Options in the Boston area

[Ulla]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Dear all,

I have difficult decisions to make, and I am hoping that someone here can help me identify the available options.

This year, I applied to quite a few PhD program in clinical, but was rather disappointed with the results. While I got in at a few places, I was rejected at many more. My husband, however, was accepted with full funding to the graduate program of his dreams at Harvard. I had only applied to Boston University, but was rejected (my match wasn't too great).

I am now thinking about whether to take another year off (I'm on maternity leave at the moment), move to Boston with him, and reapply to as many programs as I can in that geographic area next year.

He says he wouldn't mind going into some debt if that would get us both marketable diplomas in the end. I am interested in programs in clinical psychology and school psychology, and would prefer to do a PhD, as this would eventually allow me to come back to practice in Canada (where I live at the moment).

I was hoping to tap into the collective knowledge pool to know what the options are in the Boston area and what type of programs are available. I have already done a fair bit of research, but I am having a difficult time with understanding the nature of these programs (for e.g., would an M.A. help me get into a funded PhD program?).

Also, if I take a year off but I don't have a green card, what do you think I should do in order to make my application stronger for the next year?

Any info you could give me would be much appreciated! Thanks a lot!

Ulla

 

[cardamom]

Schools in the Boston area with clinical psych PhD programs include BU, UMass Boston, Suffolk and Harvard. BC has a counseling PhD program, and Mass School of Professional Psych has a well regarded PsyD program (but it is not funded I think). I don't know if Harvard's program is APA accredited yet--they only very recently created the clinical component (used to be just experimental psychopathology), and it's still very much a research-focused one, so probably not the best option if you want to practice, but fine if you're thinking academia. UMB and Suffolk's programs are pretty balanced in the research/clinical respect, and BU's is probably between those and Harvard on that scale.

I think Harvard also has a good school psychology program that is also pretty research focused, but I don't know as much about school psych.

I may well be missing some (lots of schools in the area!) but that's a start.

 

[MorganLilith]

Also, living in Boston now, there is SO many opportunities to get places. Don't forget URI. Although it would be pain in the butt to commute, it is still close enough to get there in 2 hours by public transportation and less without it. They have a great program there. Also, if you want to take af ew years to get more experience, there are SO many hospitals around here and schools that you could do a RA ship.

 

[thirdeye99]

There is also Clark University in Worcester, Mass (nice suburb outside Boston). Seems to be a solid program according to match rates. From what I remember, their focus seems to be on families and kids.

 

[Anon15]

I think Harvard also has a good school psychology program that is also pretty research focused, but I don't know as much about school psych.

Harvard does not have a school psych program. You can however appply to the Grad school of Education for an Ed.D.

The only APA programs in Boston are BU (very hard to get into) UMASS Boston and Suffolk (not fully funded)

As well as BC, Northeastern also has a counseling PhD

 

[jubujoy]

1. MSPP is APA-accredited.
2. Worcester, the home of Clark University, isn't really a "nice suburb of Boston." Worcester is one of the largest cities in Massachusetts, about 45-60 minutes down the highway from Boston, and Clark is located in an "inner-city" (but improving) area.

 

[nicu82]

yes mspp is apa, but their internships are 2 year part time i believe. not too sure how i feel about a program taht doesn't do a one year, apa internship

 

[quiddity]

Mass School of Professional Psych has a well regarded PsyD program

I would just say, make sure you do your research! i looked at MSPP, and found that for the past 9 years, no more than 10% of students (and that was a good year) got matched with APA internships... that's scary!!

http://mspp.edu/academics/degree-programs/psyd/field-placement.asp

 

[nicu82]

I would just say, make sure you do your research! i looked at MSPP, and found that for the past 9 years, no more than 10% of students (and that was a good year) got matched with APA internships... that's scary!!

http://mspp.edu/academics/degree-programs/psyd/field-placement.asp

thats exactly what im saying! completely unacceptable

 

[psychanon]

Is your husband getting his Ph.D. or a masters (or some other degree)?
Here's my 2 cents: I think you should look for an RA job in Boston. There are lots of really great opportunities-- in particular, look into Mass General, BU, VA Boston, and maybe McLean. There are probably other options too. Harvard has a bunch of affiliates around. This will set you up to be a really great position next time you apply, much better than an MA program would. And, since most of them are 2-year commitments, it would correspond well with your husbands program IF he's getting a two-year degree (and you would get paid rather than having to pay for it).

 

[Ulla]

Thanks everyone for the great input. It really helps!

To answer the last poster, my husband would be there for a while (6-7 years). Also, I am not American, which means that an RAship is not really possible as I can't get a working permit. Otherwise it would really be the best plan.

I will have to look more carefully at all the programs you suggested. Thanks again!

 

[mander]

work authorization for non-resident alien dependents is possible under J-class exchange student visas. The international student office at Harvard will be able to fill you in on the details.

 

[Ulla]

I just wanted to thank all of you again for posting here.
I just started to go over the schools you have mentioned, and it truly makes the search way easier to have had you people not only suggest some schools, but also give me the pros and (especially) cons on some of them in advance.

 

[Flutterbyu]

I would just say, make sure you do your research! i looked at MSPP, and found that for the past 9 years, no more than 10% of students (and that was a good year) got matched with APA internships... that's scary!!

http://mspp.edu/academics/degree-programs/psyd/field-placement.asp

This is misleading. The stats state a 10% rate, however, very few students apply for APA internships. The stats on the website are not match rates, but percentiles of how many students apply for APA in a given year. MSPP does not require a full-time APA internship and most students who choose to apply for APA are those who want to specialize. The actual match rate is closer to 80% for those apply- contact the school and they will provide exact stats. MSPP is a great Psy.D program and provides training opportunities throughout the Boston area.

 

[bellecalle]

I don't know if this was mentioned yet, but Northeastern has a pretty good school psych phd program.

Also, just as general advice, definitely get the APA's book called Graduate Studies in Psychology, or something like that. You can purchase it through the APA website for about 25 bucks.. It's sort of a telephone-book type of listing, but the advantage is that it lists schools by state, and then ALL the psych programs (not just PhD) within that state. So there could be other programs in Mass and specifically in the Boston area that we may be forgetting and they have all the stats on. They even provide info on how many applied last year to each subset of psychology, and how many openings are available next year, etc. I definitely used it for this round of applications and it was really helpful. And then from there, once you've located programs, you can go on the websites to learn more info. It's a good place to start.

 

[nicu82]

This is misleading. The stats state a 10% rate, however, very few students apply for APA internships. The stats on the website are not match rates, but percentiles of how many students apply for APA in a given year. MSPP does not require a full-time APA internship and most students who choose to apply for APA are those who want to specialize. The actual match rate is closer to 80% for those apply- contact the school and they will provide exact stats. MSPP is a great Psy.D program and provides training opportunities throughout the Boston area.

how do you state that mspp is a great program? can you give more details/info to support this? i think that it speaks a lot about programs with high apa match rates...quality of program, supervision, turnout of competent professionals, helps with obtaining post-doc and careers, etc. i agree with how they can be misleading (mspp), but it still concerns me if they don't require a year-long internship that's apa accredited.

 

[Flutterbyu]

how do you state that mspp is a great program? can you give more details/info to support this? i think that it speaks a lot about programs with high apa match rates...quality of program, supervision, turnout of competent professionals, helps with obtaining post-doc and careers, etc. i agree with how they can be misleading (mspp), but it still concerns me if they don't require a year-long internship that's apa accredited.

Bottom line is that the world does not revolve around APA and particularly for Psy.D. students who are interested in private practice. MSPP is a smaller professional school located in one of the most academically-rich cities in the world. The professors are rooted in the academic community of Boston and many students experience practicum and internships at top universities, teaching hospitals, and community settings in and around Boston. Most MSPP students have no need for an APA internship and therefore are able to finish their doctoral work in an average of 4.5 years. The alumni network can be tapped into by contacting the alumni relations office on the MSPP website- they can hook you up with people who can attest to the MSPP experience. I can offer more info but would rather PM for that if you're interested.

 

[thirdeye99]

2. Worcester, the home of Clark University, isn't really a "nice suburb of Boston." Worcester is one of the largest cities in Massachusetts, about 45-60 minutes down the highway from Boston

Haha. Good point. It's been a few years since I've been been to Boston and I guess Worcester seemed like a suburb the time I was there. I think that's because someone else was driving and I didn't know where the hell we were half the time.

 

[KillerDiller]

Most MSPP students have no need for an APA internship and therefore are able to finish their doctoral work in an average of 4.5 years.

Wait, regardless of whether one goes the APA-accredited route, everyone has to do an internship year somewhere, right? I don't understand how this would translate to a shorter time to degree.