new here....

[momma25]

So I'm in undergrad and have one year left. I'm hoping to apply to a couple PsyD programs, but struggling to find information regarding requirements and how competitive the programs will be. I'm in Missouri, so looking at Mo State (Springfield), Univ of Missouri (Columbia) and KCU (Kansas City).
I have a 4.0, but lack experience. What types of experience should I be getting and how much of each area? Are PsyD programs very competitive?
Any thoughts would help! Thanks

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[Psychchick09]

Can you get any research experience in your last year? Or take a year off to work in a lab?

Any quality PsyD program is generally going to be as competitive as a PhD program. Also, any reason you’re not looking at any of the STL programs? WashU is very research-oriented, but SLU and UMSL are more balanced, I believe.

 

[psycho1391]

If I were you, I might look at some of the research labs in St. Louis and apply to be an RA so you can get some experience. The hospitals/institutions always have plenty of opportunities.

 

[PsyDr]

google APA Program statistics. Look at the rates of admissions. Does 6% of applicants being admitted sound competitive?

You'll notice I told you to look it up. That's not just because I am a jerk. You should do that type of self directed learning. Most of your competition is already doing that.

If you show up to an admissions interview, and say, "it sounded like a nice program, and I like living in Missoura...", you're done. Your competition is going to show up with a 4.0, saying positive things about the last article published by the professor that looks like them, and asking questions that are really compliments about intricate knowledge of the program.

Do some deep dives. Learn about the admissions stats, what genders they admit, what ethnicities they tend to admit, take a look at the program photos online, who is on faculty, what they are researching, read their articles to learn about their academic interests, look at the references in their articles and figure out who their friends and heroes are, read their faculty profiles and learn something about their hobbies, figure out how to kiss up to them, go take a day trip and walk around the campus to get a feel for the school (probably not in Kansas City). Now mold yourself into their ideal candidate. Once you're in, you can do what you want.

 

[EnPsychlopedia]

So I'm in undergrad and have one year left. I'm hoping to apply to a couple PsyD programs, but struggling to find information regarding requirements and how competitive the programs will be. I'm in Missouri, so looking at Mo State (Springfield), Univ of Missouri (Columbia) and KCU (Kansas City).
I have a 4.0, but lack experience. What types of experience should I be getting and how much of each area? Are PsyD programs very competitive?
Any thoughts would help! Thanks

(1) Mizzou doesn't even have a PsyD program...

(2) Quality programs are going to want to see research experience (yes, even PsyD programs), and are going to want to take students for whom the program offers a good research/clinical interest fit. Without experience, you can't demonstrate fit. Thus, it's imperative that you get research experience for a couple of years if you want to be admitted to a quality program.

(3) Applying geographically is a huge, huge, massively huge limitation. Good programs are wildly competitive and moving is the norm. It's exceedingly unlikely that, in any given admissions cycle, there will be a program close to you which (a) offers a genuinely good fit for you; (b) happens to be taking students in your lab of interest; (c) offers you an interview; and (d) accepts you after interview. These situations are exceedingly uncommon. Most successful applicants apply to 12+ programs all over the country while keeping a close fit between their research interest and the programs to which they apply.

 

[Sanman]

Why do you want to apply to a PsyD other than having a 4.0 gpa in what I assume is a psychology major? What are your career goals? What experiences do you have? It's hard to help when we know nothing.

Also, did you get into medical school already?

 

[Cobblestone]

Since you're still in undergrad, is there anyone in your program you can talk to about your goals, programs that might be a good fit for them, and what you would need to do to be competitive for them? They also might know of places in Missouri where you can start building up your experiences, and as Psycho1391 said, you would want to include the St. Louis area in that search. Also agree with the advice to not limit your applications to only one state (or even one region of the country, if you can swing it).