Difference between Hunter College and City College (psychology masters)

[ravyn]

Hi!

I am applying to the master's for general psychology at CUNY's Hunter and City College, but I am confused about the difference between the two programs? I've seen Hunter College mentioned often in my search, but City College seemed more obscure. As someone with little insider knowledge, it's hard for me to understand if there's a big difference in reputation, types of research, quality of education, admission rate, etc. 

I ultimately want to do a PsyD or PhD in clinical psychology, but I didn't didn't take any psychology courses in undergrad. Any advice would be appreciated!

NOTE: above message is posted by a friend using my account!!!!!

Edited March 30, 2018 by ravyn

[gm1122]

Hello!!! 

I actually applied to both Hunter and City College for MA in Psych for the Fall 2018 semester. (If your friend ended up applying to both, pls let me know what their decisions were!!) I also plan to pursue a PhD in clinical psych as well~ 

I’ve also asked myself that same exact question! I’m assuming both programs are great, but because I got my BA in psych from Hunter, I have a preference for Hunter, lol. Psychology is actually one of the most common majors at Hunter, which has made their undergrad program very large with a wide range of class selection. In terms of reputation, both schools are very well respected. Hunter is well known for their Nursing, MSW, and DPT programs, City College is well known for their STEM programs. Admissions, I believe both are competitive (about 25-30% for undergraduate, I’m not sure for graduate though). Quality of education, I can only advocate for Hunter but I believe the professors I had for my major were really good, very knowledgeable in their field. I never had a problem with any of them. Sometimes you’ll get a tough professor, sometimes you’ll get a pretty leninent one, but really no complaints here.

If you have any more questions, feel free to ask!!  

 

[ArchieJones]

What are you looking for in a program?

I would not advise the City College (CCNY) MA in psychology program to anyone who wants a quality. Before it started, I was really excited about being in the program but after just a few classes I quickly realized what a mistake it was - I wasn't learning anything. The classes are easier than many first year undergraduate courses, so you're not going to be challenged or prepared for real graduate level work. The professors are mostly undergrad professor who just happen to be teaching a class or two in the graduate program. This often means that they are not trained, adequate grad school professors, and they often treat grad students like undergrad (like having a large chuck of class time dedicated to talking about how wikipedia isn't a reliable source for a research article - d'oh!). Student's quickly pick up that the professors aren't committed so they aren't committed either. Few people do the readings and homework before class, so instead of having class discussions that build or do anything of substance, it's basically just reading the assigned work aloud with the class.

If you're just looking to bolster your GPA (very easy to get straight A's) and don't actually care about learning more, then it's probably a good fit. Otherwise, I would seriously consider somewhere else.