Post-bac Psychology advice?

[Loving Life]

Hi all,

I'm new to the forums, and hope this question is not out of place.

I don't have much psychology background but it has peaked my interest recently and I'm considering applying to the Columbia Post-bac psychology program in order to become a more competitive Psych PhD applicant. I haven't had much luck finding info on other similar programs though -- does anyone know of any?

If there are no other programs out there, what would someone who didn't have much psych background have to do in order to be able to apply to a psych PhD program? Would you enroll as a non-degree student at a university with a good psychology program and take psych courses? Would it be easy to find research positions and get advice about the graduate school admission process? Are there typical deadlines for applying as a non-degree student? What type of financial aid, if any, would be available for a non-degree student? I've seen some info on Stafford Loans being available, but can I apply (FAFSA, etc.) before I'm even enrolled in (or applied to) a program?

Are there any books you'd recommend to someone who is trying to figure out if psychology is right for them?

Any help or advice would be much appreciated -- thanks in advance!

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[positivepsych]

I reccommend you think long and hard about your decision to go into something you're not that familiar with. The subject of psychology as an 'interesting' field is very different than the research and practice of psychology. There are very few people I know that aren't fascinated by psychology-related dinnertable discussions or books, but that's nothing like working in a lab.

I think it's best to get your hands dirty, doing research full-time as an RA and take some classes on the side. A post-bacc program might be nice, but if you're not exposed to research, you probably won't have a good understanding of what to expect as a grad student.

 

[Loving Life]

I definitely understand that this is not a decision to be taken lightly -- which is why I am trying to get as much information as possible before taking the next step. Your help/advice is greatly appreciated.

In response to your post, I would like to get my hands dirty, but am not sure the best way to get that experience. Is it possible to get research assistant positions without much psych background though? What classes would you recommend? I've taken Intro Psych, but that was several years ago.

Also, the Columbia post-bac program includes research experience, as well as guidance with the grad school application process.

 

[HonieButterfly]

Since you have little background in psych and you didnt mention actually having any research experience. I am pretty sure you would need to take some psychology courses and get some research experience. Since this is a Ph.D program your looking into, you may need to take 2-3 yrs to take classes and do research to be competitive enough for acceptance into a clinical psychology program. Im not exactly sure what that post bac program entails but I dont think its enough to get you into a program. I know at my school, you dont get finanical aid for taking classes as a non student. I know several students who have taking courses to make them more qualified but they had to pay out of pocket. But Im not sure if its like this at all schools. Hope t his helps

 

[Loving Life]

Thanks for the info! The post-bac program sounds good, but of course it's fairly expensive as well, as is well ... everything.

 

[konrad]

Another option that I am consistently advocating on this forum (because it worked for me) is to look at general experimental MA programs, some of which are fully funded (tuition & small stipend). The catch is that these are also reasonably competitive, and you'll be at a disadvantage not having any psych background or research experience. However, if you can pull off top-20% general GREs as well as a respectable score on the psych GRE (which will require massive prep), you can talk your way in. It also helps if you've volunteered in someone's lab along the way, and can at least vaguely define your research interests using the language of one of the subdisciplines.

If you get in, you will then take high-level seminars in all the major areas, while conducting mentored research throughout your two years, culminating in an empirical thesis. Everyone in my program has been accepted to at least one program; all of those with clinical ambitions have gotten in somewhere. We've all had multiple interview offers.

I've written this elsewhere, but if you're interested, look at:

Wake Forest
William and Mary
Villanova
U Richmond

As for examining your interest in psychology, I would start with reading a History of Psych book. There's one written for a lay audience called The Story of Psychology, by Morton Hunt. I found that pretty amusing. Ultimately, you should go to a university library and look through their psych journals to get a clue about what you find interesting. I've never liked psychology textbooks, which is a major reason why I didn't major in psych as an undergrad, but maybe you would. There are tons of used textbooks around to peruse.

Then, of course, you can obsessively read forums like this to get a clue about what the common career paths are for people that are a little ahead of you in the game. This has been an invaluable resource for me.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions. Good luck.

 

[Psyclops]

I fully agree with Konrad, I did the same thing as he did and have been succesful as well. I atribute it to the program but more so to fit. Everything in this field comes down to fit. How well your interests fit with discipline/school/department/program/advisor/etc. Unless you knoe with resonable certainty what are you are interested in you will never get into competitive programs, but if you do know then you will be ahead of most people. That said, the MA/MS program might be difficult to get into without more experience, so it maybe wise to do this psych post-bac, columbia is a good university, and maybe you can moonlight in someones lab while you are doing it. What it comes down to , and I think everyone will agree with me on this is that programs may have required curicula to be admitted, but that isn't what will decide your fate. So, they will see your transcript and say, ok good, she did her course work, at an ivy league university no less, did well, great so did everyone else. Now what is she interested in, what kind of research/clinical experience does she have, etc. I don't say that to discourage I say it to point out that is required but will only get you so far, even if you do amazingly, that would just be the bare minimum to be considered.

 

[Loving Life]

Thanks for the good advice - really appreciate it. From what I've heard so far, psychology programs are about as competitive as anything out there. I understand this, and am trying to get as much info as possible so I can make wise decisions. I've ordered some psych books - general career/opportunities/guide-type books - to get me started. I didn't know about the MA programs mentioned earlier, so that's another avenue I should look into.

As someone who is struggling to figure things out for herself, I'd love to hear stories about why everyone here decided to go into psychology, or how you figured out it was the right path for you. Perhaps this is covered elsewhere, if so, I apologize for the doubling-up.

 

[deuist]

You could enter school as undergraduate---just don't tell them where you've been these past few years---and then you could get financial aid. Or you could at least enter post-bac as a degree-seeking student who is pursuing a second bachelor's. I also agree with the poster who mentioned practicing psychology versus hearing about it. I loved my psych classes, but I cringe at what my friends are doing in graduate school.

Time to stop lurking on other threads and to get back to studying...

 

[ClinApp]

I completed the post-bac program at Columbia and thought it was a fabulous way to transition into a PHD program for someone with no background in psychology. You essentially get the equivalent of a psych major plus all the research experience you want, but it takes two years to do it well, or you can complete one year and then apply to grad programs. I found my experiences made me extremely competitive for PHD programs.

I chose the post-bac program over masters programs because Columbia's psych department is top-notch while many masters programs are not as notable (though there are some great programs, I'm sure, just not so much in NYC). Plus, it generally does not get you ahead in course work to take graduate courses - you might be able to transfer a few credits but you still have to take the basic curriculum at your PHD program, so why not go ahead and get a good grounding in the fundamentals and take a few seminars, rather than jumping into graduate level courses in a field you have no background in? That was my perspective. You also still need to have good grades and good GRE scores to be competitive for PHD programs, but your new psych grades will count in the mix as well, so get As.

I think the post-bac program is great (Penn has one too, I believe, and many universities have a second-majors/second-BA program, they just won't be as narrowly tailored as Columbia's program). It is expensive, but worth it if you want to get into grad school.

Good luck!

 

[PineappleGirl]

You could enter school as undergraduate---just don't tell them where you've been these past few years---and then you could get financial aid. Or you could at least enter post-bac as a degree-seeking student who is pursuing a second bachelor's. I also agree with the poster who mentioned practicing psychology versus hearing about it. I loved my psych classes, but I cringe at what my friends are doing in graduate school.

Time to stop lurking on other threads and to get back to studying...

I agree with deuist. It sucks that there is no financial aid for non-degree students. The best way around this is to apply for a second bachelor's. You won't be able to get grants and stuff but at least you can get private loans and you may be able to get a year's worth of Stafford Loans as a "fifth-year" undergraduate (don;t quote me on that though). Just do what you need and then drop out of your degree program.

 

[Psychbird]

Like you, I was a non-psychology major. After several years out in the workforce I realized that I was really interested in psych. What I did was work part-time as a secretary and go to school as a second-BA degree seeking student although I do not intend to get the BA as I don't want to take all the gen ed classes that didn't transfer over. It's not been easy - a lot of juggling - but I did get into my program this year. I did a lot of RA work, once for class credit and once as a volunteer, and also did a research project with a professor of mine that became an APA poster. I don't necessarily think that you need to officially be a post-BA student and you can even be a non-matriculated student, but the latter costs more at least at my school. I was told by a professor that grad schools don't care really about your official major, they care more that you've taken the prereqs - i.e. statistics, abnormal, and so on. And of course research experience. It does take time, though. I re-started undergrad 2 years before applying to graduate programs, but I only took between 1-3 classes a semester due to my work schedule.

Good luck!