Dropping Clinical

[LisaLisa86]

I'm a second year graduate student in a clinical psychology program. We just started our clinical training this year, and my program is quite long: 5-6 years plus an internship for clinical track. I'm also in a very productive research lab, with a lot of great resources- while I'm here, I have the opportunity to pursue many interesting/unique research topics and form many research connections.

I primarily enjoy research, and was drawn to the field of psychology specifically to do research. However, I don't feel like I have a set research niche yet, and I'm not entirely sure what I want my career after graduate school to look like- I've been mentally defaulting to professor, but I'm unsure if that's something I entirely want to pursue. I largely enjoy research design and statistics. I would also like to teach as well, in some capacity. I applied to PhD programs that were mostly clinical, but a few non-clinical programs as well. However, I partly chose this program because of the clinical option.

I wouldn't say I've been particularly enjoying clinical work this year- it's not very natural to me, and I find it tiring. It's a huge time commitment both through classes (I'd pretty much be done my classes and quals this year if I wasn't clinical- otherwise, it continues to the end of 3rd year), practicum (2 days/wk), and internship. However, I feel like I've been sticking with it because: 1) I feel like it may give me more career options and flexibility long-term, 2) It may be something I like more as I get more proficient, and 3) I'll regret not doing it. However, my advisor asked me the other day if I wanted to drop clinical- she suggested it although allowed me the option to remain on clinical track. Dropping clinical would allow me to focus a lot more on my research, I will likely be able to graduate earlier, and I could focus on other specializations such as advanced statistics.

I was wondering if people here on the board had thoughts about clinical track versus not- e.g. whether it's something that people think is important for research careers in psychology. I'd also be interested if anyone has thoughts about different career paths that would be available to me on either track. I'm particularly interested in learning more about alternative, non-academic career options that I could pursue with just a research-based PhD in Psychology. Everybody I know in the field has chosen either a very traditional clinical role or a very traditional academia role, so it has been difficult for me to figure out other possibilities.

Thank you for your thoughts!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[WisNeuro]

Something to consider, somewhat anecdotal, but I hear it a lot. Year 2 is always the worst, it's usually when people are starting clinical work and they are overloaded. I hated year 2. From then on out, things got so much better. For one thing, I was doing the clinical work that I wanted to do (neuropsych and PTSD) and I was getting my requirements over with. I do think there is something to the notion that you enjoy things less if you feel like you suck at it. I definitely know that my enjoyment of my clinical work only increased over time as I felt like I was becoming more and more proficient.

I would wonder if giving it another year might be worth it. I do think you limit some career flexibility of you go solely research. Many PhD programs, even those that are heavy research, want many of their faculty to be licensed for supervisory purposes. And, you'll also be eligible for clinical research jobs in other institutions (e.g., MIRECC in the VA).

In the end though, you'll have to do what works for you. If clinical work is something that you continue to have no interest or pleasure in, maybe the pure research track is for you. I will caution though, unless we see a big political change in this country concerning the way we fund public research, the money available will continue to slowly shrink, with more hands trying to get into the pot. Living grant to grant can be pretty stressful.

 

[PsyDr]

Don't know if it helps, but:

You might want to keep in mind that not all areas of clinical practice are the same. There were several areas of training of which I hated. But after discussing it with my supervisor, we were able to find different sub-areas which I found interesting.

 

[Ollie123]

I was once in the same boat. I came in knowing I wanted to be a researcher. It always seemed questionable if the amount of time I needed to devote to clinical activities was worth it. I'm on internship now (so that obviously should tell you I stuck it out) and am now having that debate all over again since I feel like I'm losing a lot of the research momentum I've built up over the past several years.

That said - I still say stick it out. It opens doors. I definitely agree with exploring options for "applied" work. I've gotten more comfortable with doing therapy work throughout graduate school and definitely enjoy it more than I did in the beginning, but its never going to be my thing. I enjoy assessment somewhat more and am now getting exposed to program evaluation, dissemination & implementation, and training on internship - which is certainly MUCH more enjoyable for me. I also think its where the field is going anyways, so there are professional advantages to training in that vs. devoting all one's time to learning individual therapy.

Clinical definitely opens doors, but its up to you whether you think its worth it. I'm close enough now that I can say it was, but its not always the most pleasant experience. There are plenty of paths out there for folks with strong research backgrounds besides professorships, but they definitely aren't the traditional path so I'm not sure of any resources to point you towards. I'd just encourage you to think more broadly about the sorts of knowledge/skills any good psychologist should have..stats, research design, writing (and communication more broadly), managing complex projects and competing time demands, managing staff, etc. These skills lend themselves to a great many types of position...of course you are then entering a very general job pool so that creates challenges too.

 

[EmotRegulation]

Others have advocated for sticking it out, and there are certainly merits to giving it another year.

You also asked about non-academic career options. I have known multiple people who have found work in DC--you could work for NIH (program officer) or even for a senator/congressperson--they hire PhDs to do research on topic issues. There are actually lots of options for PhDs outside of academia; you just have to be able to sell your skillset towards a different kind of job. Unfortunately most advisers know very little about those career choices, and thus don't know how to advise toward them. This website has great advice and some resources for jobs/careers outside of academia: http://theprofessorisin.com/pearlsofwisdom/

 

[DynamicDidactic]

Year 2 is always the worst

agreed.

Also, very few people have a research niche by year 2.

 

[PhDToBe]

Just because you don't like some clinical work (e.g., therapy), doesn't mean you won't like some of the other things (assessment). If you still hate it after a lot of experience in both areas, maybe then you can think about dropping clinical. Like others, I suggest giving it more time.

 

[moveablefeastings]

In terms of non-academic non-clinical roles for psychologists: I currently work in a social psych/sociology lab, and boatloads of those graduates go on to work in industry at companies like facebook, twitter, and microsoft. Remember that scandal over Facebook performing an experiment on users to manipulate the emotional valence of their newsfeed? Well, apparently that kind of research is really hot right now, and tech/social media companies are hiring researchers who can design and run those kinds of studies.

 

[LisaLisa86]

Thank you all- you have given me a LOT to think about! I think I've been wanting to drop clinical, but you all validated the reasons why I haven't yet. I'll stick it out at least another year, and I'll start looking at the resources you all provided to start figuring out some possible alternative career paths. I think having an end goal in mind will make the next few years much easier mentally.

Thank you again, and if anyone else has any thoughts, suggestions, or resources, please feel free to share!