Clinical programs in remote areas

[PhishGirl]

---

Members do not see this ad.

I am wondering what you all think about how a school's location--especially if it's in a remote are--affects the competitiveness of the admissions process. I am planning on applying to UMaine's clinical psych PhD program next year, and I guess I like to try to make myself feel better about my chances by telling myself that fewer people will be interested because the school really isn't near anything. Does anyone think this idea holds water?

Would any of you be turned off by a school if it was, say, up in the middle of a snowy, snowy place with no metropolitan anything anywhere?

 

[cara susanna]

You can check for yourself by looking at the number of applicants.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Would any of you be turned off by a school if it was, say, up in the middle of a snowy, snowy place with no metropolitan anything anywhere?

Some people actively avoid large cities, so it cuts both ways. I think truly remote places may allow for less applicants....but places I'd consider remote are still very competitive (U of Kansas, U of Iowa, etc.). Programs like U of Montana, U of S. / N. Dakota (I forget which...but I remember being impressed by their faculty), are probably more "remote"...but still quite competitive. I'd actually consider some of those remote places to be a great environment for people who are down for a bit of snow. I'm dreading another long winter here; it snowed 6" on a random day this past April!

Fit first, and then everything else.

 

[Ollie123]

There's no question it affects the number of applications, but I think its an open question whether or not that REALLY impacts the competitiveness. While Boston U certainly has a strong program, there is NO way the program itself justifies the number of applications it receives - I'd wager a large portion are weeded out fairly quickly once it becomes clear the reason they applied was the location. Same in NYC - most of the schools there, while certainly not bad, are not "powerhouses". Yet they also get large numbers of applications. I'm in FL and I'm sure our application numbers are also a bit inflated by people applying to the "Sunshine state" rather than to a very specific graduate program/mentor.

In contrast, some place like Wisconsin-Madison, which is certainly one of the strongest programs in the country but whose location doesn't exactly draw people in (actually, Madison has always sounded great to me and I may apply for post-doc there...but that's just me), gets < 200 applicants to its clinical program. However, the credentials of those that are accepted are probably pretty far above and beyond you see at many of the schools that get more applications.

 

[cara susanna]

University of North Dakota definitely gets less applicants but is still very competitive. If you have any questions about UND, feel free to PM me.

And yeah, Ollie, Madison is a fantastic area. I know a lot of people who love living there or who want to move back after school.

 

[BuckeyeAlum]

For one, it depends on the POI you want to work with. If you're applying to someone who is well-known or desirable in your area of interest, it probably doesn't matter much if s/he works in Siberia. Second, there are probably some folks (as was said above) that like a more "quaint" setting. Third, it is possible that even with a lower # of applicants, the proportion of "quality" applicants may be higher (b/c I imagine applicants who are just blindly applying to grad programs will apply to more of the "glamorous" programs w/o doing their research on the program and POIs).

Finally - do YOU imagine yourself being happy there? If U Maine is an attractive place for you to live, you're good to go! However, applying there just b/c it could be less competitive is not a good idea. Grad school takes a long time, so you need to be happy where you are living (IMO). Personally, I tended to avoid rural schools b/c I'm a city girl and wanted the variety of practica and research opportunities available to me in a metro area. I recognize that it's not a priority for everyone though.