EnPsychlopedia

FWIW, you're going to have to do research in any decent doctoral program. Many PsyD programs certainly have very light requirements RE research compared to the average PhD program, but high quality, funded programs will almost certainly require some kind of significant research involvement. Programs which don't are generally not considered to be of very high quality. Part of what sets psychologists apart from other mental health professionals is the scientific expertise, which means learning how to do scientific research. If research is not in the cards for you, I would not recommend a doctoral program. Licensure-eligible master's programs which place a fair emphasis on interpreting quantitative research findings can offer a good alternative, as you'll get the clinical training and some of the more sophisticated research interpretation skills (not nearly the same as a doctorate, but decent enough for doing full-time psychotherapy). That said, if you do want to do a doctorate, some kind of master's degree is pretty much going to be required in your case. A GPA of 3.0 is usually the minimum GPA for even being considered for admission, so you will have to do some GPA remediation in a master's program. An MSW is fine, but SW is an entirely different field from psychology and doesn't offer much overlap in terms of curricula--psychotherapy is basically the only place where an MSW program overlaps with a doctorate in clinical/counseling psychology. Otherwise, it doesn't really prepare you for psychology. A terminal master's degree in psychology without license-eligibility (plus research experience) is the more direct way of prepping for a doctorate program, but it carries the risk of you not getting in later and not being licensure eligible. Between MSW and master's degrees in counseling, I'd probably opt for the latter (as it overlaps a little bit more with psychology and still has licensure eligibility should you need to fall back on that later). I'd still recommend getting research experience no matter which degree you choose. TLDR: A master's is a necessity here. A terminal academic/research master's would be the most directly appropriate way to prep for a doctorate, but other routes are fine (with caveats, namely getting research experience). If research is not in the cards for you, choose a master's licensure path and make the best of it. Best wishes!

Hi-- There's no such thing as a "licensed clinical psychologist" in most states. There's just "licensed psychologist," which can be achieved with a doctorate in clinical, counseling, or school psychology. The license is the same no matter which degree one has. As for the general differences between clinical and counseling psychology, the latter normally--but not always--focuses around less severe presentations of mental health disorders (e.g., mild to moderate depression, anxiety, trauma, adjustment disorders, and substance use). The orientation tends to be a little more "strengths-based" and focused on folks who generally function well and have relatively low treatment needs. Clinical programs tend to be more oriented toward more severe presentations of the disorders I just mentioned, as well as personality disorders and SMI (psychosis, BP d/o, severe depression, etc.). However, these differences are diminishing over time, with SMI still being rarely seen in counseling programs but more severe presentations of other disorders becoming more and more part of the DNA of counseling programs. Trauma is an area of significant overlap between counseling and clinical psychology, so you are positioned in a good area in which to be flexible about choosing a good program for following that interest. The practica you will have access to may be slightly different, and most counseling psychology programs are housed in Depts. of Education/Counseling rather than Depts. of Psychology, so you may find it somewhat more difficult to work with psychologists who aren't licensure-oriented (e.g., social psychs, dev psychs, cognitive psychs) during your time. This will be institution-dependent. Ultimately, your choice should come down to which program offers the best overall fit with your funding needs, research interests, and clinical placement goals. If one program has more opportunities to do trauma research and practica, that matters. Funding also matters, especially in NYC. Happy to chat more if you still have questions! Best of luck!