Career Information
Careers in Psychology | |
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Debt and Income in Psychology | |
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phd_vs_psyd.pdf | |
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graduate_study_1971_to_2004.pdf | |
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Recommended Resources
There are several good societies which publish information about graduate school in psychology. The American Psychological Association will often list many helpful resources, along with Psi Chi (which is the Psychology honors society). A few of these links are written below.
Website to explore careers in psychology: http://www.allpsychologyschools.com/
Other Career information: http://psych.la.psu.edu/undergraduate/planning/graduate-school-and-career-planning-1
https://www.psichi.org/?RES_CareersInPsych#.WOJpNPnyuUk
https://www.psichi.org/?RES_CareersInPsych#.WOJpNPnyuUk
Psi Chi Winter 2018: http://www.ourdigitalmags.com/publication/?i=449999&p=20#{%22page%22:20,%22issue_id%22:449999}
Under "advising" section, list of tips in applying to graduate school, psychology career options, and paths to forensic psychology: http://teachpsych.org/page-1603066
Graduate School in Clinical Psychology
scroll down to "your future" section: https://www.wcupa.edu/sciences-mathematics/psychology/undergradProgram.aspx
Graduate Applications timeline Junior & Senior years: http://psych.la.psu.edu/undergraduate/planning/seniors
Step by step application process through online videos: http://www.apa.org/education/grad/application-video-series.aspx
Search all available graduate school programs by certain features: https://www.petersons.com/graduate-schools.aspx
Article on how to ask for letters of recommendation (p. 11-15 in psi chi article):
https://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.psichi.org/resource/resmgr/Eye_PDF/Spring16Eye-web.pdf
https://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.psichi.org/resource/resmgr/Eye_PDF/Spring16Eye-web.pdf
Recommended book (insider's guide) that overviews graduate program applications and interviewing tips: http://www.amazon.com/Insiders-Graduate-Programs-Counseling-Psychology/dp/1462518133
Match statistics for internship that also give current statistics on student debt, years in graduate school, family composition, etc: http://www.appic.org/match/match-statistics
Important Steps to Consider
Training in Clinical Psychology is a difficult and rewarding process. To earn a Ph.D. one typically spends 5-7 years in graduate school, followed by a 1 year clinical internship. To decide if this path is right for you, consider several of these areas.
1. What is your preferred job? Can you do it with a BA/BS, MS, PhD, PsyD?
2. Do you like research?
3. Do you like clinical work related to testing and assessment?
4. Do you like clinical work related to ongoing therapy?
5. What is your preferred theoretical orientation?
6. What other life factors (e.g. location restriction, income needs, etc.) are important for you to consider?
These first 5 questions can be answered by taking courses in clinical psychology, however you might not know for sure until you immerse yourself in these experiences first hand. It is recommended to gain some research experience if possible, ideally with a mentor that researches things you are interested in. However, any research experience is better than no experience, and after studying something for a year you might grow to enjoy it. Experience with clinical work is not necessary, but smaller roles such as volunteering for a helpline or local mental health center might be worthwhile.
Ultimately, you will need to select between 10-15 graduate schools to apply to. A good strategy is to manage your risk by applying to some top schools, some in-between schools, and a few you are confident you could get into. Programs vary widely based on theoretical orientation, balance of research and clinical work, and funding. Consult the resources above for more information. For most schools, you will be applying to work with a mentor so your fit with that mentor is of paramount concern. At the very least, their research should be consistent with what you want to research.
Most programs require the following:
*Undergraduate Transcripts
*CV (i.e. Curriculum Vitae, an academic resume) michael_j._roche_cv_undergraduate_example.pdf
*Testing (GRE for most, Psych GRE additionally for fewer schools)
*Writing sample
*Personal statement
*Letters of recommendation: https://www.psichi.org/page/212EyeWin17cAppleby#.WOJpX_nyuUk
Schools vary in how they use this information to decide on applicants to interview. Schools may or may not have cutoffs for GPA and GRE scores. They don't publish these cut-off scores, but you can tell if you are in the right range by looking at the insider's guide (link above), to see the average GPA and GRE scores for a particular graduate school.
The personal statement is your chance to synthesize all of the information into a snapshot of who you are, ideally conveying that you are: intelligent, hard-working, collaborative, and professional. The resources above give tips about how to write these statements. By the end of the document you should have answered: Why graduate school in clinical psychology? How do I fit with this SPECIFIC mentor at this SPECIFIC university. You can tailor the last few paragraphs for each different school.
1. What is your preferred job? Can you do it with a BA/BS, MS, PhD, PsyD?
2. Do you like research?
3. Do you like clinical work related to testing and assessment?
4. Do you like clinical work related to ongoing therapy?
5. What is your preferred theoretical orientation?
6. What other life factors (e.g. location restriction, income needs, etc.) are important for you to consider?
These first 5 questions can be answered by taking courses in clinical psychology, however you might not know for sure until you immerse yourself in these experiences first hand. It is recommended to gain some research experience if possible, ideally with a mentor that researches things you are interested in. However, any research experience is better than no experience, and after studying something for a year you might grow to enjoy it. Experience with clinical work is not necessary, but smaller roles such as volunteering for a helpline or local mental health center might be worthwhile.
Ultimately, you will need to select between 10-15 graduate schools to apply to. A good strategy is to manage your risk by applying to some top schools, some in-between schools, and a few you are confident you could get into. Programs vary widely based on theoretical orientation, balance of research and clinical work, and funding. Consult the resources above for more information. For most schools, you will be applying to work with a mentor so your fit with that mentor is of paramount concern. At the very least, their research should be consistent with what you want to research.
Most programs require the following:
*Undergraduate Transcripts
*CV (i.e. Curriculum Vitae, an academic resume) michael_j._roche_cv_undergraduate_example.pdf
*Testing (GRE for most, Psych GRE additionally for fewer schools)
*Writing sample
*Personal statement
*Letters of recommendation: https://www.psichi.org/page/212EyeWin17cAppleby#.WOJpX_nyuUk
Schools vary in how they use this information to decide on applicants to interview. Schools may or may not have cutoffs for GPA and GRE scores. They don't publish these cut-off scores, but you can tell if you are in the right range by looking at the insider's guide (link above), to see the average GPA and GRE scores for a particular graduate school.
The personal statement is your chance to synthesize all of the information into a snapshot of who you are, ideally conveying that you are: intelligent, hard-working, collaborative, and professional. The resources above give tips about how to write these statements. By the end of the document you should have answered: Why graduate school in clinical psychology? How do I fit with this SPECIFIC mentor at this SPECIFIC university. You can tailor the last few paragraphs for each different school.
Other Advice
What minors would be helpful for grad school in psychology?
For a PhD, consider computer science, biology, mathematics, or statistics. For a PsyD consider a foreign language, sociology, HDFS, business, health, and nutrition.
The PhD is more research focused, so any minors that give you a skill that can be applied to research is good. Computer science may be particularly useful to build apps and mobile data collection platforms, which the field is increasingly interested in. The skills you learn there will likely translate into programs you may use in grad school (e.g. MATLAB, MPLUS, R, etc.). Code writing is of particular value as many statistical analyses rely on your ability to write and understand code/synax.
The PsyD is more applied, so learning skills that will help your conceptualization of cases, communication, or special knowledge for a special population is useful. The foreign language will help you if you can market yourself in being fluent in a second language. For some grad programs this is a huge asset (Spanish in particular). Getting a broader view of dysfunction beyond the individual (which psychology typically focuses on) is good for your overall knowledge and minors in sociology or HDFS are recommended. If you have a particular clinical population you would like to work with, then finding minors that can inform you about that population may be worthwhile (e.g. eating disorders and a nutrition or health minor, athletes and kinesiology minor, neurocognitive disorders and a biology minor). Finally, if your ultimate plan is to work for yourself in private practice, taking a business minor might prove helpful.
For a PhD, consider computer science, biology, mathematics, or statistics. For a PsyD consider a foreign language, sociology, HDFS, business, health, and nutrition.
The PhD is more research focused, so any minors that give you a skill that can be applied to research is good. Computer science may be particularly useful to build apps and mobile data collection platforms, which the field is increasingly interested in. The skills you learn there will likely translate into programs you may use in grad school (e.g. MATLAB, MPLUS, R, etc.). Code writing is of particular value as many statistical analyses rely on your ability to write and understand code/synax.
The PsyD is more applied, so learning skills that will help your conceptualization of cases, communication, or special knowledge for a special population is useful. The foreign language will help you if you can market yourself in being fluent in a second language. For some grad programs this is a huge asset (Spanish in particular). Getting a broader view of dysfunction beyond the individual (which psychology typically focuses on) is good for your overall knowledge and minors in sociology or HDFS are recommended. If you have a particular clinical population you would like to work with, then finding minors that can inform you about that population may be worthwhile (e.g. eating disorders and a nutrition or health minor, athletes and kinesiology minor, neurocognitive disorders and a biology minor). Finally, if your ultimate plan is to work for yourself in private practice, taking a business minor might prove helpful.