opinions?

[shock-me-sane]

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I am at the end of my junior year of undergrad and plan on applying to clinical PhD programs. I am doing a double major in nursing and psychology.

Here is what is good:
Nursing gpa: 3.7
Psych gpa: 3.9
Psych research assistant
Psych honors project
Potential for a publication in the next year.

What sucks:
My cumulative gpa is a 3.3 due to a semester of "indiscretion" almost 9 years ago.

I have not yet taken the GREs, but feel that I have the ability to pull out a decent score.

I just wonder, if it is my best bet to apply to clinical programs because of the crappy cumulative gpa and the incredibly low acceptance rate compared to applications. I know a lot of admission is based on fit, and my interest in mainly in anxiety disorders. But I wonder if it is best to also express an interest based on my experience based in the health care field even though I am less passionate about it. I don't want to hamstring myself by being too demanding about what I want when I don't feel like I have the whole package which would allow me to do so.

I eventually would like to have the ability to teach at a university and have a private practice. I guess my question would be how much does it matter what type of research I get involved in for a PhD degree and the subsequent career options.

I feel overwhelmed in the whole process and don't want to reach too far and be rejected all around. So if anyone has any thoughts or direction, it would be greatly appreciated.

 

[JockNerd]

Are any of those lower marks in Psych classes? If not, forget about it: selection committees look primarily at your psych marks and the last 2 years of marks. (Incidently, 3.3 isn't even that low) It's a rare student who does exceptionally well in his or her first year at uni. I had a similar circumstance when I applied this year; my cumulative sucks too-- significantly more than your-- and I had no problem with my applications. I was concerned and actually e-mailed all of my prospective schools to ask the admissions staff if it mattered. Of about 60 schools, only about 2 expressed any reservation. Many thought it would be ludicrous to base admission decisions on applicants' first year marks, and told me so.

If you're not that interested in your nursing experience, I'd suggest you not emphasize it as a reason for going into psych-- if you were passionate about nursing, why aren't you staying in nursing?

As to the type of research you do-- you can do anything you want after you get your PhD. But, chances are you're going to want to spend those years in grad school building up a reputation in the field you want to move into. You have a strong application; you can make it into a school that has a good fit with where you want to be.

 

[spyspy]

Sending you a PM...🙂

 

[irish80122]

I think it is worth applying, but it may be worth mentioning what happened in your personal statement if you can do so in a way that shows that you made a mistake but have grown from it. I don't think that one semester would preclude you from having a chance, I would give it a go, especially since your other averages look good! Good luck!

 

[shock-me-sane]

thanks for the encouragement. I registered for the GREs in August. Hopefully I can kick a little butt and make up for my cumulative.

 

[perfektspace]

My sentiments echo JockNerds thoughts and experience. I had a weak early GPA (about 4 years ago) that brought my overall GPA down to about a 3.3. Didn't seem to hurt too much with getting interviews. Many will only ask for your last 2 years GPA and Psych. GPA so it didn't come up on more than a couple app's. However, the 2 I remember requiring cumulative GPA did not interview me despite a great fit. I'm not a fan of trying to explain an application weakness in your personal statement. It can work but its hard to do without sounding like your making excuses. Stick to your strengths unless its an unavoidable shortcoming.

edit: you said "a semester of indiscretion"? How about retaking the classes you did poorly in? Those grades will override the bad ones and your GPA shoots up. Problem solved...unless by "semester" you mean 2 years of heavy partying and missing class.