Boosting the application this summer.

[Zeke]

Hello All!

 

I have been through the application ringer for clinical psych and a few other PhD programs before. I applied to 7, was wait listed at a few and eventually rejected to all. I ended up starting a master's program in general psychology mostly because I still wasn't sure in which direction I wanted to go. After two years I have really fallen for developmental and cognitive psych, mostly on the topics of working memory, reading, and language. This summer I'm trying to boost my application in any way possible. I've been a long time lurker and am currently looking for any suggestions I can get. I'm planning on retaking my GRE and the GRE Psych exams in the fall.

 

Some basic stats...

 

GRE: 157Q, 150V (I'm severely dyslexic)

Undergrad GPA: 3.51 - psych and philosophy

Grad GPA: 3.95

 

I have almost four years of research experience in a top 5 neurology lab in the country, am working on the final edits of a manuscript to a very well known and respected international journal, 4 poster presentations, and a nice research fellowship award through my current graduate school. 

 

So the question remains, what can I do to make my application more competitive? Should I mention my dyslexia in my personal statement? I'm not applying to any "elite" schools such as Stanford, Ivys, or the Midwestern schools like Indiana or Michigan many of you are as I would like to stay in New England. I have found some great possible matches at school like UMaine, UVM, Umass, & UConn.

 

Any suggestions or thoughts are welcome. 

 

Thanks all!

Zeke

 

 

[Jay's Brain]

Sounds like you're on the right track!

 

I think I will take a look at how much your research interests align with the current schools you are interested in matching with. Developmental and cognitive psychology are pretty different areas. Do you want to focus purely on either one? Or are you more interested in cognitive development of certain age groups (e.g. infants, adolescents, etc). You don't want to fall into the problem of applying to a cognitive program at one school and a developmental program at another. I assume that's not what you'll be doing, but really can't tell based on your information.

 

Other than honing down what your specific research interest are (totally important for your SOP), I think you have the makings of a competitive application! Get the GRE scores as high as you can, and then leave it at that. I too ran into the problem of trying to push my scores higher and experienced burnout for my second set of scores. I eventually ended up using my first ones and here I am going into a program in Fall.

Good luck!

[_kita]

I agree with Jay. You are becoming a rather competitive applicant. I think it's great that you even ended up with the time off, because it's really helped your professional development. It seems to really make you know yourself, and what you want to achieve. Your Statement of Purpose and Letters of Reference will probably be top notch. 

 

Really, focusing on your dyslexia may be more of wasted space. Most people I know who talk about disabilities use it to explain why they are qualified despite it. Really, if you incorporate into your statement, make sure it highlights how your dyslexia has helped you understand and see the world (and maybe your research interests) in a different way. Make it a strength, and not a struggle to overcome. That will highlight your maturity, and may help clarify application struggles without expressly saying you struggled with it. 

 

I'd focus really on drilling those math skills. If you can afford an prep program, such as Magoosh or EmpowerGRE, they can help you figure out strategies and improve those baseline skills. 

[Zeke]

Thank you for the comments Jay and Psychkita. My personal research is focused on psychometric tests that are better at detecting learning disabilities in those who have developed advanced compensation skills.  It's a tough mixture of things because some of the professors in developmental departments I would like to work with actually have PhDs in Cognitive or Quantitative. Nailing it down is difficult. There is one Cognitive program I'm considering applying to but the other seven are developmental. 

Edited June 4, 2015 by Zeke