weird stage of applications

[prospectivegradstudent21]

oh man reading everybodys credentials really makes me nervous. i feel like w so many amazing applicants and a higher influx of applicants its gonna be a tough year, wishing u all the best! idk about u guys but i was constantly checking every portal for all the schools i applied to and then my brain kind of just shut that off. feel like im not that strong of an applicant compared to a lot of u! my gpa is 3.78/4 but i have no thesis, no pubs or presentations  so i feel very nervous. also havent gotten any updates about any of my apps and none of the POI's have reached out to me so im just chilling in the middle of nothingness  id love to hear about everybodys credentials and if u have heard back from anybody, it could start a convo

[ClinPsych21]

OMG, same here. Looking at the result page flooded with pre-interviews is so daunting

[MyAmygdalaDoesn'tLikeThis]

1 hour ago, prospectivegradstudent21 said:

oh man reading everybodys credentials really makes me nervous. i feel like w so many amazing applicants and a higher influx of applicants its gonna be a tough year, wishing u all the best! idk about u guys but i was constantly checking every portal for all the schools i applied to and then my brain kind of just shut that off. feel like im not that strong of an applicant compared to a lot of u! my gpa is 3.78/4 but i have no thesis, no pubs or presentations  so i feel very nervous. also havent gotten any updates about any of my apps and none of the POI's have reached out to me so im just chilling in the middle of nothingness  id love to hear about everybodys credentials and if u have heard back from anybody, it could start a convo

I go back and forth between feeling confident and then completely demoralized. I have been a full-time research assistant for the last few years after graduating and am second author on a few papers, but between being stretched thin with working on faculty's research and it being next to impossible to get permission to use resources for my own ideas, I don't have any of my own pubs. I also didn't do a thesis as I had to work full-time through my Bachelor's and struggling to pay my bills took up too much time and energy to even consider Honor's college. I feel like I missed out. I did keep a 4.0 though and was summa cum laude, as well as the recipient of a prestigious award. I did one poster presentation for a research methods class. I just don't know if I compare to others with more pubs or better research experience (say at a bigger university). I'm terrified my statement isn't good enough and I can't think about anything else right now. Also, I applied last year and only got 1 interview, ending in rejection. I'm also a bit older than the average applicant and I am getting discouraged. Sigh...I've worked so hard and I just want a chance. And no, I've not heard from any POIs yet either. I've seen 2 programs I applied to have sent out prelim interviews to others.

[Happytobehere13]

I can definitely relate to y’all! I feel discouraged as well with seeing all the preliminary interviews. Wondered if it is something everyone that is being considered gets or not? I go back and forth between certain things not being a big deal (eg. GPA, GRE score, first author publications) vs my experience in the field so far (eg. Starting my private practice, being licensed, research experience, etc). 
 

I can’t help but be nervous and think what I’ve don’t isn’t enough ?
 

 

[CateFace]

I flip back and forth between confident that I am a strong candidate to completely convinced there is zero chance for me without another year of RA work and an honours thesis. It is a weird stage. 

I can say that I could lay out my strengths here and come across as intimidating - like I think literally all of us can - but it is not necessarily an accurate reflection either. I have things to offer for sure, but I also seriously lack in other areas (of course you want to capitalize on your assets though so that is what people will post!) So I wouldn't worry too much about what credentials others have. I honestly have a hard time even knowing what the average GPA of acceptance is because it seems so variable and only one component of what they use to grant admittance. 

[mattdamon]

1 hour ago, CateFace said:

I flip back and forth between confident that I am a strong candidate to completely convinced there is zero chance for me without another year of RA work and an honours thesis. It is a weird stage. 

I can say that I could lay out my strengths here and come across as intimidating - like I think literally all of us can - but it is not necessarily an accurate reflection either. I have things to offer for sure, but I also seriously lack in other areas (of course you want to capitalize on your assets though so that is what people will post!) So I wouldn't worry too much about what credentials others have. I honestly have a hard time even knowing what the average GPA of acceptance is because it seems so variable and only one component of what they use to grant admittance. 

I'm the same way. One day I will spend the whole day being confident and thinking I definitely am going to get in and then I either reread my materials and find about 1,000 flaws or I read other people's experiences and think about how many people applied this year and convince myself that there's no way I'm getting in.

I feel the same as you - I definitely could frame everything I've done in a really awesome way and make myself sound qualified and confident, but I'm not sure if I did that effectively in my application so I'm nervous as heck.

For my own sanity and my boyfriend's sanity I need to hear back about interviews soon because the longer I have to wait the more I flip back and forth and it sucks!!

[SocDevMum]

Sorry gang, it doesn't get better after you get accepted either.... I felt the same way last year before I got my admission offer.  Then I felt like I was awesome and amazing and qualified.  Then I met my cohort and immediately felt like a total failure next to some of them. It comes and goes, my mentor tells me to just expect it for years to come. 

  So much of this process is subjective, and dependent upon personality match and presentation.  You could be the most perfect applicant on paper to ever exist, but if their is no cohesion in communication style, interests and personality, it all doesn't matter. Know that you are qualified, beginning scientists, and that when the match is right you will get your offer. You are good enough, you just have to wait and see  

[PsyZei]

On 12/15/2020 at 1:58 PM, Randi S said:

Then I met my cohort and immediately felt like a total failure next to some of them. It comes and goes, my mentor tells me to just expect it for years to come. 

SAME!!!! My cohort and everyone in the program are freaking amazing. I am 100% convinced this whole process just comes down to luck and am grateful I just one of the ones was lucky enough to get acceptances.