Looks like I have to try again next year! Anyone else in the same boat?

[unsung]

I applied to 5 schools for clinical psychology, and I've already received 4 rejections. It's March... I'm not hopeful.

Granted, I didn't really think through the whole application process this year as well as I should have. Case in point: only applied to 5 schools. Another case in point: have research experience, but NO actual clinical experience.

In retrospect, guess the results I'm forced to deal with right now aren't so surprising . So? It looks like I'll have to try again next year!

Here are my stats:

-- BA in biology (~ 3.2) & MA in psychology (~3.6), both from a top 10 school.

-- did okay on general GREs- 95th percentile on verbal, 87th percentile on quantitative (despite getting almost a perfect score!), 5.5 writing

-- have research experience as a result of my MA thesis

-- mediocre letters of recommendation (my thesis advisor did agree to write one for me, and claims he "doesn't write bad letters of recommendation"... but we've had some misunderstandings in the past, and he gave me the only B I've ever received for a psych course!)

-- some volunteer experiences (tutoring, etc.), but not a lot, and no real clinical experiences
---------------------------------------------

What can I do to improve my chances for next year?

I'm going to start training so that I can volunteer at a crisis hotline. It should be interesting. After 50 hours of training, and 10 hours of observation, I'll be allowed to take calls... probably about 4 hours a week. I'm hoping to get a letter (or letters) of recommendation out of the volunteer position (eventually), in order to replace a letter from an undergrad prof. I used during this year's apps. I hope the letter from my thesis advisor is "decent" enough so that I can still use it. At the very least, his name carries value.

I'm also studying right now to take the GRE subject test for psychology (which I didn't take before), probably for November.

I don't really know what else I can do in addition to these two things. It's unlikely I'll be able to find additional research opportunities (I'm no longer in the same state where I went to school & did the research, etc.). And importantly, I'm also no longer a student, meaning right now I'm struggling to earn money & eke out a living.

Is this enough?

(Assuming I accrue 100+ hours of volunteer experience at the hotline, obtain a decent letter of recommendation from there, and score well on the GRE psych test.)

Of course, I'll be more careful about where I apply next year too!

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[sunkyst11]

this might be uncommon, but it worked well for me....i am working at a mental health clinic and although i had some research experience as an undergraduate, i wanted to get some more before i applied to grad school, so i went online, looked up the psych departments of schools in the area and started emailing professors asking if there were any opportunities to be a research assistant in their lab. i probably sent 8 emails and had 2 people respond positively. granted, i am working for free, but i make my own schedule, got the experience, and got a letter of recommendation out of the process....i live in washington dc, so this obviously wouldn't have been so easy had i not been in a city....but if you are looking for ways to strengthen your application its a suggestion.

 

[RayneeDeigh]

I applied to 5 schools for clinical psychology, and I've already received 4 rejections. It's March... I'm not hopeful.

Granted, I didn't really think through the whole application process this year as well as I should have. Case in point: only applied to 5 schools. Another case in point: have research experience, but NO actual clinical experience.

In retrospect, guess the results I'm forced to deal with right now aren't so surprising . So? It looks like I'll have to try again next year!

Here are my stats:

-- BA in biology (~ 3.2) & MA in psychology (~3.6), both from a top 10 school.

-- did okay on general GREs- 95th percentile on verbal, 87th percentile on quantitative (despite getting almost a perfect score!), 5.5 writing

-- have research experience as a result of my MA thesis

-- mediocre letters of recommendation (my thesis advisor did agree to write one for me, and claims he "doesn't write bad letters of recommendation"... but we've had some misunderstandings in the past, and he gave me the only B I've ever received for a psych course!)

-- some volunteer experiences (tutoring, etc.), but not a lot, and no real clinical experiences
---------------------------------------------

What can I do to improve my chances for next year?

I'm going to start training so that I can volunteer at a crisis hotline. It should be interesting. After 50 hours of training, and 10 hours of observation, I'll be allowed to take calls... probably about 4 hours a week. I'm hoping to get a letter (or letters) of recommendation out of the volunteer position (eventually), in order to replace a letter from an undergrad prof. I used during this year's apps. I hope the letter from my thesis advisor is "decent" enough so that I can still use it. At the very least, his name carries value.

I'm also studying right now to take the GRE subject test for psychology (which I didn't take before), probably for November.

I don't really know what else I can do in addition to these two things. It's unlikely I'll be able to find additional research opportunities (I'm no longer in the same state where I went to school & did the research, etc.). And importantly, I'm also no longer a student, meaning right now I'm struggling to earn money & eke out a living.

Is this enough?

(Assuming I accrue 100+ hours of volunteer experience at the hotline, obtain a decent letter of recommendation from there, and score well on the GRE psych test.)

Of course, I'll be more careful about where I apply next year too!

I'm in almost exactly the same boat (similar scores, experience, etc). I applied to 12 places and was accepted to one in california but it's a private school rather than a University so it's expensive. I think I'll probably opt to try again next year.

My plan is to keep doing research (but try to find someone whose work is more similar to my interests) and also to volunteer so I can get some clinical experience. I'm changing one of my letter-writers as well, and applying to some different schools. Trying to do more networking this time around as well.

Good luck to us. hehe.

 

[psych00]

Apply to more schools, 5 is definitely nowhere near enough regardless of your qualifications...most decent schools only invite people who have great qualifications for interviews to begin with, not everyone who is qualified will get accepted so just....safety in numbers I guess, definitely apply to more schools, maybe make some more professional contacts, get more experience, work on improving your statements of purpose?

 

[Dizzie]

Do you assume that small envelopes are bad news? Think I may be re applying as well if this is the case.

 

[54321]

You should definitely apply to more schools. I think getting more clinical experience is a great idea but more than anything I think you can improve your chances by where you apply to. I have lower GRE scores than several people I've seen post who didn't get in anywhere and I got into a great program largely because I matched so well. Spend a lot of time thinking about what your really interested in, researching schools, and tailoring your personal statements. There are tons of really qualified candidates and what sets some apart is the level of match between them and the program. Good Luck!

 

[Famousams]

I am most def in the same boat. I applied to 12 phds and interviewed at 3. I have gotten 5 rejections and have yet to hear a word from the rest. I have one post interview rejection and still havent heard from the other two schools i interviewed at but its not looking good. I know people have gotten offers and been notified about the waiting list. I am in the dark and pretty much certain its a rejection from both. I will most likely be starting my Masters at James Madison. FOr me this was the second round of applying to phds and i need to be doing something so I applied to ma's this year as well. I mean I have a good gpa (3.85) but pretty mediocre gre's (75th %tile for both v and q), great psych gres (98th %tile) and some research experience. I think my main fault is my letters however. I never really got to know any of my professors too well and so for me a MA is a great option. Its a research focused program so i will get more research experience and work hard at cultivating good relationships with the professors. And then maybe ill try again. But for someone who had been in this boat twice now......i think the volunteering is great idea. Just make sure you are doing something to make you app better and def adhere to the shotgun method next time; apply to as many schools as you can afford.

 

[proudslug]

I currently work at a research center and we have had several brown bag discussions about graduate school. The single most important piece of advice I got was to contact professors you are interested in working with. Also, start early before they get lots of emails. Email them in the summer and ask if they are taking students and keep in regular contact with them, that way when they recieve your application, you are not just a random person in the pile, they might take a second glance at it. It definitely worked for me and it definitely shows you are interested and committed.

Good Luck!

 

[psychey]

I agree, slug! I applied last year and did not contact any profs. I got into my last choice only and declined the offer. This year I started making contacts in August. I got into my two top schools and was top of the waitlist at my third choice. My boyfriend did the same and he ended up at his first choice too (which also happens to be my first choice!) My POIs at each place gave me a really good idea of what they were looking for before the applications were due. They got to know me as a person and not just another application. Also, making connections early makes the whole process a lot less daunting. Please feel free to PM me if I can offer any other advice for the second time around! Don't give up. The second time is much easier!!

 

[dubbs07]

Just a little house-cleaning.

 

[Dr.Maybe]

Hi everyone. I'm not 100% certain, but I think the odds are that I'll be applying again next year. This year, I applied to 9 schools, interviewed at 5, and have been rejected at one and waitlisted at 2. Still waiting to hear from the last two, one of which is my number one choice and also the most competitive school I applied to. The other is my last choice, and I'm not sure that I would accept if I was offered admission.

My stats (starting with the good stuff): Masters degree in Counseling Psych from a top university, 4.0 GPA. GREAT recommendations. Worked on two research projects as a grad student. One psych publication, one publication outside of the field (but related to my research interests - social justice). Lots of clinical experience, including my current full-time job as a mental health counselor. 770 Psych GRE, 1260 combined Q+V GRE. And (GASP!!!) 3.5 AW - I bombed it, and ironically think that writing is usually one of my strengths.

If I don't get in, I plan to get a RA position and to start contacting professors early - something I did not do this time. What I'm not sure about is my GREs - obviously they are a low point in my application, especially the AW. But does the fact that I got interviews at 5/9 schools this year suggest that my GRE score was not that important? It was never mentioned during the interviews. I'd love to not have to take that test again if I can help it. What do you all think?

 

[irish80122]

Hi everyone. I'm not 100% certain, but I think the odds are that I'll be applying again next year. This year, I applied to 9 schools, interviewed at 5, and have been rejected at one and waitlisted at 2. Still waiting to hear from the last two, one of which is my number one choice and also the most competitive school I applied to. The other is my last choice, and I'm not sure that I would accept if I was offered admission.

My stats (starting with the good stuff): Masters degree in Counseling Psych from a top university, 4.0 GPA. GREAT recommendations. Worked on two research projects as a grad student. One psych publication, one publication outside of the field (but related to my research interests - social justice). Lots of clinical experience, including my current full-time job as a mental health counselor. 770 Psych GRE, 1260 combined Q+V GRE. And (GASP!!!) 3.5 AW - I bombed it, and ironically think that writing is usually one of my strengths.

If I don't get in, I plan to get a RA position and to start contacting professors early - something I did not do this time. What I'm not sure about is my GREs - obviously they are a low point in my application, especially the AW. But does the fact that I got interviews at 5/9 schools this year suggest that my GRE score was not that important? It was never mentioned during the interviews. I'd love to not have to take that test again if I can help it. What do you all think?

If you are going to apply again, I would just re-take the GRE. I know, it isn't fun, and the fact that you do have the interviews suggests that you may not need it. However, with how expensive applying is financially, emotionally, etc. is it worth risking it? If you think it may be a weakness, I would try to fix it. That is just me.

 

[Dr.Maybe]

Thanks for your thoughts, Irish. You're probably right. I should do anything I can do, especially since so much of this process feels out of my control. And congrats again on your acceptance!

 

[Duckygirl]

Hey all...
I hear ya and feel for ya. This is my second time around applying, although I woldn't say that last time really counted, I only applied to three schools the first year (what was I thinking?) and I had no clue how the process worked. I applied to 15 programs this year (14 Phd, 1 PsyD; 12 in the US, 3 in Canada), had only 2 interviews, have been rejected from 6, and offered admission to none of them yet. Several of the other schools I've yet to be rejected from are pretty big programs that I'm fairly sure just haven't sent my letter out...

I got a 3.84 GPA for my BA at a small liberal arts Jesuit university, and a 4.0 in my master's degree in teaching from the same school. I also have a valid California teaching credential. I've worked full-time in a children's mental health clinic for the last year and half, and while I've done some "clinical" research, I've not found any group or organization interested in a presentation on this project, and it's certainly not fit for submission to anything yet. While I was an undergrad, research opportunities were scarce, and because I took most of my grad classes as an undergrad, I had little time left in my schedule. My school also did very little in the way of preparing undergraduates for graduate school- I got great letters of recommendation, but very little support in the way of the application process.

I think my two biggest flaws are my lack of solid research work and my GREs. My Analytical writing is a 6.0...my verbal is in the 81st percentile...and well, frankly, I'm not going to talk about my quanititive score. I get everything on the GREs- I'm just not fast enough and I think I'm going to have to buckle down and take one of those dumb $1,000 classes. The thought of having to do all of the applications over again is daunting to me.

In terms of programs, I regret that I applied to so many really top programs, but I did my best to look for "fit" and location. I'm willing to move cross-country, but I'm not willing to go to a small, land-locked city where I've got no friends or family. This (and my interests) led me to some schools where I probably shouldn't have bothered with scores as low as mine.

Honestly, I felt perhaps the fact that I have a work history steeped in tutoring and teaching in really diverse, low SES neighborhoods, have a teaching degree, and will have 2 years fulltime clinical experience by this fall, would make me a little more attractive, in spite of my test scores. The two schools I interviewed at, I met student after student whose work experiences paled in comparison to mine, and made me feel sort of silly to be competing for spots against students who haven't even received their BA and work at Applebee's. So I'd just caution those of you feeling like clinical experience would make you such a stronger candidate- it's not everything. I'd actually say that the value of that clinical experience is more personally beneficial- I know I'll be better skilled than a lot of my fellow classmates of whatever cohort I'll end up in. However, does this matter to several of the schools I applied to? I'm not so sure.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for the last few schools, and at the same time, starting to research schools and buying new GRE books and all that stuff. I feel the agony a lot of you are experiencing, and I'm really hoping for those of us who might have to go a third round - third time's a charm.

 

[LosingMyMind]

Oh! Oh! I'm in this club!

I can't honestly say I did as much as I should have in preparation for this application cycle though. I didn't do nearly as much research beforehand as I now see would have reduced the number of rejections I recieved due to poor fit. I'll spend the next year making myself more rounded... I have a strong academic record, just not so much experience. I feel like a fool for not realizing how important that component would be. I would have benefited from finding this forum a year ago.

Regardless... this process will make an eventual acceptance that much sweeter, right?

 

[psychabeck]

I'm pretty sure I'm in the club. I'm still waiting on one school that says my application is still under consideration. I finally emailed the school hoping to put myself out of my misery. Anyway, they say final dicisions will be sent out soon.

So, I've started researching programs for the next round. Someone who got in told me that the GRE for dummies book is good. So, I will try that. My application processes was rushed this year. I hoped something would come of it.

I will also start contacting professors early. Do you know how soon is too soon.

My GPA is good, 3.96. I have 2 years of tutoring, a one year internship with a school counselor, 1 year of RA experience, but no publications. My GREs weren't very good. I'm a slow reader, I have a visual disability. So, my V was awful. My Q was a 620. I didn't realize that the AW was that important, so I just rushed through it. Bad, bad, bad.

Here's to round 2.

 

[emc17]

I'm thinking I may be in the same boat, and I believe my biggest fault is not having enough clinical experience. The only problem is I just finished my undergrad program in December and I'm finding it very difficult to gain such experience with only a B.A. Any suggestions on how to do so? Thanks!

 

[RayneeDeigh]

I'm thinking I may be in the same boat, and I believe my biggest fault is not having enough clinical experience. The only problem is I just finished my undergrad program in December and I'm finding it very difficult to gain such experience with only a B.A. Any suggestions on how to do so? Thanks!

You'll probably find that volunteer work provides the most choices for clinical experience

 

[Dr.Maybe]

I'm thinking I may be in the same boat, and I believe my biggest fault is not having enough clinical experience. The only problem is I just finished my undergrad program in December and I'm finding it very difficult to gain such experience with only a B.A. Any suggestions on how to do so? Thanks!

Are you applying to PsyD programs? Because I think research experience is valued much more highly than clinical experience in most PhD programs. Personally, I have a lot of clinical experience and a moderate amount of research experience, and my POIs were way more interested in my research work. In fact, I think only two schools even asked anything about my clinical experience, and all of them asked several questions about research.

 

[emc17]

Clinical Ph.D. I actually have a good amount of research experience and no clinical experience. I was just assuming thats what it was. I had two interviews and both asked me about clinical experience. Would it be worth looking into masters programs if I'm thinking about reapplying for clinical psych ph.d. programs next fall?

 

[Sorg1123]

There is usually a high employee turnover rate (from my experience) in the Human Services profession. Many people I know, including myself, found work as Residential Counselors in Residential treatment facilities for adolescents and adults. Many of my co-workers had BAs or BSs, but I had not graduated yet. this was great experience and, depending on where you work, you could leave with experience in working with a variety of disorders and treatment modalities. Many times people worked part time and some people worked overnights (overnight shifts don't allow for as much experience, but gets your foot in the door). I ended up with four years of clinical exp before I graduated undergrad.

 

[psypsypsy]

It wouldn't be bad to get some more clinical experience (and I agree, volunteering is probably the easiest), but I'd go with more research experience. If you can find clinical research experience, then you'll get the clinical and research all in one. The more research experience, the better. Honestly, one of the problems just might be that you've just graduated. Depending on the program and professor, people look for students that have more life experience. For example, my mentor hasn't taken someone just out of undergrad for as far as back as I know students in the program. He doesn't say he absolutely wouldn't, but I think the person would really have to outshine the others.

Again, that really depends on the program/POI, but I think people coming right out of undergrad have a bit more of an uphill battle than those who have been doing research after graduation. Not necessarily fair, but it's good to know.

 

[amy203]

this might be uncommon, but it worked well for me....i am working at a mental health clinic and although i had some research experience as an undergraduate, i wanted to get some more before i applied to grad school, so i went online, looked up the psych departments of schools in the area and started emailing professors asking if there were any opportunities to be a research assistant in their lab. i probably sent 8 emails and had 2 people respond positively. granted, i am working for free, but i make my own schedule, got the experience, and got a letter of recommendation out of the process....i live in washington dc, so this obviously wouldn't have been so easy had i not been in a city....but if you are looking for ways to strengthen your application its a suggestion.

I did the exact same thing and so did one of my best friends, and it's worked out really well for both of us. We both worked for about 20 hours per week in the labs and had other (paying) jobs for about 30 hours per week. I was eventually hired for a paid position, which was nice, but not necessary. I don't think schools care whether you are are paid or not, especially if the position results in publications or if you are working with a prominent researcher.

 

[amy203]

1

 

[unsung]

There is usually a high employee turnover rate (from my experience) in the Human Services profession. Many people I know, including myself, found work as Residential Counselors in Residential treatment facilities for adolescents and adults. Many of my co-workers had BAs or BSs, but I had not graduated yet. this was great experience and, depending on where you work, you could leave with experience in working with a variety of disorders and treatment modalities. Many times people worked part time and some people worked overnights (overnight shifts don't allow for as much experience, but gets your foot in the door). I ended up with four years of clinical exp before I graduated undergrad.

I've got an interview for a "residential youth counselor" position coming up soon. To be honest, I don't have a whole lot of experience working in that capacity. In the past, I've taught English briefly in a foreign country. I've also tutored low income children. The only other tangentially relevant experience I have is a bit of traveling experience in a "4th world" country, where I really had to fend for myself and interact with a wide array of people.

Any tips on what to say/emphasize? Should I mention to them that I eventually want to get a PhD in Clinical Psych?

 

[emc17]

Yea, I'm definetely still pursuing research experience. Since I graduated a semester early, I'm working part-time as a research assistant at a pretty well-respected child development lab. I was thinking about looking into volunteering at a crisis hotline or something like that. I have 2 extra days a week since the RA job is only part-time so I was hoping to use those days for some clinical work. I'm also currently working on a content analysis with one of my previous undergrad professors, so thats more research under my belt. If it doesn't work out this year, as I suspect, Its probably a result of being young + inexperienced and I can't change the young part, so I'll have to focus on the "experience" factor.

 

[psychanon]

The plethora of people here who are clearly very qualified for graduate school who have not gotten in anywhere speaks to the huge amount of chance that goes into this process. I always try to warn people that a substantial part of getting in to grad school in clinical psychology is dumb luck, and this time of year is always the time that that message rings strongest. I didn't get in the first time I applied, and it was incredibly frustrating, because I felt like I did everything that I was supposed to do and still didn't get it. There's a lot of error variance in this process. But, I picked myself up, got an amazing RA job, and got into a great program the next year. Those of you with amazing resumes and no offers-- don't worry, it'll happen. It's also MUCH easier the second time around.

 

[dubbs07]

The plethora of people here who are clearly very qualified for graduate school who have not gotten in anywhere speaks to the huge amount of chance that goes into this process. I always try to warn people that a substantial part of getting in to grad school in clinical psychology is dumb luck, and this time of year is always the time that that message rings strongest. I didn't get in the first time I applied, and it was incredibly frustrating, because I felt like I did everything that I was supposed to do and still didn't get it. There's a lot of error variance in this process. But, I picked myself up, got an amazing RA job, and got into a great program the next year. Those of you with amazing resumes and no offers-- don't worry, it'll happen. It's also MUCH easier the second time around.

How did you find an amazing RA job? I've got a pretty decent one, but it's in the med school, not in a psych professor's lab. I'm working on some publications, but they're not directly related to what I really want to do in school. Should I be looking for a new job? And where? I feel like I'd need to move to D.C. or Boston or NYC...

 

[psychanon]

How did you find an amazing RA job? I've got a pretty decent one, but it's in the med school, not in a psych professor's lab. I'm working on some publications, but they're not directly related to what I really want to do in school. Should I be looking for a new job? And where? I feel like I'd need to move to D.C. or Boston or NYC...

My job was also in a med school, so there was no option to stay in the lab for grad school (but i don't think that's always necessarily feasible anyway), but it was with a super famous researcher, and I got an awesome letter of rec that opened a lot of doors. It was also more in my area of interest. I do think that helps. I just went to the university website, applied online for one job, and got three interview offers. I don't think you'd necessarily have to move-- it depends what kind of opportunities there are where you live-- but you're right about certain cities having a lot of opportunities. I didn't have pubs when I started grad school, and i think their importance is somewhat mis-characterized. If you have them, great-- it's gold-- but you will never get rejected for lack of pubs. Publications are very hard to get, at least in respectable journals, and having them prior to grad school is an anomaly, not an expectation. Posters a lot more attainable.

 

[amy203]

My job was also in a med school, so there was no option to stay in the lab for grad school (but i don't think that's always necessarily feasible anyway), but it was with a super famous researcher, and I got an awesome letter of rec that opened a lot of doors. It was also more in my area of interest. I do think that helps. I just went to the university website, applied online for one job, and got three interview offers. I don't think you'd necessarily have to move-- it depends what kind of opportunities there are where you live-- but you're right about certain cities having a lot of opportunities. I didn't have pubs when I started grad school, and i think their importance is somewhat mis-characterized. If you have them, great-- it's gold-- but you will never get rejected for lack of pubs. Publications are very hard to get, at least in respectable journals, and having them prior to grad school is an anomaly, not an expectation. Posters a lot more attainable.

I agree. I think it tends to be especially difficult to publish if you're working with a "famous" person because a) they probably have graduate students who get first dibs on pubs and b) they are collaborating with many other researchers and there just isn't room for an RA on the author list. I worked with "less famous" researchers who were only adjunct university professors and didn't have graduate students for most of the time I was there. They gave me lot of the work they normally would have given to graduate student, and I ended up with a lot of publications (in good journals), but they didn't have the name recognition of some professors. It's a bit of a trade off.

I think the most important thing is that person you work for can say more about you in their letter of rec than "This person is very organized and efficient. They did a good job with data entry and running subjects." You want them to be able to comment on your critical thinking skills and writing availability. I was accepted for spots over people who worked with professors who were far more famous than my bosses, I think because I had experience writing papers and running analyses and the other applicants had only done more basic lab work. It wasn't the pubs so much as the research experience.

 

[Ollie123]

Hey, I think med schools would be a fantastic place to work. They generally have more funding than psych departments so there's more jobs, you're more likely to have access to some cool equipment if you're into the neuroimaging/psychophys/etc. kind of stuff, and many are very well connected.

That being said, I've always worked in psych departments It got me in, and someplace good, but I still believe I would have had more options had I been more selective about my post-BA employment.

I'm going to go ahead and disagree with psychanon here and say definitely publish if at ALL possible. Everyone told me "oh it isn't an expectation", but competition is fierce in this field. It is entirely true that publications before grad school are an anomaly, but keep in mind that getting ACCEPTED to graduate school is also kind of an anomaly Anything you can do to help those odds is good. I never published, because I kept leaving labs right as the writing began. Its actually one of my bigger regrets from the past few years, since if I had the motivation I probably could have stayed involved as a volunteer and gotten at least one and as many as 3-4. I didn't even have an empirical poster, though I did give a non-empirical talk at a regional conference which probably helped.

I'll also second the idea that WHAT you do in the lab matters a lot. I've worked in many different labs, one with an EXTREMELY well known researcher, others that are respected, but younger and less established.
I've spoken to a lot of undergrads who seem to think that the fact that they are graduating with honors and spent a semester doing data entry or hooking someone up to heart monitors makes them good grad school candidates. I'm trying not to laugh when I'm their boss, and not to sound snooty, but my credentials are often MUCH better than theirs, and I barely scraped in this year

Get experience doing everything. Find something to make you marketable. For me its the fact that I'm a tech geek and can do damn near anything computer-related. Its a rare trait in psychology and one every one of my letter writers emphasized and it got brought up in all my interviews If you're good at stats, get experience with that and prove it to your letter writers. If you are a brilliant writer, make sure you prove it to your letter writers. Genetics and neuroscience are pretty hot fields right now, if you have experience in a genetics or neuro lab as well as a more traditional psych lab, so much the better.

These are all things I've pieced together myself through this whole process that I really wish someone had sat down and told me earlier, so I hope someone finds it helpful. Really it all boils down to "market yourself". This is not a field where being a good student, or even being a great student, will get you jack ****. Find some way to differentiate yourself from the 1000000 other people applying with a 4.0 and a few hundred hours of data entry/running subjects. From what I have seen, profs are looking for someone who in addition to being a "match" to their interests, will bring something unique to the lab. Find something you are better at than most other people in this field, find professors who need that skill, and your odds of getting in will be much better.

 

[amy203]

Hey, I think med schools would be a fantastic place to work. They generally have more funding than psych departments so there's more jobs, you're more likely to have access to some cool equipment if you're into the neuroimaging/psychophys/etc. kind of stuff, and many are very well connected.

That being said, I've always worked in psych departments It got me in, and someplace good, but I still believe I would have had more options had I been more selective about my post-BA employment.

I'm going to go ahead and disagree with psychanon here and say definitely publish if at ALL possible. Everyone told me "oh it isn't an expectation", but competition is fierce in this field. It is entirely true that publications before grad school are an anomaly, but keep in mind that getting ACCEPTED to graduate school is also kind of an anomaly Anything you can do to help those odds is good. I never published, because I kept leaving labs right as the writing began. Its actually one of my bigger regrets from the past few years, since if I had the motivation I probably could have stayed involved as a volunteer and gotten at least one and as many as 3-4. I didn't even have an empirical poster, though I did give a non-empirical talk at a regional conference which probably helped.

I'll also second the idea that WHAT you do in the lab matters a lot. I've worked in many different labs, one with an EXTREMELY well known researcher, others that are respected, but younger and less established.
I've spoken to a lot of undergrads who seem to think that the fact that they are graduating with honors and spent a semester doing data entry or hooking someone up to heart monitors makes them good grad school candidates. I'm trying not to laugh when I'm their boss, and not to sound snooty, but my credentials are often MUCH better than theirs, and I barely scraped in this year

Get experience doing everything. Find something to make you marketable. For me its the fact that I'm a tech geek and can do damn near anything computer-related. Its a rare trait in psychology and one every one of my letter writers emphasized and it got brought up in all my interviews If you're good at stats, get experience with that and prove it to your letter writers. If you are a brilliant writer, make sure you prove it to your letter writers. Genetics and neuroscience are pretty hot fields right now, if you have experience in a genetics or neuro lab as well as a more traditional psych lab, so much the better.

These are all things I've pieced together myself through this whole process that I really wish someone had sat down and told me earlier, so I hope someone finds it helpful. Really it all boils down to "market yourself". This is not a field where being a good student, or even being a great student, will get you jack ****. Find some way to differentiate yourself from the 1000000 other people applying with a 4.0 and a few hundred hours of data entry/running subjects. From what I have seen, profs are looking for someone who in addition to being a "match" to their interests, will bring something unique to the lab. Find something you are better at than most other people in this field, find professors who need that skill, and your odds of getting in will be much better.

This is a really great post, Ollie! You should move it to the "Advice for Future SDNers" thread as well!

 

[psychanon]

Hey, I think med schools would be a fantastic place to work. They generally have more funding than psych departments so there's more jobs, you're more likely to have access to some cool equipment if you're into the neuroimaging/psychophys/etc. kind of stuff, and many are very well connected.

I agree! Working in a psychiatry dept was great. There were no grad students in my lab, which meant that as RAs, we sort of served the role (except we generally didn't get to write papers, unless we stayed around for a long time). There were post-docs, who mentored us.

I'm going to go ahead and disagree with psychanon here and say definitely publish if at ALL possible. Everyone told me "oh it isn't an expectation", but competition is fierce in this field. It is entirely true that publications before grad school are an anomaly, but keep in mind that getting ACCEPTED to graduate school is also kind of an anomaly

I don't think we're disagreeing-- If you can get publications, by all means get them. I'm just saying there's no reason to think that if you don't get in, it's because you don't have pubs. The process of writing, submitting, and having a paper accepted usually 1-2 years. It's unrealistic to expect people 1-2 years out of undergrad to do that, although of course some people do and that gets recognized. I don't think any of my classmates had publications coming in. I have heard of some labs where they'll stick RAs names on papers if they do something minor like help with the references. That's cool and all, but I wonder if it's a bit transparent, and I wonder how much it really helps to be the nth author on something. It won't hurt, of course.

Get experience doing everything. Find something to make you marketable. .

This is great advice and I will add to it. Figure out what specific skills you need to do what you want to do, and get them. In some labs, having EEG experience is a hook. In others, it's being SCID trained. It's true that doing data entry in a lab is just not going to cut it. You have to be more deeply involved.

 

[cleverclover]

If there is anyone living in the Chicago area or willing to move to the area and is looking for a good RA position, Northwestern is hiring. It would be a great position for someone who is interested in clinical neuropsychology and dementia. The only down fall is that you have to make a two year commitment. When I didn't get into grad school two years ago I moved from NY to Chicago for a similar position and really think it made the difference. You can find out more about the job by going to Northwestern's website. The job is through the Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer's Disease Center.

 

[psychabeck]

It's official, I'm done for this year. I received my last rejection today from Miami U of Ohio. I expected it.

 

[neuronerd1]

What should I do in order to get into a PhD program next year?

Masters - Clinical Social Work - Clinical Research Assistant

I'm working as a clinical social worker (w/o a SW degree) currently but I'm willing to do whatever will help my application most.

 

[thewesternsky]

What should I do in order to get into a PhD program next year?

Masters - Clinical Social Work - Clinical Research Assistant

I'm working as a clinical social worker (w/o a SW degree) currently but I'm willing to do whatever will help my application most.

Since you're currently working as a clinical social worker, I would imagine that you'd have more than enough clinical experience. I don't know anything about how much research experience you already have, but I'd say research assistant work would probably be best. Most Ph.D. programs (at least in my experience) tend to put more emphasis on your research experience than your clinical experience, anyway.

 

[neuronerd1]

I worked as a research tech for a few years and a CRA for one. So, I have had each experience already - except the masters. That's why I don't know where to go from here.

Since you're currently working as a clinical social worker, I would imagine that you'd have more than enough clinical experience. I don't know anything about how much research experience you already have, but I'd say research assistant work would probably be best. Most Ph.D. programs (at least in my experience) tend to put more emphasis on your research experience than your clinical experience, anyway.

 

[terrybug]

ughhhh,
I can't stand the thought of going through this whole process again...
For those of you who applied 2 or more times, did you re-write your statement from top to bottom or just update it? And if you applied to work with the same people, did you email them the 2nd time and say 'Hey, remember me? I'm applying again.' or something?

 

[Dr.Maybe]

Any advice about asking professors and other recommenders for recommendation letters a second time? I'm kind of embarrased just thinking about it.

 

[dubbs07]

Any advice about asking professors and other recommenders for recommendation letters a second time? I'm kind of embarrased just thinking about it.

I wouldn't be embarrassed - the two psych profs who wrote recs for me are fully aware that this is a nightmarish process. They've mentored very well-qualified students who didn't get any interviews. We talked about how hard it is to get in anywhere. My point is that your professors will probably feel badly FOR you, but not ABOUT you. So much of this process is dumb luck that it would be asinine for them to think this reflects poorly on you. To the contrary, trying AGAIN shows determination and commitment, which are definitely admirable qualities in anyone's book!

 

[neuronerd1]

I'm thinking I may be in the same boat, and I believe my biggest fault is not having enough clinical experience. The only problem is I just finished my undergrad program in December and I'm finding it very difficult to gain such experience with only a B.A. Any suggestions on how to do so? Thanks!

You shoudl try working as a clinical case manager for a non-profit agency. That's what I'm up to. Or, volunteering for a crisis hotline.

 

[jcam17]

I applied to 4 university based psy.d. programs and got interviews to 3 of them. Two of the interviews were on the same day, so I had to cross Xavier off of my list. Although I havent heard back from them, I see other people have been accepted so that does not bode well for me. I am on the waitlist at Regent, so that might work out. My options now are take a year off and get experience or go to Loyola College in MD, where I was accepted into the Master's of clinical psych thesis track. I think that would give me a great chance to get into a Ph.D. down the road, but my GRE scores (1160) are a little on the low side. However, I feel rather confident that I will be able to get into a Psy.D. next year if I try again. Decision making is no fun!

 

[Duckygirl]

ughhhh,
I can't stand the thought of going through this whole process again...
For those of you who applied 2 or more times, did you re-write your statement from top to bottom or just update it? And if you applied to work with the same people, did you email them the 2nd time and say 'Hey, remember me? I'm applying again.' or something?

Hey Terrybug~ I only applied to three schools the first time around, but this year I applied to 15 (including the first 3 over again). My experience with the statement of purposes is that they vary so much in content and length, I virtually wrote each of them individually. When it came to re-sending materials to the three schools I applied to last year, I changed some things. I found that the amount of my experiences had changed so much, and I had developed better "clinical" vocabulary over the 9 months that I felt compelled to professionalize my statements, change the amount of hours and skills I had listed, get rid of some wordy/dorky things I'd said last year...I think you'll find when you sit down to revise for next fall that you might feel the same way. From essay to essay, you'll probably realize how you can re-word things, say them in a smarter way...
It is possible that you may not have to totally rewrite your statement. I found that I was able to pull phrases and small paragraphs that I still really liked from the previous year and use them in this year's. It's now all about cut-and-paste! I didn't contact any professors last year before applying, so I didn't have to introduce myself as "here I come again girl," but if I have to do it all over again this fall, frankly, there's little way around that. You can always say to them, "Although I've applied to your program in the past, here are some things that have changed:...I wanted to let you know that now I've....I've gained a lot more..."
Hope this helps. Feel free to PM me if you have more questions about the revision process.

 

[Ihatethisgame]

It is very reassuring to see so many people in the same boat as me. Sometimes I have felt I must be the only person who has had to do this TWICE already and still no bites. On the postive side, I have been able to explore what area I want to focus on due to the luck of my getting a job working with kids most grad school. It does not help that I have a rather narrow research interest though that seems to be lacking in a lot of schools (chronic illness with kids). I'll be taking the GRE again and am actually not as worried about it this year due to their changes. I'm taking the oppurtunity to really explore where I want to go and what I want to do. Plus having another year of from school won't be so bad since I had gone straight through high school to undergrad to grad. And I'm pregnant so I think having another year is a good thing! I guess my rant is aiming at letting you all know it sucks but there is oppurtunity as well. Make the most of it as cliche as that sounds (It took me a couple months to come to this peace of mind).

 

[guarinis]

well, as i said in another thread, i didn't get in anywhere this year. i find it is pretty embarassing trying to explain that to friends and family members that thought i was a sure thing. (haha, like that exists with clinical psych phd programs!! )

anyway, i don't know that i'll be applying again, but i wish luck to all of you who start in the fall and the rest of you that must begin applying again in the fall! this certainly was a learning experience if nothing else!

 

[sunshine11]

I always knew there was a chance that I would not get into any programs (and I haven't). I just wish people would not have kept telling me "oh, you'll get in, don't worry, you're smart.. etc...". I know they were just being supportive, but now I get to disappoint them and they'll just shower me with sympathy. But at this point, the only thing that would make me feel better is finding a job! Right now, I can't see myself applying again, since I feel like I just wasted a lot of time and money, even though I did get to meet some great people through interviews. I will have my master's in a couple months, so from there I will see how the working world pans out for me.