Interested in Clinical Psych, but not sure how to get there

[Em1994]

Hey guys!

Brand new to the forum, so please bare with me! 

Quick background: I have a Bachelor's in Neuroscience (GPA 3.1, not great, I know) and thought I wanted to do research when I graduated in 2015. I did one year of research after graduation in toxicology (not specifically neuroscience geared) but realized I didn't want to pursue that. Recently I have been thinking I want to do Clinical Psych, but I'm not sure how to get into the field. Do I apply for a master's degree first then a PhD program? What is the path for someone like me who hasn't been in school for a while or done much research but wants to go to grad school for clinical psych?

 

Just not sure what the next step would be. Obviously, I will want to take the GRE first, but then what? Apply to schools I like for a master's in psychology? Or is there a specifically clinical psych route to take? Honestly just not sure since I have been out of school so long and I don't have the resources to help guide me in the right direction. 

[PsyDuck90]

What is your specific career goal? Depending on what your specific interests are, you may not need a PhD.

[jk616]

My advice would be to try to get a job that will give you some more relevant experience for graduate school. If you're wanting to pursue a career in clinical psych research you could try to find a paid job or volunteer position in a lab at a nearby university. If you are more interested in being a practicing psychologist, it is usually pretty easy to get a full time job as a case manager or mental health technician somewhere. If you just want to practice, a clinical psych PhD might not be the best fit for you - you might want to look into MSW or clinical mental health counseling programs. 

If you do decide to go the clinical psych PhD route, I'd definitely try to find a job before doing a masters since those tend to be expensive! 

Edited June 27, 2018 by jk616

[SendMeAnEmailPlz]

What draws you to clinical psych? If you are looking to avoid research and just hoping to do clinical work, I would do a masters that offers licensure (mental health counseling or social work). You can likely be admitted as long as you can manage to take the GRE and find 2-3 letter writers.

If you're set on a PhD in clinical psychology, and understand that research will be a hefty part of your training, you may want to pursue a masters in clinical psychology before the PhD. I say this because your GPA and major will likely hold you back from admittance to a funded PhD. If you crush the GRE you may be able to sneak in, but research experience, which you can obtain at many masters programs, is crucial.

[Em1994]

On 6/27/2018 at 1:16 PM, jk616 said:

My advice would be to try to get a job that will give you some more relevant experience for graduate school. If you're wanting to pursue a career in clinical psych research you could try to find a paid job or volunteer position in a lab at a nearby university. If you are more interested in being a practicing psychologist, it is usually pretty easy to get a full time job as a case manager or mental health technician somewhere. If you just want to practice, a clinical psych PhD might not be the best fit for you - you might want to look into MSW or clinical mental health counseling programs. 

If you do decide to go the clinical psych PhD route, I'd definitely try to find a job before doing a masters since those tend to be expensive! 

Definitely looking into the practice route, so I think from what you're saying pursuing a master's first would be best way to pursuing a career in clinical practice? Do you think work experience would be best for being admitted to that program? And what type of job experiences would they look for for this type of program?

[PsyDuck90]

If you are just interested in clinical practice, then an MA in mental health counseling or an MSW is really the only thing you need. You do not need to spend the extra time that a doctoral program requires. With an MSW, some teaching and research options are sometimes also available, but not as readily as a PhD. 

You do not need a masters to pursue a doctorate. If you are missing psych pre-reqs or your undergrad GPA is lower than the minimum requirements for applying, then an MA is a good route. I would make sure it is a research based MA where you do a thesis, as research experience is a huge factor in the application process.

[ARemi4]

If you're not wanting to pursue a career in research, i would stray away from clinical psych programs. Despite the name, they are very heavily researched based. Additionally, if you're wanting to go directly into a PhD program for it it's extremely competitive. I applied last year after being in 4 various research labs for 3+ years, having a 3.9 undergrad GPA, presenting 15+ research posters at conferences, and working a post bacc job doing research, and still got rejected from every program I applied to. It is COMPETITIVE, and you need to have a very strong background in research to get accepted. You also need to have an extremely narrowed field of research you want to be in, so that you can  apply to specific faculty members (for example: I was applying to advisors that did research in pre-k aged children that has externalizing disruptive behaviors in the school setting).

If you are dead set on clinical psych, another option is doing a masters program in clinical psych and then going to a Ph.D program... however this is much more costly (considering PhD clinical programs are usually fully funded) and extremely time consuming. PhD programs alone are typically about 6 years in length after doing your internship and such.

 

However, if you are not IN LOVE with research, I would advise against clinical psychology. It will be the majority of your life for the next 6 years if not more. That's actually why I strayed away from clinical psych and I'm now getting my masters in behavior analysis, doing hands on therapy work with kiddos.