Especially for Applicants

Deadline: December 1

Q.         Is an interview required? 

Yes, an in-person interview is required, and interview dates will be scheduled for January and  February. Offers will be made only to applicants who interview.

Q.         How will I hear about the status of my application? 

You can easily check online at: http://odu.edu/admission/graduate/status where you can  learn if your application is complete. Applicants who are invited to interview are notifed by phone. Those who are not selected to interview will be notified by mail in addition to being able to check their admission status at http://odu.edu/admission/graduate/status. Interview invitations will be extended in January.

Q.         How many applicants are invited to interview? How many offers are made?

Depending on the strength of the applicant pool, about 30 applicants are invited to interview each year. After interviews some of those may be released. From among those remaining, we admit a class of 6.

Q.         When are offers made?

After interviews are completed, the Admission Committee and the faculty make decisions regarding admission offers. Our goal is to make offers as soon as possible, usually within two weeks.

Q.          How are candidates and alternates notified?

Offers of admission are made by phone and confirmed in writing. There is a short list of alternates, who also are notified by phone. Some applicants may be released after interviews; those applicants are notified in writing.

Q.         What about financial aid offers?

Financial aid offers are often made with offers of admission and will be confired in writing. If you receive an offer, ask any and all questions you have about financial aid at that time.

Q.         If I do receive an offer, how much time will I have to make my decision?

There is a national competition deadline for clinical psychology programs; all offers must be made by April 1 and accepted or declined by April 15.

The Virginia Consortium supports the resolution adopted by the Council of Graduate Departments of Psychology regarding admission offers: "Applicants will be notified on or before April 1, and those to whom admission is offered will be given until April 15 to accept or decline." A decision to accept must also be made in writing.

Q.          I may receive other offers. What am I expected to do?

It is likely to be a busy time. A successful strategy for handling competing pressures is to review your offers weekly, to decide between or among them, and release those in which you are no longer interested. It is wise to keep no more than one offer at a time. Prioritize your options as soon as you have completed your interviews, and rank them. Then if you receive an offer from your 4th ranked program, notify the programs you've ranked below 4 (e.g., 5, 6 etc.) that you are withdrawing. Release the offer from program number 4 when you get an offer from number 3 and so on.

Q.         You say "prioritize your options."  How can I do that?

In the best of all possible worlds, your training goals would be your single most important consideration.  In reality, other factors can limit your range of choices.  We understand you must weigh issues such as how long is the program, how much will it cost, how far away is too uncomfortable or too expensive for me.

Nonetheless, one issue you must resolve before you begin to consider offers is: "What type of career do I want? What type of work do I want to do?"  Certain types of programs provide stronger preparation for clinical work, others for research or analysis. It is too late to begin deciding between research programs and clinical programs once offers are made. Offers must be accepted by April 15.

Q.         If I want to accept an offer, what then?

If you find yourself considering an offer from our program, know that we are always available to discuss its merits or to answer questions. However, if you decide to accept another offer or to withdraw your application to the Virginia Consortium for any reason, we ask you to phone or e-mail us as soon as you have made that decision. Often others will be waiting on your decision.

Q.         Did we answer your question? 

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