Research experience

[neurochic1]

For those in clinical psych phd programs, what kind of research experience did you have before being accepted? Does it need to be psychological research? I’m having a hard time gaining research experience in the psych field and can only find experience in more clinical trials/ biomedical research. I would still gain experience dealing with IRB, enrolling/screening patients, etc. but again the projects are not psych related. Does it matter? I’m not willing to move to a different city right now. Thanks in advance!

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[albatross_at_crossroads]

Quality research experience can come in many forms. Recently, most applicants have had a diverse range of experiences, and a few have clinical trials or other psych-adjacent experience. What matters more though is, what kind of research products do you have after this experience. IRB and patient experience is nice, but do you have posters? Other opportunities to publish/ present? Are your own research interests in this area where you work now, and if not, how it might be connected/ relevant? The minimum now (for competitive programs) is not just research experience, but also showing research productivity and clearly defined research interests.

 

[neurochic1]

Thank you very much for the reply. That makes sense that programs value research products as well as experience. I will keep this in mind as I explore new positions in clinical research. As for research products, I have presented posters at 3 conferences. I am coauthored on 1 publication (in a high impact journal), 1 co-first author paper in the works, and three other papers in revision that I am coauthored on. I’m really grateful to be part of these projects and for the opportunity (especially as a trainee) but these projects are not at all related to what I hope to study in the future. I am exploring new positions and hoping to find one where I’ll be able to make some kind of connection to clinical health psychology. For example, I’m interested in psycho-oncology research so I’ve been trying to find a clinical research position in breast cancer trials… sorta connected, but not perfect of course. I’m wondering if taking some extra psychology courses would help my application? I just want it to be clear that I’m interested in clinical psychology and I’ve done my research/know what I’m getting myself into.

 

[summerbabe]

Does it need to be psychological research?

This will vary program by program but people in mine all had some degree of psych research prior to entry.

For admissions, you are ultimately trying to convince a PI/program that you will be successful in their clinical psych program AND you'll be more successful than the other candidates who are applying.

I think the broader issue might be perceived fit. Say you end up deciding to focus on early onset schizophrenia but your research experience is in unrelated biomed trials including pubs. But if you're competing against somebody who already has some schizophrenia or schizophrenia-adjacent research experience (even with possibly lower level pubs) you may very well be considered a poorer candidate due to less defined fit.

I’m wondering if taking some extra psychology courses would help my application?

Couldn't hurt but coursework probably would rank near the bottom for admission criteria so it might not be worth the effort and cost.

For example, I’m interested in psycho-oncology research so I’ve been trying to find a clinical research position in breast cancer trials… sorta connected, but not perfect of course.

One thing you could potentially research is the average expectation of direct psychology research versus adjacent health centric research for this subfield.

The more closely related potential PIs research aligns with these opportunities, the more they may value it. But if you're applying to a PI looking at constructs like caregiver support burden for cancer patients which doesn't require much knowledge about oncology itself, then maybe not so much.

In essence, your mileage will vary and specifics will likely really matter. Good luck!

 

[Trauma_Psych]

Typically students will gain research experience either through bachelors/master's programs or out in paid research positions. I worked at a research center for the VA for two years and a lot of my fellow doc students had similar experiences. Unless you live in a big city, being unwilling to move can really limit your opportunities to get research experience.

If considering research experience, don't discount M.S. research-focused programs. I'm faculty at a research-focused master's program. Check our M.S. in Psychological Sciences program at M.S. in Psychology - Psychological Sciences Graduate Programs | Western Kentucky University. We offer stipends and at least partial (sometimes full dependent upon grant funding) tuition waivers. Apps are due March 1 but it's a soft deadline and we'll accept applications after the deadline. I'll have funding for two students next year. Great opportunity for someone looking to get more research experience to make their application more competitive for doctoral programs. Feel free to email me with questions at [email protected].

 

[CheetahGirl]

For those in clinical psych phd programs, what kind of research experience did you have before being accepted? Does it need to be psychological research? I’m having a hard time gaining research experience in the psych field and can only find experience in more clinical trials/ biomedical research. I would still gain experience dealing with IRB, enrolling/screening patients, etc. but again the projects are not psych related. Does it matter? I’m not willing to move to a different city right now. Thanks in advance!

I had Departments of Surgery (angiogenesis) and Oncological Sciences research, and lots of it! I presented our findings nationally and internationally, so do what you can, and then, make it apply to your needs.

The understanding of/practicing with the scientific method and dissemination of research (from nuts to bolts/benchside to bedside) are your main goals. Our work ranged from working with obese mice and human subjects, so it's best if you can find clinical work with humans, but you can get great exposure to behavioral research with animals models, if it's all you can find.