syracuse clinical phd decision!

[tofubam]

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resolved. 🙂

 

[kea2115]

I went to Syracuse as an undergrad and worked on a clinical/health research team for 2.5 years there and was very involved in the department, so I got to know some of the faculty and doc students there quite well. Granted that was 3 years ago, but I know a bunch of them are still there and things probably still run rather similarly. Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions that you may want to ask in helping facilitate your decision.

All in all, I would say accept it. It is a strong program, and the city begins to grow on you!

 

[reluctantPhd01]

Wow, Syracuse is psychodynamic-ish? You wouldn't guess that at all from the list of faculty members. It seems much more geared to motivational interviewing and health psychology stuff. Can others back that up? That just seems so random to me.


Honestly, I haven't applied yet, but I really think if you find a good match, that should matter the most. That is what is going to shape your research career. You don't have to live in Syracuse the rest of your life!!! BRRRR!

 

[kea2115]

Wow, Syracuse is psychodynamic-ish? You wouldn't guess that at all from the list of faculty members. It seems much more geared to motivational interviewing and health psychology stuff. Can others back that up? That just seems so random to me.

Though I never received clinical training there (for the most part), I never had the impression that there was a psychodynamic bend. I actually left undergrad being a proponent of CBT (part and parcel of being educated in the psych department) and then undertook a more psychodynamic slant after graduating and entering my masters program! The clinical department is very much about clinical-health psychology and many of the labs, if not all, revolve around this. So, with much research being done in substance abuse and HIV perevention, etc., it seems hard to believe that they value psychodynamic theory over all the others. At least I never got that impression.

 

[psychapps]

The match with the POI is good, but not fantastic, the location is less than ideal, and the clinical training, from my understanding, has somewhat of a psychodynamic bent, which is not not my cup of tea.

One thing you could do (if you haven't already) is reach out to the clinical training director and ask about both the orientation and also the specific techniques you can expect to learn in the clinic. If there are particular skills you want to learn (CBT, DBT, motivational interviewing), ask if training is available for those, either in the clinic or via external practica.

When I was making my decision, one of the big factors for me was how well the school matched up with my career goals. So in addition to research fit, I also looked into things like where students matched for internship and what jobs they obtained after graduation. Just another factor to consider...

Good luck with everything! 🙂

 

[tofubam]

Thanks for your responses everyone! 😍

-tofu

 

[Phipps]

Wow, Syracuse is psychodynamic-ish? You wouldn't guess that at all from the list of faculty members. It seems much more geared to motivational interviewing and health psychology stuff.

...I understand there is a certain degree of kinship between MI and the basic idea of psychodynamics...so, yes, that makes sense. 😀

 

[AcronymAllergy]

Wow, Syracuse is psychodynamic-ish? You wouldn't guess that at all from the list of faculty members. It seems much more geared to motivational interviewing and health psychology stuff.

...I understand there is a certain degree of kinship between MI and the basic idea of psychodynamics...so, yes, that makes sense. 😀

I could possibly see that, although there might be a stronger tie to Rogerian principles. There are also cognitive and behavioral principles in there if you look. Then again, I tend to agree with one of my advisors that the overlap across theoretical paradigms can actually be pretty high once you do some translating.

 

[PsyDLICSW]

Anyone have any advice/thoughts/insights about SU's clinical psych phd program? I'm trying to decide whether I should accept the offer or wait a year and reapply to a few other places.. The match with the POI is good, but not fantastic, the location is less than ideal, and the clinical training, from my understanding, has somewhat of a psychodynamic bent, which is not not my cup of tea. I'm also bummed because I was rejected from my top choices so I'm considering reapplying next year, but at the same time I know it's incredibly difficult to get into a program during any given year so I feel like I should just run with this acceptance.

Please dispense your advice! Especially if you are familiar with SU's program!

Thanks so much in advance. 🙂

First, congrats on being accepted into a program. When you said that SU is psychodynamic-ish, I was surprised. My advisor went to SU and he is definitely not psychodynamic in any way. He is more behavioral/CBT. I went to a large R1 state school with a behavioral orientation for undergrad and believe me, they would not take on a psychdynamically oriented faculty member. Was your POI psychodynamically oriented? It sounds like you have a lot to think about with your decision. You are much more fortunate than I was in applying to grad school. I personally would take the acceptance, but that is what I would do and not necessarily what you should do. But if you are having this many doubts about SU, you may want to give it another try. After all this is the next 5-7 years of your life. Do you have an advisor or mentor that can help?

 

[lifesanillusion]

Please dispense your advice! Especially if you are familiar with SU's program! 🙂

Anyone else out there with an opinion on SU?
Anyone else got an SU offer?