dukegirl09 Posted February 24, 2009 Posted February 24, 2009 Hey everyone-- I have a quick question about the importance (or unimportance) of school rankings for social psych PhD programs. When getting your Ph.D. how important is it REALLY to go to a "top-ranked" school? I ask because I've gotten into 2 schools (as you can tell by my signature) -- one is top 10, the other (which I am MAJORLY leaning towards) is top 100. However, the latter has research that is more in line with my interests, amazing funding opportunities, a group of faculty/grad students I hit it off with right away, and overall what I feel is a program that is just a better fit for me and my interests (not to mention closer to home). So -- my question is, would it be really dumb to pass up the higher-ranked school in favor of the better fit? How much do rankings really matter? Thanks!!
socialpsych Posted February 24, 2009 Posted February 24, 2009 Ask your advisors/LOR-writers or the grad students at your undergrad! Here is my relatively uninformed guess: 1) yes, reputation matters 2) rankings of entire psych departments do not always reflect the quality of the social program in particular 3) the quality of the social program is more important, and the quality of the individual person you'd be working with is even more important than that 4) rankings are just supposed to be a way of summarizing what people in the profession think, but sometimes they're based on weird indices (like total number of publications in top journals, which puts small programs at a disadvantage) and you're way better off just asking people in the profession what they think.
psychdork Posted February 24, 2009 Posted February 24, 2009 While ranking does matter, to me it sounds like you would much rather go to the lower ranked school since you listed its many positive factors. In my opinion, I would choose the better matched school, I think you would feel more comfortable there. Also, I feel that if you went to the higher ranked school you would be comparing your experience there to what you turned down, if that makes any sense. I say go with your heart and if you really want to go to the lower ranked school, then go for it!
charlotte.willer0320 Posted February 24, 2009 Posted February 24, 2009 The ranking of your school matters to the extent that it translates to much better job offers once you have your degree. You are also more likely to be considered for grants, fellowships, etc. So just like going to a top school for undergrad gives you more opportunities, you have more options when you go to a top grad school. That being said, if you would be much happier at the lower ranked school, then you have to take that into consideration. I've been at a top ranked school for the past 4 years and personally, i'm sick of the rat race and want to go someplace where i won't feel guilty if i actually have a life outside the lab. Therefore my happiness will be a huge factor in my final decision. Of course, when i say that i'm saying that i will probably choose a place that is top 30 rather than top 10. And there's a BIG difference between top 10 and top 100. BIG.
llcooln6 Posted February 24, 2009 Posted February 24, 2009 Do you guys think If i have not heard from claremont I am rejected?I know some people have heard from them with acceptances.... Thoughts anyone....
psychdork Posted February 24, 2009 Posted February 24, 2009 Do you guys think If i have not heard from claremont I am rejected?I know some people have heard from them with acceptances.... Thoughts anyone.... A friend of mine got her acceptance letter last night, so you probably still have some time.
blindblonde Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 So -- my question is, would it be really dumb to pass up the higher-ranked school in favor of the better fit? How much do rankings really matter? In my humble opinion, it doesn't matter as much as where you go but who you work with when you're there. I would opt for a lesser ranked school if I knew I was working in a lab with similar interests, or someone who is well-known in the field. To me, I could care less about ranking, but I have to look at the whole package of a school to determine I can be happy there for 5+ years--which really is the bottom line in this whole process.
SweeneyAmong Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 How is everyone feeling about the programs they haven't heard from? I'm thinking I must be unofficially waitlisted- it's weird not to have heard a peep from UVM or UMass.
poiuyt Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 How is everyone feeling about the programs they haven't heard from? How does "violent boiling hatred" sound? I'm talking to you Berkeley! At least Stanford had the decency to reject me outright and immediately. It's called respect! R-E-S-P-E-C-T. But you??? You just sit there not sending out my rejection letter and laughing to yourself. Laughing!!!! Yooooou bastard...
liszt85 Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 How does "violent boiling hatred" sound? I'm talking to you Berkeley! At least Stanford had the decency to reject me outright and immediately. It's called respect! R-E-S-P-E-C-T. But you??? You just sit there not sending out my rejection letter and laughing to yourself. Laughing!!!! Yooooou bastard... Absolutely! I applied to the cognitive section.. I've sent them 3 emails in the past one week. No response at all! :roll:
psychdork Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 Hey everyone, Out of curiosity, some people have said that they checked the school's website (no particular school in mind) and found out they were rejected/accepted. Anyway, I was wondering, where on the website/application do you look? I know it depends on the school, but just in general. Thanks!
llcooln6 Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 Anyone app;y to USC.......If you did apply are they annoying you too with there financial aid email ever couple of days What is the point of that, if i have not been accepted yet?
Itchy Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 How does "violent boiling hatred" sound? I'm talking to you Berkeley! At least Stanford had the decency to reject me outright and immediately. It's called respect! R-E-S-P-E-C-T. But you??? You just sit there not sending out my rejection letter and laughing to yourself. Laughing!!!! Yooooou bastard... I've heard from one program out of 7. I mean seriously, I know Penn has rejected me. They know it. Everyone knows it. At least allow me the dignity of closing the book on my failure. And that's only one example. Princeton? Stanford? No idea. None.
socialpsych Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 I've heard from one program out of 7. I mean seriously, I know Penn has rejected me. They know it. Everyone knows it. At least allow me the dignity of closing the book on my failure. And that's only one example. Princeton? Stanford? No idea. None. It sounds like some people have gotten rejections at Stanford, so maybe you are on some kind of waitlist. I know they've been doing interviews over the past couple weeks, though. :/ At Princeton, I haven't heard anything either and I'd been assuming that was bad news, because no one has actually been notified of a rejection. I have gotten in to some programs higher on my list and withdrawn my app, but I'm guessing I would have been rejected.
Itchy Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 It sounds like some people have gotten rejections at Stanford, so maybe you are on some kind of waitlist. I know they've been doing interviews over the past couple weeks, though. :/ At Princeton, I haven't heard anything either and I'd been assuming that was bad news, because no one has actually been notified of a rejection. I have gotten in to some programs higher on my list and withdrawn my app, but I'm guessing I would have been rejected. Thanks for that. Not the part about you getting rejected, the part where you provided helpful information. Helpfully. I've been fantasizing that since I've already met with a Princeton prof (almost a year ago) that they don't need to interview me, and that Stanford was so impressed with my application package that they also decided to forgo an interview as well. It's my fantasy. I'm a simple person.
hibeuxhereaux Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 Sweeney- I emailed UMass. No response.
poiuyt Posted February 25, 2009 Posted February 25, 2009 I've been fantasizing that since I've already met with a Princeton prof (almost a year ago) that they don't need to interview me, and that Stanford was so impressed with my application package that they also decided to forgo an interview as well. Fully supporting you in this decision.
Isobel Posted February 26, 2009 Posted February 26, 2009 Hello Everyone! I am an applicant to social psychology Ph.D. programs. My research focuses on stereotyping, prejudice, intergroup relations, and gender. Like everyone else, I have been stressing out over graduate school. Today I received an acceptance letter from Penn. State! Although University of Vermont (UVM) is considerably less prestigious than Penn State, I got a really good feeling when I went to visit UVM for my interview. I have not heard back from UVM (or any other school for that matter). Do any of you have suggestions about how I should go about choosing the graduate school that I will attend next fall? Maybe I wont get into any other programs. Then choosing will be really simple! Did any of you apply to UVM? Have you heard anything back from them yet? Thanks! I'm so glad that this resource is available!
TheEzrahite Posted February 26, 2009 Posted February 26, 2009 I see a few people mentioning rankings....what exactly are you using for this? The only rankings I have seen were on the social psychology network website, but they are well over a decade old.
hopeful2 Posted February 26, 2009 Posted February 26, 2009 All I know about Harvard is that Sidanius' lab is not accepting new grad students this year. how do you know?
hibeuxhereaux Posted February 27, 2009 Posted February 27, 2009 UCSC rejection day hurt. So, who got into UCSC? Details please!
Starlight Posted February 27, 2009 Posted February 27, 2009 UCSC rejection day hurt. So, who got into UCSC? Details please! Yeah, it did hurt. I have been accepted to schools that have a stronger program than Santa Cruz, but it just seemed like such a cool place. I think they had a lot of funding issues this year due to budget cuts to the University. Doesn't make it any easier though to be rejected.
poofypoof Posted February 27, 2009 Posted February 27, 2009 Same, I got rejected by UCSC but accepted to UCSD with a fellowship package. Go figure. I had applied to work with Zurbriggen and Grabe.
charlotte.willer0320 Posted February 27, 2009 Posted February 27, 2009 After you guys had interviews, how long was it before you heard whether you got in or not? I had an interview last Friday and i still haven't heard. Do you think this most likely means i didn't get in?
Itchy Posted February 27, 2009 Posted February 27, 2009 After you guys had interviews, how long was it before you heard whether you got in or not? I had an interview last Friday and i still haven't heard. Do you think this most likely means i didn't get in? It means nothing, I'm afraid. Some places make their minds up within hours. Some wait for the regularly scheduled meeting to discuss student placement. Some schools are waiting for grant/assistantship information. There's just no way to know what your school is doing short of asking them.
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