Canadian Applicants 2014

[imnotbatman]

hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone has received an official acceptance from York university yet? Also, does anyone happen to have insight as to how the admissions process works? Ie. Does the application get sent to the graduate department first to screen prior to going to the department? Or does it go to the psyc department first and the graduate school makes sure that the applicant meets the minimum requirement after departmental approval?

 

>>I applied to the clinical psychology stream. 

[lewin]

Shocking.  I wonder why Medical schools have interviews for their MD/PhD program?  

 

Perhaps they are seeking both sets of skills? (interpersonal & research).

 

Clinical graduate programs are not solely research.

 

I wrote research but should have said "graduate school success". Some the research on this was actually done on medical students too.

 

Here's one example of a study that reviews the literature too.

 

Conclusion: "People form confident impressions [from unstructured interviews] and these impressions can interfere with the use of valid information. Our simple recommendation for those

making screening decisions is not to use them."

Edited March 14, 2014 by lewin

[rukiao]

That's interesting.  

[lm2014]

I just got a response; apparently they aren't interviewing this year. We should be hearing back by late March.

 

Thanks for the update. I was also wondering why I hadn't heard anything.

[kaleisi]

Well, to be honest, I did go (months ago) to the open doors at McGill and met with who I think is one of the professors in the counseling program briefly. First thing he asks me: what's your GPA? And when I told him, he was like.. well, we mostly look at grades. Of course, we take everything else into consideration but grades are most important. So it makes sense that they wouldn't be interviewing.

 

Turned me off, tbh.

[lm2014]

@kaleisi

That is really depressing, especially as I was hoping my experience would help. Do you mind telling me what your GPA was when he replied that way? Privately if you want.

[kbeadman]

Has anyone heard back regarding the I/O Masters Program at UWO? I haven't heard anything back, and have even emailed the graduate secretary. I've received offers from the other schools I applied at, so I find it quite strange there has been radial silence on their end.

[doefficient]

I hate that McGill is taking so long! This wait is awful.

[5070802]

Has anyone been offered admission at University of Windsor for their Child Clinical Program that is planning on turning them down?

[lm2014]

Has anyone else heard from McGill's counselling department today, besides the girl I was talking to earlier? Both of my applications for the MEd and MA Counselling are "In Review", but the website says all applicants will be notified by April 1st.

[Guest joshw4288]

Has anyone else heard from McGill's counselling department today, besides the girl I was talking to earlier? Both of my applications for the MEd and MA Counselling are "In Review", but the website says all applicants will be notified by April 1st.

April 1 is not yet over....

[happyveggie]

I haven't heard anything yet either. I don't think we'll hear back today. I doubt anyone works past 6pm there. I also applied for the MA and MEd and it's still in review.

[happyveggie]

Just got my email from McGill Counselling Psych Project concentration. I was rejected :-( The rejection letter doesn't say anything regarding reasons just that they had lots of applicants. Too bad but I guess it just didn't work out this time. The Internship concentration is still in review but I am expecting another rejection. 3 to go....

[*Jenny*]

I just got accepted to UBC Counselling Psychology! It was the only program I applied to and I am so very excited!!

[IanYoung]

Received an email from McGill to check the result on uApply but seems like the website has been down for a while. Anyone had the same problem?

 

>Edit: Solved. The website works again and shows me a rejection. Bummed up.

Edited April 4, 2014 by IanYoung

[doefficient]

Got rejected from 2/3 schools I applied to today. Totally bummed out .

[lm2014]

It seems everyone is hearing back from McGill (Counselling and Ed Psych), but I'm still under review. Should I call or keep waiting?

[Djentbot]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I spoke with the program coordinator at McGill yesterday and she said that all first-round acceptances for the MA Counselling (both project and internship concentrations) have already been emailed. If you're wait listed though you still stand a chance! I'm going to be declining my offer later today once it activates on uApply, and I'm sure other people will too so don't give up hope.

Edited April 4, 2014 by Djentbot

[Mannitol]

Hi, I'd like some advice on where to go from here. I'm in a bad situation because I'm currently in a program I'm not interested in. I'm currently 3rd yr bio specialist but i've developed a passion for psych over the years of my undergrad. I'd like to eventually apply to I/O graduate program
cGPA= 2.74. (however for my 5 psych courses that I took. One mark was a B, and the others were A/A+s. Do schools look at psych gpa specifically in any case? also note that I'm Canadian)
I'm contemplating between switching to a psych program for next year (4th yr) and maybe take an extra year to boost gpa and finish any courses required for that program. Any opinions on this? What's the best course of action at this point. I need some realistic goals

[spg5552000]

Hi, I'd like some advice on where to go from here. I'm in a bad situation because I'm currently in a program I'm not interested in. I'm currently 3rd yr bio specialist but i've developed a passion for psych over the years of my undergrad. I'd like to eventually apply to I/O graduate program

cGPA= 2.74. (however for my 5 psych courses that I took. One mark was a B, and the others were A/A+s. Do schools look at psych gpa specifically in any case? also note that I'm Canadian)

I'm contemplating between switching to a psych program for next year (4th yr) and maybe take an extra year to boost gpa and finish any courses required for that program. Any opinions on this? What's the best course of action at this point. I need some realistic goals

 

 

You can switch programs, however, I would suggest focusing on getting a Psych degree. Generally, grad schools want you to have an Hons. degree, which means more courses. Even a 3 yr BA is going to need additional courses since there is a minimum that you need. If you decide only to pursue the bio degree and try to get into I/O you will need to take the Psych GRE and score in the top 80-95% to show you have understanding of the field without getting a degree in it.

 

Some university programs also only look at your last 60 credit hours (2 full-time years). If you applied this fall, they would look at your year 2 and year 3 gpa. They do not specifically look at psych courses, though they may consider how you did in them compared to the bio courses when you give an explanation in you letter of intent as to why you changed your direction. Most graduate programs require a minimum of 3.0 on a 4.0 or a 4.5 gpa scale. I would strongly suggest spending the extra time getting the psych degree (you likely have the rest of your requirements, expect maybe an extra humanities courses outside of psychology) so get the courses under your belt, do up a thesis, and see if a high level stats course will be comparable to the psych stats (senior level), this might save you from having to take a heavy extra course. The other thing is to get some research work, with a prof or otherwise, to show your interest in psych research. Good marks in psych, though! This is doable, it just make take more than a year to get there. You are not the only one that changes their mind over their program, I knew one guy with A/A+ in 20 credit hours per semester, took 8 years and still finally walked out with a degree. He could have had six different degrees, but always changed his mind before taking the last required course. Extreme, yes, but in comparison, you are sitting in a possible situation. Best of luck!

[Mannitol]

You can switch programs, however, I would suggest focusing on getting a Psych degree. Generally, grad schools want you to have an Hons. degree, which means more courses. Even a 3 yr BA is going to need additional courses since there is a minimum that you need. If you decide only to pursue the bio degree and try to get into I/O you will need to take the Psych GRE and score in the top 80-95% to show you have understanding of the field without getting a degree in it.

 

Some university programs also only look at your last 60 credit hours (2 full-time years). If you applied this fall, they would look at your year 2 and year 3 gpa. They do not specifically look at psych courses, though they may consider how you did in them compared to the bio courses when you give an explanation in you letter of intent as to why you changed your direction. Most graduate programs require a minimum of 3.0 on a 4.0 or a 4.5 gpa scale. I would strongly suggest spending the extra time getting the psych degree (you likely have the rest of your requirements, expect maybe an extra humanities courses outside of psychology) so get the courses under your belt, do up a thesis, and see if a high level stats course will be comparable to the psych stats (senior level), this might save you from having to take a heavy extra course. The other thing is to get some research work, with a prof or otherwise, to show your interest in psych research. Good marks in psych, though! This is doable, it just make take more than a year to get there. You are not the only one that changes their mind over their program, I knew one guy with A/A+ in 20 credit hours per semester, took 8 years and still finally walked out with a degree. He could have had six different degrees, but always changed his mind before taking the last required course. Extreme, yes, but in comparison, you are sitting in a possible situation. Best of luck!

Hi spg, thanks for taking the time to response. I`ve just looked into what courses I would need to switch to a double major of biology/psych (double major would be equivalent to a specialist). I will only require one more course to complete the biology major, but since I've only taken 5 psych courses so far, I will need 8 more courses. So going into 4th year, I would take 5 courses each semester to be considered a full time load (1 bio + 8 psych + 1 elective). It would technically mean that I'll finish my double major by the end of my 4th year. However, I'm wondering if i should take an extra 5th year to boost GPA. OR if I should just pursue a new psych degree. 

Also, since I can pursue a Masters (which is relatively easier than a phd), will getting a high GPA in a masters degree make it more likely to get accepted into a PhD? Or are PhD programs also solely based on undergrad marks? (+ research). 

I've made a new thread on this. Anybody is appreciated to provide their opinion! Thanks.

[autismclinic]

Accepted into SCCP program @ Alberta

[FCP]

Anyone here on a wait list for clinical psychology still not heard back yet?