Ph.D. program credits question

[psychapplicant12345]

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Is there a reason why some PhD programs are 120 credits while others are 90? (Both apa accredited)

 

[AcronymAllergy]

Mod Note: Moved this from the "Doctoral Applicants Read This First" sticky to its own thread.

 

[futureapppsy2]

Often, it has to do with university policies, tuition waivers, etc.

 

[psychapplicant12345]

Thanks for the move!

Are the credit requirements (more or less) indicative of a "better" program? Are schools that require 120 credits training their students better or trying to get more tuition?

 

[nessa34]

Credits don't matter in grad school. If it's apa accredited, the amount of coursework is fine. If anything, I'd go with the school with fewer classes to free up your time for research & clinical work.

Edit: this is assuming full funding, but even without that I don't think schools are requiring classes just to get tuition $.

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[AcronymAllergy]

Credits don't matter in grad school. If it's apa accredited, the amount of coursework is fine. If anything, I'd go with the school with fewer classes to free up your time for research & clinical work.

Edit: this is assuming full funding, but even without that I don't think schools are requiring classes just to get tuition $.

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Although to add to this, many/most programs I've seen award some type of credit to students for research work and practica (the latter particularly, as it's often required to have the student covered by the department's malpractice insurance). My program, for example, allowed students to register for credit hours for thesis research, dissertation research, independent research, and clinical practicum, all based on the student's choice (after being agreed upon by the advisor). I could very easily see that 30 credit difference being due to some programs essentially factoring these extra hours in, and others not.

In the end, though, as has been said, I don't think the credit hour requirement in and of itself is going to signify much of anything. If you're worried about academic rigor and the like, you should be able to pull up a required course schedule from pretty much every psych program's website.

 

[psychapplicant12345]

Thank you! Yeah the 120 credit program has a lot of practicum and each practicum is 3 credits- I will be doing a side by side comparison right now!

 

[bmedclinic]

If you're doing a side by side comparison of this nature, dont forget looking at match rate and time to degree completion along with funding.
I have no idea how many "credits" I have from grad school.. but nearing the end, what really matters is match, cost, and how long it takes.

 

[WisNeuro]

Yeah, as long as it's APA Accredited, the number of credits is really inconsequential. Also, I'd look at the quality of those practica rather than the pure number. Someone can have a buttload of hours, but if they are all from the same ****ty placement, they don't mean much.