Options for the Grad School Reject..

[Psycnube]

I only applied to but one school this year because welllll (1) I'm in love and (2) I thought I was a "shoe-in." Unfortunately, the school I applied to didn't think I was as awesome as I thought I was. I plan to to take my GREs again this summer and apply for the Spring in October. I asked the program director if they would be willing to take teacher assistants or research aides even if I wasn't accepted. I asked her for any options I had after being rejected.

She answered back saying that the school looked at all aspects of the application and weighed things heavily based on GPA and GRE's. Meeting the minimum standards was not enough. She also told me teaching assistant/research aides are not available to students not affiliated with the school.

I looked to see if I could apply as a non-degree seeking student but it doesn't look like an option.

What else can I do??? I've already made up my mind to graduate this May. I'm planning to move in June. Should I apply as an undergraduate at this school I want to get into and re-do some psych classes I did medicore in??

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[spirit guy]

I would take some summer courses or whatnot to be put on your transcripts and then reapply and apply to other schools

 

[progter]

we cant help you w/o knowing gpa, major, research exp, gre scores, etc.

 

[23542]

If you would like to raise your GPA you can either do one of two things:

1) Graduate with your degree and take additional classes at a community college to increase your GPA.

2) Postpone your graduation if you can; do not graduate in May. Register for classes in either Summer or Fall quarter/semester. Select your classes judiciously. Make sure you can excel in those courses. Also, ask your advisor or the registrar's office if you could do a grade replacement and retake the psych courses which you received mediocre grades and try to aim for a "B" or better. Once you've completed those psych courses with a "B" or better you can complete a grade replacement form. Both grades for your mediocre psych courses will appear on the transcript, but the second grade you got will be calculated in your cumulative GPA. Once you've got all those grades, apply for graduation. This time you can leave with no uncertainties.

Take a break from school and try to improve the other elements your application as much as possible. If it's GRE's, retake the exam and study for it as if your life depended on it. If it's your statement of purpose, make sure you answer all of the questions that are asked. Your message must be clear and you need to be a "good fit" with the school of your choice. Do you need more research experience? If so, find an RA job, paid or unpaid, in any domain. What about LORs? Start getting to know profs from whom you received "A's" in their courses. Ask him/her if you could assist in any research project they have or know of someone who needs help. Keep in touch with your LOR's by e-mailing them every 6 months. When applying for grad school again, ask your profs if he/she will be able to write a positive letter on your behalf. If the answer is no, then look for someone else. That way when you do apply to graduate school the second time, you'll have strong LORs, research experience, good grades, and a solid GRE score.

 

[Psycnube]

My cummulative GPA is abysmal at ~2.8 and my psyc GPA is 3.0. My GREs are also at the bottom of the crap chain at 900. I thought that my career as a Laboratory Technician and a soldier would help. I also had 2 years of solid research experience and was accepted for a poster presentation at an APHA conference. I am working on a manuscript for it with help from my professors. My LOR's were very solid from those professors working with me at the research center and I also got one from a supervisor at work. I will be keeping in touch with them after my graduation (it's too late to change my mind at this point) and will be adding another possible rec from somebody higher up within my army chain of command.

Since I've already decided to move to Louisville, I think I'm going to try and apply as an undergrad and re-do some of the my C-grade classes. Even if I graduate with my BA now, the classes I retake at a different university should continue to accumulate in my GPA correct?? I abhor psychometrics but it looks like I'll have to endure another semester of it. (Maybe get to know some of the professors there as well) I'll be retaking my GRE's by the end of this year as well.

I dunno..hope I play my cards right. In the mean time, are psychology graduates applicable within a Human Resources setting??

 

[progter]

grade substitutions can be extremely tricky

sometimes the old grade is erased, sometimes not. Some schools will count your grade sub, others will not.

I probably would only re-do the classes that are in the realm of what you want to study, other than that I'd load up and take new classes and get the best grades that you can possibly get.

A 2.8/900 GRE isn't going to get you in much anywhere, no offense. Unfort the clinical exp and the fact you were a soldier don't mean as much as they should.

Take a GRE prep class, hit the books, do a full year of classes and pull a 3.5 or above to show you can handle the work and apply again.

 

[Sophophilic]

1) Graduate with your degree and take additional classes at a community college to increase your GPA.

Sorry to threadjack, but...

How does this work?

Let's say I graduate with a cum GPA of 2.9+ and a psych(major) GPA of 3.5+. I'm worried that my grades won't be enough to get me into the grad programs I want and... I can take classes at my local community college to boost this up? How?

 

[jnine]

Sorry to threadjack, but...

How does this work?

Let's say I graduate with a cum GPA of 2.9+ and a psych(major) GPA of 3.5+. I'm worried that my grades won't be enough to get me into the grad programs I want and... I can take classes at my local community college to boost this up? How?

Like previous poster said, it's tricky and each program probably looks at it differently. If you take CC classes you could maybe just include the grades in your UG GPA calculation on your application. But, programs you apply to are going to see the different transcripts and will look at things the way they choose.

In my opinion, a better option would be to take graduate level courses non-matriculated at a university, if that's possible in your location. I think that would be better evidence of ability. But, your UG GPA will remain unchanged.

 

[Sophophilic]

Like previous poster said, it's tricky and each program probably looks at it differently. If you take CC classes you could maybe just include the grades in your UG GPA calculation on your application. But, programs you apply to are going to see the different transcripts and will look at things the way they choose.

In my opinion, a better option would be to take graduate level courses non-matriculated at a university, if that's possible in your location. I think that would be better evidence of ability. But, your UG GPA will remain unchanged.

Thanks!
Didn't you post a very long post before? It showed up on my phone but I didn't reply immediately. Threw me for a loop when I checked in.

Anyway, my local community college has a few psych courses, so I guess that's an option, but they're all low level and, while I guess that makes them easy, it'll also look insulting on an application.

Taking grad classes would make more sense. I know some of my friends are taking classes at our university's graduate center, but I don't know if that's possibly for all departments (they're not in psych). Going to have to check that out.



Just how high of a psych/major GPA would I need to stand out for top MA programs in research psych?

Edit: The numbers I gave for my GPA are the ones I have now, but I've a year left to go and so those should be looking up.

 

[progter]

I would not suggest classes to be taken at a CC. Showing that you can perform well at a CC is not going to impress anyone.

 

[Sophophilic]

while I guess that makes them easy, it'll also look insulting on an application.

Yeah, I guessed that.

I guess I'll see what happens first with my remaining semesters and then see. I'd definitely be up for taking graduate courses instead of milling additional psych courses at the undergraduate level, and if I can (practically and financially), I'm totally going for that. I've made peace with the fact that I'll most likely have to go for a master's before applying to a good Ph.D program. On a similar note, will getting a ridiculous PsychGRE score make up for a lower than ideal GPA, or is the GRE mostly used as a pre-screening cut off?

 

[lookitssara]

The psych GRE score is used more so as a cut off. Getting a super stellar verbal/quant GRE score may offset a low GPA for some schools however.

Also, if you go for masters first, recognize that many masters programs look for different things than doctoral ones (i.e. volunteer/clinical experience is worth more with masters than doctoral, research experience is worth more for doctoral than masters).

 

[Psycnube]

I talked to my professor about all my plans and he said that it sounded like a good idea. It's going to be a long path but I'll eventually get there. I'll be taking less hours of course.

I'll be taking classes post-BA to work on classes I've gotten C's on and then find a professor looking for Research Assisstants at the new university. By the end of this year, I'm going to try to take the GRE's again. Hopefully, by next year I'll be able to reapply for the counseling psychology doctoral program. This year I applied for the mental health counseling masters program. I figure if I'll be taking the long route, I might as well take the milky way.

 

[jnine]

Thanks!
Didn't you post a very long post before? It showed up on my phone but I didn't reply immediately. Threw me for a loop when I checked in.

Anyway, my local community college has a few psych courses, so I guess that's an option, but they're all low level and, while I guess that makes them easy, it'll also look insulting on an application.

Taking grad classes would make more sense. I know some of my friends are taking classes at our university's graduate center, but I don't know if that's possibly for all departments (they're not in psych). Going to have to check that out.



Just how high of a psych/major GPA would I need to stand out for top MA programs in research psych?

Edit: The numbers I gave for my GPA are the ones I have now, but I've a year left to go and so those should be looking up.

Hey, I did write a long post about getting into PhD programs and then realized 1) I didn't know what you were shooting for, 2) we were on the MA etc board.

I think you're on the right track. If you eventually want to go to a university-based, funded clinical PhD a master's will probably be necessary. The psych GRE is not all that important to most programs, I think.

I was in a similar boat with a very low UG GPA. To get into a good PhD program I did something like this:

1) took CC classes and got A's
2) applied to PhD and master's programs, didn't get into a good PhD program (in-part probably because the CC classes didn't mean much) but did get into a master's program.
3) completed masters program w/ a high GPA (4.0)
3) hustled to get lots of research experience while in the master's program (wrote a solid thesis, presented a poster on it, worked with another professor which led to a publication)
4) studied hard for GRE's and got a competitive score (1400 Q+V)
5) spend 3 months researching PhD programs, networking with professors, writing essays, completing apps...

#3 is the most important bit i think. The more quality research you do as a master's student, the more competitive of a PhD applicant you'll be.

Just how high of a psych/major GPA would I need to stand out for top MA programs in research psych?
up.

sorry, I don't really know. these programs will judge your entire application. e.g. if you get straight A's your senior year, your overall GPA might not matter much.

Edit: The numbers I gave for my GPA are the ones I have now, but I've a year left to go and so those should be looking up.

if 1) you can pull off a really high GPA for your senior year, 2) get a strong GRE score, and 3) have/get some psych research experience leading to a poster or paper, you should consider applying to PhD programs straight away, or after a year in the field as a research assistant. I would never have been able to pull that off because I was very busy playing ball and drinking beer , but it cost me a few years of my life proving that I was PhD material. Something to consider

 

[futureapppsy2]

What type of masters program? That matters in deciding what route to take to improve your app.