30’s Clinical Psych, my chances

[NellyC]

So here’s my background:

Associates degree in general studies: 2.69 gpa.

George Mason University BA biology: 2.28 gpa ... super bad.

Virginia Commonwealth University BS Chemistry: 2.69 gpa

Marymount University MS Healthcare Management: (so far) 3.2 gpa during application time. Will go up after 4 classes ... I anticipate 3.4 I think.

My work experience ( been working since 19) starting from first job until now:

Medical Assistant/ Medical office manager 5 years. During this time, I also worked part time in a hospital as Histology Assistant in the Pathology/Histology lab.

2 years as hospital registrar in the ER, surgical department, ancillary department etc.(Left for a short time in my last semester of studies to work in a lab, so I worked as a certifying/lab tech in a toxicology lab verifying drug test results)

Promoted to Manager of Patient Access.

After 10 months, promoted to be Director if Patient Access in a Psychiatric Hospital. (This was the beginning of my interest in psychology back in 2017, this was also when i started my masters)

Worked in a pharmaceutical company as an Assistant Scientist for almost a year

Worked as a Pharmacy Technician for almost a year, therefore I am Pharmacy Tech Certified.

Currently I work for GSK (another pharmaceutical company) as a technical writer. 

Will be taking my GRE mid December. I am applying to four schools that are allowing me to submit my scores and LORs after the deadline. The schools are:

Catholic University of america

American University 

Virginia Tech

West Virginia University.

 

I am concerned about my GPA being low. But I am hoping everything else will compensate for the low GPA. Also I’m studying hard for the GRE and aiming for minimum 168 for both sections (pretty confident with the math section). 
 

Anyone has experience with similar background and think I’ve got a good chance, slight chance or no chance? Also, are my lab experience hospital work considered “clinical”? Trying to see what research I can speak of too.

oh yeah, I’m also going to go to Alabama University Birmingham to compete in a case study competition with two other students in my masters. And during my last semester of my masters I will be doing a semester long project with a hospital and I will try my best to do it with a psychiatric/psychology organization.

Extra side info: I’m Middle Eastern, permanent resident, Canadian/Algerian citizen, lived in 4 different countries and speak 3 languages.

Thank you in advance!

 

[PsyDuck90]

Is this for a clinical psych PhD I'm assuming? What are your research interests/what is your research experience? Do your interests align with faculty at these programs? Research fit and experience often trumps GRE/GPA in importance. 

[NellyC]

My current research interest is around creating positive environments for people in addiction trying to recover or those that are in early recovery. I have one professor at catholic university that I contacted and she replied with “I look forward to your application and I will contact you with questions if I have any in the future”. Not sure if that’s a generic answer or good. I’m new to this game.

[PsycUndergrad]

What research experience do you have? PhD programs are super competitive (under 10% acceptance rate) and most successful applicants have 2+ years of research experience with conference presentations and/or publications. If you don’t have solid research experience, I would focus on building up that area of your application before spending time and money on the application process. 
 

 

[NellyC]

I never held a job or volunteered with a working title that says “research”. I guess the only thing i can speak of is one of my leadership healthcare business course got turned into an independent study, which was done special for me. And a class I need to take next semester I must complete a capstone project that requires a semester long study and research of a healthcare organization and I’m looking to do it in behavioral health. Nothing extensive or nothing at all probably... ??‍♀️

[Romedy]

16 hours ago, NellyC said:

So here’s my background:

Associates degree in general studies: 2.69 gpa.

George Mason University BA biology: 2.28 gpa ... super bad.

Virginia Commonwealth University BS Chemistry: 2.69 gpa

Marymount University MS Healthcare Management: (so far) 3.2 gpa during application time. Will go up after 4 classes ... I anticipate 3.4 I think.

My work experience ( been working since 19) starting from first job until now:

Medical Assistant/ Medical office manager 5 years. During this time, I also worked part time in a hospital as Histology Assistant in the Pathology/Histology lab.

2 years as hospital registrar in the ER, surgical department, ancillary department etc.(Left for a short time in my last semester of studies to work in a lab, so I worked as a certifying/lab tech in a toxicology lab verifying drug test results)

Promoted to Manager of Patient Access.

After 10 months, promoted to be Director if Patient Access in a Psychiatric Hospital. (This was the beginning of my interest in psychology back in 2017, this was also when i started my masters)

Worked in a pharmaceutical company as an Assistant Scientist for almost a year

Worked as a Pharmacy Technician for almost a year, therefore I am Pharmacy Tech Certified.

Currently I work for GSK (another pharmaceutical company) as a technical writer. 

Will be taking my GRE mid December. I am applying to four schools that are allowing me to submit my scores and LORs after the deadline. The schools are:

Catholic University of america

American University 

Virginia Tech

West Virginia University.

 

I am concerned about my GPA being low. But I am hoping everything else will compensate for the low GPA. Also I’m studying hard for the GRE and aiming for minimum 168 for both sections (pretty confident with the math section). 
 

Anyone has experience with similar background and think I’ve got a good chance, slight chance or no chance? Also, are my lab experience hospital work considered “clinical”? Trying to see what research I can speak of too.

oh yeah, I’m also going to go to Alabama University Birmingham to compete in a case study competition with two other students in my masters. And during my last semester of my masters I will be doing a semester long project with a hospital and I will try my best to do it with a psychiatric/psychology organization.

Extra side info: I’m Middle Eastern, permanent resident, Canadian/Algerian citizen, lived in 4 different countries and speak 3 languages.

Thank you in advance!

 

Like previous responses have pointed out, my concern is with your research history/experience. I made the switch from business/sales to psychology in my early 30s. I ended up having to get a second undergrad (in psychology) and a master's degree in psychology before I was competitive enough for PhD applications. The major hole in my application was research. If you have a publication or two, then you are competitive. If you have several poster presentations, then you are competitive. I was admitted to a PhD without a publication, so it is doable, but my other metrics were better than yours (e.g. GPA).

I wish you all the luck in the world, but also want to prepare you for a rejection. I knew that clinical psych was the right path for me, so I stuck to it. In the event you are rejected, reach out to your rejections and ask for feedback on your application. If you find a really good fit, then let them know to expect your application again next year. Hopefully, though, you'll get in this year and not even have to worry about that!

[Aghhhhh]

Hey fellow Ram ?

From the previous responses, I'm sure you've gleaned by now the importance of research experience for clinical psychology applicants. What do you mean by "creating positive environments for people in addiction?" Do you want to research how to develop better interventions for people with addiction, or more so about providing counseling? If the latter, there are way less strenuous routes to take other than a clinical psych PhD, that will allow you to do more counseling/supportive work (e.g. MSW). What you'll be doing as a clinical psychology graduate student is primarily research (testing hypotheses, running participants, analyzing data, literature reviews). You'll also be learning how to conduct assessments and interventions for clinical populations. If your goal after getting a PhD is to just do clinical work--absolutely no research--then I wouldn't suggest clinical psychology. While it is possible, and common, for people to graduate and do only clinical work, you'll have ~5-6 grueling years of doing research beforehand!

I would echo what everyone else is saying and suggest working in a research lab that is doing research you're interested in. Try and get some pubs or conference presentations, and make relationships with people in the research field (for recommendation letters). It will give you a sense of whether you actually like to do research, and you'll get invaluable experience at the same time. I'd also suggest taking the Psychology GRE so you can demonstrate your knowledge of psychology, since your degree is not in psychology! You're chances afterwards of getting into a program will be much, much higher, because PIs want to recruit students who have shown a dedication to pursuing a research path.

[Clinical]

I would focus on getting more research experience. Having been through this process and met a lot of people on interviews and discussed the interview process with many people who went on to graduate school, it is very unlikely you will get interviews with little to no research experience. And with no research experience, you won't really even have relevant letters of recommendation.

Also, 168 is very high for GRE sections, so you definitely cannot bank on scoring that high. 

It is such a tough process, and you might be able to make it work, but you will likely need good research experience. Many people with high grades and years of research experience have to apply multiple years. Your GPAs might be hard to overcome at this stage, so it might be wise to do a psychology master's degree that has a thesis requirement... this can help with research experience and with getting a higher GPA. A few schools on your list have master's programs. Additionally, you may want to start applying for RA positions now. They can be hard to get but an early start could be helpful.

I know this probably isn't what you want to read, but it's the reality of a very competitive process. The good news is that there things you can do to increase your chances for future cycles. Good luck!

[EliCash]

Hey Nelly, 

So, I can speak a little to your situation - as mine was similar. From what I know about technical writing in health care, many of those skills probably overlap with that of an RA. If that is the case, make sure you showcase those skills in an application. 

Additionally, if you are still in healthcare, check and see if there are any research opportunities join, even if just a part time contribution. I understand adjusting to an RA salary might not be doable, but there are other ways to get experience. 

I'm assuming those lower grades are 15+ years old....while I can't predict exactly how ad coms will feel, I wouldn't worry so much about those as much as getting the strongest qualifications now.