2013 SLP Admissions Thread!

[slpgal123]

Ok... something really weird just happened and I am extremely confused. I looked at my phone this morning, and I had 59 new emails and was really confused. I then see that they're 59 "mailer-daemons" from all the spam that my account sent out to the 300+ addresses in my contacts since it was hacked (UGH). So I'm attempting to change my password, and have to log into a REALLY old email address to verify the password change.

 

In said really old email address (which I haven't logged into in ages), there's an email about a Brooklyn College Interview..... for the Speech-Language Pathology program. I hadn't responded to the previous email about the interview, and she said she needed me to email back to confirm whether or not I will be attending my interview since they can't hold my spot.  The email was sent by Angela Caragliano, from a legitimate @brooklyn.cuny.edu email address, and I google searched her and she is in fact the office manager for the Speech Path Program.

 

Do you think this is a weird coincidence, and the email wasn't actually sent to me considering it was sent to an email address I definitely did not include on my application? Or do you think they somehow got a hold of said email address? (My first and last name is attached to this email address despite it being old).

 

I'm truly so confused about this and whether or not it was 1) legitimate and 2) meant for me haha. So weird!

 

EDIT:
Just saw another email from Brooklyn College in this email address that gives me my accurate login information for their portal that I also received to my email address that I provided on my application. So it definitely seems that they know that it's me.... (as my login username is my last name... and the email is addressed to my first name), but how in the world did they get this email address??

Edited March 17, 2013 by slpgal123

[queenleblanc]

That does sound strange, about them getting an email address you didn't give them. Are you still going to call to schedule the interview at this point, or do you want to? I would call and state that you didn't realize the interview request went to an address that you did not intended to put in your application or something Iike that. I agree that it is a bit bizarre, but maybe all of that happened just so you would check the old email address!!

[slpgal123]

I'm just so confused. Like you know the stupid kind of email addresses people made in middle school having nothing to do with their name? It's one of those haha.

 

I'm definitely going to call on Monday (I've already responded to the email), I just hope it's not too late. The original email says how the interviews are not rescheduleable, and how you must respond by 3/11. And then my second one came on 3/12 basically being like "last chance because we can't hold you spot". Obviously... I'm replying 5 days later. I'm hoping they'll still either let me go to that interview or let me schedule a new one though considering they haven't been emailing the email address I provided on my application.... (aka the one I check).

 

Very odd though! Watch it still not be a real thing... I wouldn't be surprised haha.

[513love]

And don't forget, NW is prohibitively expensive.  Yikes.  $43,000 a year is hard to swallow.

 

Yea, and then you have to think about cost of housing as well 

[SLPtoBEweee]

And don't forget, NW is prohibitively expensive.  Yikes.  $43,000 a year is hard to swallow.

 

 

I know - it's funny - Northwestern has always been one of my "dream" schools... But I knew it would only be feasible with serious funding.  Ugh!  Maybe it's better to not get in with the first round than to have to pass it up without funding!  Especially since I have funding offers from 2 schools already.... sigh......  This process is so hard!!

[JaneAustin]

slpgal123, is this old email address listed on your Facebook account or other social media that is under your real name.  We should consider that just like employers looking at potential hires, perhaps the adcoms look at our facebook accounts to see what sort of person we are....(?!!!). Which is a good reminder to keep anything we wouldn't want people outside our peer group to see, as private.  I don't want to kick off a wave of paranoia, but it's something to consider.

 

Anyhow, perhaps this is where your alternative email address was found.  Just a thought...

Edited March 17, 2013 by JaneAustin

[jeffmooo]

slpgal123, is this old email address listed on your Facebook account or other social media that is under your real name.  We should consider that just like employers looking at potential hires, perhaps the adcoms look at our facebook accounts to see what sort of person we are....(?!!!). Which is a good reminder to keep anything we wouldn't want people outside our peer group to see, as private.  I don't want to kick off a wave of paranoia, but it's something to consider.

 

Anyhow, perhaps this is were your alternative email address was found.  Just a thought...

 

That's why I locked down my FB, Twitter and Instagram accounts during this whole process. Although nothing really reflects negatively on me, my perspective may not be the same as someone else's.

 

Paranoid Android.

[slpgal123]

JaneAustin and jeffmooo, this email address I haven't used since middle school, years before I got a facebook. So it's not listed on facebook, or any other social media websites (facebook's really the only one I use anyway). Plus, my facebook is private. Don't worry, I'm with you guys on the paranoia haha. It's just weird because since I haven't used this email address for a minimum of.... 8 years... literally no emails even get sent to it. So it's weird that Brooklyn College would have found it, when it hasn't even gotten overrun by random spam. Hopefully they'll agree to let me interview still despite missing their deadline when I call tomorrow. I just still don't understand why they would send it to any email address other than the one provided on my application. Very weird!

[JaneAustin]

That's truly bizarre!

[mystiqueSLP]

Funny anecdote that isn't really related: my sister is a freshman in college doing work-study at the university's graduate program for applied and clinical psych. She told me that it was her who was organizing the applications into files and placing them into accepted/rejected/waitlisted piles according to a list. Every applicant had perfect scores and long resumes full of experiences but she told me how one guy was rejected for being "too obsessive" during the interview and the professor noted in his comments, "don't know how I'll teach with him in the class". I teased her about putting an applicant in the wrong pile and she said she made sure she didn't

I know this isn't really related to SLP but I was really surprised to hear that some freshman could be handling our applications in the end.

Edited March 17, 2013 by mystiqueSLP

[Inny]

Funny anecdote that isn't really related: my sister is a freshman in college doing work-study at the university's graduate program for applied and clinical psych. She told me that it was her who was organizing the applications into files and placing them into accepted/rejected/waitlisted piles according to a list. Every applicant had perfect scores and long resumes full of experiences but she told me how one guy was rejected for being "too obsessive" during the interview and the professor noted in his comments, "don't know how I'll teach with him in the class". I teased her about putting an applicant in the wrong pile and she said she made sure she didn't

I know this isn't really related to SLP but I was really surprised to hear that some freshman could be handling our applications in the end.

 

I actually quite enjoyed that anecdote. Thank you! 

[meangreen23]

I have a good friend that is a GA for the SLP and AuD applicants at one of the schools I appiled to. She said GA's scored the SOP and letters of reccomendation. Seems like a flawed system to me...  I guess it works for them. 

[SLPjmar]

I have a good friend that is a GA for the SLP and AuD applicants at one of the schools I appiled to. She said GA's scored the SOP and letters of reccomendation. Seems like a flawed system to me... I guess it works for them.

That also doesn't sound right to me.

[meangreen23]

That also doesn't sound right to me.

 

Yeah, she said the admissions committee looks at the top scored applicants (going off of what the GA's scored them). Good to know some GA out there gets to have a say in the entire process.  It annoyed me since its my undergrad institution. 

[SLPjmar]

Yeah, she said the admissions committee looks at the top scored applicants (going off of what the GA's scored them). Good to know some GA out there gets to have a say in the entire process. It annoyed me since its my undergrad institution.

I just feel like if you're paying to apply, your application should be scored by the actual admissions committee. Not a GA who is barely qualified to do that. Doesn't seem right. I'm hoping the majority of schools do not do this.

[meangreen23]

I just feel like if you're paying to apply, your application should be scored by the actual admissions committee. Not a GA who is barely qualified to do that. Doesn't seem right. I'm hoping the majority of schools do not do this.

 

Yeah, I am hoping so also! They had about 500 applications this year. I guess that’s a more time efficient way of doing things? I have no idea. 

[occamstoothbrush]

And don't forget, NW is prohibitively expensive.  Yikes.  $43,000 a year is hard to swallow.

 

Just out of curiosity, how are you getting that number?  I have it at even higher than that.

[katieliz456]

I just feel like if you're paying to apply, your application should be scored by the actual admissions committee. Not a GA who is barely qualified to do that. Doesn't seem right. I'm hoping the majority of schools do not do this.

I agree :/ I guess i could understand if the GAs helped sort through some aspect that was more quantifiable and less subjective, like discarding all applications with a GPA below 3.0, or sorting applications based on GRE.  I suppose it could be helpful for them to read the letters/statements and maybe make some brief notes for the adcomm, like "This applicant is REALLY interested in the CI research projects in Professor X's lab", or "All of this applicant's letters give negative reviews of her academic performance", but I can't believe they let grad students actually score these things! D:

[JJ11211]

I know - it's funny - Northwestern has always been one of my "dream" schools... But I knew it would only be feasible with serious funding. Ugh! Maybe it's better to not get in with the first round than to have to pass it up without funding! Especially since I have funding offers from 2 schools already.... sigh...... This process is so hard!!

Did you get funding from OUHSC? I have been accepted at OU but no funding offer.

Edited March 17, 2013 by JJ11211

[slpslp]

I know - it's funny - Northwestern has always been one of my "dream" schools... But I knew it would only be feasible with serious funding.  Ugh!  Maybe it's better to not get in with the first round than to have to pass it up without funding!  Especially since I have funding offers from 2 schools already.... sigh......  This process is so hard!!

 Do you happen to know how they are doing this "first round" process? I havent heard anything either but don't know if that means I should just assume a rejection and move on to the other schools I was admitted to or not!!!

 

(PS, totally in the same boat as you! NU is way expensive and I'm almost glad I didn't get in because it would have been so hard to turn down because of the cost when I could have gone to another great school for almost nothing!)

[isabel_is_confused]

someone at UF asked when were gonna find out and this lady said they should be sending them out like tuesday or wednesday. however, i think its thru snail mail to our "permanent" addressees :/

[SLPtoBEweee]

Did you get funding from OUHSC? I have been accepted at OU but no funding offer.

 

Nope - I got some from the other 2 schools (TU & UT-Dallas).  I asked about funding at OU, and it sounds like they haven't made decisions yet, but what they do give will be very minimal (at least that's what they told me).  But, with in-state rates, the tuition at OUHSC is still very affordable....  Are you in-state as well?  Congrats on OU!

 

 Do you happen to know how they are doing this "first round" process? I havent heard anything either but don't know if that means I should just assume a rejection and move on to the other schools I was admitted to or not!!!

 

(PS, totally in the same boat as you! NU is way expensive and I'm almost glad I didn't get in because it would have been so hard to turn down because of the cost when I could have gone to another great school for almost nothing!)

 

I have NO idea - I was freaking about it yesterday, but I have come to a calm now.  I assume we will probably hear something this coming week since they seem to do it all at once in the past.  They must have been anxious to get some of these decisions out, which is why they came out on Saturday.  I am not too hopeful that I will get in with first round, but ya never know.  (And I totally agree - today I realized I would probably rather not get in first round at NU and have to turn down an offer at full price!)  If we don't hear from them by mid-week, I might think about emailing to ask about my status.. but I will probably just wait it out and see where I stand at the end of this week, since I should hear from UT-Austin (my last to hear from) this week.  At that point, I want to be able to start thinking about making a decision!  Good luck to you!!  Let us know on here if your hear anything, and I'll do the same.

[Inny]

I agree :/ I guess i could understand if the GAs helped sort through some aspect that was more quantifiable and less subjective, like discarding all applications with a GPA below 3.0, or sorting applications based on GRE.  I suppose it could be helpful for them to read the letters/statements and maybe make some brief notes for the adcomm, like "This applicant is REALLY interested in the CI research projects in Professor X's lab", or "All of this applicant's letters give negative reviews of her academic performance", but I can't believe they let grad students actually score these things! D:

Just to play devil's advocate for a moment -- we need to remember that some applications are just really weak. I'm not talking about "Somewhat lower GPA but lots of clinical and research experience", I'm talking like, 2.0 and no experience kinds of applications. 

There has to be a way to weed these out. Otherwise it would take a century. 

 

BTW -- does GA = graduate assistant? 

[JJ11211]

Nope - I got some from the other 2 schools (TU & UT-Dallas).  I asked about funding at OU, and it sounds like they haven't made decisions yet, but what they do give will be very minimal (at least that's what they told me).  But, with in-state rates, the tuition at OUHSC is still very affordable....  Are you in-state as well?  Congrats on OU!

 

 

I have NO idea - I was freaking about it yesterday, but I have come to a calm now.  I assume we will probably hear something this coming week since they seem to do it all at once in the past.  They must have been anxious to get some of these decisions out, which is why they came out on Saturday.  I am not too hopeful that I will get in with first round, but ya never know.  (And I totally agree - today I realized I would probably rather not get in first round at NU and have to turn down an offer at full price!)  If we don't hear from them by mid-week, I might think about emailing to ask about my status.. but I will probably just wait it out and see where I stand at the end of this week, since I should hear from UT-Austin (my last to hear from) this week.  At that point, I want to be able to start thinking about making a decision!  Good luck to you!!  Let us know on here if your hear anything, and I'll do the same.

 

Yeah, I'm in state too.  I also heard the same thing about funding.  Thanks for sharing the information.  OU was my only school to apply for, because I can't leave Oklahoma right now (family reasons) and I wanted a degree that would travel well.  Perhaps I should have applied to Tulsa, but that would have been an awful commute for me.  

 

OSU-Stillwater offers a lot more funding than OU for the clinical SLP program, or at least they have in years past.  I considered applying, but it just didn't feel right to me.  

[SLPtoBEweee]

Yeah, I'm in state too.  I also heard the same thing about funding.  Thanks for sharing the information.  OU was my only school to apply for, because I can't leave Oklahoma right now (family reasons) and I wanted a degree that would travel well.  Perhaps I should have applied to Tulsa, but that would have been an awful commute for me.  

 

OSU-Stillwater offers a lot more funding than OU for the clinical SLP program, or at least they have in years past.  I considered applying, but it just didn't feel right to me.  

 

I agree - I didn't apply to OSU because I didn't feel like it was a good fit for me.  OU sounds like a great program, and I'm sure you will love it.  Even though funding options aren't great, it is still relatively inexpensive.  And commuting from OKC area to Tulsa does sound awful - I wouldn't do that !!!  Luckily, I have the flexibility to move around.  Have you visited OUHSC yet?  I am planning to go visit sometime later this month!