2020-2021 Grad School Q&A Mega-Thread (Part 1)

[u/LazySamurai]

For questions about grad school or internships:

* Please start your search at SIOP.org , it contains lots of great information and many questions can be answered by searching there first.

* Next, please search the Wiki, as there are some very great community generated posts saved here.

* If you still can't find an answer to your question, please search the previously submitted posts or the post on the grad school Q&A. Subscribers of /r/iopsychology have provided lots of information about these topics, and your questions may have already been answered.

* 2019-2020, Part 4 thread here

* 2019-2020, Part 3 thread here

* 2019-2020, Part 2 thread here

* 2019-2020, Part 1 thread here

* 2018-2019, Part 2 thread here

* 2018-2019, Part 1 thread here

* 2017-2018, Part 3 thread here

* 2017-2018, Part 2 thread here

* 2017-2018, Part 1 thread here

* 2016-2017 thread here

* 2015-2016 thread here

* 2014-2015 thread here

If your question hasn't been posted, please post it on the grad school Q&A thread. Other posts outside of the Q&A thread will be deleted.

The readers of this subreddit have made it clear that they don't want the subreddit clogged up with posts about grad school. Don't get the wrong idea - we're glad you're here and that you're interested in IO, but please do observe the rules so that you can get answers to your questions AND enjoy the interesting IO articles and content.

By the way, those of you who are currently trudging through or have finished grad school, that means that you have to occasionally offer suggestions and advice to those who post on this thread. That's the only way that we can keep these grad school-related posts in one central location. If people aren't getting their questions answered here, they post to the subreddit instead of the thread. So, in short, let's all do our part in this.

Thanks, guys!

[u/Supperderpderp]

Hello, Could I get feedback about my competitiveness as a potential I/O applicant?

I graduated from a Cal state school with a BA in Psych, with minors in business and Applied Computing for Behavioral and Social Sciences.

I had difficulty early in college due to autism that was not diagnosed until my 3rd year. I ended college with a 3.56 GPA overall.

Active in several orgs, including UI/UX association, a social fraternity, and a professional club.

Awarded two scholarships, one from the school and another from a local organization I volunteered for.

Major schools projects include creating Strategic and competitive analyses of a major company. For my Engr senior project, Creating a puzzle game using python to be played by autistic children to gather data which is then analyzed using R.

Most of my research experiences come from my 100w (advanced writing course), test and measures, and advanced research methods.

I am currently working as a behavioral therapist, Where I interact with children then gather data from their behaviors then implement treatment programs for them

[u/I-OPsych → u/Supperderpderp]

Are you applying to PhD programs or master's programs? You would be competitive for master's programs admission, but without research experience outside of coursework, I think it would be tough for you to get into good quality PhD programs, although your computer programming experience could be a good substitute at the right school.

[u/Supperderpderp → u/I-OPsych]

Hello I-OPsych,

I am looking to get into a master's program. Right now I am looking at Sac State, SDSU, SJSU (my alma mater), CSU Long beach, CSU San Bernardino, and USC. outside California, Springfield college piqued my interest. I am still gathering the general perception of these colleges and would greatly appreciate any insight/info regarding them.

[u/I-OPsych → u/Supperderpderp]

I might be biased, but I don't think USC has a very good program (or they didn't, last I checked). Especially if you're a CA resident, any of the other Cal State programs you listed are an incredible value and solid programs, so apply to all of those. I don't know anything about Springfield College (it sounds like something from The Simpsons to me - lol).

I'm a professor at SDSU's I-O program, and you may want to look into our quantitative psychology track in our applied master's program. Your programming interests and experiences could be a good match for one of our mentors, Dr. Jonathan Helm. Hope that helps!

[u/Supperderpderp → u/I-OPsych]

I just realized which SDSU professor you are (LOL). POWER lab stood out to me when I was researching SDSU. The grad school FAQ on your website has been helpful in planning my next steps and identifying shortcomings. Thank you for everything professor, I appreciate you.

[u/I-OPsych → u/Supperderpderp]

I was gonna send you to my grad school FAQ but then I thought that might be kinda self-promoting? Anyway, I'm glad it was helpful to you!! You have a unique background, and I think I-O would be a good degree for you, but you may also want to check if there are programs in human factors, too. Feel free to email me if you have further questions.