Graduate School

i’m applying for ot, if anyone knows of a school that excepts degrees from excelsior

i would appreciate it.

i’ve been researching ot schools, downstate is the cheapest

and the most accommodating about yom tov etc. tons of jewish people there. but like

kapusta said, its crazy hard to get in. basically you have to do observing hours, and you

need CPR.

it varies depending on the school your applying to. temple university has frum girls

there and i heard they are very nice to them and the girls like it. theres also

kean-its cheaper and stockton-very hard to get into. there’s seton hall-expensive, christian and i dont know of any jewish girls there. seems like temple and kean

is the place where a lot of jewish girls are. nyu is expensive and have to make

everything up when you miss is bec of yom tov. you have to travel but it doesnt sound

too difficult to get in.

one thing i heard from ppl in pt graduate schools is that its horrible

and there’s a lot of issues with tznius and the dress code you have to wear

for the exercises. even touro is like this. they have a little michitzah for

the two frum girls but everyone can still see if they walk a few steps over.

First thing, when applying to grad school, PROOFREAD your submission. Don’t have spelling or grammatical errors, because it will reflect poorly on you. Something that makes your application stand out, is the inclusion of documented information regarding any service you may have given your community. My son was accepted to several grad schools, including Columbia, and in each case the person who interviewed him commented on his extensive history of volunteerism with the disabled, developmentally delayed, and elderly populations. Another applicant may have a higher GPA than you, but if you have extra-curricular involvement in something related to your field of study, it looks impressive to the grad school, and could possibly tip the scales in your favor over another qualified candidate.

I am not certain what Bozo means, regarding Tznius issues. My daughter is in Touro Grad School for OT, and has had no problems with that. As far as yom tov is concerned, well you cannot expect a grad school to care that you are a frum Jew. If you do care about this issue (as do we all), then you probably should go to a grad school under Jewish auspices. Touro does not have classes on Yom Tov (they might on chol hamoed, though).

I should also point out that my wife is in a grad program as well. She’s currently going for a degree in Speech Pathology. There are many frum women in her program.

The Wolf

I just got into grad school, and will be starting in the fall (for reasons of anonymity, I will not say which program, b/c I’m in a very specific one).

For your questions:

A. Since most people in this country do not go for advanced degrees, youare, to begin with, up against tougher, more ambitious competition. Additionally, at least for now, it will be even harder than usual. The past academic year has seen a very steep increase in the amount of applications. Due to the economy, many people who just graduated college are looking to delay their entry into a bad job market, and many people who are already in the workforce are looking to go for advanced degrees in order to hold onto their jobs, or make themselves look more attractive to potential employers in case they lose their jobs. At least as long as the crisis lasts, it is going to be more difficult to get into grad school.

B. and C. In addition to the obvious, such as college grades and test scores (GRE for most programs, GMAT for business; not all programs require standardized testing), you will also have to write essays, show samples of previous work (this usually applies to creative programs- art, music, creative writing, etc, but you should still check with wherever you’re applying for specifics), possibly an interview, and you should have some internships related to your field under your belt. These are the things that will make you stand out beyond the numbers.

D. Most programs let you start whenever you want, and most have summers available. You would have to check with each program though; rules vary, and I know that some are fall start only.

E. As far as Jewish life goes, you can’t go wrong with CUNY. In addition to being cheaper than most places, there are tons of frum Jews in all of the schools, but most especially in Queens, Brooklyn, Baruch, and Hunter. CUNY gives off for Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur, also they almost always set spring break to coincide with Pesach (except for when Pesach comes out the end of April). Shavuos is almost never a problem, because the semester is usually over by then (unless it comes out mid-May, and even then, it’s usually during finals, and they’ll let you reschedule an exam if it conflicts). Sukkos is an issue, you’ll have to miss class on Yontif, but the professors understand. Many of them are frum themselves, in which case you won’t miss class at all.

I hope you can find this information helpful.

Also, does anyone know anything about psychology programs (in the NY area) specifically for marital/family therapy? I have a relative who is looking into that, and this seems like a good forum for putting out the question.

CUNY schools receive their funding from New York City while SUNY schools receive funding from New York State. Other than that, and in terms of transferring to a different school within the system, the schools in each system have little to do with each other. For instance, Binghamton is an excellent school and I believe it’s the top SUNY; Stonybrook is also up there, and has particularly strong science programs. Oswego and Cortland are known “party schools”, but they are also part of the SUNY system.

Within CUNY, Queens, Hunter and Baruch are the top schools; Queens has very strong sciences, Hunter has excellent humanities, and Baruch is known for excellence in business and accounting type fields. Both Queens and Hunter also have excellent teacher education and social work programs, and I believe Brooklyn is good for that as well. As with SUNY, there are CUNY schools that do not have such excellent reputations, such as York or Queensboro (not to be confused with Queens). The top CUNY schools are as good as the top SUNY schools; and the worst SUNYs are as bad as the worst CUNYs, so state vs city makes no difference.

For both systems, you have to look into each individual school, and within each school, look into the department, as each of these schools has certain departments in which they excel more than others.

Other thing to keep in mind (at least if money is a factor for you)is that the CUNY schools are less than half the price of the SUNY schools. Either way, the most important thing is to do your research and go for the program that will best suit your needs.

havesomeseichel, SATs are preffereable (especially for financial aid) but I heard they are not necessary in Touro. (I heard from a reliable source, but I could be wrong)

*kapusta*

havesomeseichel, much to late for that, I will try tomorrow to read and understand bl”n.

*kapusta*

My husband is currently enrolled in an engineering masters at Steven’s Institute. Its a mid-rate college but not cheap (his company is paying). They also have a lot of on-line classes so you don’t have to commute. They are right near the holland tunnel.

The nice thing about the on-line classes at Stevens is that they are regular graduate classes. It isn’t a scammy type on-line system. Your degree is the same as if you attended classes on campus. He is maximizing on those.

Stevens is more of the math/science oriented program, and they also have project management type stuff.

Polytechnic University (now connected to NYU) recently started an MBA program. Not cheap either, but much easier to get into. Then again, its not a top tier in the slightest.

is it better to bulk up on extra curricular activities or get a perfect 4.0? i am balancing the two but want to know if anyone knows how schools think about them. i know grades are important but if we have a normal GPA for the field should we do extra curricular or sweat to get a drop higher? might not get any higher and will get the resume to prove the effort.

My personal opinion and observation is that the extra-curriculars look more impressive on a resume than a 4.0 GPA, assuming the GPA is not substantially lower. Grades are not necesssarily the best reflection of a person’s ability – only of his or her ability to memorize or learn information. Talent and commitment to doing a good job, are far more indicative of someone’s potential for success. I know geniuses who are still foundering all their lives. They never got a grade under an A+, but neither did many of them develop the skills or personality to do the type of job that many grad schools are seeking for their students. If I were a person in charge of making decisions of acceptance and had only one spot open, I would be far more interested in the Sociology or Psychology major who actually spent time working with people in crisis, than those who had the highest GREs or SATs, but never gave of themselves to their community because they were so busy getting all 4.0s.

havesomeseichel, everything counts. Colleges want to see who you are. Anything you do helps them get to know you. Good grades are super-important. A knockout personal statement is the only way that they can know what kind of person you are. Even with top grades, your personal statement can make or break the admission decision.

Good luck!

~a the real one~

you need SAT to get into grad school or to get scholarships and loans for grad

school?

Bozo,

FWIW, I’m in grad school, getting both a scholarship and loans and I never took the SAT. But then again, I’m in business school where the main testing criteria is the GMAT test. Other grad schools may have other criteria.

The Wolf

wolf-do you know about OT?

Not directly. However, I have a very close relative who became an OT here in New York. If you want to ask some questions, I’ll be more than happy to pass them along and bring you back some answers.

The Wolf

Touro ABSOLUTELY required my daughter to have a BA, and though she already had it, they required a bio or anatomy course that is not required by any other OT grad school. we checked. Twice. I was so upset that after all the money we paid out for tuition that my daughter unknowingly had one more requirement. One three credit course is a fortune, and would have been “free” had she taken it that last semester, because she only needed 12 credits (as per her College advisor, in the final cheshbon before graduation)to graduate, and this would have brought it to 15, which costs the same as 12.