CUNY Hunter or online program psychology MA

[sunsetpark]

I was not a psychology major, and now I want to pursue a PhD or Psyd. I have thought about taking undergrad prerequisites, but I came across some MA programs that are less expensive than undergrad tuition at many schools. Would it be worth my while to get a MA in psychology?

I am particularly interested in the online CUNY program. Tuition is only about $21,000 for the entire program, and classes are online.

Would this program be worthwhile? Would it help with doctoral admissions, or would it be better to take undergrad classes? I am a bit concerned that the program seems to be entirely online. However, that would be very convenient as I am working.

There is an in person program at CUNY Hunter that I am also considering, but the online program would be more accessible at this point in my life.

I would really appreciate any advice on either of these programs. My goal right now is to get prerequisites taken care of so I can later get into a doctoral program. But it would be nice to get an inexpensive Masters along the way.

Thank you for your time!

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[deleted343839]

I wouldn't recommend an online program at any level, but especially at the graduate level. It's important to get hands-on research experience as part of your training, and online programs can't provide that. I understand the convenience aspect, but it's not worth the time and money.

 

[sunsetpark]

Thanks! What if it costs the same amount as undergrad prereqs? Would it be a viable option in that case?

 

[Justanothergrad]

I'm less interested in seeing UG coursework and more interested in seeing lab experience. It demonstrates knowing ideas and a capacity to put them into practice, even better if it's a lab similar to mine.. I know plenty of great psychologists who didn't take UG courses and came to the field after some research.

It may be worthwhile inquiring to grad admissions at colleges you are interested in for grad school about how they handle pre reqs for non psych majors attempting to seek grad training now.

Undergrad courses are just not super weighted, at least for me. There are such better markers.

 

[sunsetpark]

Thanks for the info! Do you have any idea of how to get research experience w/o a psych degree?

 

[Temperance]

Thanks for the info! Do you have any idea of how to get research experience w/o a psych degree?

Volunteer or work at a research lab. Check psychology department websites for research opportunities and send emails to professors whose work interests you. It may be a longer shot as paid research assistant positions are competitive, but you can also try job listings. Get as many experiences as you can and think of research questions you'd like to pursue.

What got you interested switching to psychology?

 

[sunsetpark]

Thank you. That's really helpful. I've been interested in psychology for years--since college--but I decided to do another major. Really kicking myself for that now.

Do you think professors would be open to someone with absolutely no research experience who only took one stats class 10 years ago?

 

[Temperance]

Thank you. That's really helpful. I've been interested in psychology for years--since college--but I decided to do another major. Really kicking myself for that now.

Do you think professors would be open to someone with absolutely no research experience who only took one stats class 10 years ago?

It depends on the professor, but you may have an easier time as a volunteer as long as you can demonstrate a time commitment. The lab with which I was working previously was fairly open in terms of which volunteer research assistants it took, so we had several with no prior experience and a couple who were not psychology majors. You'll likely be doing the "grunt work" (e.g., data entry) at first to get you used to the basics of research before moving on to things like coding or analyses.

 

[Oliver3838]

I was not a psychology major, and now I want to pursue a PhD or Psyd. I have thought about taking undergrad prerequisites, but I came across some MA programs that are less expensive than undergrad tuition at many schools. Would it be worth my while to get a MA in psychology?

I am particularly interested in the online CUNY program. Tuition is only about $21,000 for the entire program, and classes are online.

Would this program be worthwhile? Would it help with doctoral admissions, or would it be better to take undergrad classes? I am a bit concerned that the program seems to be entirely online. However, that would be very convenient as I am working.

There is an in person program at CUNY Hunter that I am also considering, but the online program would be more accessible at this point in my life.

I would really appreciate any advice on either of these programs. My goal right now is to get prerequisites taken care of so I can later get into a doctoral program. But it would be nice to get an inexpensive Masters along the way.

Thank you for your time!

Fwiw there are also certificate programs out there (for people who didn't study psych as an UG but want to go to grad school); Penn has one, as does the American College in Greece, look around for others online (I'm doing a second BA in psych at Hunter btw although I'm not actually getting the degree [also taking some Anthro and As-Am courses along the way]).

 

[Justanothergrad]

Fwiw there are also certificate programs out there (for people who didn't study psych as an UG but want to go to grad school); Penn has one, as does the American College in Greece, look around for others online (I'm doing a second BA in psych at Hunter btw although I'm not actually getting the degree [also taking some Anthro and As-Am courses along the way]).

It may be more useful to post in threads from this year.

 

[Oliver3838]

It may be more useful to post in threads from this year.

Yes but this one was more on-point and people can do searches which go back.