What should i do in my year off?

[SpiritBender]

I recently got into Pepperdine for my masters in Gen Psy but i deferred it for a year to wait for my girlfriend to finish her degree my question is what can i do to prepare for grad school next year in psychology? So far ive been rereading all of my undergrad text books(i kept all of them stupid book store wants to give me 36 dollars for a 200 dollar brand new psy book yea right!) but i am breezing through these books and i feel like i could be doing more with my time. Any advice on books or something to practice to make the MA program next year easier?

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[Therapist4Chnge]

1. Read journal articles in your area(s) of interest.
2. Textbooks can be hit and miss, as most "grad" textbooks are either too general or really niche.
3. Check out your course descriptions and/or syllabi to see what you'll be doing, as getting a start on that can really help, partcularly in your areas of weakness.

 

[erg923]

Try reading the classics and some "must reads." Some Rogers, Skinner, Freud, Beck, anything by Paul Meehl.

 

[lookitssara]

I second reading articles in your area. Also, if you will be doing any research (quant) or taking statistics, you should get a start getting comfortable with stats.

 

[erg923]

http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/topic.htm

I also highly recommend:

Thurstone, L. L. (1934). The vectors of mind. Psychological Review, 41, 1-32.

 

[wrsparks]

Can I suggest doing something fun? Might as well have a bit of a life while you can...

 

[SpiritBender]

thanks everybody i love the advice keep it coming its a gonna be a long year lol, i think i am having fun just playing games having some beers, but i have no idea what grad school is like, any idea on what the classroom vibe is going to be? questions, lectures or only readings??

 

[erg923]

I guess grad school classes have "vibes" there in southern CAL....didnt know that...

Not sure what masters level classes are like, but doctroral level classes are both lecture and discussion based. You are expected to do the reading before class and be able to discuss them in class. Grad school is the time when its ok to start forming opinions about research and psych issues and actually have professors give weight and discussion time to it. Have fun, but also do some reading. Other suggested getting a jump start on class reading or looking up journal articvel in ypoir area of interest. I agree with this, but might suggest spending more time on background pieces and classic readings that you might not have time for once you're in school full time. Classic Freud, Cattell,, Rogers and again, I highly Thustone's Vectors of Mind (1934) if you like more philosophical musings of psychololgy.

 

[wrsparks]

I'm in a masters program that is kind of designed for those that want to go on to the PhD, so my guess is the structure of the classes are similar with lots of reading, articles, synthesis which leads to discussion and bouncing around ideas. I also have clients that I see for testing. We have a lab for my Physio Class which is fun. Then there are classes like Stats that are more lecture based. So you get a mash up of everything. My interactions in class are laid back and we joke and enjoy each other during class. I really like it. If it is terminal... you'll probably see a lot more clients. My guess is that a MS program is not as intense as in pace as a PhD program, but IDK.

If you HAVE to do something I would read the research articles of the person/people you are interested in working with, and figure out what the heck you want to do for your thesis. I know that sounds crazy, but the sooner you start, the sooner you finish, and the sooner you can present on it or something.

 

[SpiritBender]

School is starting soon and i found my old thread so i figured that i would let you guys know how the year off went...

1. I got engaged to my girlfriend.
2. I made a ton of money at a restaurant waiting tables at 50 hours a week
3. I got a job working as a psychiatric technician in a hospital (i got a lot of great experience).
4. I read through my entire undergraduate psychology curriculum again.
5. I traveled across the country(14 states) i saw Rushmore, Bryce canyon, Las Vegas, Rockies, Salt lake and a few more sites..
6. I am in the process of reading through all of my first semester textbooks.

I accomplished a lot of personal growth and self discovery over the year. Someone told me to relax and take it easy before the intense course load but i couldn't the whole time at home i was still eager to get to school and try a new tier of schooling. Taking the year off was worth it for me personally i was not ready to start grad school. My relationship could not of handled the stress then however, now i am more confident in my self as a student and my fiancee is a lot more supportive. My time as a psych tech helped too, it fueled my passion even more than i thought possible. If your going into advanced counseling and you've never seen the inside of psych ward or seen developmental problems up close you should. An abnormal textbook does it no justice.

Should someone take a year off after undergraduate school my answer: depends, it depends on your situation. BUT FOR ME IT WAS ONE OF THE BEST DECISIONS I HAVE EVER MADE.