[need some advices] non psych major applying for phd in quantitative psychology

[dqz1213dqz]

I am an international student in my second year of college double majoring in math and philosophy. I also took some psychology classes (intro to psych as social science, intro to psych as natural science, social psych, cognitive psych, stat course), I will be taking evolutionary psych next semester. It looks like that the structure of my classes each semester is 2 math, 1 phil, 1 psyc, and 1 general education course. I am currently having a 3.5 GPA. I will be working in a neuroscience lab this summer. 

By the end of my junior year, I will probably have two research experiences related to psych (one is my summer research, the other will be a research class in cognitive psych). I think that I am able to at least minor in psych, but my institution only allows me to have at most (2 majors, or 1 major 1 minor). So I will not be a psych major or minor when applying to graduate school. I have considered switching my secondary major from philosophy to psychology but I am almost done with the required classes for philosophy degree and I am contemplating doing an honors thesis in philosophy.

I know that I want to do research in the future and quantitative psychology seems to be a great option. I wish to get into a program that is ranked around 50. What else do I need to do considering my situation if I want to get into a quantitative psychology Ph.D. program? Am I competitive enough?

Edited April 19, 2018 by dqz1213dqz

[MutedSeraph]

It is not uncommon for Quant. applicants to be from more mathematically-oriented fields such as pure mathematics, econometrics, or physics.

I would focus on developing your substantive interest and exploring the quantitative work that's been done on that or related topics and seeing how your experience will give you an edge over traditional psychology folk.

I would go so far to say that you have the advantage coming to Quant. programs than traditional psychology students since they are generally more mathematically inclined anyway.

Edited April 20, 2018 by MutedSeraph
Submitted prematurely

[davidlv]

I am an international student from China. I have a B.S. in statistics, a B.A. in economics and a M.A. in economics of education, and I have very limited background in psychology (I have only taken introductory psychology, social psychology, organizational psychology and educational measurement, 4 courses only), while I was still admitted by several programs in this area.

I think it is OK that you are not a student in psychology, since this field is not that close to other areas of psychology. Do not worry, and you can find that many faculty members in this field do not have a background in psychology as well. Someone even told me that quantitative psychology is more like a program in applied statistics. I suggest you take some courses in statistics, such as mathematical statistics, regression analysis, multivariate analysis, experimental design.

You should think a lot about your own research interests. People in this field are studying a lot of different things: fMRI data analysis, multilevel models, structural equation modeling, longitudinal analysis, causal inference, program evaluation, item response theory, large-scale assessment... Some of these topics are actually not that close to others, but they are all within quantitative psychology.