Canadian 2014 SLP

[Persis]

Hi Kats, VanTech and all who are feeling discouraged

 

I applied to U of T for my 4th time, and I got in!!  I am thrilled.  I know how tough it is to not get the acceptance.  The main thing I did different was I quit work to take more courses to really boost my GPA (which seemed ODD because I am a CDA so, I work doing speech therapy).  I volunteered in a research lab to diversify my experience, and I took enough courses to pull my GPA from a 3.3 to a 3.7-3.8.  On this years application I included my work experience in volunteer experience (and stated is was paid) because I found previous times that there was no way to fully account for my 8+ years of experience.

 

Don't give up!!  Feel free to ask any more specific questions

CDA to SLP where did you volunteer for the research?

[SALY]

Waitlisted at University of Alberta via letter in the mail. 

Does anyone know stats on how many people get waitlisted, or how many got in last year who were waitlisted there?

Does everyone just get waitlisted haha?

 

I am not sure about how many get in, but no not everyone gets waitlisted. A friend of mine called U of A yesterday and was told those on the waitlist would get their letters in the mail this week (they were mailed out last week) and anyone who does not get a waitlist letter will be contacted after April 15th letting them know of their rejection. So not everyone gets a waitlist letter!

Edited April 2, 2014 by SALY

[CDAtoSLP]

CDA to SLP where did you volunteer for the research?

I volunteered in a psychology lab.  So it wasn't directly speech research, but I think just the breadth of experience helped, and I have heard that U of T is big on research.  I also talked bout my interest in research in my personal submission

 

Reading through, I see some people have stellar stats, and all I can say is, I know grades are top, so if you have top grades, it's just a matter of getting more experience.

[PsycD]

Psyc labs are awesome for research experience if you get involved in all aspects of the process, and it's often easy to make connections with CSD/SLP. Can't beat it.

[CaraL]

Psyc labs are awesome for research experience if you get involved in all aspects of the process, and it's often easy to make connections with CSD/SLP. Can't beat it.

 

I'll jump in on this bandwagon and say I also got my foot in the door with research in a psyc lab! got connections and experience, and it's actually where i learned about speech pathology to begin with (had no idea this profession existed before 2011, oops!). started on the cognitive spectrum of things and shifted toward the linguistic aspect as i honed my interests, and all that experience helped when i was making my research proposal for my undergrad thesis. 

[mirbroSLP]

Hi everyone, 

 

This is my second time applying at UBC and first time at applying at Toronto and Western. Unfortunately, I got rejected from all schools  . I honestly thought I could at least be waitlisted at UBC since it was my second time applying (I did my undergrad there as well) and my references were even UBC graduate professors of the masters program. I don't know what else I could have done since I thought my SOI was well written and had 400+ hours volunteering with children AND adults in both clinical and school settings. I also have a sGPA of 3.9. Any advice? Today has not been going so well 

Did you call any of the schools to ask them why you were rejected. Sometimes there are errors in the system and if they can give you a reason then at least you know for later applications. I don't know but it might be worth a shot...

[Persis]

I volunteered in a psychology lab.  So it wasn't directly speech research, but I think just the breadth of experience helped, and I have heard that U of T is big on research.  I also talked bout my interest in research in my personal submission

 

Reading through, I see some people have stellar stats, and all I can say is, I know grades are top, so if you have top grades, it's just a matter of getting more experience.

You mean Psych lab at the school?  What if you are not in school anymore?

[goodiva]

Hello and congrats to everybody who has been accepted! For those who haven't, please don't feel discouraged and just keep trying - I have been accepted to Western and would be happy to share with you the things that I believe may have strengthened my application if you PM me.

[DeafAudi]

I third(?) PsycD and CaraL on getting research experience in psychology labs. I was fortunate enough to be involved in two separate psychology research projects that turned into CI research! Asemooooooo, I was not in school for either one. I approached professors who I know were doing research I was interested in and both were more than happy to have me. I even ended up getting a grant and a stipend for the other. It's free work, after all. Good luck!

[PsycD]

You mean Psych lab at the school? What if you are not in school anymore?

I spent two years in my school's Applied Psyc lab, then got a full-time job post-bac at Johns Hopkins doing research. Research institutions are always hiring.

[SALY]

I third(?) PsycD and CaraL on getting research experience in psychology labs. I was fortunate enough to be involved in two separate psychology research projects that turned into CI research! Asemooooooo, I was not in school for either one. I approached professors who I know were doing research I was interested in and both were more than happy to have me. I even ended up getting a grant and a stipend for the other. It's free work, after all. Good luck!

Haha me too! Mine was not even related to SLP. It was actually helping psychology PhD. students with their research on human personality.. which was interesting and extremely random as I am a Linguistics major! However, I took the opportunity because I have heard from numerous mentors that research experience of any kind is valued on an application. 

[contessa]

Hey everyone, been stalking this forum all year but never posted -- congrats to everyone that got accepted! I applied for the first time to UofT and Western and sadly think I have been rejected at both.  I am feeling rather discouraged, as I felt I had a strong application (but clearly not.)  

For those that re-applied and were successful this year, do you have any tips on how you made yourself more competitive? I have a really strong interest in SLP and am really hoping to study and work in this field one day. 

Don't worry! this was me last year. I was rejected to both schools and was extremely discouraged but I went back to school, boosted my gpa, got new clinical references, wrote a new personal statement and got into both UofT and Western this year! If this is what you want then don't give up and don't get discouraged!! 

[contessa]

I will also add for those who had high GPA's and did not get an acceptance, try contacting the schools to ask why you did not get accepted. I did this last year and Western in particular was kind enough to tell me the exact reason. UofT does not give out much information but you can try to ask them if they would be able to go through your file and let you know what went wrong. This is really helpful and will let you know the things you may have to work on to make your application more competitive next year!

If anyone has other specific questions about stats or anything I did differently to get accepted this year I would be happy to share through PM.

 

[MtlGal]

I'm just backing up everyone's tip about getting research experience. I actually majored in biology and was in a songbird lab for 1.5 years (working with birds was super fun but definitely not a career choice for me!). Then I moved on to a psych lab on bilingualism for over a year that I'm still analysing data for. But getting as much exposure to the field as possible through volunteer work or shadowing an SLP is also really important. 

 

I'm also happy to share some stats if you PM me, although I will say this: even if your GPA isn't super competitive, boost up your application with all the research, volunteer, and work experience you can get your hands on. I think that made a huge difference for me this time around.

Edited April 2, 2014 by MtlGal

[aykl]

Hey guys! Just wanted to extend a congratulations to everyone that was accepted and waitlisted the past couple of days. I also received an acceptance to Western, so for now, it looks like I'll be heading there although I am still holding out for acceptance off the wait list at UBC.

 

I wish I could hug every one of you that didn't get in - I had a few friends that applied to SLP and one to audiology and they were all rejected. Please please please please don't give up. The world needs more compassionate people, and it truly is inspiring to see all of these people applying 2-3-4 times before finally reading that admission letter. You can make it possible!!

 

I am a first-time applicant and if you would like to know my stats, extracurriculars, and how I approached the application, feel free to PM me. The beauty of these online forums is that you have a wealth of knowledge from past and present applicants - use it! I know I contacted anyone and everyone that had a link to SLP to ask for advice, and used it to tweak my application.

 

Best of luck to everyone that is still waiting for decisions! I'm super excited to meet you guys next year!

[SLP*2014]

Is anyone aware if Dal has already sent out all acceptance and wait-list offers? I have yet to hear anything and am curious if that just means a rejection

[SLP333]

I haven't heard of anyone being wait-listed at Dal yet. I contacted Mark by email yesterday and I was told everyone would be contacted by the Admissions Secretary by April 15th. 

[beckyfitz]

I haven't heard of anyone being wait-listed at Dal yet. I contacted Mark by email yesterday and I was told everyone would be contacted by the Admissions Secretary by April 15th. 

 

That's what I heard too:

Good afternoon Becky.

 

Thank you for your email.  I would like you to know that you should receive correspondence from our school's Admissions Secretary by the middle of April (April 15).

Mark

[kdot]

A girl at my school emailed dal yesterday and she thinks that the send out offers for the positions they have and then when people decline they send out more offers, so I wouldn't give up yet. 

[CaraL]

For Dalhousie folks - my admission offer has an April 21st deadline, so it may be until after that before you hear definitively! I'm guessing they send out rejections and waitlists by mail, and I have still yet to receive anything from them by post regarding my admission. When I called I was told the registrar's office is still printing/sending official offers of admission (what I received in email was a signed letter from the director saying my application had been sent to the registrar's office for admission). Hope that helps! 

[Sœur d'une Étoile]

A girl at my school emailed dal yesterday and she thinks that the send out offers for the positions they have and then when people decline they send out more offers, so I wouldn't give up yet. 

That's what I heard too:

Good afternoon Becky.

 

Thank you for your email.  I would like you to know that you should receive correspondence from our school's Admissions Secretary by the middle of April (April 15).

Mark

I haven't heard of anyone being wait-listed at Dal yet. I contacted Mark by email yesterday and I was told everyone would be contacted by the Admissions Secretary by April 15th. 

 

What are relief to get some news about timelines for Dal! Even thought it sounds like it still might be a while before we know our statuses. Thanks to everyone who gave input and congrats to those who have already been accepted.

 

I have yet to receive anything form Dal yet. I am hoping that is a good thing and that those of us still waiting will make the next round!!

I haven't heard of anyone getting any rejections or wait list letters form Dal yet.

Edited April 2, 2014 by 2014 Appy

[DeafAudi]

I was rejected from Dal last year and my letter came very late, I think sometime in May? 

[aykl]

DeafAudi, I was wondering when the deadline to respond to UBC is?

[DeafAudi]

DeafAudi, I was wondering when the deadline to respond to UBC is?

 

The deadline to accept the offer in writing is April 7 and the deposit is due April 14. Hope that helps!

[CaraL]

Spoke to a friend in the program at Dal, and they said from what they heard acceptances were sent out before April 1st and that waitlists/rejections would be out by mail. Sounds very similar to Toronto!

 

Fingers crossed for waitlists for those still waiting to hear!