PhD/PsyD Best Route To Get Into Clinical Psychology program?

[neurons12]

Hi,

I will be finishing up my undergrad degree in psychology soon and I'm trying to figure out what my next step should be. I've read so many different posts but I'm looking for some advice specific to my experiences.

My ultimate career goal is to be a clinical neuropsychologist. I am particularly interested in brain injury rehabilitation but through the work that I am currently doing I appreciate that neuropsychologists can help with a wide variety of diagnoses. So, my first decision is to solidify if I want to pursue a phd or psy.d. I really feel like I fall in between the middle of the two which is why it's been difficult to decide. I love working with people so I would like to work in a hospital or clinical with patients, but I am also a "why" person. Through previous courses and experiences, I loved learning and understanding the underlying mechanisms of neurological diseases and I have enjoyed being a part of research in the past. However, I do not ultimately think that I would enjoy being in the lab 100% of the time but I would still like to contribute to research in some capacity. I appreciate aspects of both types of doctoral programs. I like that psy.d programs tend to be a little shorter and I would probably have an easier time getting into that type of program-I currently work for a psy.d and my college has a psy.d program that has a good reputation. However, I don't love the cost of most programs. I know that clinical psychologists can make a good income, but the 200k+ cost of some programs freaks me out and not sure if it's justified for the income I would make when I graduate, especially if I were to do a masters first. I like phd programs because potentially less debt and I would enjoy conducting my own original research. I also like that phd programs are smaller but that also means that I would have a harder time getting into them. Thoughts of which one sounds like a better fit for me?

Before I even get to that point, I'm trying to figure out if I need to do a masters or just strengthen my experiences. My undergrad has been disjointed as I have attended three different colleges. I started at community college where I did well. I transferred to a large university to study neuroscience, I loved the coursework, but the school just wasn't the right fit for me. Due to some personal circumstances and me just honestly hating it there, my GPA tanked. Now, I am in a college that I love studying psychology and my gpa is at a 3.8. I'm thinking a masters may be beneficial because when I apply to doctoral programs, I don't want there to be any doubt that I can handle the work. I also like that it would better prepare me for for the level/quality of work needed to succeed in advanced studying. I feel like jumping from an undergrad degree from my experiences into a doctoral program might be a lot. I would love to avoid the cost if possible, but there are a few clinical psychology masters programs/ post baccs in my area that I am interested in. Outside of academics, I do have some experiences that I feel would strengthen my app. I have three years of combined research experience where I studied TBI and affective science. No publications, but a few posters. I also worked with children and adolescence with brain injury and behavioral disorders in an integrated academic/residential setting for 3 years. I currently work as a psychometrist, conducting neuropsychological testing for a variety of different patients. I've read in posts before that some people have been able to forgo the masters and just getting more experience, could this apply in my circumstance?

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[jdawg2017]

Being a clinical psychologist or clinical neuropsychologist (a specialization within clinical psychology) will not require you to "be in the lab 100% of the time," but good programs will be oriented to train you well in both the clinical field and the science, with each informing the other. PsyDs can be fine, but I think you are appropriately weary of the debt one can incur if a program (PsyD or PhD) is not well funded. Psychologists, and even neuropsychologists with all of the additional specialized training, don't have the earning potential to frankly justify that amount of debt. Either degree can be appropriate, but only your training and financial goals will inform your choice.

So your current overall GPA is a 3.8? That's perfectly fine. Or is that your current semester (or just psych) GPA? Anything above a 3.5/3.6 is around the median GPA of successful PhD applicants. Master's programs in psychology can be useful if you lack formal coursework or training, or if your GPA is awful and you can get a good Master's GPA, but if your current coursework breadth in psychology is good and your GPA is good, it's probably more advisable to seek out a full time psychometrician role, or become a paid research assistant, with a big goal of getting 1-2 publications and a good GRE score, which would round out your application for competitive PhD programs. Beyond that, the match with your mentors to whom you are applying is very important, too.

 

[Sanman]

PsyD or PhD is a poor question. A better question is what kind of training do you want? It sounds like you want a balance and so scientist-practitioner model programs may be a good fit for you. Clinical science model PhDs are likely too research focused.

Get the Insiders Guide by Norcross et al to shortcut the process of finding programs.

Within that framework, apply and attend the best program you can get into that has an acceptable cost, PsyD or PhD.

Most PsyD programs have an unacceptable cost. Though there are a few that have similar costs to PhD programs, they often happen to be the most highly regarded.

TL: DR - Research carefully, pick solid programs that don't put you in a ton of debt, apply, and attend. Sit down and reassess your goals if you fail to gain acceptance.

Jdawg had some good advice on improving your experience.