Applying for PhD in Clinical and Need Help!

[idgy24]

I am currently finishing my undergrad in psychology and plan on applying to clinical programs this fall. I have been checking into a lot of schools, and I have been looking at the admissions statistics. I'm not going to lie, it's really intimidating to look at. There are SO many applicants and very few get accepted. So I guess my question is do I even have a chance?

 

Allow me to give you a little background: my current undergrad GPA is a 3.67 (it will probably go up to a 3.7 or higher after I finish my summer classes), I haven't taken my GRE yet, I have done 2 semesters of research with a professor at my university (but it's really only been running subjects through the experiment, unfortunately), I was a TA for a psych stats/research design class, and I know I will get GREAT letters of recommendation from 3 professors. Other information that I'm not sure if it helps me get into a program: I will be graduating with 70 credit hours in psychology, and my GPA within subject is a 3.87. Also, my job for the last 5 years has been working at a group home for mentally ill people, and for the last 6 months I have been working as a mental health technician at a psychiatric hospital.

 

Another question I have is what I should put in my personal statement. I know some guidelines (research interests, career goals, etc.) but I'm not entirely sure what to say or how to say it. Should any additional information be put into my personal statement? I also saw that a couple schools I'm looking into ask for a writing sample. What exactly does this mean/what are they looking for? Will a lit review paper from one of my undergrad classes suffice? Also, I started at a community college and transfered to a university. Do I need to have the transcripts from the community college sent to the schools as well? I went through a lot of personal issues my first couple years of college, so my GPA from the community college is crap (like a 2.8). Will this hurt my chances when I apply? Should I address my GPA from the community college in my personal statement?

 

Also, since these programs are so competitive, should I have a backup? Or should I just continue to re-apply? I'm really interested in schizophrenia and neuropsych, so I would ideally love to be able to work in an inpatient unit and/or teach and conduct research.  With that in mind, what would be a good possible alternate/backup program to apply to?

 

I'm sorry this is so long, I just have a lot of questions and don't really know where to begin with all of this. Any tips/advice/help would be GREATLY appreciated!!!

Edited June 18, 2014 by idgy24

[juilletmercredi]

Do you have a chance?  Yes.  Your profile so far is good enough to potentially gain you admission to clinical psychology PhD programs - the only thing I think that is sort-of detrimental is your research experience.  2 semesters isn't a lot, but I'm assuming that you're a rising senior that will continue next year, and sometimes people who started research in their junior year get into PhD programs straight from undergrad.

 

But does that mean you will absolutely get in?  Well, no.  Because clinical psychology is so competitive, programs turn away many competitive, qualified applicants every year.  The biggest factor is probably research fit with the program - you need to find programs that have professors that do research in which you are interested, and will supervise you in that research during your program.  But I'm in psych myself (although social), and I know several people who have had to go through 2 or even 3 application cycles before successfully getting in anywhere.  I also know that it is really, really common for clinical psychology hopefuls to go work for 2-3 years after college - usually as a research assistant or lab manager - to improve their application and their chances of getting in.  (The good news is they are typically successful after that).

 

Another question I have is what I should put in my personal statement. I know some guidelines (research interests, career goals, etc.) but I'm not entirely sure what to say or how to say it. Should any additional information be put into my personal statement?

 

It's usually 1) how you got interested in research and your specific area, 2) what things have you done that uniquely prepare you to be excellent in this program, and 3) why does our specific program meet your needs.  Some people (including me) follow up with a short paragraph discussing future career goals and how the program will help them get there.  That's all you need.  You can look up examples on the Internet, or you can get Donald Asher's book Graduate Admissions Essays, which was a great help to me.

 

 

Yes.  Choose a paper that you got an A on and that's about 10-15 pages in length, and then work with a professor to polish it so it's perfect.

 

 

Yes, you need to have your community college transcripts sent - the graduate programs request transcripts from all universities and colleges attended.  You can very briefly address it in your personal statement, but if your psychology and university GPA is pretty high (which they are) I might not even bother.  You can also have a letter writer address instead - one of my letter writers addressed low grades I got one semester when I struggled with health issues, and that helped a lot.

 

 

Well, that depends on what you mean by "backup".  Yes, you do need an alternative option to do for the next year or so in case you don't get admitted to clinical psych programs, but a lot of people apply for 2-3 rounds before giving up or changing more drastically.

 

Alternatives could be neuropsychology programs (the kind that allow you to do neuropsychological assessment) and potentially clinical social work programs, although you'd have to get an MSW and then a PhD if you wanted to teach and do research as well (there may be some programs in which you can get an MSW and PhD at the same time).

[idgy24]

Thank you SO much! This really helped to clear up a lot. For the neuropsychology programs, are they their own seperate program from clinical? That is definitely an area I would definitely consider as well

[Jaslia]

Hi idgy24,

 

I just wanted to give you my two cents as someone who got into a clinical psychology Ph.D. program straight from undergrad on her first try. I definitely think you have a shot. You've got great clinical experience. You've got two semesters of research experience...you'll be fine. I spoke to a professor who has been tenured at my university for over 30 years and he told me that there are two absolutely decisive factors in any application: Your personal statement (be passionate about your subject, illustrate why this particular program would be the perfect fit, and showcase how your research interests and those of certain professor(s) in the program mesh...be specific). And the other important aspect of an application is a glowing letter of recommendation...just one is enough. I know it's nerve-wracking...but keep trying. I know people who just didn't even try although they had just as good a shot as I did...but they were convinced they wouldn't get in. 

 

I have three semesters of research experience. Wrote an honors thesis and presented at three conference. However, I didn't have any clinical experience. I didn't have teaching experience. I didn't even work a job while I was in school. Out of roughly 100 applicants only a handful got in and I was one of them.  It all comes down to how good a fit you are to that particular program. Research them. Write the professor and ask them about their current interests, their latest published papers, etc. Don't be scared to reach out...they probably won't remember your name unless you remind them who you are and whether you do that or not is up to you.

[idgy24]

Thank you very much for your reply, I appreciate it more than you know. I am currently trying to come up with a general idea of what to put in my personal statement for each of the schools I plan on applying to. But to be honest, I don't know where to even start. I don't exactly know what to say or what they're looking for. Basically I'm completely clueless. Do you have any help/suggestions to offer?

[PsychGirl1]

Thank you very much for your reply, I appreciate it more than you know. I am currently trying to come up with a general idea of what to put in my personal statement for each of the schools I plan on applying to. But to be honest, I don't know where to even start. I don't exactly know what to say or what they're looking for. Basically I'm completely clueless. Do you have any help/suggestions to offer?

 

Get one of the Clinical Psychology Program books- they give guidance on personal statements. You can also find some websites online with advice. Find people on here who are also applying so you can edit each others. I basically wrote a very long version of mine, had all my friends edit it (took the suggestions I wanted), had my mom edit it (she's good at editing), had a few people on here edit it (and I did theirs), then asked current grad students and a professor I was close to, etc. Eventually, it will turn into what you need it to turn into. The key is to start early- aka now- and get revisions, suggestions, and advice from many different people and sources. Then use your judgment and knowledge to pick and choose what changes to make and how to sculpt it over time.

 

Edit: in case that isn't clear, work your way up the ladder as far as having people edit it. For example, my friends don't know anything about clinical psych, but they had good structure, wording, clarification changes. As those types of things get changed, then you can gradually increase the psych-relatedness of who reviews it, and don't show it to a professor until it's near perfect. It's just the easiest way to maximize the benefit from each person reviewing it.

Edited July 24, 2014 by PsychGirl1

[idgy24]

Perfect. Thank you very much. This puts my mind at ease at least a little bit lol. This whole process has been really stressful to me.