Clinical or Counseling Psychology PhD Applicant (APA Accredited only), applying in December 2020 for 2021 Fall Enrollment: All APA Accredited Programs in Colorado, Utah, some in California, (exact schools TBD—I am noticing that due to COVID-19 some are not accepting students.... Hence, the anxiety which provoked me to right this post)
I hope this gets more comments than eye-rolls: yes this is another (but my first) self-indulgent “what are my chances” post... and yes, it is 3am... Clearly more sleeping and less worrying would increase my chances of doing what I need to do to optimize my chances of being accepted into a PhD program...BUT, instead I’m going to indulge myself by asking the GP what you all think my chances might be on paper, of getting in:
Things I have going for me:
-Graduated high school at age 16; subsequently went to Brown University where I graduated at age 20 (somewhat unique)...but did NOT study psychology. I graduated with a B.A. in “Literary Arts” (writing) and a B.A. in “Modern Culture & Media, Theory Track” (basically, the psychology of digital writing, branding, and media).... My grades were good in undergrad but they do not calculate GPA at Brown. But I got A’s, with a few B’s. I think I could write a good personal statement connecting my path through those two majors (inclination toward understanding human nature/cognition/expression), eventually leading to the unveiling of my true passion—psychology. —Age 20, May 2014, graduated undergrad.
-Age 20-22– backpacked/travelled abroad
-Age 21-23- worked as a coordinator for a substance abuse prevention program in my hometown (Block Island, RI)
-Age 23- Accepted to Columbia University Postbacc Premedical Program (wanted to segway into Psychiatry via med school). I attended this program for one year while volunteering in New York Columbia Presbyterian Hospital’s Emergency room, and decided I wanted to pursue psychology instead after seeing both positions in action first hand
-Age 24-26 (I am 26 now)- Transferred to Columbia University Teachers College for Masters degree in Clinical Psychology. I specialized in “Spirit-Mind Body” Psychology but also took all the perquisites for Clin Psyche PhD programs. I got all As (and some A+), except for just one class in which I did get one B+. Got a A in Statistics and an A in Research Methods. (Teachers College does not calculate GPA). Graduated with an M.A. in Clinical Psychology in May 2020.
-Research Experience: Sept 2018-June 2019- worked for an academic year as a research assistant for an Asthma Eduction Study in which I worked with inner City children with severe asthma using techniques such as motivational interviewing. Study was through Columbia School of Nursing.
-Research Experience: Started working at New York State Psychiatric Institute at a clinic called Columbia Schizophrenia Research Center as an RA/Recruiter. We run several clinical trials for Schizophrenia patients. I am working there at present and have worked there since June 2019.
Letters of Rec: I should be able to get a strong letter of rec from the PI at Columbia Schizophrenia Research Center, as well as from my boss’s boss (who is the director of the NYSPI, as well as the chairman of Columbia Psychiatry and the first author of the DSM-5). I can also most likely get a letter of Rec from Dan Tomasulo, a well known Positive Psychologist who was my professor at TC, and has since been appointed as director of the program at Columbia TC where I got my Masters. I could get a few other strong letters of rec as well.
Publications: just 1 paper, and I am FAR down the list of authors (see paper, initials MC)- but it is a high impact journal: https://jpbs.hapres.com/htmls/JPBS_1287_Detail.html
I am also writing a Lexicon of spiritual/psychology-related concepts, organized like a glossary of over 777 terms from my field of interest. Around 300 pages long....Most “definitions” for these 777 words will explain in my words what the concept means, with some examples, and will also reference other peer-reviewed journal articles/well-known texts for further reading. So in that sense it’s almost like a gigantic Lit Review of everything I’ve learned in my career. Writing is my strength and the book will be of professional academic quality. It is feasible to complete it by Nov 2020 for Dec application deadlines, as it has been in a work in progress for 2 years.
Clinical Volunteer Hours: Several continuous months volunteering in psychiatric ER as an unofficial recreational therapist (mainly art therapy). Started in Dec 2019 through March 2020. In March I had to stop going in person, so switched to virtual volunteering via phone calls instead. I will have at least 120 hours as a volunteer by December’s deadline.
GRE: I took the GRE completely blindly (did not study at ALL, on purpose to get a baseline. Got 155 V, 149 Q, 4.5 AW.
phew!!!! That was a lot. THANK YOU to anyone who took the time to read my boring bio, I really appreciate it! I have been putting so much pressure on myself because I know that having not published a paper myself is a possible weak point in my app. I also have only 3 months to bring those GRE scores up to a competitive percentile. Doable.... but still stressful. Also the fact that I didn’t major in Psychology undergrad could be seen as a weak point but I think in my statement I can argue that it’s a strength. But all that said, what do you think my chances are? Does this sound competitive or not so much?
