Statistics for Undergrad

[mrose31]

Hello, I'm only a sophomore in undergrad, but I have a lot of varied interests and want to weigh my options for the future. I'm a statistics major and computer science minor. I was wondering if it would be possible to go to grad school for psych or neuroscience if I took enough bio and psych courses in addition to my major and minor. 

 

Thank you in advance. 

[Quant_Liz_Lemon]

Have you considered quantitative psych? 

[mrose31]

I'll look into it; thanks for the suggestion. How do you like your program so far? 

Edited January 5, 2014 by mrose31

[Lisa44201]

If you minor in Psych, you might have a shot at a Quant program. You might need to do a Master's in Psych to make up for the courses you'd miss as an undergrad, but it's a valid option. (I'm in an Experimental, Quant-heavy program.)

[mrose31]

I'm having a hard time understanding what quantitative psych does exactly. Can you describe your work and research? 

[spunky]

I was wondering if it would be possible to go to grad school for psych or neuroscience if I took enough bio and psych courses in addition to my major and minor. 

 

i guess it depends on the field of psych you intend to enroll in. i was in a somewhat similar situation to you (i did my BSc in Mathematics back in 2011) and only took 3 psych courses as electives (basic intro to Psych mostly). that was enough to get me into Quantitative Psychology but i don't think i would've been able to get into something like Personality, Cognitive or Social Psychology. 

Edited January 5, 2014 by spunky

[spunky]

I'm having a hard time understanding what quantitative psych does exactly. Can you describe your work and research? 

 

it's basically an Applied Statistics type of program. emphasis is on practical aspects more than theory (although you can definitely work with theory). you'll take your basic introduction to Statistics, some Regression, ANOVA and then electives around the type of Statistics that were developed mostly for social sciences (like Psychometrics).

 

i do work in Linear Mixed Models (which the field knows as "multilevel models"  or " hierarchical linear models"), Structural Equation Modelling and Item Response Theory.

 

for what will hopefully become my dissertation, i am currently working on developing new algorithms to generate multivariate, non-normal data via the use of fifth-order polynomial transformations and vine-copula functions. this year i'm presenting at the Modern Modelling Methods (M3) conference in Connecticut my research on Bayesian estimation of parameters in Exploratory Structural Equation Modelling (another little passion of mine).

 

for non-Statistical, more applied topics i am currently part of a lab that works in text analytics and i am doing some data mining from a national database on depression and suicide which we will hopefully present in this year's APA (American Psychological Association) conference.  

Edited January 5, 2014 by spunky

[mrose31]

Thank you for the responses. 

 

EDIT: Would my options be opened up if I did a stats and psych double major? 

Edited January 5, 2014 by mrose31

[spunky]

EDIT: Would my options be opened up if I did a stats and psych double major? 

 

definitely. if you're applying to a Psych Dept they do want to see that you have mastered some psychology. plus remember there's that Psych GRE that i think most programs require you to take in your application. i think the only reason i did well there is because i studied like crazy a week before the exam because deep down i knew i just had not taken enough upper-level Psych credits to actually feel comfortable in taking it. 

Edited January 5, 2014 by spunky

[mrose31]

Thanks to everyone for your responses. I'm just having trouble deciding on a path. 

[spunky]

I'm just having trouble deciding on a path. 

 

well... what in Psychology interests you? you're not really switching paths too much if you move from Statistics to Quantitative Psychology (that I know from experience). perhaps you're looking for something completely different?

[mrose31]

I'm actually a computer science major right now, but I'm going to be leaving it because I got bored. I was going to switch to statistics or maybe that and a double with psych. I really can't settle on anything. I'm one of those people that's slightly interested in everything, but gets bored fast. 

[spunky]

 I'm one of those people that's slightly interested in everything, but gets bored fast. 

 

well... then i do have to suggest you consider graduate school very carefully then. remember that graduate school in Psychology is very much research-oriented. you will be expected to come up with projects and, you know, stick to them until completion. when you write your research statements you'll need to focus on certain (sometimes *very* specific areas) where you will be expected to work on... oh! and don't forget the good, ol' thesis. that can take you months (or, at the doctoral level, years) of focusing on some narrow topic of some narrow field of Psychology. 

 

so yeah... graduate school (at least in Psych) takes as much talent as it takes commitment so i think now it's a good chance for you to evaluate whether this works for you or not. 

[mrose31]

Thank you. That's definitely something to think about.