Hi. I am a recent Pace graduate from the School/Clinical Child Psych Psy.D. program and my cousin recently graduated from the Yeshiva Psy.D. program. Both of us had excellent experiences in our respective schools. I don't know much about the C.W.Post Psy.D. program except that one of my classmates transferred from that program to Pace because she felt dissatisfied with the quality of education she was receiving there. That was about eight years ago at this point to put it in perspective. Other people I'm sure love it there.
I've been reading these threads and I just wanted to add that I wouldn't put much stock in comments like 'I heard this professor is so difficult and mean' or 'this program is only psychodynamic in orientation' from other prospective students who are getting this info second hand. Trust me, there are disgruntled students in every program, and there will be faculty members in every program whom someone will have a problem with. One professor whom I loved and had as my advisor for my doctoral project was the same professor some of my classmates found very intimidating.
From experience I can tell you that Pace offers a mix of faculty with different orientations. I found several professors whom i could relate to and they provided me with informal supervision whenever I requested it. No one will try to force you into one camp or another. Being that Pace is also a school psychology program as well as a clinical one, you are exposed to cognitive and behavioral therapies that are typically utilized when working with children in school settings. At Pace, two of your internship years will be in school settings so if you are not at all interested in working with school-age children, this may not be the program for you. Remember that much of your experience will also be shaped by the two-day, three-day and full-time Internships and Externships you will attend, not just within the university walls you choose.
At Pace, there are definitely some faculty with an analytic background. However, particularly over the past ten years, Pace has hired many new faculty members with a wide range of orientations. The information that Pace is strictly analytic is simply untrue and outdated. I suggest if you have been accepted to any of these programs discussed in these threads and have questions, call and speak to the faculty yourselves or ask for the email of a graduate student in the program to give you a better idea of what type of people you will be working with. You will find that many people will be encouraging and give you honest answers. Most schools also list the bios of the faculty on their websites, so you can find out for yourselves about their orientation and expertise.
It is no secret that you will be investing a great deal of time and money wherever you choose to go. It is definitely worth your while to speak to some people who really know what each program is like, rather than basing your decision on hearsay from other prospective students on a listserve, particularly ones with disgruntled friends. If you got a good feeling at one interview, go with it, it is probably a good sign. Good luck, it's a (very) long haul, but worth it! Feel free to email me with any Pace questions. If I don't know the answer, i can forward it to a current Pace student or faculty member.
