PhD/PsyD Thoughts on Walden's Psychology PHD

[John Lock]

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I'm currently a student in Walden's Psychology PHD program, Its non clinical (I don't want to do clinical work)
I was wondering what you all thought about waldens program? will I be fine getting my PHD there since im not planning on working in a clinical field? Thanks

 

[WisNeuro]

It does not have a good reputation in general. What are you planning on doing with your degree?

 

[Ollie123]

What do you want to do?

It has an absolutely horrible reputation in the field and doesn't seem to prepare people well for research careers. If you are looking for this to be the gateway to a successful research career, it probably won't be. If you just want to teach at a community college or low-tier SLAC you might be able to find something, though in my view its still nowhere near worth the price given the norm in the field is for the school to pay you.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Walden has a very bad reputation in the psych community and elsewhere (academia, medicine, etc).

 

[John Lock]

@Ollie123 @WisNeuro @Therapist4Chnge Thank you for your replies, Iam planning to use it for a career in law enforcement (Not as a forensic psychologist) to boost my knowledge of criminality and criminal behavior.

Why does Walden have a bad name in the psych community?

 

[erg923]

@Ollie123 @WisNeuro @Therapist4Chnge Thank you for your replies, Iam planning to use it for a career in law enforcement (Not as a forensic psychologist) to boost my knowledge of criminality and criminal behavior.

Why does Walden have a bad name in the psych community?

A cop with great deal of knowledge about criminal behavior is still just a cop. Nothing more and nothing less.

You really have nothing better to do with tens of thousands of dollars? Pay off mortgage? Retirement? College fund? Real estate investments?

 

[Ollie123]

Well to be frank, its lacking most of the things that would make a doctoral program "legit." Most notably, substantive training in research and the science of human behavior. Extensive resources for studying it. Highly qualified faculty providing the training.

The general perception is that its largely a degree mill where people pay X dollars and get a doctorate while doing a fraction of the work and having an even smaller fraction of the qualifications of someone who went to a traditional program. Not trying to be harsh...but that is the reality of it in the field.

If its just sort of "undergrad 2.0" and you are looking for more background in criminology it might be able to provide that, assuming you are able to take focused courses in that area. Seems an outrageously expensive way to achieve that relative to picking up some books on Amazon and self-study. Its unlikely to offer much of a boost to your credentials. Law enforcement more than many areas has a bias towards learning in the field anyways, so depending on what exactly you want to do within law enforcement and what your current credentials are....it seems unlikely a questionable degree from a sketchy institution is going to be what makes or breaks your hiring/promotion.

 

[PsyDr]

Say you become a cop. Get your associates, get throug the academy, put Ina few years of unfavorable assignments, pass some tests, get promoted, move towns to a bigger city, take some bad positions, move back up, take some more tests, and eventually become a detective.

Then you're in a bar and hear someone say they went online and spent an 1/36 of the time taking open book tests and have a certificate that says they are a detective. It's regionally accredited too! You're initial reaction is going to be "yeah, that's not how becoming a detective works.".


That's kinda how Walden is viewed in my opinion.

Ps. Isn't it spelled John Locke?

 

[OneNeuroDoctor]

Walden is good for what their mission is: advanced training for nontraditional students who work full time. Most are older mature student who have worked as a nurse, police officer, teacher ect... and they continue working at their job while obtaining the PhD.

I know a military nurse who was enlisted in Air Force and he was on a Air Force Health Unit that would fly to and from IRAQ weekly.

He finished his PhD in Clinical Psychology through Walden, became licensed and last I heard, he was a prescribing psychologist in the Air Force DOD working at the base in San Antonio and Teaching at the nursing program at UTSA.

For him, it was a good option to go to Walden. For other students it is better to attend a traditional program.

Since there is no perfect solution for doctoral training, it is good to have options for nontraditional students similar to the nurse who had dedicated his career to working in the military.

 

[WisNeuro]

They would be good for what their mission is, if they actually delivered quality "advanced training." From all available measures of that, they do not appear to be doing so.

There is no perfect solution for doctoral training. But, there are a lot of bad solutions.

 

[erg923]

it is good to have options for nontraditional students.

Why do they deserve different options?

You are aware that if a female wants to be a Marine, she has to goes to Paris Island with everyone else, right? There aren't really any "alternatives." And there is, of course, good reason for that.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

They would be good for what their mission is, if they actually delivered quality "advanced training." From all available measures of that, they do not appear to be doing so.

There is no perfect solution for doctoral training. But, there are a lot of bad solutions.

My thoughts as well. Options can be good, assuming those options train competent practitioners (without said practitioners needing to go above and beyond to attain competence).

I'm still unconvinced that doctoral-level training can be completed on a part-time basis. No one would expect to be able to complete medical school via once- or twice-weekly night classes, so why would clinical/counseling/school psychology be different?

 

[PsyDr]

I was unaware that Dr. Nick Riviera had gone into military medicine.

 

[psych844]

Walden is good for what their mission is: advanced training for nontraditional students who work full time. Most are older mature student who have worked as a nurse, police officer, teacher ect... and they continue working at their job while obtaining the PhD.

I know a military nurse who was enlisted in Air Force and he was on a Air Force Health Unit that would fly to and from IRAQ weekly.

He finished his PhD in Clinical Psychology through Walden, became licensed and last I heard, he was a prescribing psychologist in the Air Force DOD working at the base in San Antonio and Teaching at the nursing program at UTSA.

For him, it was a good option to go to Walden. For other students it is better to attend a traditional program.

Since there is no perfect solution for doctoral training, it is good to have options for nontraditional students similar to the nurse who had dedicated his career to working in the military.

Ask yourself. Would we let M.D's get away with this sort of "training"? And if not, why would we decrease our standards?

We can't have everything in this world. Doctoral training should require a big commitment, it should require someone to have to make big choices.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Ask yourself. Would we let M.D's get away with this sort of "training"? And if not, why would we decrease our standards?

We can't have everything in this world. Doctoral training should require a big commitment, it should require someone to have to make big choices.

100% agree.

If our training allows us to take away someone's autonomy (e.g. Medical decision-making capacity), influence child custody, allow someone to be executed, impact someone to have life-altering surgery (e.g. eval for a spinal cord stimulator, gastric bypass, etc)...we better have high standards. Walden and programs like it are the antithesis of those standards.

 

[erg923]

100% agree.

If our training allows us to take away someone's autonomy (e.g. Medical decision-making capacity), influence child custody, allow someone to be executed, impact someone to have life-altering surgery (e.g. eval for a spinal cord stimulator, gastric bypass, etc)...we better have high standards. Walden and programs like it are the antithesis of those standards.

Well, admittedly, the guy doesn't want to do any of those things. What exactly they do want to do is unclear...which is why the choice to pursue a doctorate in "psychology" is unneccesary and a silly waste of money. Especially when said money could actually be put to work furthering his career and/or his finacial robustness. Get this guy a finacial advisor, stat!

 

[MiniLop]

I was unaware that Dr. Nick Riviera had gone into military medicine.

Sure, that's the most popular specialty at Hollywood Upstairs Medical College.

 

[futureapppsy2]

Sure, that's the most popular specialty at Hollywood Upstairs Medical College.

I thought it was helping severely underweight individuals like Homer?

But hey, they can prescribe anything they want, baby!

 

[futureapppsy2]

What do you want to do?

It has an absolutely horrible reputation in the field and doesn't seem to prepare people well for research careers. If you are looking for this to be the gateway to a successful research career, it probably won't be. If you just want to teach at a community college or low-tier SLAC you might be able to find something, though in my view its still nowhere near worth the price given the norm in the field is for the school to pay you.

Walden requires PhDs to post their CVs in their dissertations. I was skimming through a few a while ago, and both the projects and the vitas were... not PhD-level. I was not surprised.