Just got admitted

[Arcadian]

I was just admitted to a program, and I have already accepted their offer (as it was my only offer). I have been in correspondence with three professors who are interested in working with me, and I am equally interested in working with all of them. Will I get to decide who is my graduate adviser, or will the program decide for me? Is it possible to work in more than one lab the first year?

[Laure]

I'd recommend asking one of the admissions people about this; it will likely vary by program, or even how many students each professor is currently working with. Admissions folk are usually very helpful! You might want to email so they can get back to you on their own time though, since it's a busy time for them to field phone calls.

[Strangefox]

Will I get to decide who is my graduate adviser, or will the program decide for me? Is it possible to work in more than one lab the first year?

Yeah, you should ask the program.

And congrats!

[Arcadian]

OK, will do. Also, they offered me a part-time TAship, monthly stipends, and coverage of tuition/fees for the first year, with the remaining years "determined by student performance and availability of funds." Is that pretty standard? I'm being optimistic right now, but how does it sound from a more objective point of view?

[neuropsych76]

OK, will do. Also, they offered me a part-time TAship, monthly stipends, and coverage of tuition/fees for the first year, with the remaining years "determined by student performance and availability of funds." Is that pretty standard? I'm being optimistic right now, but how does it sound from a more objective point of view?

I think (from my limited knowledge) that sounds pretty standard but I might be a little wary if they don't explicitly say they have had success funding students after the first year. I've seen some other programs that state things like "guarantee funding for five years" or "To date, we have consistently funded all students in good standing during their first five years." but it could just be different wording for the same thing.

[Arcadian]

I think (from my limited knowledge) that sounds pretty standard but I might be a little wary if they don't explicitly say they have had success funding students after the first year. I've seen some other programs that state things like "guarantee funding for five years" or "To date, we have consistently funded all students in good standing during their first five years." but it could just be different wording for the same thing.

OK. I spoke with several of the grad students there, and they all were being supported at their various stages, so I think the situation is pretty good. Of course it would be optimal to hear "five years guaranteed," but at this point I'll take what I can get!

[Sheepi]

Your degree is Cognition and Neuroscience? I'm doing neuroscience, and all of the programs that I applied to promised full tuition wavers for 5 years plus ~26k stipends for 5 years.. Basically, everything is free. Is your degree much different in that way?

It just seems weird to me.

[Sheepi]

Your degree is Cognition and Neuroscience? I'm doing neuroscience, and all of the programs that I applied to promised full tuition waivers for 5 years plus ~26k stipend every year for 5 years.. Basically, everything is free. Is your degree much different in that way?

It just seems weird to me.. I'm not familiar with why your program would differ for funding.

[Sheepi]

Curse my phone! Sorry for the double post, lol

[polarscribe]

That language is usually just to cover the department's butt in case of a serious program change - a budget cut, etc. Not an insubstantial risk in this day and age. If they contractually promised, unconditionally, "five years of funding" and suddenly saw their budget cut by 1/3, they'd be in some serious trouble. And of course, "student performance" is a standard clause - you're not going to get funded if you're about to flunk out.

[Arcadian]

Your degree is Cognition and Neuroscience? I'm doing neuroscience, and all of the programs that I applied to promised full tuition wavers for 5 years plus ~26k stipends for 5 years.. Basically, everything is free. Is your degree much different in that way?

It just seems weird to me.

Well like I said, the grad students all said they were getting their degree for free and decent financial support. They apparently don't guarantee it, but they still seem to be giving it.

Your response raises another question: How did you calculate the 26k stipend? Do you get paid year-round, or only for part of the year? I was given a monthly amount in my offer, but even when I multiple it by 12 it comes out to just under 20k. The professors DID say they were suffering budget cuts this year and would have fewer fellowships to offer. But I'm just thrilled I got accepted, haha.

Edited March 23, 2011 by Arcadian

[Sheepi]

Well like I said, the grad students all said they were getting their degree for free and decent financial support. They apparently don't guarantee it, but they still seem to be giving it.

Your response raises another question: How did you calculate the 26k stipend? Do you get paid year-round, or only for part of the year? I was given a monthly amount in my offer, but even when I multiple it by 12 it comes out to just under 20k. The professors DID say they were suffering budget cuts this year and would have fewer fellowships to offer. But I'm just thrilled I got accepted, haha.

26k per year is what the school I'm talking about quoted on the admissions webpage, paid over the year in bimonthly checks. I believe the first year is paid by the program and subsequent years by the advisor.

Your school might not guarantee the amount of your yearly pay, so a monthly amount makes sense.

Congrats on the acceptance! Don't mind me, I'm just trying to figure out how different schools and programs work, haha

[Arcadian]

26k per year is what the school I'm talking about quoted on the admissions webpage, paid over the year in bimonthly checks. I believe the first year is paid by the program and subsequent years by the advisor.

Your school might not guarantee the amount of your yearly pay, so a monthly amount makes sense.

Congrats on the acceptance! Don't mind me, I'm just trying to figure out how different schools and programs work, haha

Yeah, no problem. And I'm just trying to figure out some basic info from people already enrolled, so thanks.

[LJK]

The funding guarantee or lack there of could also just be an artifact of the public/private divide. At public schools, sometimes there are state laws interfering with how money is handled. I was told at a UCal school that they are not able to make multi-year guarantees but that they plan to fund students for 5 years and would just accept less students if there came a choice between funding those there and getting a new cohort - an effective guarantee. My current dept. which is at a private university guarantees 5 years of funding to students coming in with a BA/BS and 4 years to students coming in with a MA/MS. There are no state laws interfering with that.

I wouldn't be concerned if the students in the program are not concerned about the stability of their stipends. You will quickly learn once you are there whether things are straightforward, if anyone has fallen into a place where the stipend is less assured (year 6 perhaps?). Pay attention so you can avoid those pitfalls.

[hello! :)]

@Arcadian Congratulations on your acceptance!

I applied to both Neuroscience PhD programs and Psychology PhD programs, so I might be able to shed a little light on the funding differences. The "cognitive neuroscience" programs are typically associated with the psychology department, whereas neuroscience programs are usually more associated with the division of biological sciences.

Generally speaking, psychology programs offer smaller stipends, which come out to ~20K a year and require several terms of TA-ship. Some of the top programs in psychology may offer up to ~24K since they typically have more grant money, but that's not always true... which may be related to whether it's at a public or private institution. A professor once told me to be careful when a program does not guarantee funding for all 4-5 years. The best strategy in that case is to ask the current graduate students for their opinions about the funding situation, which sounds like you've already done. At one of the schools that this professor had interviewed at (years ago!), the 2nd year students there were absolutely miserable because funding for the 3rd-5th year was cut-throat and somewhat political. Many students actually left the program early with their MA received en route.

Neuroscience programs are typically funded by big training grants and guarantee funding for all 5 years (whether paid from the training grant or by grants from individual advisors). The stipend is usually higher ~26K and can get as high as ~30K depending on location (e.g. expensive cities)... The required number of TA-ships is also typically much less. All the neuroscience programs that I interviewed at required only one semester, with the option to do more, of course.

Hope that helps!

[hello! :)]

^^^ oops! Forgot to make my point... which is, if the other grad students in the program at UT Austin seem unconcerned about their funding for the next couple years, then I would think that's a good sign! As mentioned above, just under $20K is pretty standard.

Congrats, again!

[Arcadian]

Hey, thanks for the advice and encouragement.

[quote name=hello! ' timestamp='1300937357' post='230604]

The "cognitive neuroscience" programs are typically associated with the psychology department, whereas neuroscience programs are usually more associated with the division of biological sciences.

Edited March 24, 2011 by Arcadian

[hello! :)]

Thanks for clarifying. I notice that schools are doing that more and more, which I think is a nice trend, since it's more specific to the research that we do.

Hey, thanks for the advice and encouragement.

At UT Dallas, that distinction does not exist, which is one thing I like about the program. There is no traditional "Department of Psychology" or Biology. The program is based in the School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, which offers three PhD programs: Psychological Sciences, Cognition and Neuroscience, and Communication Science. The more traditional psychology students are in the Psych Sci program, while the more neuro-oriented students are in the Cog Neuro program, which is actually a combination of cognitive and basic neuroscience. Also, their labs are based in a separate institute called the Center for Brain Health which is really up and coming. Check it out:

http://www.brainhealth.utdallas.edu/

http://bbs.utdallas.edu/cogneuro/

[sociologia-psicologia]

Hey, thanks for the advice and encouragement.

That distinction does not exist at UT Dallas, which is one thing I like about the program. There is no traditional "Department of Psychology" or Biology. The program is based in the School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, which offers three PhD programs: Psychological Sciences, Cognition and Neuroscience, and Communication Science. The more traditional psychology students are in the Psych Sci program, while the more neuro-oriented students are in the Cog Neuro program, which is actually a combination of cognitive and basic neuroscience. Also, their labs are based in a separate institute called the Center for Brain Health which is really up and coming. Check it out:

http://www.brainhealth.utdallas.edu/

http://bbs.utdallas.edu/cogneuro/

 

I applied to the M.S. in Applied Cognition and Neuroscience myself. How do you like the program? Do you think it would allow someone to be prepared to apply for Ph.D. programs in counseling or clinical psychology? Or is solely geared for those who want to go to the Ph.D. in cognition and neuroscience?