neuropsych76

I'm not sure what your question is. Neuroimaging labs will have mostly psychology students, but probably a few neuroscience students as well. I was a psychology undergrad, applied to psychology and neuroscience programs, and ended up in a neuroscience program. However, I would have been doing the exact same research if I was in a psychology program, too. Applying to cognitive tracks is the same as applying to clinical tracks, but will likely be less competitive but have fewer openings.

The only advice I have to offer is that neuroscience programs will have many more non-cognitive people (molecular, cellular, behavioral), but also tend to be better funded (higher stipends, fewer teaching responsibilities). If you're interested in clinical psych too, it is probably best to be in a psychology department so you can interact with them. I was the opposite (more interested in cellular/molecular neuro than clinical/social psych), so I was attracted to neuroscience programs.

I have a degree in Psych/English with only three semesters of bio. I have gotten interviews at all the neuroscience programs I applied to, and several psych programs that have a behavioral or cognitive neuroscience focus. My first admission was to a very course heavy neuroscience program where I will be one of very few people doing human imaging research. I think what qualifies me for these programs is my experience working in a structural imaging lab for a year, and a functional imaging lab for 2.5 years. I was lucky enough to train alongside the post docs in our lab and am proficient in fMRI data analysis, with authorship on a ton of posters (2 first author) and a 3rd author pub in press.

My impression is that psychology programs are more competitive than neuroscience and that the funding is better in neuroscience. I may be a more unique or novel applicant to neuroscience programs (which are still somewhat male dominated, versus psychology which is becoming extremely female dominated). It seems like every researcher is looking to expand into imaging and I've been told that the fact that I already have experience in task design and data analysis is really appealing.

In short, I was lucky to fall into a unique situation where I've been allowed to work "above my level" and I think that's what has compensated for my lack of coursework in the area. I highly recommend gaining practical experience in a field, not only so that you can confirm your interest in it before applying, but also because it demonstrates to programs that you can do the work.