From Biology to Clinical Psychology - Is it possible?

[karaboga]

Hello guys,

 

I have a bachelor degree in Biology and I am now in the final year of my Msc again in Biology graduate school where I work especially on Microbiology and Genetics stuff. However, I have a strong interest in psychology and I would like to continue my career as a psychologist actually and I want to apply for a PhD for Clinical Psychology.

 

Given my lack of experience and information, can you give me some advice on where to start? And I am wondering if psychological science grad schools are open to students from other disciplines like Biology? Any information is appreciated.

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Enes

[sdt13]

 

If you have absolutely no or very few courses in psychology, there is a great chance you will have to do a post-bacc or complete a masters in psychology (I was told a generic masters in psychology is useful in these situations). If a program is lenient enough, they may accept a really good score on the Psych GRE. Most programs expect you to come in with a general knowledge of psychology with the understanding that graduate school is where you will define your more specific interests and learn new skills to apply that knowledge. Many programs even lay out which courses they expect you to have coming in so you may want to look for that section when researching different programs.

[PsychGirl1]

^What sdt13 said. You still need basic courses.

 

However, they are generally very open to people of different majors- assuming you have completed core courses. Also, it may work to your advantage, especially if you want to apply to a health clinical or a medical and clinical psychology program.

[Guest |||]

clincal psych is going to be more strict on coursework than most experimental programs, it would be best to take a few courses if possible.

[PsychGirl1]

If you look at the websites of various programs, they often give required courses. For clinical, it's usually something like statistics, research methods, abnormal psych, social or developmental psych, and probably a few others that I'm missing. (We've talked about this in past threads- you might want to do a search).

 

You will also need to rock the psych GRE and write a fabulous personal statement explaining the change in interest!

Edited August 21, 2013 by PsychGirl1

[karaboga]

Thank you for replies, so as I understood I need to take basic courses before I apply.

 

I was also wondering does it matter for me to finish a phd which is more-research oriented? What do I need to do to get a licence? 

[PsychGirl1]

Thank you for replies, so as I understood I need to take basic courses before I apply.

 

I was also wondering does it matter for me to finish a phd which is more-research oriented? What do I need to do to get a licence? 

 

I don't really understand the question.

 

Do you want to practice 100% (be a clinician), do research 100%, or a combination of the two?

[Guest |||]

Thank you for replies, so as I understood I need to take basic courses before I apply.

 

I was also wondering does it matter for me to finish a phd which is more-research oriented? What do I need to do to get a licence? 

 

 

Clinical psychology programs will vary from school to school, some are more research orientated and some are more clinician orientated.  All schools might lead to the same qualification, but the path will differ, so it will be up to you to decide what suits and interests you most.

 

 

As far as licensing, this will depend on where you live.  In Canada, provinces will have their own set of laws and rules for a license, most places require a ph.d. before you can call and work as a clinical psychologist.

 

In America, there is a similar model in that each state will have its own laws, some require only a masters some require a ph.d, some even let psychologists prescribe certain pills.

[karaboga]

I don't really understand the question.

 

Do you want to practice 100% (be a clinician), do research 100%, or a combination of the two?

 

Sorry about that, let me make it more clear.

 

I am coming from a 100% research oriented major and I believe it is easier for me to be accepted to a program which does 100% research. However, I'd like to be combination of both in the future. So I was wondering, if it is in my hands to shape my future and choose whether to be a clinican or researcher no matter I do a PhD 100% research or practice oriented. Are both ways qualified same when it comes to licencing?

 

In other words, if I complete Biological and Health Psychology PhD where they research biological aspects of psyhchology, will it qualify me as a clinican at the end?

Edited August 22, 2013 by karaboga

[sdt13]

Sorry about that, let me make it more clear.

 

I am coming from a 100% research oriented major and I believe it is easier for me to be accepted to a program which does 100% research. However, I'd like to be combination of both in the future. So I was wondering, if it is in my hands to shape my future and choose whether to be a clinican or researcher no matter I do a PhD 100% research or practice oriented. Are both ways qualified same when it comes to licencing?

 

In other words, if I complete Biological and Health Psychology PhD where they research biological aspects of psyhchology, will it qualify me as a clinican at the end?

 

I don't know about how difficult this would be now (or if the circumstance I am going to describe is unique to this person), but there is a faculty member at my undergrad university who studied chemistry (or some sort of hard science) but then went on to MD/PhD. I don't think he had a broad psychology background, but he did his PhD in health psychology. Now he is a practicing doctor who also runs intervention studies/manages a health care research center. If this is the type of work you are interested in, it may be easier to pursue/transfer to something like health psychology.

However, this will not be as clearcut for clinical psychology. However, as long as you pursue a clinical PhD, you have the ability to practice as a licensed therapist if you chose that route (even in a research program, you are going to receive extensive clinical training as laid out by APA standards...at least this is my understanding).

[PsychGirl1]

Sorry about that, let me make it more clear.

 

I am coming from a 100% research oriented major and I believe it is easier for me to be accepted to a program which does 100% research. However, I'd like to be combination of both in the future. So I was wondering, if it is in my hands to shape my future and choose whether to be a clinican or researcher no matter I do a PhD 100% research or practice oriented. Are both ways qualified same when it comes to licencing?

 

In other words, if I complete Biological and Health Psychology PhD where they research biological aspects of psyhchology, will it qualify me as a clinican at the end?

 

There are Health Clinical Programs, as well as Medical and Clinical psychology Programs. This is what you'd want, as they are still clinical programs and can lead to being licensed. Off the top of my head, there's University of Miami, USUHS, Ohio University, UAB... and I'm sure there are many more, you'll have just to look for them.

 

As long as it is a clinical psych program, you can be licensed, no matter how research-based it is. Clinical psych PhDs range from minimal research focus to a large research focus. Programs with the highest degree of research focus may not provide the best clinical training if clinical work is your long-term goal. However, it is much easier to go from a research-based program into a clinical job than it is to go from a clinical-based program into a research job.

 

There may be other ways to get licensed, but if you want to do both research and clinical work, it's the best/easiest route.

[karaboga]

Thank you for the great information, it is much appreciated.

 

Last question. Are clinical psychology phd programs open to international students considering they have good scores of TOEFL, GRE etc?

[PsychGirl1]

Yes. Look at their websites.

[Guest |||]

Thank you for the great information, it is much appreciated.

 

Last question. Are clinical psychology phd programs open to international students considering they have good scores of TOEFL, GRE etc?

 

Of course

 

But word of caution, international students often pay very hefty tuition.

[spunky]

Of course

 

But word of caution, international students often pay very hefty tuition.

 

make that very hefty more of a **VERY VERY VERY HEFTY** tuition. 

 

i'm talking from experience here. and there are programs that won't even let you enroll unless you're guaranteed some sort of funding... which can be tricky for international students since funding is usually given first to domestic students. yes, this is also me talking from experience. 

[PsychGirl1]

make that very hefty more of a **VERY VERY VERY HEFTY** tuition. 

 

i'm talking from experience here. and there are programs that won't even let you enroll unless you're guaranteed some sort of funding... which can be tricky for international students since funding is usually given first to domestic students. yes, this is also me talking from experience. 

 

That being said, if this is your dream, then you should start contacting schools, reading their websites, and figuring out how to make it happen (ex. what funding or scholarships to apply for and early that process has to happen, what each school's funding situation/policy is like for international students, etc.).

[xXIDaShizIXx]

 

 

If you have absolutely no or very few courses in psychology, there is a great chance you will have to do a post-bacc or complete a masters in psychology (I was told a generic masters in psychology is useful in these situations). If a program is lenient enough, they may accept a really good score on the Psych GRE. Most programs expect you to come in with a general knowledge of psychology with the understanding that graduate school is where you will define your more specific interests and learn new skills to apply that knowledge. Many programs even lay out which courses they expect you to have coming in so you may want to look for that section when researching different programs.

 

This. If you go and look at programs they will tell you what courses you need, but a major is NOT necessary. Psy.D.s would be easier to get into, but you will need psych research to get into a good clinical Ph.D.