2009-2010: The Numbers (# of applications, interviews, acceptances, etc)

You may want to add "# of applications submitted" as well!

I think it's important to separate out undergraduate research experience and full-time research experience too.

1) Clinical Psychology PhD emphasis on Forensics

2) 12, 11 completed (silly admissions committees losing my stuff)

3) 8 total (8/11) 6 in person, 2 phone (declined 1 in person), so only interviewed for 7

4) 3 Waitlists, 1 rejection from, 2 acceptances from

5) 4 total (1 post interview, 3 pre-interview)

6) 7 given (2 from waitlist, 5 post interview) so basically 7/11

7) 590 V (85%), 740 Quant (84%) = 1330 Accum, Writing 5, 710 Psych (do not remember %ile)

8) 3.27 (3.8 Psych)

9) almost nil on clinical experience, none that didn't also involve research

10) 6 undergraduate, 2 full-time NIH post-graduate years of research experience, several summer fellowships

11) See link below for Curricula Vita, it might be too long to really put here

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0Aaa7BtfLZL3SZGZ4Mng5YzZfM2RxOW1rZGY4&hl=en

Also, here is a link to my personal statement, if any of you steal it I will hunt you down , but seriously though, I wouldn't suggest using any of this unless you actually come from a similar background as I do. I truly believe in the freedom of information, I really don't want to put this silly thing on a GNU but I would if I had to. I just want everyone to be as fortunate as I am when it comes to applying

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0Aaa7BtfLZL3SZGZ4Mng5YzZfNGZzbTlnOGhj&hl=en

12) Well look, I have a strong basic science background, which is huge because a common goal for psychology is to be more of a basic science... Every interview told me that they did not care about clinical experience because THEY could teach me that, what they cared about was that they thought that because of my strong research and basic science background I could come right in and settle into the demands of graduate research and training...

My letters were also nice, even though they were NOT from psych people per say (1 was from an adviser in Cincinnati, who is not a clinical faculty member) my other 2 letters were from NIH advisers that hold respectable positions. They both talked about how my training in the basic sciences and my background in translational research would significantly impact the field of psychology I am going into, and that the fields of medicine, immunology and neuroscience/neurology are losing a great asset by me leaving the field, which in itself is a huge compliment.

Also if you look at my Vita, I feel that it really speaks for itself, that even though my GPA blows all my other elements are fine and brought me up. My personal statement was honest but got the point across.

Really good luck to all of you, please address any questions ON THIS BOARD so others may see them too!

I'm going to go ahead I feel mine might be a lot different, but I think I learned a few things about my marketability over the last two years and I am REALLY ready to go back to school, so I pulled out all the stops. I also recently got married and things are pretty tight financially. She also wants to stay close to her family so I was bound geographically to about a 4 hr radius.

1) and 2) Areas: I applied to 2 PhD clinical, 2 PsyD clinical, 2 PhD counseling, 2 master's counseling, and 1 PhD criminal justice

3) Interviews: So far I have had 4 interview invites, but two of the programs do not do interviews so I am just waiting to hear back from them.

4) Waitlists: 2 as far as I know right now.

5) Rejections: 2

6) Acceptance:1 (SO FAR). Have to be positive

7) GRE: 1230

8) GPA: 3.84

9) Clinical Experience: Two years of case management at CMHC. One year intern at CMHC

10) Research Experience:Weakest part of my application: Research Assistant, one semester for professor. Author and Designer of Independent study.

11) Publication info: Submitted one paper for publication but was rejected.

12) Other Info: As I said before I feel that my situation is considerably different than a lot. I went to a very small private undergrad, where there were not any grad students doing research, or professors for that matter. One professor was slowly working on a project and I was able to "ra" for him for one semester. I had to do an independent study to get my research experience. That being said I think my clinical experience has been what has saved me, and the fact that I apply with very narrow interests that my research has been on. I guess that's it.

Edit: My acceptance is at my 3rd choice, I am waitlisted at my 1st and 2nd choice so let's see what happens!

Great thread! I've been wanting to do something like this because I'm just as curious about how things have worked out for everyone else!

Clinical PhD and Joint Clinical-Developmental PhD programs
18 applications
5 interviews
3 acceptances, 1 withdrawn application, no waitlists
Accepted at 1st choice

770 Math, 570 Verbal
620 Psych
3.57 UGPA, 3.7 Psych GPA

No pubs or presentations
Undergraduate Honors Thesis
2 years research experience in undergrad, 1.5-2 years full time research
1.5 cumulatively clinical experience

For me, full-time research after undergrad I think made the biggest difference and applying to programs that truly fit my interests and orientation.

1) Area: mainly clinical, but one health, and one counseling

2) # of applications submitted: 10

3) # of interview invites? 6 (withdrew from 1)

4) # of waitlists: 0 (very surprising!)

5) # of rejections: 3 without an interview invite, 1 after interview

6) # of acceptances: 5

7) GRE score: 1st time: 1110, 2nd time: 1160, 3rd time: 1280 (never had I felt so stupid before!!), Writing: 5, Psyc: 700

8) GPA: 3.69 overall, 4.0 psych

9) Years of clinical experience: about 1 year total? 1 semester-long internship, and 2 training experiences

10) Years of research experience: lots... all undergrad! 5 different studies, 1 honors thesis (I think programs found this to be the most impressive part of my app. Definitely get involved!!!)

11) Information about publications, presentations: no pubs. 3 different presentations on my honors project.

12) Give any relevant information:
1. Get involved with research! Apply to the psych honors program if there is one!
2. Get to know your professors really well! It helps if you have worked in their lab and they know you so that they can write you a really good letter. If you have only taken a class with them, it won't help much!
3. Research all the programs in depth so that you can write personalized Personal Statements.

I got accepted to my first choice! I found that my rankings changed during the interview process -- you learn so much more about programs by going there rather than just reading the website.

1) Counseling and Clinical PhD

2) 10 Counseling, 4 clinical

3) 10 Interview invites (8 counseling, 2 clinical)

4) 2 waitlists (one without interview)

5) 1 rejection

6) 7 acceptances (all counseling)

7) GRE: V 720, Q 700, Psyc 730

8) Undergrad GPA - 3.76, Graduate (Counseling) 3.97

9) Clinical exp - 2 years as a therapist, 4 1/2 years as a counselor & 2 years as a case manager

10) Biggest weakness (1 year volunteer RA in undergrad, worked through literature review on two of my own studies)

11) No publications, no presentations

12) I did not have my schools ranked because, honestly, I thought my lack of research experience would put me at a significant disadvantage. It did not! I think the things that helped me the most were confidence, knowing myself well being older, having gotten a Master's degree and having varied experiences. I think my experiences helped me stand out from a lot of my fellow interviewees. I also have very clear, unique research interests and have completed most of the background research to start my own studies. I also am an ethnic minority and, since diversity is an issue, I don't think it hurt. Finally, I did a lot of research on the programs and made sure that I was an excellent fit in regards to research and my values. I look back on the ones where I did not get interviews and I was not a good fit for those programs.

So... any of you planning on applying and worried that your lack of research experience will make it impossible, it is not. I think I put too much stock in that and did not recognize that the rest of my application was competitive and found significant success. If you really want it, go for it!

1) Area: clinical

2) # of applications submitted: 7

3) # of interview invites: 2

4) # of waitlists: 2 (one without an interview)
5) # of rejections: 6 (2 post-interview)

6) # of acceptances: none, yet

7) GRE score: V: 590 Q: 740

8) GPA: 3.71

9) Years of clinical experience: 1 (volunteering at a preschool)

10) Years of research experience (undergrad. versus full-time research): 2 (I worked in 3 different labs total)

11) Information about publications, presentations: none

12) Give any relevant information that you think helped you to do well this cycle or that you feel you could improve on for the next cycle. :

Make some more changes to my statement of purpose. The strengths I listed were not the same as the ones that I talked about in the interview.

I've also heard that programs prefer applicants who aren't coming straight out of undergrad.

I talked very easily about my research, I was prepared in my interviews. They complimented me on my understanding of the central research construct (children's play), my letters of recommendation (that they really enjoyed working with me), and the fact that I seemed thoughtful in my responses to questions and their answers to my questions, and followed up in a manner that segued well, as opposed to just spewing word vomit all over the room.

I also applied to fewer programs than I was advised (I was told 10-15). But I only applied to programs that had a good faculty match in research. Even if I liked the program, if there was no POI for me, I didn't "stretch" my interests to try to fit in...

Did you get into your 1st, 2nd, 3rd choice school?: my interviews were at my #1 and #2.

1) 6 Clinical Ph.d and 3 Psy.d

2) # of applications submitted- 9

3) # of interview invites- 5

4) # of waitlists- 0

5) # of rejections 4

6) # of acceptances 3 so far (1 Clinical Ph.d; 2 Clinical Psy.d)

7) GRE score 1270 (650 V, 620 Q, AWA 4.5)

8) GPA- 3.63

9) Years of clinical experience 2.5

10) Years of research experience (undergrad. versus full-time research) 2 yrs undergrad, 1 year continued research with undergrad advisor

11) Information about publications, presentations- 2 school poster presentations and 1 poster presentation at APS (first author)

12) Give any relevant information that you think helped you to do well this cycle or that you feel you could improve on for the next cycle. (Also of interest might be: Did you get into your 1st, 2nd, 3rd choice school?)

I was very surprised and grateful to receive 5 interviews. In hindsight, I wish I would have applied to more programs and not have been so intimidated by some of the more competitive programs. Never took the Psych GRE so this was one reason.

I am incredibly excited about my first acceptance and know its a great fit. It is unfortunately unfunded and now I'm realizing the debt I will accrue.

Congratulations to all for surviving the process! Its been an emotional roller coaster that is finally over.

So... any of you planning on applying and worried that your lack of research experience will make it impossible, it is not. I think I put too much stock in that and did not recognize that the rest of my application was competitive and found significant success. If you really want it, go for it! [/QUOTE]

So did you decide on where you are going yet? You can PM me if you want. Just curious. Congratulations as well.

.

1 and 2) Area: school, clinical, counseling, other - 12 clinical Ph.D. 2 clinical PsyD, 10 counseling Ph.D.

3) # of interview invites - 15 (but turned down 2)

4) # of waitlists - 3 so far

5) # of rejections - 3 without interview, 7 post-interview

6) # of acceptances - 1

Haven't heard anything at all from 6 that didn't offer interviews and 4 that I did interview at

7) GRE score - 1580 (800 quant, 780 verbal), 5.5 analytical writing

8) GPA - 3.83 total, 3.97 psych undergrad, 4.0 master's

9) Years of clinical experience - 7 and a half (real clinical; post-masters)

10) Years of research experience (undergrad. versus full-time research) - about 3 across various settings, all in school

11) Information about publications, presentations - 1 publication, 4 presentations

12) Give any relevant information that you think helped you to do well this cycle or that you feel you could improve on for the next cycle. (Also of interest might be: Did you get into your 1st, 2nd, 3rd choice school?) - Apparently I suck in person. The school I've been accepted to is one of my top choices however. Funding isn't great though.

Area: Clinical

# of applications submitted: 12

# of interview invites: 8 (I ended up only attending 5 of these interviews and canceling the other 3 after being accepted to my top choice)

# of waitlists: 1 (which I removed myself from after accepting another offer)

# of rejections: 4

# of acceptances: 3

GRE score: 1290

GPA: 3.87

Years of clinical experience: 2 (full-time clinical research coordinator for an NIH-funded study)

Years of research experience: 4 (2 years as an undergrad and 2 in my current position)

Information about publications, presentations: 1 publication pending

Give any relevant information that you think helped you to do well this cycle or that you feel you could improve on for the next cycle. I'm happy that I applied to schools based on match, rather than convincing myself that I wouldn't measure up to other applicants at certain programs. I was accepted to (and will be attending) a highly competitive program (which I'm still kind of in shock about) and some of my stats (GRE scores) were not extremely competitive. However, my work in my current position was pretty much exactly what my mentor was doing, which I think is what sealed the deal.

1) Area: Clinical Phd

2) # of applications submitted: 8

3) # of interview invites: 2

4) # of waitlists: 2

5) # of rejections: 3 received, 3 implied as no interview, 1 implied because 1st applicant offered a place accepted it and I was waitlisted: 7

6) # of acceptances: 1 , whoo hoo! from waitlist.

7) GRE score: 770q, 760V, 5.0 AW, 810 subject

8) GPA: 3.3

9) Years of clinical experience: 0

10) Years of research experience: 4 years part time volunteer (after undergrad) at a medical center/ psychiatric institute

11) Information about publications, presentations: no presentations, 3 pubs but none of them came from my research experience ( I had another volunteer position where I edited manuscripts before they were submitted for publication, on three of these I was asked to contribute writing as I had some knowledge of the subject area)

12) Improve on for the next cycle:
do a better job of researching schools and finding the best fits regardless of geographic area, applying to more schools/ less competitive schools, tighten my SOP especially as regards my research interests, get research experience in a lab that matches my interests more closely (if possible), roll the dice and try my luck again!

addendum:

I have started emailing professors where I was not accepted and asking for feedback. One mentioned it would be good for me to get experience in a lab that closer matches my interests. The other said my SOP was a little vague when it came to describing my research interests. A third said it was just a really competitive year and other candidates had better numbers (my GPA is a little low) and their research interests better matched the direction the lab was going in. I am also pretty sure that my GPA led to me not making the first cut at a fourth school, not sure I will ask about it since I will likely not apply there again.

I am still on one waitlist that I hope will turn into an acceptance. Several posters warned me that the schools I applied to were very competitive and I needed to broaden my search. Now I just have to figure out how to get the $ to apply to more schools.

hamsterpants said:

12) Improve on for the next cycle:
do a better job of researching schools and finding the best fits regardless of geographic area, applying to more schools/ less competitive schools, tighten my SOP especially as regards my research interests, get research experience in a lab that matches my interests more closely (if possible), roll the dice and try my luck again!

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what about grades? I feel I am in a pretty similar position as you. (cgpa is about 3.37; psych ~3.6). I have applied to 10 schools, 0 invites. Second year applying. My GRE scores are not that great, but they should pass cutoffs (1280). I may consider doing them again, but i doubt it. I am taking more courses in the summer.

Edit: just saw your add-on: yeah I agree. some schools also excluded me, b/c my average in the last couple years (say 3 years) was just not breaking the A- level. I think this was the reason I was flatly rejected from two schools. By the end of the summer though it should be up there.

deadmau5 said:

what about grades? I feel I am in a pretty similar position as you. (cgpa is about 3.37; psych ~3.6). I have applied to 10 schools, 0 invites. Second year applying. My GRE scores are not that great, but they should pass cutoffs (1280). I may consider doing them again, but i doubt it. I am taking more courses in the summer.

Edit: just saw your add-on: yeah I agree. some schools also excluded me, b/c my average in the last couple years (say 3 years) was just not breaking the A- level. I think this was the reason I was flatly rejected from two schools. By the end of the summer though it should be up there.

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That's good. I wasn't a psych major (cognitive science) so I don't really have a psych GPA to balance things out a bit, although I did take some psych classes in undergrad.

I have taken some pretty challenging classes after graduation (stats, neurobio, bio, experimental psych) and got As but unfortunately most schools just looked at the undergrad GPA. I understand they have a lot of apps to go thru quickly but these grades were from almost 15 years ago and it doesn't appear there is much I can do to change this.

Jezebel09 said:

Are you going to apply to approximately the same number of schools next year? (That is, if you don't get in this year. I am still keeping the faith. : )

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I would like to apply to 10- 12 schools. But there are the issues of money and time. Maybe I can just find 8 super good matches.

Jezebel09 said:

Wow! You should work for one of those GRE prep companies--or start your own. : )

Suck in person? Doubtful. It's just stiff competition. . . . I think I recall where you were accepted. Did you fill out of the scholarship application online (deadline March 1)?

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Yes, I did. Hoping for an assistantship too.

deadmau5 said:

what about grades? I feel I am in a pretty similar position as you. (cgpa is about 3.37; psych ~3.6). I have applied to 10 schools, 0 invites. Second year applying. My GRE scores are not that great, but they should pass cutoffs (1280). I may consider doing them again, but i doubt it. I am taking more courses in the summer.

Edit: just saw your add-on: yeah I agree. some schools also excluded me, b/c my average in the last couple years (say 3 years) was just not breaking the A- level. I think this was the reason I was flatly rejected from two schools. By the end of the summer though it should be up there.

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Im not sure how much I believe this.... look aside from doing a masters to get your stuff up higher what else can you do? **** happens... like I said mine was a 3.27... In theory I shouldnt even be going to Fordham because their GPA cutoff says 3.5... liars! And my 1330 isnt much higher than your 1280? I really believe you can make up for it doing other things!!!

First of.. I'm an undergrad! Now...

1) Area: Clinical (PhD)

2) # of Applications: 11

3) # of interview invites 7 (attended 4, canceled 3)

4) # of waitlists 0

5) # of rejections 5

6) # of acceptances 2

7) GRE score 690 Q 590 V 4.5 W

8) GPA 3.96

9) Years of clinical experience 2 years crisis hotline, 5 months in patient unit (at time of applying)

10) Years of research experience (undergrad. versus full-time research) 1 1/2 in a very reputable researcher's lab

11) Information about publications, presentations co-author on 3 posters at National Conferences

12) Give any relevant information that you think helped you to do well this cycle or that you feel you could improve on for the next cycle. (Also of interest might be: Did you get into your 1st, 2nd, 3rd choice school?) I <3 my advisor and the opportunities he gave me and the doors he opened. Find SOMEONE to help... I guess thats about it

oh, and a somewhat funny Personal Statement

1) Area: Clinical PhD

2) # of applications submitted: 12

3) # of interview invites: 1

4) # of waitlists: 0

5) # of rejections: 11

6) # of acceptances: 1

7) GRE score:V 700 (97%), Q 700 (71%), AW 5.0 (81%), Psych 770 (96%)

8) GPA: 3.6, Psych 3.7

9) Years of clinical experience: Summer intern for National Alliance of Mental Illness, 1 year as intern at undergrad university's Education Counseling Center clinic

10) Years of research experience: 2 years of undergrad research including: 1 year as research assistant, independent summer research project, 1 year honors thesis.

11) Information about publications, presentations: No publications or presentations, one poster at a research conference at my undergrad that was a joke (and wasn't fooling anyone).

12) After the interview the school I was accepted to became my first choice school, they completely won me over! I am a double major in psychology and english at a prestigious school, had solid letters of recommendation (they were from respected professors in their fields who knew me well but were not actually connected to my future areas of interest), and really tried to let my enthusiasm show in my statements of purpose. I had also taken a year-long masters level statistics course offered at my undergrad. This was something that set my application apart and was brought up several times. I would definitely recommend taking any advanced statistics courses you can! Also if you have the option an honors thesis is a must! Although I only got 1 interview, it turned out to be the perfect school for me and that is where I will be next year. It only takes one!

Deogee said:

1) Area: Clinical PhD

!

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See now I am all kinds of curious what school? You mind sharing??? Congrats

I feel like reading everyone elses stats that I'm like...not deserving. I don't understand. I'm envious of everyone's pre doctoral accomplishments

My personal information is...

1) Clinical Psychology

2) 11 (only 10 were complete... one of my letter writers is a flake)

3) 5 Invites

4) 1 Waitlist

5) Only two official (although six are implied)

6) I got three offers and one of my interview schools hasn't made them yet.

7) My GRE was 1470 (V=710[98%], Q=760[85%]). Writing was 4.0 (stupid section) and my psych was 790 (98%).

8) My GPA is 3.5X (I can't remember exactly and don't feel like looking it up).

9) No clinical experience

10) Two for half a semester and one for a year. All of them were experimental and not clinical.

11) I have no pubs or presentations (sad I know).

12) I got a degree in something else and then came back to undergrad a few years later to pursue psych (1.5 years of courses, much better grades than my original undergrad). Pubs and experience are, to some degree, just really good indicators of dedication to the field and, although I lacked them, I feel like returning to school to pursue psych made up for that a bit (if that makes sense). Aside from my GRE scores I think the strongest part of my app was my statement. I think I did a pretty good job of making myself seem like an intelligent and curious human being rather than a psych-bot (which my first draft made me seem like).

As far as rankings go I think they are fine to have but, to me, they don't mean much until you've interviewed at a place.

UnLurked said:

As far as rankings go I think they are fine to have but, to me, they don't mean much until you've interviewed at a place.

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i really agree with this, you might have tiers of schools, most likely based place of residency... for me though, my "top choices" going in turned out to not be such great choices after all (even after being accepted to them)...

I did get into one of my "top tier" schools and chose it...

1) Area: Clinical

2) # of applications submitted: 11 (withdrew from one, so 10 technically)

3) # of interview invites: 3 (did 1 in person, 2 phone)

4) # of waitlists: 0

5) # of rejections: 7

6) # of acceptances: 1 (withdrew from other 2 schools post-interview but pre-decision once I got this offer)

7) GRE score: 1100, Psych 680

8) GPA: 3.873

9) Years of clinical experience: 1ish total -- did 2 summer internships (one psychometry, one in pediatric psych) and worked as a youth mentor at a local mental health agency for a summer

10) Years of research experience (undergrad. versus full-time research): all undergrad and post-undergrad (still working on undergrad projects) - about 3 1/2-4 years total; worked on 5 different projects/labs, did an independent project that's been going since fall 2007.

11) Information about publications, presentations: 4 presentations; 1 at my university (poster), 1 regional (oral/workshop), 2 national (posters). First author on all. I have a manuscript in the works at the moment, but no official publications yet.

12) Give any relevant information that you think helped you to do well this cycle or that you feel you could improve on for the next cycle.
-Get to know your professors. I had several profs who I became quite close to and, as a result, I received fantastic LORs from people who really, truly knew me, had seen my growth throughout undergrad, were able to articulate my strengths and weaknesses, and genuinely understood and could relay my aspirations.
-My research interests are very, very precise and well-defined. I think this made my personal statement particularly strong.
-Don't count yourself out because of a low GRE score. I had a VERY short list of schools to begin with, figuring that everyone would laugh and chuck my file in the garbage the second they saw my GRE score. Luckily, one of my advisors encouraged me to just give it a shot to see what might happen... so glad I did! The biggest thing is to do everything you can to not let it impact your self-confidence, especially during interviews. Yep, my score is not impressive. But I know how hard I've worked throughout undergrad, I know who I am and what my goals are, and I know that I'm smart enough to excel in my graduate studies. Don't let a low score define you! (MUCH easier said than done, but try to keep it in mind if this is one of your struggles!)

I'm heading to my top choice PhD program and couldn't be more shocked OR more thrilled!

Okay here goes….
1) Area: Clinical (all forensic emphasis or forensic faculty)

2) # of applications submitted:
This is my third year applying. In all, I think I applied to about 22 programs, 4 this year due to budget constraints)

3) # of interview invites: One (this year) in all three years.

4) # of waitlists:0

5) # of rejections: Everywhere I applied

6) # of acceptances:0

7) GRE score: 1000. Terrible I know. I have horrific GRE anxiety.

8) GPA:
BA: 3.4 Psychology Major/Criminal Justice Minor (from a very respected school). Graduated 7 years ago!
MA: 3.8 Forensic Psychology (from my top choice PhD program). Graduated 3 years ago.
PhD program: 1 year withdrew, 3.7 (It was a joke of a program and I was miserable… and my POI left the program two weeks after I got there)

9) Years of clinical experience: 1 year working in a forensic setting.

10) Years of research experience (undergrad. versus full-time research)

7 years of research experience (all but one project are forensic related).
3 NIH funded studies which I was paid project manager.
2 –I am the PI
2-research associate
11) Information about publications, presentations
4 publications (all first author including a book chapter), one in preparation.
10 presentations (domestic and international-mostly symposiums) (2 sat on expert panel)

Teaching experience: Adjunct professor at a University-undergraduate psychology
12) Give any relevant information that you think helped you to do well this cycle or that you feel you could improve on for the next cycle. (Also of interest might be: Did you get into your 1st, 2nd, 3rd choice school?)

Rejected by all for three years!! Now, I must decide if I’m too old to continue trying (30) or give it one more try next year. I was told after my rejection post interview that the reason I was rejected was because of my GRE’s.

jetergirl said:

I feel like reading everyone elses stats that I'm like...not deserving. I don't understand. I'm envious of everyone's pre doctoral accomplishments

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I wouldn't worry, I thought the same thing. But, there's got to be something we have that they don't as well

Psyched2525 said:

9) Years of clinical experience: 1 year working in a forensic setting.

10) Years of research experience (undergrad. versus full-time research)

7 years of research experience (all but one project are forensic related).
3 NIH funded studies which I was paid project manager.
2 &#8211;I am the PI
2-research associate
11) Information about publications, presentations
4 publications (all first author including a book chapter), one in preparation.
10 presentations (domestic and international-mostly symposiums) (2 sat on expert panel)

Teaching experience: Adjunct professor at a University-undergraduate psychology
12) Give any relevant information that you think helped you to do well this cycle or that you feel you could improve on for the next cycle. (Also of interest might be: Did you get into your 1st, 2nd, 3rd choice school?)

Rejected by all for three years!! Now, I must decide if I'm too old to continue trying (30) or give it one more try next year. I was told after my rejection post interview that the reason I was rejected was because of my GRE's.

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wow! what a wealth of experience you have, some program is missing out. and you are not too old, I have 5 years on you .

But I don't blame you for being frustrated. How many times have you taken the GRE? and have you tried any prep courses?

also, how many schools did you apply to each year? I know budget is a huge issue, it is for me too, but 4 seems way too low. Since you got an interview this year, I bet you would have gotten more if you had applied more widely.

How much networking have you done? It seems like if you could meet a POI in person (conference, informational interview), they would be more likely to take a chance on you.

Of course, who am I to advise, I got no acceptances either

hamsterpants said:

wow! what a wealth of experience you have, some program is missing out. and you are not too old, I have 5 years on you .

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In fact, I wonder if some profs would be intimidated by all that experience- just a thought.

hamsterpants said:

In fact, I wonder if some profs would be intimidated by all that experience- just a thought.

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You are too kind. I've been networking with big wigs for years and my pubs are a result of that. Unfortunately, the people that I have connections (who have been in the field for 20-30 years) with now are not in academia (mostly directors at forensic agencies and research on the side). In fact, my first pub was with my idol in my field (which by the way I didn't think would notice me for years to come), however, she is not at a program which I can apply to.

I've never been told that I don't have enough experience, pubs, presentations etc...it always comes down to the freakin' GRE. I've always been told (like a broken record) that I need to work on my GRE-UG!! I have taken the GRE 4 times while spending thousands of dollars on prep courses and tutors. I just feel like at this point it's a static factor in my app.

I contacted and corresponded with all of my potential POI's before applying who were were all very impressed (but that's not enough). I've been in contact with and have known my top choice POI for 5 years (but that's not enough), and I know almost all the professors at my top choice. They all know how frustrating it is and sympathize with me (but that's not enough). They have all fought for me for 3 years now, but they are not on the admissions committee.

Do you worry about starting at 40? I mean we have all been working for years and years on this, but starting to actually get paid for it at 40 scares me.

1) Area: Clinical (one counseling application)

2) 9 applications

3) 6 interview invites and one school where funding didn't materialize so prof decided not to accept

4) 0 waitlists

5) 2 rejections; received interview invites from 4 other schools, but withdrew applications for various reasons

6) 2 acceptances (#2 and #3)...still waiting to hear back from #1

7) GRE score: 660 V 750 Q 4.5 A

8) GPA: 4.0

9) Years of clinical experience: 2 internships...totaling 240 hours together...if you can count this as clinical experience

10) Years of research experience (undergrad. versus full-time research): I went to a small liberal arts college with no one doing research so I did 2 projects (one was my undergraduate thesis) and presented both of these at conferences; following graduation, I obtained a research position in the EXACT area I wanted to study as a grad student (started in July 2009)

11) Information about publications, presentations: 2 poster presentations...one at APS

12) Give any relevant information that you think helped you to do well this cycle or that you feel you could improve on for the next cycle

a) full-time research experience in the area I want to be in
b) a very specific SOP which I had a post doc read over before submitting-->very important to know exactly what your POI is studying....don't always trust the website
c) I really think you need some part of your application to be outstanding. Whether this part involves lots of publications and presentations, a great GRE score, a high GPA from a reputable school, a letter of purpose from someone well known, etc....a lot of times this will at least get your application looked at and past the first round.
d) learning from my mistakes last cycle: I only listed one poi for all of my applications, i spent a big bulk of my application discussing my poi's research, obtained research experience in a relevant area, applied to schools with great matches...and i realized i wanted to do research and not therapy in the long run. A lot of schools are looking for individuals interested in research-oriented careers, not clinical ones.

Last note: I don't think applying to less competitive schools is always the answer. Last year, I had 8 applications and the invites I received were from schools that were not well known or extremely competitive and I was ultimately rejected. This year, I applied to the most competitive programs in my area (that matched my background) and was way more successful.....but obviously you have to decide for yourself in the end. A range of programs is always a good idea.

Psyched2525 said:

You are too kind. I've been networking with big wigs for years and my pubs are a result of that. Unfortunately, the people that I have connections (who have been in the field for 20-30 years) with now are not in academia (mostly directors at forensic agencies and research on the side). In fact, my first pub was with my idol in my field (which by the way I didn't think would notice me for years to come), however, she is not at a program which I can apply to.

I've never been told that I don't have enough experience, pubs, presentations etc...it always comes down to the freakin' GRE. I've always been told (like a broken record) that I need to work on my GRE-UG!! I have taken the GRE 4 times while spending thousands of dollars on prep courses and tutors. I just feel like at this point it's a static factor in my app.

I contacted and corresponded with all of my potential POI's before applying who were were all very impressed (but that's not enough). I've been in contact with and have known my top choice POI for 5 years (but that's not enough), and I know almost all the professors at my top choice. They all know how frustrating it is and sympathize with me (but that's not enough). They have all fought for me for 3 years now, but they are not on the admissions committee.

Do you worry about starting at 40? I mean we have all been working for years and years on this, but starting to actually get paid for it at 40 scares me.

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I wish I could give you some of my GRE and you could give me a little bit of GPA and a little more experience/ publications.

I do wish I had started this process earlier. But it would be worse not to start now. This is my "thing" unfortunately . I have tried other paths (part of why it took so long to get here) and I keep coming back to this.

It would be different for me I think, if I had a family. But I have never been a very domestic person, work/study makes me happier. Perverse I know. I have had/ have many happy successful relationships including partners, family and friends. This is just who I am.

I know nothing about forensic but are there other ways to get the career you want, are there non-clinical forensic programs? or legal psychology law programs? just throwing it out there.

I'm staying out of this one. This topic seems to end badly for me,

Congrats to all admittees!

It would be different for me I think, if I had a family. But I have never been a very domestic person, work/study makes me happier. Perverse I know. I have had/ have many happy successful relationships including partners, family and friends. This is just who I am.

I'm exactly the same way-and I'M MARRIED! Before I got married -I told my husband-this comes first! Yikes! He's been a trooper doing this with me for the past 3 years.

I've been told to apply to Criminology programs and less competitive clinical programs because the GRE's don't matter as much, but call me a bragasaurus -I think I am a competitive applicant. My area is clinical forensic research and assessment and really really don't want to settle for anything else. I just have to by some universal force get my numbers up!

If god forbid you don't get in this year-are you going to apply again? Your counseling right?

Jezebel09 said:

I will turn 40 while still in my PhD program. The thought of that makes me want to start hyperventilating. Ugh!!! . . . But, no I don't worry much about starting this career in my 40s. Why? There is nothing else that I want to do, and I will still have 20 + years to devote to this career. (And, it will most likely be more than 20 years since most academics do not retire at 65.)

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That makes me feel a bit better. Have you been at this for a while? Or did you get accepted the first time?

I guess I just feel like applying over and over again as I age is scary. When is enough, enough?

Jezebel09 said:

I will turn 40 while still in my PhD program. The thought of that makes me want to start hyperventilating. Ugh!!! . . . But, no I don't worry much about starting this career in my 40s. Why? There is nothing else that I want to do, and I will still have 20 + years to devote to this career. (And, it will most likely be more than 20 years since most academics do not retire at 65.)

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Yeah, my grandma is still going strong at almost 97! so I got time

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