Basic questions about Phd admissions...

[carn311]

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Hi guys,

My wife is considering a career in clinical/academic psychology but is unfamiliar with the admissions process. Being a premed myself I figured I'd ask all you brilliant SDN'ers 😀

How competative is the admissions process? (We both will have to be able to attend the same school so this narrows down where we can apply)

How can one obtain funding for their Phd in psychology? (I am only familiar with the physical sciences)

What is a GPA range for "good" Phd applicants?

Other than undergraduate research what other extracurriculars/academic work should she consider to make her application more attractive?

Thanks Guys...

 

[EL CAPeeeTAN]

Hi guys,

My wife is considering a career in clinical/academic psychology but is unfamiliar with the admissions process. Being a premed myself I figured I'd ask all you brilliant SDN'ers 😀

How competative is the admissions process? (We both will have to be able to attend the same school so this narrows down where we can apply)

How can one obtain funding for their Phd in psychology? (I am only familiar with the physical sciences)

What is a GPA range for "good" Phd applicants?

Other than undergraduate research what other extracurriculars/academic work should she consider to make her application more attractive?

Thanks Guys...

She does not have to be a psych. major but there are several required psychology classes for PhD programs. These classes can differ from program to program so it will be good to research the programs to see which psych classes that they require if your wife is not a psych major. Usually the classes include Abnormal Psychology, Statistics / Research Stats., Intro to Psych, etc. A PhD in psych is very competative, most programs require GPAs in the 3.5 range, also a good GRE score is required 1250 - 1400 range depending on programs. Some programs require the psychology subject test and a 700 + score is considered good. Other programs do not require the psych subject test. Most programs want to see research and some field related experience. This experience can come from working for a crisis line or working in a youth home or at a mental hospital or volunteering at these types of places. Please note that this info is the "general rule" and you will find exceptions to most of these suggestions, i.e. I know so and so who got accepted with a 1050 GRE or a 2.9 GPA etc. Many PhD programs are funded so you can attend and have your tuition waived and even receive a stipend. However in these programs you will be required to research and teach etc which justifies the funding. For a typical program you will have anywhere from 200 - 500+ applicants for 8 to 10 spots. So the more that you can add to application with higher GPA, higher GRE, more related experience, more research, etc the better your chances will be. I am sure that I have left some things out but this info should get you going. Good luck!

 

[SaraL124]

I think the previous poster covered a lot of the important stuff. I would just like to add that I think applying straight out of undergrad is a disadvantage because there is less time for research experience on a long-term study setting, and less life experience. I think most people applying are in the 23-26 age range or even older. If your wife takes off time after undergrad to work in the research field she's interested in this will definitely boost her application's attractivenmess and she will come out of that position with some great letters of recommendation. I think letters are really important in this process bc you may be working with a colleague of someone you're applying to go to school with and that reflects very highly on the applicant.

That said, my fiance and I were in the same situation for this year's application cycle. I was applying to Clin Psych PhD Programs and he was applying to medical schools. I think the most important thing is to concentrate your applications in geographical locations where there are more than one program for each of you. In our case, our goal was to stay in a somewhat urban environment. We applied to school in Wash, DC/Baltimore (5 schools for him, 3 for me) Philadelphia (3 schools for him, 2 for me), New York City (5 schools for him, 8 schools for me) and Cleveland (2 schools for each).

You have to make sure that you are willing to go to any of the schools you apply to and get into, bc she may only get into one place and even if you don't like that med school in that town, you'll have to go there if you want to stay together.

Also, decide beforehand what is an acceptable distance to commute for each of you, and if one gets into a stellar or Ivy League program, would the other be willing to go through the application process again so the other could attend the better program (assuming the other wasn't accepted in that location), and assess the possibility of both partners getting into only one school in different locations from each other.

It's a difficult process and I wish you both all the luck. PM me if you have any more questions or would like to speak to my fiance who will be attending UPenn med school this fall.

 

[LM02]

This isn't related to admissions, per se, but may be important information for you to keep in your back pocket for down the road.

Just as a med student will need to enter the match for residency, a clinical psych student will eventually need to enter the match for the clinical psych internship. So, unfortunately, you will have to remember that this issue of applications, where you will be, etc. will re-emerge about 4-5 years after you both matriculate. It's also noteworthy that while med school is 4 years, clinical psych is not necessarily a 4-year program ( you can do it in 4, but 5 is more the norm these days) - so you may end up entering the match at different times.

This isn't to freak you out, but just to prepare you for the other logistical issues that will come your way down the road! Good luck to both of you. 😀

 

[twiggers]

If she is gearing more towards academia there are other programs aside from clinical she can go into. I am into developmental psychopathology and never wanted to practice....I was able to get into a great developmental program that allows me to study exactly what I wanted to without the clinical end of it. It narrows my options a little (not being able to do a side practice), but then again practice isn't anything I ever wanted to do.
Sara's advice was right on about applying geographically....maybe you'll get lucky like she did 🙂