
topsailpsych
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Everything posted by topsailpsych
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Can the U of Miami interviewee PM me your POI initials? Thank you!
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Me too please!
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Me too please! For UCCS and UDel. Thank you!
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Fun Post: Best and Craziest Backup Plans
topsailpsych replied to Quantitative_Psychology's topic in Psychology Forum
Legit backup plan A: take a position I've been informally offered at my practicum site and pursue my LPC and apply again next year. Plan B: Go back to work in the finance industry and make a lot more money than as an LPC, and find ways to do research within the company I would be working for. Fun back up plan: Start a concierge travel planning business. People tell me roughly what they want from their vacation, length of time and rough budget and I give them 3 options for each thing they request help with (picking the the location, hotels, transportation, activities, etc.). And maybe also get my pilot's license, because why not? - -
An 8 week bar crawl sounds fantastic right about now. Where do we start?
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Can I come too?
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I haven't really heard anything yet. I heard from one of the professors at the school where I'm doing my Master's today and she said she wouldn't be interviewing me, but I don't know if that means the other POIs aren't either. I'm seeing both later this week for a research meeting, so I'll find out more then. So maybe I've gotten a rejection?
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Fall 2018 Clinical Psych Interview Invites
topsailpsych replied to psych0's topic in Psychology Forum
That calendar is a huge help! Thank you! -
Also, look into institutions you might want to work for in the future to see if they will accept accreditation from other places. The VA will only accept APA accreditation for PhD level folks, which means you have to have gotten your PhD in either the US or one of the handful of Canadian programs that are APA accredited. Some large hospital systems are the same. It sounds like a cool opportunity, but I would double check you won't be setting yourself up for double the work before diving in head first. Good luck!
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Fall 2018 Clinical Psych Interview Invites
topsailpsych replied to psych0's topic in Psychology Forum
Did you hear from that person? I also applied to Yale and got an email back from the POI to whom I applied sounding interested a number of weeks ago, but I haven't heard anything since submitting my application. I didn't expect it was quite time to start checking my email every 15 minutes yet. I figured it would be at least another week or two for schools to review applications before starting to offer interviews. -
Clarifications and Perspectives Needed!
topsailpsych replied to Christine M's topic in Psychology Forum
Christine, hello from a fellow military wife! The info you have received above is sound. If you have any interest in practicing - working with clients one on one, in a group, doing assessments, etc. you'll need to be licensed as a counselor or psychologist which will mean you'll need to apply to clinical or counseling psychology programs. There are also clinical neuropsychology programs, most of which are APA accredited and would make you eligible for licensure, but they're also pretty narrowly focused. If you're serious about wanting to do research, I would recommend a PhD program. They are the breeding grounds for future researchers. That's not to say you can't do research with a Master's degree, you just won't be as prepared. At the Master's level you can be eligible for licensure as a counselor (Licensed Professional Counselor is the most common, but there are a number of other licensures available). There are different rules in each state regarding what you can and can't do with this license. At the PhD level you are typically eligible for licensure as a psychologist. If you want to work for the VA or in a large hospital system as a clinician, the PhD is the route to go. You will be more limited for teaching opportunities with only a Master's degree as well, but there are positions at smaller colleges and universities or at the community college level. The APA (American Psychological Association) website has a list of all graduate programs which are APA accredited. APA accredited programs have strict standards for clinical training, and are more universally accepted than non-APA accredited programs. Again, if you want to work at the VA or a large hospital system, they will almost certainly require you to have attended an APA accredited school. You can search through the schools here: http://apps.apa.org/accredsearch/?_ga=2.123339147.1085817944.1512287836-807872714.1490815184 Another large accrediting body for counseling programs (usually Master's level) is CACREP (pronounced Kay-Crepe). If you are not already volunteering in a research lab, I would find one at your undergrad institution to volunteer with ASAP. Research experince is a huge factor when applying for PhD programs. I've just finished applying for this season and I applied to 13 schools in total. We'll see if that was enough once interview time rolls around. From talking to other people, 10-15 schools seemed like a common range, but I talked to some people who only applied to 5 and got a number of interviews, and others who applied to 20+ and only got one interview..... So it seems hard to estimate how many is actually enough. It's a great thing you're thinking about this a year out. It took me a solid year to get my list figured out, gather my application materials, and do everything I needed to do to get my applications in. Good luck with your search for schools! Let me know if there's any questions I can answer!- 8 replies
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I narrowed down my list of programs from 31 to 15 over the weekend. Now I just need to narrow it down a bit more and then I can finally get started on the actual applications. How are your applications going?
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Kevin, I was a career changer too! I had 6 hours of psych in my undergrad, and I was competing with people who were all psych majors during my multiple rounds of applications for programs. I played up the fact that I was a unique applicant which helped get me some attention, and I had/have a very clear goal (with solid reasons for wanting to achieve that goal) of what I want to do when I complete my education, and that helped as well. But really it depends upon the mentor you would be applying to and who else you might be competing against that application cycle. Some pieces of advice that were given to me and proved helpful: if extra coursework is the difference between you getting in and not, there are plenty of online 12 or 15 credit hour certificate programs related to psychology which are proof to a POI that you can do well in school after a break and that you can pick up psych info in a class; if you are location bound (as I was and it sounds like you might be), learn as much as you can about the professors and the programs in your area and tailor your application specifically to the program; and play up your experience and your ability to persevere through adversity to get what you want. Particularly if you are location bound it may take you several rounds of applications to get accepted, but the persistence will be ingrained in the memories of the faculty and honestly sometimes in grad school being able to stick with it no matter how hard it gets is a key skill. I'm going to disagree with the others on taking the Psych GRE. Most of the people who take it have an undergrad degree in psych, so the mean scores are very high, and that means those of us who don't have that background come in with a distinct disadvantage. I am a very good test taker. I studied fairly consistently for 4 months, and only scored in the 35th percentile. Lots of the test was nuanced information about what ideas were part of what theory and in what year things happened. I had one of the Kaplan books and I did quite well on the practice tests, so I'm not sure why I had such a poor showing on the actual test, unless it is just a matter of competing with people who spent 4 years learning material that I only had 4 months to learn. On the whole very few programs require the Psych GRE, so at least for this round of applications, I would recommend saving your money. If you don't get accepted this round and want to beef up your application for next round then it might be worth considering then. That's just my 2 cents.
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What is a Competitive Quant GRE Score for School/Ed Psych?
topsailpsych replied to Crimson Wife's topic in Psychology Forum
t_ruth, what qualifies as a high quant score for your lab? I got a 156 and while I'm on the clinical side, I'm interested in both research and clinical practice, so I may be applying to some more quant oriented labs. -
Counselling Psychology masters questions
topsailpsych replied to Faelchu's topic in Psychology Forum
I'm currently in an MEd Couseling Psychology program. My program is not designed for graduates at the Master's level to be immediately ready for licensure. It's more designed for those going on to doctoral programs, or interested in research with some clinical background. The couple of my classmates who have decided to pursue licensure after completion of the MEd have to take some additional coursework and will have to complete additional clinical hours on top of what is required for the program. So if you are interested in LPC licensure, it would be important to look into if the program prepares you for that right away, or if you'll have to do some little extra work for be eligible for that based upon your state licensing board. What are you wanting to do after completing the Master's degree? Knowing that will make it easier to provide suggestions and insight specifically for your situation. -
If you want to practice you'll want to ensure your PhD or PsyD program is APA accredited. APA has specific requirements for clinical experience for any school they accredit and they have a great search tool to help you start your search. I would encourage you to look at both clinical and counseling programs as both could potentially fit what you're looking for. http://www.apa.org/ed/accreditation/programs/index.aspx
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Fall 2018 Counseling Psych (PhD/Masters)
topsailpsych replied to aaustin's topic in Psychology Forum
I'm looking at both clinical and counseling programs. For me it has to do more with the POI and the flexibility of the program than the specific label for the program. My interest is trauma, particularly combat and MST, and the comorbidity of substance abuse with trauma. I'm finishing up my MEd in Counseling Psych right now, and I was in the same boat as you when I applied for that. I was a career changer and location bound, so I only had one school to apply to and it took me several rounds of applications before I was accepted. I'm no longer location bound since my husband has now finished his undergrad, so my list for doc programs is way too long and needing to get shortened from about 25 programs down to 10 or so. And making those cuts is hard because after spending so many years trying to get started on this path, I really want to get accepted for a doc program on this round rather than having to wait for successive rounds like last time. I think I'm starting to get paranoid about my application - making sure I'm as competitive as possible. I'm worrying about whether or not I should take the GRE again, whether or not my bad GRE Psych Subject test is going to shoot me in the foot for the three schools that received the score, worried that I won't have enough research experience to compete with others. Am I the only one going down the rabbit hole of worrying about every part of the application? -
I'll be attending the APA conference next week and expect to run across at least a few of my POIs for doctoral programs. Any advice on how to introduce myself and express my interest in working with him/her without coming across as creepy or schmoozy? Thanks!
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Not many schools have military psychology specific programs, however, any APA accredited clinical or counseling PhD program would be accepted by the military and the VA as well as most PsyD programs. If you would like to work in the VA system, look for a school with a close relationship with a VA hospital for practicum and internship opportunities. If you would like to be active duty military, you can begin speaking with a Health Professions recruiter for whichever branch you're interested in now as you're beginning to think about your programs (this is for the US military only, I know nothing about the Canadian military and if they may have opportunities for active duty military psychologists).
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For anyone currently attending Harvard or Yale in a clinical psychology program, what did your profile look like in your application? Feel free to share as much or as little as you are comfortable with, but the following data points would be particularly helpful: GRE score GPA (undergrad and/or Masters) Psych GRE score (if you took it) Number of publications or other evidence of scholarly activity Relationship with LOR writers (were they professors, advisors, research advisors, etc.) When you completed your application I'm trying to make some decisions regarding who should be my LOR writers, if I should take the GRE again, etc. and any perspective from current students would be helpful as I weigh those decisions. Thank you!
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How to "School" In Psychology (Study Tips)
topsailpsych replied to PNIplz's topic in Psychology Forum
I took a course that my program offered that was incredibly helpful to me in learning how to read articles quickly and for a purpose, and how to write a lit review in a much more efficient manner than I had before. The course is also offered online but I think it's a little on the pricy side (don't remember exactly how much they said in the class). You can look it up if you're interested, it's called The Grad Academy by Cisco Consulting. Regarding notes, I like paper and pen in class, with my tablet next to me to open up a tab if the professor mentions something that I need to look up (then I read through the tabs I opened between classes or at the end of the day). If I have an exam coming up I will often type my notes as a review, and to better organize them for further review. -
The advice after round 2 was that I had no research experience and limited psych experience (I only had 6 hours in undergrad since I studied Poli Sci). I took a grad cert program in Positive Psychology and applied to a different psych program on the same campus since the one I had been applying to focused primarily on children and the other focused more on adult (and I want to work at the VA, definitely not with kids). I also started volunteering in a research lab and did some research through where I was working to help beef up my research credentials. When I applied to the Counseling program I interviewed for the PhD program, but everyone else that I was interviewing with already has a Master's, so I just couldn't compete and wasn't offered a spot in the doc program. I accepted the offer to join the Master's cohort because it gives me the opportunity to further beef up my psych credentials, and will hopefully make me more competitive for this next round of doc applications. I'm with you on not being able to see yourself doing anything else. That being said, in the decade since finishing undergrad I've had a lot of work experience in a number of fields, so I have the confidence that there are other ways I could make a living if I had to. But I know this is my calling, so if I have to work in another job for a while before I can finally get into a doc program I certainly can and will.
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Getting a Grad Degree in Something Other Than My Undergrad?
topsailpsych replied to Jericha's topic in Applications
I've been in a similar situation. I majored in Poli Sci, worked in that field for 4 years, got burnt out and in doing some soul searching realized that my passion was really in psychology. I was location bound because my then boyfriend (now husband) had just begun undergrad and we weren't moving until after he was finished with his degree. So I took the GRE and applied to the Clinical Psych program at the one university in my town. I was banking on being a unique applicant and structured my SOP and CV accordingly. However, I was rejected. I applied again the next year and got rejected again. After this second rejection I contacted some of the professors on the admissions committee and asked for suggestions on how to improve my application. Following this advice, I began volunteering for research projects at work and at the university, and registered for an online grad certificate program through the university to increase my psych coursework (I only had 6 hours in undergrad). It was also recommended that I look into the Counseling Psych program on campus as the emphasis of the Clinical program was on children and my interest is working with adults. I then applied to the Counseling Psych PhD program, emphasizing the unique aspects of my candidacy, and received an interview for the program. Every other candidate interviewed already had a Master's degree, so I wasn't surprised when I was turned down for the doc program, but I was offered entrance to the Master's program which I accepted as a great opportunity to build my chances for getting into a PhD program in the future. All of this is to make several suggestions: 1) If you don't get accepted right away, be persistent. If you've got a job and you're stable, there is always next year. 2) The admissions committee for the department may be helpful in figuring out the weaknesses of your application so you may be able to improve it in the future. 3) There may be a winding path to get to your desired result, and that may include additional coursework in psych to make you competitive. 4) Volunteering your time on a research project may an option to beef up your research credentials. PIs are often glad to accept free help and being in the Chicago area you should have lots of opportunities - both at private companies and colleges/universities. You may also be able to create a research project yourself by asking your school if you can collect data (obviously you'd have to get permission and go through the IRB process). Even if your school does not allow you to write up the results it will give you experience developing research questions, analyzing data and making recommendations based upon the results. Good luck!- 6 replies
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I signed up for the GRE Psych Subject test in January when about 1/3 of the programs I was considering required the exam. I have since removed those schools from consideration for various reasons, but still studied and took the exam because I had already paid for it. I recently got my scores back and they were low - 35th percentile. Before taking the exam I had requested the scores go to my top schools - because those were the only ones I was absolutely sure I was applying to (even though none of them require the exam). So in trying to be smart, I wasn't. Go figure. I'm trying to decide if this low score will hurt my application to these four schools when they don't require the exam. If so, I'll have to study more this summer and schedule to take the exam again in September. Although since I spent 2 months studying this time and got such a low score, I have concerns that my score may not improve significantly the next time I take it. Other than this my application should be solid - good undergrad GPA, excellent grad GPA, excellent GRE general scores, good research and a couple of pubs under review. Is it worth the time and money to retake? Or am I likely fretting over nothing? Any thoughts, experiences or input would be helpful in making my decision. Thank you!
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Program of Interest: Clinical/Counseling Psychology, and hopefully a program with a strong Neuropsych component Schools You Have Looked At: So many. Too many. I've narrowed my list from 60+ down to 25, and will hopefully have the list narrowed down to my final 10 or 12 by the end of next month. Number One Worry About Applying: Not getting accepted anywhere. I was rejected twice before being accepted into my MEd program this round (and that was a consolation prize because they couldn't offer me a spot in the PhD program, which was what I had applied for), and I'm coming to grad school later in life, so I worry about what happens if I don't get in this round - how many more rounds of applications I can justify, what can I do to strengthen my application any further, etc.