Undergraduate Student Worries :/

[serasera]

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1.) I have just finished my freshman year towards a BS in Psychology, but I am contemplating changing my major to Behavioral Neurscience. My real interest is in Psych, but I feel like the strong background in science I would acquire by majoring in BNS would only help me in the long run. Am I right or does it even matter at all?

2.) I would like to eventually pursue a career in clinical psychology or psychiatry, but I feel so confused right now because I don't really have anyone else to ask these questions. What comes after earning my BS? MA? Ph.D? What steps would I take if I want to go to medical school? 😕

Thank you so much in advance! 🙂

 

[sunshinejenn]

I can't really help you in terms of medical school requirements, but I can be of some help for the psychology requirements!

After your bachelor degree, you can become a clinical psychologist through quite a few different routes, but I'll list the main ones here.

You can either apply for a Masters degree, or go straight to a Ph.D or PsyD program. Usually, people who opt for the Masters degree are either non-psych students (so they want to do a Masters in Psych in order to have some Psych experience before applying for the doctorate), or people who would like to improve their GPA (possibly may have a weak undergraduate GPA, which can be improved by having a strong Masters GPA), or just plain old want to do the Masters (which is me!) I always felt like I wanted to go the Masters route because I'm not ready right now to do the doctorate, but of course, to each their own.

The two doctorate degrees (PhD and PsyD) mainly differ in terms of research vs. practical experience. However, both degrees can definitely lead to becoming a clinical psychologist. As a rule of thumb, the PhD is generally much more research oriented, whereas the PsyD generally leads students to have much more practical experience (in clinical settings, etc.) Obviously, each degree suits different people and different situations.

There are lots of other different degrees you can get that can allow you to practice psychology up to a point (such as the MSW-masters of social work, Masters of Marriage and Family Therapy etc.) But in order to officially call yourself a clinical psychologist, you need to either have the PhD or the PsyD.

To become a clinical psychiatrist, you have to go the Med School route, which I am not familiar with. A clinical psychiatrist is an actual medical doctor, so they have to complete Med School and do a lot of work in pharmacology.

Hope that helps a little!

 

[thepsychgeek]

If you're really interested in Neuro, then go for it, otherwise I don't really see a reason to do so (if you're planning to go into practice). For psychiatry, it would probably look good to have some neuro classes under your belt, but I don't think it's necessary for psychology, necessarily.

 

[WannaBeDrMe]

I think the biggest piece of wisdom I can drop here is to say that this field will be what you make of it... I truly believe that at this stage of the game.

That being said, take the classes that interest you, not what you think will best you over the other students. In your interviews, you will be asked why you took what you took... and unless you are a great actress, they will see your lies when you try to cover that you took class A b/c you knew that was this professor's baby and you wanted to impress him, etc.

Now, there are lots of great clinicians and researchers who take the bare minimum pre-reqs in undergrad... so it can be done... but I think taking lots of classes in different content areas helps you explore your skills and interests. The more experiences, the more choices... right?

I don't know about your curriculum for beh neuro but if it's anything like my undergrad, those classes might serve you just fine for a future doctoral psych program. There would be some additional pre-reqs you might need in the general psych program but you should be well prepared and the research options might be easier to obtain since you'd be well trained in a niche. I've seen a lot of people come out of undergrad with psych degrees who took 8 unrelated course and ended up with no real knowledge of the field. Make it your's... you only get one first chance at undergrad.

 

[shock-me-sane]

I'll just share a bit with you because it seems like it may help. I am starting a clinical phd in the fall. I am finishing up a double major in psych and nursing. I have gotten nothing but positive feedback on my interviews regarding the nursing because of the hard sciences required and the intense program. I didn't go this route as part of the plan, but it has worked out very nicely for me.

With that said, I also did quite a bit of research and an honors thesis/poster presentations in psych. I have spent longer than the typical undergrad in school but I am happy with my route and where it is taking me.

Good luck!

 

[blueuab]

If you're really interested in Neuro, then go for it, otherwise I don't really see a reason to do so (if you're planning to go into practice). For psychiatry, it would probably look good to have some neuro classes under your belt, but I don't think it's necessary for psychology, necessarily.

I agree. I am a Senior PY student and I took a few Neuro science classes but late in the game,I decided to do more research stuff. I got interested in it for extra credit(because I really didn't decide to go on to Psychiatry until the ending part of my sophomore beginning of my junior year) but loved it and I have done lots of clinical research as well as other kinds of research since then. Lucky for me,I started out as a Bio Chem major and have some of the main sciences under my belt but I have a lot of work to do.

 

[BacktoSchoolMFT]

decisions decisions....

i agree with the posters above. if you really like neuro, go for it. the extra knowledge doesn't hurt and may lead to a more comprehensive understanding of other subject matters. whatever route you take, you end up learning more about yourself and what you like or don't like.

i did a triple major (bio sci, psychology, and sociology) at UCI. i started off in bio (i wanted to go to med school), and added psych and soc bc i really really really got into the subject matter. i enjoyed bio, but cannot say i performed well in it (Bs mostly). although my ultimate goal is phd in clinical psychology, i didn't feel confident enough or ready for a doctorate. so i applied to pepperdine's MA in clinical psych program and am starting in the fall.

i would definitely suggest volunteer work, research, or even jobs that involve psychology (counselor, behavioral therapist, etc.) bc these types of jobs help you tune into what you want and what you don't want. i worked in a behavioral clinic doing stress management with EEG technology and hated it. i also worked as a behavioral therapist for a year, which made me conclude 1.) i love kids, but i cannot focus on autism 2.) i really, really, really hate driving 3.) counseling and therapy is the field i want to be in.

so my point is...there are many routes to your goal, even if you don't know what your goal is (although it helps) and a little knowledge won't hurt on the way, but make sure you are getting something out of it, at the very least, some personal satisfaction.

 

[Nebulus2012]

Hi Serasera!

I just graduated with a BA in Psych (biopsychology concentration) and will be attending medical school in the fall. As such, I can give you a little bit of information regarding the route to becoming a psychiatrist.

Your first step, were you to want to pursue this career, would be gaining an acceptance into medical school. Required coursework includes (at a minimum) 1 year of: Biology, Inorganic/General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, and Physics. All require a laboratory componant. Many schools also required a year of English/Writing and sometimes 1-2 semesters of Calculus. Finally, a few schools have additional required electives (e.g. - in social science, biochemistry, etc).

After taking these course (and hopefully averaging a science and overall GPA >3.5), you'll want to prepare for and take the MCAT. This standardized examination is computer based and consists of multiple choice questions covering all of the aforementioned core (4) science subjects. There are also two essays on various topics, and these test logical reasoning, persuasion, and argument formation rather than scientific knowledge.

Throughout college you are going to want to try and build your resume with activities such as clinical experience, volunteering, leadership roles, and research. This is obviously a lot and not everyone covers all of these areas. It is preferable to actually become deeply involved in a couple of activities (e.g. - spend a year researching) rather than to superficially become involved in many activities (e.g. - joing 8 different clubs and researching for only a summer).

Finally, you will need letters of recommendation (3-5 usually), and at least 2 from science faculty. AMCAS, a standardized application system (online) is available in June of the year that you are applying, and you will want to complete this as soon as possible. After sending the application to all of the medical schools that you are interested in (and competitive for), they will send your individual secondary applications in mid-late summer. You fill these out, return them (along with $ 🙄), and wait. You may be granted an interview anytime from late August to late May of the following year. Apply broadly even if your stats are strong...competition is fierce and often times it appears to be a crapshoot .

Once into medical school, you have two years of didactic lecture and two years of clinical clerkships (rotations)...one of which will be in psychiatry. If your fourth and final year of medical school, you would then apply to residencies in psychiatry. After interviewing at various residency programs, you will eventually be matched into one of them. So begins the four year long residency, potentially followed by a fellowship if you want further specialization and training.

I hope that helped! Feel free to ask any clarifying questions that you may have! 🙂