Psychology subject test with no psychology background - NEED HELP !!!

[Huma]

Hi All,

My undergrad major was Computer Science. I have been working for over two years since graduating. 

I plan on doing my masters in Psychology - i have taken a couple of introduction to psychology courses online and currently doing an online diploma course in forensic psychology. however i have not yet decided on which program to pursue (clinical/experimental etc.) 

I plan on writing GRE subject test in April 2016. 

What books and other study material should I refer to? I plan on reading the Princeton Review test prep book since that seems to be the most recommended. But i assume that will not be enough. I am looking for any suggestions on how to prepare, which intro books to refer etc.

 

Your help will be much appreciated.

Thanks,

Huma

[St0chastic]

Hi Huma,

First, I should preface that I was a psychology major.  However, I took the subject test over two years after receiving my undergraduate degree, and a lot of the material that is covered on the test I learned way back in high school in an AP Psychology class (in many ways the subject test is just a more comprehensive version of the AP exam).    

I spent approximately 5 weeks studying for the exam.  I began by reading an introductory psychology textbook (Myers and Dewall) cover to cover to refresh my memory of the basics.  It shouldn't matter too much which intro textbook you use as they all cover more or less the same topics--just be sure it's a version updated with the DSM-5 classifications.  I also used Wikipedia and other online resources to learn more about topics I hadn't covered in depth as an undergraduate (e.g., developmental psychology, history of psychology, industrial-organizational psychology).  Finally, I spent two days reviewing from Barron's GRE Psychology review book.  I ended up running out of time and so only made it about halfway through the book.  However, I was still able to score an 830 on the exam (>99%).  I'm sure I could have done even better with another week or two of review as there were several topics I did not have time to go over.    

Make sure you take the official practice test offered by ETS, and if you get the Barron's book do those practice tests as well.  This will give you a sense of where you stand and which areas you need to focus on the most.  If you miss a question, make sure you look up/review the content that was tested so that you don't miss similar questions on the real exam.  Test yourself constantly.  By this I mean quiz yourself on material you have just covered.  This is proven to be a highly effective study method: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testing_effect

If you do nothing but review an intro psych text and master all of the material it contains, you should be able to score >90%.  If you want a really top score, then spend some time with Barron's/Princeton review books and use online resources as a supplement.  You may also want to get an AP Psychology review book as they are easy to read but fairly comprehensive: http://www.amazon.com/Barrons-Psychology-Allyson-Weseley-Ed-D/dp/143800270X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1450015562&sr=8-1&keywords=ap+psychology

Here are some more resources you may wish to consider.  I did not use these myself, but they are recommended by Barron's.

Discovering Psychology: The science of mind: http://www.amazon.com/Discovering-Psychology-Science-John-Cacioppo/dp/1305088379/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1450014757&sr=8-3&keywords=discovering+psychology

Sensation and Perception: http://www.amazon.com/Sensation-Perception-CourseMate-Printed-Access/dp/1133958494/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1450014807&sr=8-1&keywords=sensation+and+perception

http://www.g2conline.org/

http://www.socialpsychology.org/social.htm

http://socialresearchmethods.net/kb/index.php

http://resources.iupsys.net/iupsys/index.php/timeline-all

 

Best of luck!

Edited December 13, 2015 by St0chastic

[Huma]

Thanks a lot for your inputs !! your reply is very detailed and did help me out.

[shall09]

Hello all!

Huma, I am also taking the GRE psychology exam in april 2016! I am an undergrad psychology student right now!

 

everything stochastic listed is amazing! Unfortunately, Kaplan is releasing a psychology study book in june 2016 which doesn't make too much sense but whatever. For other study books, is there a 2013 edition? that is when they updated the DSM-5 so that would be your best best!