ࡱ> ?A> /bjbj 4&/     !!!!5!QggggBBBA"6 BBBBB  gg&&&B g g&B&&V@Jg̀\!L: 0xw"w"Jw" J8BB&BBBBB&BBBBBBBw"BBBBBBBBB : Personal Statement: *This is an important part of your application so it has to be flawless!* Goal: tell the story of who you are and how you got the point you are now (ex. You want to be a social psychologist) Guidelines: Provide evidence without drawing the conclusion. Show the committee that you are motivated, smart, ambitious, reliable etcbut dont claim it! Let the statement/your application speak for itself. Discuss formative experiences Tread line between right amount of self-disclosure and too much self disclosure (especially too soon) This is also the time to explain any discrepancies (W or F) and can mention future plans. Tips: Dont overuse I because it sounds too self focused. The focus should be on goals and interest, not you. Try to flip sentences. Wrong: I am interested in a career in social psychology Right: My interest in becoming a social psychologist stems from taking this class Use good vocabulary but not too over the top like you were sitting with a thesaurus. Be sure to mention outstanding achievements (e.g., winning an award, President of a club etc) if its relevant so it doesnt get overlooked IMPORTANT: Have other people read your statement!! Especially people who you know are good writers or people who read lots of statements (e.g., faculty youre close with). Tailor your statement to the programs: Try to mention professors you may be interested in working with and specifics about the program. This suggests that students have done their homework but be careful that you dont make it seem that you only have one professor you want to work with. For example: Im interested in Professor Roberts research on XYZ but Im also interested in research the faculty is doing in 123 You can probably find out about what the faculty is doing on the schools website Email faculty to learn more about the program (but dont ask things that are already all over the website). The worst they can do is not reply. If you decide to do this, send an email with a description of who you are, program you are applying to, ask if they will be accepting grad students in the semester you are applying for and could mention research youre interested in doing. How to choose schools: Apply to more than one place Talk to people in the field Think about journal articles, textbooks etcwritten by people you like. See who/where they are and perhaps apply to that school. In making the choice, dont neglect other important factors such as location, climate and family responsibilities. Get a list of faculty, learn about the type of program (e.g., research oriented vs. clinically oriented). Pick safety schools but pick ones that you would be willing to go to Sometimes you need to take a year offand its okay. Application Process: Start early in requesting everything transcripts, letters of recommendation etc. **Make sure that with letters of recommendation, you waive your right to see what the person wrote about you. If schools see that someone has written something good about you without you knowing exactly what, it looks better than if you know exactly what they wrote. If you dont waive your right, it might seem that the person may have only said good things about you because they knew you would see it. Sometimes students are admitted contingent upon last semester so make sure not to slack off senior year! Letters of Recommendation: Pick people who you know best and can say superlatives. Not just someone that can say Mary got an A in this class. You want something like: Mary is fabulous; she came to office hours, contributed to class discussion Give someone an out when you ask them for a letter since you dont want one from a person who doesnt really want to write you a letter. Give supportive information to the letter writer such as a copy of a course paper, your personal statement, extracurricular activities and extenuating circumstances. Note: for extenuating circumstances, it is better if the letter writer mentions it. Q: Is it bad to have a recommendation from earlier in your career? A: Dont wait too long to ask because memories fade so get them sooner rather than later. You can set up a file in the  HYPERLINK "http://www.career.sunysb.edu/" Career Center. They keep your letters. Also, faculty may leave/retire or may only be adjunct/associate professors so you want to get it in a timely manner. Q: If you went to more than one school or were in a different field, should you address it? A: Yes. 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