Boston College MA acceptance

[terrybug]

Anyone else here apply to BC and check the box that said 'If not accepted into the PhD program in Counseling Psych, please consider me for the MA program'?
I got an acceptance letter from them today. It's nice to finally get 1 acceptance BUT... it's obviously not the same as getting accepted into the PhD program.
Anyone have any thoughts on what BC is like in general? Anyone know the Couseling Psych program at BC?
Thanks!

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[irish80122]

Know that my post may be slightly biased by the fact that I go to the big Catholic school in the midwest , but I will try to limit that for now.

I met a person from BC's masters program on an interview and had a chance to talk some with her. I don't remember a whole lot of details but I don't believe she was all that satisfied. In fact, she said that no one from the counseling MA program applied for the PhD program this year which schocked the professors. Perhaps that will wake them up, who knows. I think I remember her saying that the PhD students get most of the attention and the grad students play second fiddle but that was months ago.

BC's main psych department is pretty strong but unfortunately counseling is in the Lynch school so it is completely separate. Lynch is a good school of ed though, for what it is worth. Overall BC has a strong reputation and I do think a masters from there can get you into a program elsewhere, especially if you are thinking of going counseling psychology.

One thing to keep in mind is tuition. BC's tuition is very high, and the cost of living in Boston is also sky high. I am not sure if they are offering scholarships or even a tuition waiver but you may want to inquire about that and also opportunities for assistanceships. PhD students probably are filling most of those, but you never know.

Another option at this stage in the game (I don't think it is too late, but I may be wrong) is Villanova has a strong clinical masters program which does offer tuition remission. May be worth a look. I have a good friend there and it sounds like she is getting an excellent education, though it has been very difficult for her as far as I can tell. It seems to be a masters which can get you places.

Good luck and I hope that helped some.

 

[HopefulHealer]

Hello Terry,
I too am from that big Catholic school in the midwest (shout out to Irish and did a master's degree in pastoral ministry at BC. I loved it!! Also, I don't mean to cause controversy but have to say that there were at least 5 BC master's students on my interview day there this year. It is also rated # 1 right now for scholarly productivity among Counseling Psychology PhD programs. It is true that Boston is expensive but it offers myriad collaborative opportunities and clinical placements that don't exist elsewhere. I hope this helps and would encourage you to ask the school for a contact number or e-mail of a Counseling M.A. student that you could talk frankly with.

 

[misskatie]

I was accepted to the MA program at BC as well. I'm not considering it, however, due to the high cost of tuition & living and to the fact that I'd rather start in one of the PhD programs I was accepted to. It was still nice to receive something, though.

 

[sunkyst11]

I also found out yesterday that I was accepted into the BC masters program and like terrybug would love to hear any thoughts or opinions any of you might have. I also have been accepted into the masters program at Columbia (Teachers College), but for the MA under the clinical psychology division, not the MEd through the counseling psychology department. I've seen a number of posting throughout the website reflecting people's negative experiences with Columbia, but does anyone know anything about how the programs compare in terms of reputations, student satisfaction, etc?

 

[terrybug]

Awesome. Thanks for the input. It's interesting that the 2 of you who seem to know BC the best are attending Catholic schools... is religion a strong presence on these campuses? I went to a very secular school as an undergrad and I'm not Christian, so the idea of getting an MA and seeing monks walking around campus is a strange thought to me!

 

[psychplease]

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[princessrosered]

I too was accepted to the masters program at BC. No offense to you fine people, I am sure that you are well qualified, but does anyone else think that it might not bode well for the program that they have accepted so many people? Whoever mentioned how many students actually attend the program, could you tell me where to find that information? I would very much appreciate it.

 

[Dr.Maybe]

The M.A. Program at BC seems really solid, and I can concur that a LOT - I'd say 5-10 - people at the Ph.D. interview were either in the MA program or had previously graduated from the program. Very BC-centric. I think and M.A. from there would give you great preparation for a doctorate in Counseling or Clinical Psych.

However, if you are primarily interested in a Clinical program, I would consider taking a research assistant position instead of pursuing an M.A. I have an M.A. in Counseling, and was only invited to interview at one Clinical program this year. In contrast, I was invited to interview at 100% of the Counseling psych programs I applied to. A lot of Counseling programs will require you (or strongly advise you to have) the M.A., while I've heard it may actually be viewed as a liability at some Clinical programs.

 

[HopefulHealer]

Hi Terry,
Congrats again! I wanted to address your concern about the "religious" nature of BC. Having gone to both ND and BC, I feel that they are very different as far as campus atmosphere. At ND, it seems that everything is saturated with spirituality. Most people there seem happy about that as 80% are Catholic. Whereas at BC, spirituality or religion is available but not part of everything that happens. In fact, I would say that you have to look for it if you want it as a graduate student. Also, BC has no monks as it is was started by the Jesuits who don't wear clerics, go by their first names only, and pride themselves on intellectual pursuit and personal spirituality. I hope this helps a bit!

 

[KillerDiller]

Awesome. Thanks for the input. It's interesting that the 2 of you who seem to know BC the best are attending Catholic schools... is religion a strong presence on these campuses? I went to a very secular school as an undergrad and I'm not Christian, so the idea of getting an MA and seeing monks walking around campus is a strange thought to me!

I attended grad school at a Catholic university after having done my undergrad at a secular school. Although at first it was a little difficult to get used such things as having a crucifix in every classroom, I eventually found that religion was not a big factor in my day to day life as a grad student. Sure, it was present on campus, but it was far from overbearing. I in no way felt persecuted for not being Christian.

I don't know much about the program at BC, but just thought I'd let you know that you shouldn't be scared off by the religious affiliation of the school.

 

[Shrinkaway]

The M.A. Program at BC seems really solid, and I can concur that a LOT - I'd say 5-10 - people at the Ph.D. interview were either in the MA program or had previously graduated from the program. Very BC-centric. I think and M.A. from there would give you great preparation for a doctorate in Counseling or Clinical Psych.

However, if you are primarily interested in a Clinical program, I would consider taking a research assistant position instead of pursuing an M.A. I have an M.A. in Counseling, and was only invited to interview at one Clinical program this year. In contrast, I was invited to interview at 100% of the Counseling psych programs I applied to. A lot of Counseling programs will require you (or strongly advise you to have) the M.A., while I've heard it may actually be viewed as a liability at some Clinical programs.

I also got into the BC's Masters program after being rejected from their PhD program, i guess the good thing is they told us with enough time to consider it with the rest of our acceptances. I interviewed @ Northeastern's Counseling PhD Program and met at least 4-5 students (and bare in mind there were about 40 people at the interview and I didnt hear from everybody) that were current BC Masters students. So that worried me, because I had thought maybe if I do the Masters, then that'd make me very competitive for PhD down the road, but now seeing how many MA students go onto PhD, seems just as competitive.

As for getting a MA to help you get into a PhD in Clinical psych, i'd say it wouldnt be that helpful, like someone else said, its better to get more research experience (from what i've been told). But looks like if you want to do a PhD in Counseling, then a MA seems like something that is def. very important, as I know I couldnt apply to almost all the PhD Counseling Programs I wanted, since most require a MA first, or accept 90% students who have a MA.

 

[psychforever]

Is anyone else going to the open house on the 21st? I did not get into any PhD programs this year, so I'm seriously thinking about going for the master's.

 

[princessrosered]

Is anyone else going to the open house on the 21st? I did not get into any PhD programs this year, so I'm seriously thinking about going for the master's.

I didn't get into any of the PhD programs this year either and I am seriously thinking about going for the masters, but I don't know if I can make the open house (although since I know next to nothing about the program, so it would probably be very helpful). I might check and see if I could speak with someone another time.
Perhaps you could let me know how it goes, I'm very curious to know more about the program.

 

[psychforever]

Sure, if I go, I'll be glad to give you my impressions. Unfortunately, I had already booked my vacation to start on that day, and it will cost me about $350 to change my flight to the next day. I don't know anything about the program either, so I'd hate to miss it, too, but ouch! that's a lot of money.

 

[therapist89]

Hi all,

Sorry to revive an old thread, but does anyone have any information on if BC fully funds their Ph.D. students for five years? I read through their website and it seems like they try to promise three years but are kinda flaky afterward. Also, does anyone know anything about the quality of their research training? The faculty seem really cool but I don't see many graduate students getting first-authorship and I can't really find any research labs. Any updated commentary on this program overall would be much appreciated.