Am I limiting myself in only considering Psy.D? How necessary is a gap year?

[SlothQueen]

Hi. I'm a rising senior (undergrad) planning on applying to doctoral programs this fall in need of some guidance. Right now, I am leaning towards applying to Psy.D. programs. I just don't love research. I am pretty neutral about it, but I know it is something I don't want to do for my career. I know all about the funding situation, but I am fortunate enough to be in a financial position where that is not a major concern. Obviously, I would still prefer funded programs. Because of my neutral feelings regarding research and my preference for clinical work, I have been pretty set on the Psy.D. for Clinical Psychology. However, am I limiting myself? I know a lot of people do Ph.D. and don't end up going into research. However, am I competitive enough for Ph.D. programs? Further, is taking a gap year absolutely necessary? I really wouldn't want to work as a research coordinator. Many people have advised me to take a year or two to gain more clinical work, thereby having a stronger application. Is there any shot of me getting into Psy.D. or Ph.D. right from undergrad? Honestly, my plan right now is to apply to some Psy.D. programs (only a few/reach schools), kind of hoping for a miracle. Then, I will take a year off when that miracle doesn't happen and get more clinical work and apply again. Does this sound good? Am I limiting myself? Do I have no shot? If I have no shot, please tell me. It's really hard to understand where I fit in compared to other applicants.

• GPA 3.91/4
• Taking my GREs this summer. Probably a little lower on math.
• 1 year as a research assistant in psychometric lab.
• Leader/trainer for school's crisis/listening hotline (3 years)
• This summer I had an amazing internship at the Child Mind Institute, but it was delayed until next year. For the summer, I have taken up remote positions.
  • Remote Summer RA at Montclair State (College COVID study)
  • Remote Summer RA at Rutgers (Social-Emotional learning/school intervention lab)
  • Remote Summer RA at Rowan (anxiety + depression research)
• Writing a psychology thesis next year about college admissions (def psychology based, but not really THAT clinical)
• School extracurriculars: multiple leadership positions in sorority, Psi Chi secretary
• Past jobs: Summer camp counselor for 3 years, summer internship at school in education technology.

[SouthernFlowers]

Hi there,

First of all, CONGRATS almost senior!!

When thinking about Psy.D vs Phd you may need to ask yourself what your ultimate goals are after receiving a doctorate. Both degrees are competitive, but like you mentioned a Psy.D typically does not have the same funding options as a PhD. Look at your ideal program's alumni to see if what they're doing matches what you would like to do.

When thinking about taking a gap year, I like to think about it like this: If I'm worried about a gap year pushing my time in school back, its important to note that either way a year will go by. Would I rather not go for taking a year off in hopes of becoming more competitive to get into a program I really want to attend or be in a program I really don't like...for 4-5 years.  I personally did a 2 year masters program and was scooped up by most of the Phd programs I applied to upon graduating.They took all my credits and my time in school will be just the same as the typical doctoral student, I just went about it a different way. I say that to say, there's many ways to go about this. Happy to discuss further ?

[SlothQueen]

22 minutes ago, SouthernFlowers said:

When thinking about taking a gap year, I like to think about it like this: If I'm worried about a gap year pushing my time in school back, its important to note that either way a year will go by. Would I rather not go for taking a year off in hopes of becoming more competitive to get into a program I really want to attend or be in a program I really don't like...for 4-5 years.  I personally did a 2 year masters program and was scooped up by most of the Phd programs I applied to upon graduating.They took all my credits and my time in school will be just the same as the typical doctoral student, I just went about it a different way. I say that to say, there's many ways to go about this. Happy to discuss further ?

Wow! Thank you! You're right. I should want to get into a program I really want, rather than just applying and going with what works. Between the time I originally posted and now, I am more open and accepting of the gap year idea. I have a question about masters programs. From my internet searching, I've seen people say that getting a MA is really only necessary if you're college performance wasn't great. Was this the case for you or did you have another reason? A MA could be helpful to gain more experience and narrow down what I want to do. Why did you go for an MA?

[Psychintraining]

On 6/10/2020 at 9:28 PM, SlothQueen said:

Wow! Thank you! You're right. I should want to get into a program I really want, rather than just applying and going with what works. Between the time I originally posted and now, I am more open and accepting of the gap year idea. I have a question about masters programs. From my internet searching, I've seen people say that getting a MA is really only necessary if you're college performance wasn't great. Was this the case for you or did you have another reason? A MA could be helpful to gain more experience and narrow down what I want to do. Why did you go for an MA?

Hi there! I know I wasn't the original person you asked, but I ended up doing an MA even though I had strong undergrad stats so I thought I would chime in. I applied to all PsyD programs my senior year and only got into one program that I really didn't like because I didn't have enough research experience. I decided to turn it down to do a masters. My masters allowed me to really refine my research interests (I finished my masters with a COMPLETELY different interest than what I started it with) and build my CV with posters. Although PsyDs are less competitive than PhDs, they are still very competitive and some research productivity in the form of a poster or paper is almost needed. I applied again this cycle to 2 PsyDs and 5 PhDs, and received 4 offers. So my time in my masters program DEFINITELY made a significant difference in my application. However, I do not think that a masters is necessary with your stats. You could instead get an RA job, but they're ultra competitive especially due to COVID. It would also lock you into one research area, whereas in a masters I was involved in several projects until I found the topic that I am passionate about. Ultimately, I think its really up to you and how clear you are on your research interests and if you think you can get some presentations from what you're already involved in or not. Either way, I think waiting a year or two after college is probably in your best interest as you may not have enough time to get clear productivity on your CV before then. Feel free to PM me if you have any more in depth questions!

[SouthernFlowers]

On 6/10/2020 at 9:28 PM, SlothQueen said:

Wow! Thank you! You're right. I should want to get into a program I really want, rather than just applying and going with what works. Between the time I originally posted and now, I am more open and accepting of the gap year idea. I have a question about masters programs. From my internet searching, I've seen people say that getting a MA is really only necessary if you're college performance wasn't great. Was this the case for you or did you have another reason? A MA could be helpful to gain more experience and narrow down what I want to do. Why did you go for an MA?

Hi again, you're welcome! I did pretty well in undergrad but lacked research experience, despite having professional experience with the population I want to work with (I taught elementary school for 2 years). The thing about applying to doctoral programs is that everyone who is applying are also coming with high stats (gpa, gre, research, etc.) so I wanted to be as competitive as I could be and honestly, I really did not have a true solidified research focus after undergrad.

My Master's program did a few things

1) Allowed me to show programs I am capable of flourishing in Grad School academically

2) Provided me the opportunity to join national professional organizations and become active in those orgs in leadership roles as a student 

3) Refine my interests and present at conferences, including publishing papers

4) Grow in my knowledge of Psychology (through applied and research experiences which was really attractive to schools)

Those things set me apart for my top programs, BUT a gap year can also be used to do those things as well, depending on how you decide to spend it. I graduated from undergrad knowing I wanted to be a psychologist at the doctoral level but really did not have a clue about the specifics besides wanting to work with kids. A gap year or Masters can help  in that. You are a strong applicant, NO DOUBT. But what I've learned is that there are tons of strong applicants and it doesn't hurt to add more to set yourself apart to show how passionate you are about this and how well you can flourish with being a Research assistant while studying full time. Here to help further and best of luck! ? 

[8215S]

Did everyone here who did a masters do it in Mental Health Counseling or Social Work? I also got into St. John's PsyD School Psychology program but my interests were mainly clinical. One professor of mine did tell me that there is a stigma about how valuable a school psychology degree is compared to a clinical one. This got me thinking in maybe doing a maters first and then going for my PhD. But that's additional years of school and I'm worried about how I'll financially support myself.