall, how is that going? Those about to start or continue grad school, what is that looking like for you?

----

I've got three kiddos I'm trying to figure out what their school is going to look like, my spouse is in an essential industry so that has also been quite a ride, and then the only thing I really feel like I've "got" for the coming fall is that they clinic at my program is going to be done telehealth style- which I feel fairly confident about doing at this point. Not an expert, but between all the random trainings I've done (thank you PESI) and the practice I got at the end of my master program last year I think it will be okay.

What about everyone else, what are you freaking out about and what is going alright?

[Dazen]

Hi! Definitely feeling a bit of the stress, but glad I still have so much time until apps are due. Right now most of my free time is being spent taking online classes to shore up my basic psych requirements (Intro and Stats right now, Abnormal and Research Methods early fall). Otherwise, I've been studying a lot for the Psych GRE, since it's being offered near me in September and I'm hoping it'll add credibility to my knowledge of psychology not coming from a psych academic background. Probably the most promising thing has been hearing back from more than half of the professors I emailed that they are expecting to take a student and encourage me to apply. I didn't get any interviews the last time around, so hearing positive things about my current CV has helped ease the stress a bit.

Otherwise, wondering if I should go through programs again to see if any possible faculty mentors slipped through the cracks or be happy with my list.

What about everyone else?

[LavenderGoat]

Hey! I think the combination of going stir crazy and being away from school has caused me to freak out about falling behind as an undergraduate. Currently studying for the GRE (all hail Greg Mat) and trying to build a manuscript. On the bright side, studying has been going well since I have a GRE buddy to chip away at practice every day (except Sundays). I hope all goes smoothly for you and your family! It's weird to be put at a more uncertain position but at least it seems like we've all got some things going our way. ☺️

[PsychApplicant2]

1 hour ago, LavenderGoat said:

Hey! I think the combination of going stir crazy and being away from school has caused me to freak out about falling behind as an undergraduate. Currently studying for the GRE (all hail Greg Mat) and trying to build a manuscript. On the bright side, studying has been going well since I have a GRE buddy to chip away at practice every day (except Sundays). I hope all goes smoothly for you and your family! It's weird to be put at a more uncertain position but at least it seems like we've all got some things going our way. ☺️

Gregmat is such a king. Thank god for him

[Schy]

Was Gregmat around last year? I'm finding him to be extremely helpful this year and this will be my 3rd* time taking the GRE (slightly embarrassed about that, but i'm a HORRIBLE test taker)

I was honestly only going to apply to MS/MA programs, but my boss at the lab I work at suggested I apply to a PHD in Behavior Analysis and steer away from clinical. I'm ready to see how this cycle goes, but I definitely don't want to get my hopes up. 

[justacigar]

I think Gregmat has been around for a while, he's really popular on Reddit which is the way I know of him. @Schy good luck with the GRE!! No need to be embarrassed at all - the GRE sucks. How do you feel about taking it at home?  

I'm feeling the pressure this round as it'll be my third year of applying. To be fair, my first round was sort of a shot in the dark and I did not have a chance in hell of getting in anywhere haha. I feel prepared and ready but also nervous and incompetent. Ah, imposter syndrome is so so fun. Last year I was an alternate and on the waitlist for a program...it really sucked to ALMOST make it but that makes me even more confident that this year I'll hopefully be successful. I'm not sure if I have another round in me, and I really want to get into a program before I'm 30 (turning 30 next August).

Any other second or third rounders out there? 

[Schy]

1 hour ago, justacigar said:

I think Gregmat has been around for a while, he's really popular on Reddit which is the way I know of him. @Schy good luck with the GRE!! No need to be embarrassed at all - the GRE sucks. How do you feel about taking it at home?  

I'm feeling the pressure this round as it'll be my third year of applying. To be fair, my first round was sort of a shot in the dark and I did not have a chance in hell of getting in anywhere haha. I feel prepared and ready but also nervous and incompetent. Ah, imposter syndrome is so so fun. Last year I was an alternate and on the waitlist for a program...it really sucked to ALMOST make it but that makes me even more confident that this year I'll hopefully be successful. I'm not sure if I have another round in me, and I really want to get into a program before I'm 30 (turning 30 next August).

Any other second or third rounders out there? 

I'm a little concerned about finding a peaceful time to take it. I vaguely remember someone on the GRE reddit saying they took it while they're family was sleeping (so I'm assuming they took it in the middle of the night), but I haven't seen the post again! Other than that, I'm excited about taking the test in the same place that I'm studying. Hopefully for everyone, having the ability to take the test in the comfort of your own home really helps. 

 

This is my third round! Like you, my first was a shot in the dark. And I was honestly going to give up because I'm tired of working a dead end job and want to finally be able to go onto my next step (even if that meant taking out loans for a masters). I'm applying to at least one phd program though, so we'll see how things go. 

The waiting and waiting and trying and trying SUCKS, but sometimes we have to give ourselves a break and understand that sometimes people just get 'lucky'. I hope you aren't too hard on yourself! And I totally get wanting to do certain things before a certain age, but be kind to yourself! I have a cousin who's 31 and in her prime and shes finally finishing a Nurse practitioner program. In this situation, age really is just a number ((: 

[EileanDonan]

1 hour ago, Schy said:

The waiting and waiting and trying and trying SUCKS, but sometimes we have to give ourselves a break and understand that sometimes people just get 'lucky'. I hope you aren't too hard on yourself! And I totally get wanting to do certain things before a certain age, but be kind to yourself! I have a cousin who's 31 and in her prime and shes finally finishing a Nurse practitioner program. In this situation, age really is just a number ((: 

I relate to this so deeply. At this rate, I don't know if I'll ever make it into a program at all, much less definitely by the time I'm 30. Age-related pressure is so real for some people, it feels impossible not to compare yourself to your peers who are well settled into their careers or doctoral programs. No one wants to be the "unsuccessful one".

[PsyDuck90]

2 minutes ago, EileanDonan said:

I relate to this so deeply. At this rate, I don't know if I'll ever make it into a program at all, much less definitely by the time I'm 30. Age-related pressure is so real for some people, it feels impossible not to compare yourself to your peers who are well settled into their careers or doctoral programs. No one wants to be the "unsuccessful one".

Yeah, I feel this really hard too. I'm fortunate enough to be in a program already, but I just turned 30 and while all my other friends are buying houses and having babies, my husband and I are stuck in this waiting game since we can't afford kids right now (I can't take time off from practicum without making myself less competitive for internship). It makes it even more evident when a few of my cohort-mates got in straight out of undergrad. I love them, but it's hard not to be the teeniest bit jealous that they will be 26 (younger than I was when starting) when we graduate and I'll be 33. It seems like there is always another hurdle. I truly wish all of you the best of luck in your application cycles. I hope you find your perfect fits!

[psychcoffeegal]

I feel so anxious for this cycle personally. This is my first time applying and I am preparing for those rejections. I'm extremely stressed for the GRE's. I've stated before that I'm a really bad test-taker. I'm sure everyone is nervous. Who else can relate?? 

[higaisha]

[LavenderGoat]

@psychcoffeegal

I feel you dude! Been taking practice tests for quant and it's.. it's not pretty... I've always been bad with algebra and it doesn't help that my study partner excels at math. 

[PsychApplicant2]

2 hours ago, psychcoffeegal said:

I feel so anxious for this cycle personally. This is my first time applying and I am preparing for those rejections. I'm extremely stressed for the GRE's. I've stated before that I'm a really bad test-taker. I'm sure everyone is nervous. Who else can relate?? 

Same.... very anxious for the GRE's. I'm taking mine in about 2 weeks. Thankfully a lot of schools are going GRE optional, but still... this application cycle scares me.

[psychcoffeegal]

1 hour ago, LavenderGoat said:

@psychcoffeegal

I feel you dude! Been taking practice tests for quant and it's.. it's not pretty... I've always been bad with algebra and it doesn't help that my study partner excels at math. 

Quant is rough... Verbal is rough too but not as crazy as quant... I've been scoring so low on practice exams ugh.

[justacigar]

6 hours ago, psychcoffeegal said:

I feel so anxious for this cycle personally. This is my first time applying and I am preparing for those rejections. I'm extremely stressed for the GRE's. I've stated before that I'm a really bad test-taker. I'm sure everyone is nervous. Who else can relate?? 

I definitely understand the anxiety of the first cycle, heck really any cycle lol. I would try to approach it with a learning mindset. I've seriously learned so much in my previous two cycles that there is no way I would have known unless I just tried and applied! Just be authentic to yourself and your goals. that's really all you can do - so much of applications are out of our hands. 

No matter the outcome, I promise you will come out the other side of the application process better than you went into it. You've got this! 

[justacigar]

On 7/9/2020 at 11:29 AM, EileanDonan said:

I relate to this so deeply. At this rate, I don't know if I'll ever make it into a program at all, much less definitely by the time I'm 30. Age-related pressure is so real for some people, it feels impossible not to compare yourself to your peers who are well settled into their careers or doctoral programs. No one wants to be the "unsuccessful one".

Exactly where I'm at too. It's such a struggle to see my friends at vastly different stages of life, buying houses and having babies and settled into lifetime-type jobs. I know this is what I want and I know I'm on a much different path than everyone else I know, but the comparison is difficult to stop sometimes.

[Rerun]

On 7/9/2020 at 11:13 AM, justacigar said:

I think Gregmat has been around for a while, he's really popular on Reddit which is the way I know of him. @Schy good luck with the GRE!! No need to be embarrassed at all - the GRE sucks. How do you feel about taking it at home?  

I'm feeling the pressure this round as it'll be my third year of applying. To be fair, my first round was sort of a shot in the dark and I did not have a chance in hell of getting in anywhere haha. I feel prepared and ready but also nervous and incompetent. Ah, imposter syndrome is so so fun. Last year I was an alternate and on the waitlist for a program...it really sucked to ALMOST make it but that makes me even more confident that this year I'll hopefully be successful. I'm not sure if I have another round in me, and I really want to get into a program before I'm 30 (turning 30 next August).

Any other second or third rounders out there? 

Shout out to the third rounders! We have the exact same story. I applied in 2018 (rejected all 4 schools) and 2019 (1 rejected 1 wait listed), battled with some impostor syndrome, GRE stress, shameless emails to my supervisors asking advice, etc. I am 31 now, but I've been taking a lot of pills of no self comparing, because it makes me really stress in a bad way. Talking about family, I've been trying to get pregnant in the past 2 years too, lol, so I am just crazy to do it all at once.

The different thing about this year is I got some new and kind mentors, a longer prep time to think through my goal (I am not sure I want to be in academia. Been working as a lecturer for 2 years and not so happy about it). But then I love research, so even re-applying again is a self reflection journey for me in the past months. I have an M.A. and been thinking if I can just make a career turn out of it.

I believe good things come in good timing and the past 2 years is a chance to prepare for myself better and think through my goal in life. Do I really want and need to do this?

Sending good vibes!

[EileanDonan]

8 hours ago, Rerun said:

Shout out to the third rounders! We have the exact same story. I applied in 2018 (rejected all 4 schools) and 2019 (1 rejected 1 wait listed), battled with some impostor syndrome, GRE stress, shameless emails to my supervisors asking advice, etc. I am 31 now, but I've been taking a lot of pills of no self comparing, because it makes me really stress in a bad way. Talking about family, I've been trying to get pregnant in the past 2 years too, lol, so I am just crazy to do it all at once.

The different thing about this year is I got some new and kind mentors, a longer prep time to think through my goal (I am not sure I want to be in academia. Been working as a lecturer for 2 years and not so happy about it). But then I love research, so even re-applying again is a self reflection journey for me in the past months. I have an M.A. and been thinking if I can just make a career turn out of it.

I believe good things come in good timing and the past 2 years is a chance to prepare for myself better and think through my goal in life. Do I really want and need to do this?

Sending good vibes!

I sympathize with you on the family front. My spouse and I aren't trying to have a child at the moment, but the future possibility of it is something that impacts our conversations now regarding career/academic moves. And did I mention that my spouse wants a PhD in a highly specific field as well? To say things have become convoluted is an understatement. I think you should be proud of yourself for getting that MA though! At this rate I'm planning on applying to a few myself, although so few of them are funded. You're not crazy, all we can do is our do our best with what life gives us! Out of the blue, I have my first RA interview in three months tomorrow; hopefully it's a harbinger of better things to come.

Edited July 13, 2020 by EileanDonan

[expensiveswimmer]

This is my first cycle and I'm absolutely winging it. Hopefully all goes well. It's reassuring to see that most everyone's in the same boat.

[PsyZei]

On 7/8/2020 at 2:55 PM, EmpatheticMastermind said:

Hi! Definitely feeling a bit of the stress, but glad I still have so much time until apps are due. Right now most of my free time is being spent taking online classes to shore up my basic psych requirements (Intro and Stats right now, Abnormal and Research Methods early fall). Otherwise, I've been studying a lot for the Psych GRE, since it's being offered near me in September and I'm hoping it'll add credibility to my knowledge of psychology not coming from a psych academic background. Probably the most promising thing has been hearing back from more than half of the professors I emailed that they are expecting to take a student and encourage me to apply. I didn't get any interviews the last time around, so hearing positive things about my current CV has helped ease the stress a bit.

Otherwise, wondering if I should go through programs again to see if any possible faculty mentors slipped through the cracks or be happy with my list.

What about everyone else?

I'm so glad you are networking with PIs! This proved really important when I was applying.

[PsyZei]

On 7/14/2020 at 2:17 PM, expensiveswimmer said:

This is my first cycle and I'm absolutely winging it. Hopefully all goes well. It's reassuring to see that most everyone's in the same boat.

Right? Good luck!

[Schy]

I have two exciting developments in my PhD Prep. My research advisor informed me over the weekend that she's moving me up to second author since I've helped her immensely on this one paper. It'll be the first time my name is actually on a publication and I'm so excited and it just feels good to be recognized, especially if it's going to improve my application. 

I've also been given the responsibility of leading the writing of a brand new paper. Recently my lab has collected a whole bunch of data and it's enough to get some research questions going. I'm ready for the challenge, but so far it has proved to be challenging. I've been working in the lab for a long time now and I feel like I've done everything but write on my own. I hope I can get out of this writing funk quickly, because I'd love to have even a draft of the intro by the weekend. lmao 

[psychpsychpsych]

I feel for all of you, I also applied twice and its just soooooo painful. You try to tell people (not in PhD world) about how *hard* it is to get into PhD and its just impossible... let alone trying to explain to them the imposter syndrome aspect. If anybody needs advice or just somebody to talk to about how much this process sucks, please feel free to PM. Good luck everybody, you can totally totally totally do this!!!

[PsyZei]

On 7/20/2020 at 12:45 PM, Schy said:

I have two exciting developments in my PhD Prep. My research advisor informed me over the weekend that she's moving me up to second author since I've helped her immensely on this one paper. It'll be the first time my name is actually on a publication and I'm so excited and it just feels good to be recognized, especially if it's going to improve my application. 

I've also been given the responsibility of leading the writing of a brand new paper. Recently my lab has collected a whole bunch of data and it's enough to get some research questions going. I'm ready for the challenge, but so far it has proved to be challenging. I've been working in the lab for a long time now and I feel like I've done everything but write on my own. I hope I can get out of this writing funk quickly, because I'd love to have even a draft of the intro by the weekend. lmao 

That is amazing, congrats!!! Good luck on the funk.

[PsyZei]

On 7/25/2020 at 11:33 PM, psychpsychpsych said:

I feel for all of you, I also applied twice and its just soooooo painful. You try to tell people (not in PhD world) about how *hard* it is to get into PhD and its just impossible... let alone trying to explain to them the imposter syndrome aspect. If anybody needs advice or just somebody to talk to about how much this process sucks, please feel free to PM. Good luck everybody, you can totally totally totally do this!!!

Yes! I really don't think people realize how difficult it is to get into PhD programs, especially if you don't come from a privileged background. My family of origin really just has no idea how hard doing this has been, or how competitive it is, then how hard the actual grad school is (especially right now with everything going on in the world). Ditto to you, if you ever want to vent or just not have to paint a rosy picture you can def dm me.