What can a highly non-traditional student do in 2014 to make himself PhD competitive?

[CKAW]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Hi Guys,

As some of you have seen from the other thread I posted, I'm weighing the pros and cons of an MSW and a doctoral psych degree. You've all given me more and better information in 72 hours than most other sources have over the past 3 or 4 months and I'm now considering looking into PhD programs where I had previously made up my mind on an MSW. What can I do to make this a realistic prospect?

I graduated in 2009 with a degree in international relations and went to work for the federal government doing nothing psych-related. I went back to school in 2012, first at a CC, then an average 4 year institution, then at a US News "top 20" 4 year institution. Here's what I'm looking at.

Undergrad GPA: 3.19
Fall 2012 CC GPA: 4.0
Spring 2013 GPA: 3.3
Fall 2013 GPA: 3.7

GRE: 168/153/4.5

I've been attending meetings in a psych lab all year and started a research project this semester.

So, what's the best thing I can do in 2014? Find another professor to do more research with? Look for clinical work? Volunteer somewhere? Find conferences to hang out at? Take more classes?

Thanks guys. My life is in your hands.

 

[Lisa44201]

From one non-trad to another, welcome!

2014: Research. Present at conferences if you can. Keep your GPA up. Get an idea of who you want to work with in terms of future research, then look at those programs.

 

[CKAW]

From one non-trad to another, welcome!

2014: Research. Present at conferences if you can. Keep your GPA up. Get an idea of who you want to work with in terms of future research, then look at those programs.

Thanks! I can probably talk to the people in the department I work in, but who actually gets to present at conferences? Can anyone who's done research put in a proposal or something? This semester has been pretty excruciating, so I'm taking it a little easier academically in the Spring so I can focus on getting involved with the world of academia a little more.

And right on to the non-trad route 😉 What did yours look like, if you don't mind my asking?

 

[erg923]

The criteria doesn't change with age, so you would have to have the same that any non-trad student would.

GPA needs to come up a bit and, yes, do all those things in that last paragraph. Although not sure hanging out at conferecnes would do much good. But, if you can get something going in those resaearch labs you could present at a conference or at least help someone else present your lab's work.

 

[MCParent]

lil plug

http://psychologygradschool.weebly.com/what-programs-look-for.html

;-)

 

[Lisa44201]

Thanks! I can probably talk to the people in the department I work in, but who actually gets to present at conferences? Can anyone who's done research put in a proposal or something? This semester has been pretty excruciating, so I'm taking it a little easier academically in the Spring so I can focus on getting involved with the world of academia a little more.

And right on to the non-trad route 😉 What did yours look like, if you don't mind my asking?

Posters are common at conferences; the bells & whistles necessary to be invited to present in the form of a talk at a conference are more complicated. Talk to your adviser; I'm guessing deadlines have passed for the spring round of conferences, but if you get started on a research project now, your adviser may be able to guide you such that you can present next year. Look for regional conferences, too, not just the big national ones (APA, APS, etc.).

Also check to see if your College/University has a Student Research Fair; many places do. I realize it's sort of completely different from a regional or national conference, but if you can go & walk around, you can get the gist of what presenting a poster at a conference is about.

My story: failed spectacularly out of undergrad the first time around. Re-admitted at the age of 26 after a bit of a paperwork struggle (0.86 GPA; that is not a typo). Married & had two kids during undergrad. Got my B.A. at 30 (3.53 GPA), my M.S. at 32, now in a PhD program.

 

[erg923]

Hey, dont be so hard on yourself! It's better than than this guy...

 

[Lisa44201]

Hey, dont be so hard on yourself! It's better than than this guy...

Not at all - I earned that 0.86!

 

[CKAW]

You've all said pretty much what I expected, and that's the road I'm going to take. A few more questions after reflecting:

1. What should I be trying to achieve through participating in a lab, beyond just being there and getting a project underway? It's pretty clear that nobody is going to spoon feed you and you get out what you put in. So what skills should I be seeking to learn?

2. I notice a distinction on the boards between volunteering part time in a lab at school and full time RA work. Presumably the latter is much better preparation for a doctoral program, presumably it is much more difficult to come by. I have no presentations or publications, I have volunteered in a lab for a year, I have an independent source of income that I can perform anywhere in the world, and I set my own hours. When I follow the direction to do more research in 2014, what form should this take?

 

[AcronymAllergy]

1. If you've never worked in a lab before, you're going to just want to focus on getting solid exposure to the fundamentals of actual lab work, which includes data entry and database management, subject recruitment and participation, and the workings of a typical research meeting. I don't know that I'd expect to be able to get your own project underway (it'd be great if you can, but not all labs will allow it), but continuing to take on new responsibilities while doing your job well is a great way to get your name on at least a few posters/presentations (with the appropriate work done on your end, of course).

2. Full-time RA work might be "better" in the sense that it's paid and it's full-time, vs. volunteering which is of course unpaid and usually part-time. Paid RA positions may also sometimes lead to greater responsibility and autonomy. I would say aim high and start by applying for paid RA positions, and if those fall through or if you find a lab that you absolutely love (because of the people, what they're studying, etc.), then you can offer to volunteer for them. You'll just want to find out what type of stuff you'll be doing and what opportunities there might be for additional responsibility and productivity (e.g., posters, manuscripts).

 

[CKAW]

I should clarify, I do have a project underway volunteering with a professor at university. You still answered my first question, though. (Thanks 🙂)

The second, I should also clarify: I am in the position of not needing any money at all for my work. What would be the next step up from attending a weekly lab meeting and doing a research project? In terms of what kind of institution, what kind of position, what time commitment, et cetera? Are there places I could volunteer 8 hour days a few times per week? What I'm really trying to figure out is how someone with no time or money constraints can beef up their research resume as fast as possible.