Nudged towards field based on demand? (Clinical vs. Quant)

[hughjones]

Hello All,

 

Fall 2013 applicant here. I was just wondering if anyone has been "nudged" towards a particular subfield in psychology based on demand in the field? Specifically, I'm trying to decide between applying to clinical or quantitative PhD. programs.

 

Ultimately, I want to work as a faculty member an R1 school so I'm trying to pick the option that will maximize the chances that I can get that job. I can really see myself doing either of these tracks because my future research will probably include components from both. Thus, if I go clinical, I will probably minor in quantitative methods. Alternately, if I go quantitative, I'll probably take quite a few clinical courses.

 

Any advice in deciding what area to apply in ( or any other application tips!) would be much appreciated !

 

 

[GingerbreadLatte]

Go quantitative and minor in clinical. Apply to UNC and UCLA.

[olayak]

I agree. Go quant and minor in clinical. Quant is more theoretical and, therefore, preferred for professors/researchers.

[PsychGirl1]

I was going to say the opposite :-). But honestly, I think it depends what sort of research you want to do and what sort of experiences you want to get out of grad school. And of course, the options you'll when you graduate- 5 or 6 years is a long time, you may find you like certain parts/areas of psych more than others.

[Jon-Jon Johnson]

Also be aware that some clinical psych programs only allow clinical students to take clinical courses, so minoring in clinical may be less likely of an option than minoring in quant, which is always available as an option for clinical students.

 

That said, clinical programs are also the tougher acceptance rates, so it's a call you'll have to make for yourself. Either way, I'd suggest having a chat with and asking for input from some profs you respect rather than just relying on us anonymous dopes.

[hughjones]

I will definitely try to consult with some profs before making a decision on what programs to apply but my conundrum is I don't have any profs at my tiny undergrad school that know anything about quant (probably no surprise there), and I can't really just email those that might actually have some information about making this type of decision (i.e. quant psych profs at other schools) because I'll seem like a crazy person.

 

(sigh)....I guees relying on "anonymous dopes" it is.

[Jon-Jon Johnson]

In that case, try to look outside your undergrad school to other nearby schools that may have profs better suited to chat with you a bit. Perhaps your school's profs can call a friend or a friend of a friend to make introductions. Or perhaps you're in or near a big enough concentration of colleges that you can try to get involved with the work of a quant prof at one of them.

 

In any case, it is probably a good idea to get a little more hands on with quant psych, both for your decision making as well as your CV strengthening if you do decide to go that route, so the best path will still take a bit more oomph than message boards can provide. Think of it as a research project in and of itself.

[PsychGirl1]

I don't think it's that weird to email people in quant, at nearby universities/med centers/whatever, and ask for an informational interview because you are choosing a career path. You might not get a fantastic response rate, but you might get 1 or 2 really useful meetings out of it.

 

I agree about the clinical classes- you almost can never take them unless you are a clinical track. In fact, I can't think of a single school I've looked at that lets you do that.

[PsychGirl1]

PS If you do contact people at local universities and request an informational inteview, I'd maybe wait until April/May when all the app craziness is over :-)

[lhommependu]

I don't think it's that weird to email people in quant, at nearby universities/med centers/whatever, and ask for an informational interview because you are choosing a career path. You might not get a fantastic response rate, but you might get 1 or 2 really useful meetings out of it.

gonna have to agree with this. I just finished up my interviews for quant and the faculty members are all very aware of the fact that most undergraduate students don't have access to pure quant professors, so I imagine many people would be more than happy to help!

 

also, regarding your primary question, from what I understand, while quant PhDs are in high demand, even just minoring in quant is a great way to get a competitive edge if the area you are maybe more passionate towards is a little more competitive.

 

good luck with it all! PM me if you think an anonymous dope who just went through the quant application process can be of any more assistance. 

 

~L'HP