What questions should I ask at campus tours??

[psi123]

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I'm applying to PGSP-Stanford's Psy.D program and am having a personal campus tour tomorrow! Since PGSP is one of my top choice schools, I'd like to make the visit as productive as possible.

With that said, I'd like to hear everyone's suggestions on what certain essential questions I should ask the staff/faculty tomorrow. I have some questions already in mind but I was wondering if there were questions that some people forgot to ask when they visited schools but that they wish they were able to ask in retrospect. For example, is there some sneaky way to ask the staff/faculty there about an accurate reflection of how their students like the program? I feel that if I straightforwardly ask something like this, they would, of course, say that all students love the program.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Ask about typical stuff:

1. Access to profs
2. How are classes
3. Research opportunities
4. What don't you like about the program
5. Where do graduates go / do

-t

 

[psi123]

3. Research opportunities

How important is this exactly for a Psy.D student compared to a Ph.D student. I'm still not too clear as to how much research would be required of us--I know it depends on the program..which is probably a good question to ask tomorrow..but i'd like to know in general..how important are research opportunities for Psy.D's?

4. What don't you like about the program

Do I ask this directly to the advisors? I'm not too sure if I'll be able to meet any current grad students tomorrow, since it's not an official Open House, just a personal tour.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

How important is this exactly for a Psy.D student compared to a Ph.D student. I'm still not too clear as to how much research would be required of us--I know it depends on the program..which is probably a good question to ask tomorrow..but i'd like to know in general..how important are research opportunities for Psy.D's?

It varies by program, but you still need/should do research no matter where you go. It is an important part because our work as clinicians is based off of research, so we should know how to design it, conduct it, produce it, analyze it, etc. I'm not talking about slaving in a lab for 4-5 years (sorry hardcore researchers, not my bag!), but you should at least work on a research project or two, get your feet wet, and see what you learn. I'm not sure the clinical/research split at PGSP, but that is worth a discussion too. Btw...it is important for internship, so you need some. Everyone else will have some, so you need some too. You can figure out how much you want to do during your time in grad school, but I'd suggest at least a couple years.

Do I ask this directly to the advisors? I'm not too sure if I'll be able to meet any current grad students tomorrow, since it's not an official Open House, just a personal tour.

Sure, why not. Ask them critiques of the program. Some may be quite honest with you. If you can catch a couple grad students, that would be helpful too.


-t

 

[psi123]

It varies by program, but you still need/should do research no matter where you go. It is an important part because our work as clinicians is based off of research, so we should know how to design it, conduct it, produce it, analyze it, etc. I'm not talking about slaving in a lab for 4-5 years (sorry hardcore researchers, not my bag!), but you should at least work on a research project or two, get your feet wet, and see what you learn. I'm not sure the clinical/research split at PGSP, but that is worth a discussion too. Btw...it is important for internship, so you need some. Everyone else will have some, so you need some too. You can figure out how much you want to do during your time in grad school, but I'd suggest at least a couple years.



Sure, why not. Ask them critiques of the program. Some may be quite honest with you. If you can catch a couple grad students, that would be helpful too.


-t

Alright 🙂 that all makes alot of sense. Thank you!! Are there other questions that should be asked at these campus tours but that most people forget about?