Psychology Program Rankings

[overdetermination]

Resurrecting the perennial topic. Is there anything (current and fairly sound) out there besides NRC and US News? What metrics do you use in lieu of published rankings to gauge departmental reputation in your subfield? How much do you worry about departmental reputation re: eventual job prospects? 

[FeelTheBern]

1 hour ago, overdetermination said:

How much do you worry about departmental reputation re: eventual job prospects?

I posted the answer below in another thread, and although it was answering somewhat of a different question than what you are asking, I think it also applies to this!

My advice would be to apply to schools where you believe you would be happy and excel. However, there are other factors that should also be considered like the pros and cons of applying to top tier institutions vs. lower tier ones simply so you have a better shot at acceptance. This is especially important given the current job market.

During the application process my SO received the following advice from one of his LOR writers: "So my advice (and the advice that other professors in this department agree with) is to aim high, for top tier schools, where you are most likely to get a job when you complete the PhD. Because if you can't get in there, that will suck, but it will suck less than completing a PhD at a "safety school" and not being able to get a job when you graduate." The article below goes into detail about the importance of this.

Interesting article about universities hiring for tenure-track positions (in many fields, not only psychology): http://www.slate.com/articles/life/education/2015/02/university_hiring_if_you_didn_t_get_your_ph_d_at_an_elite_university_good.html

[Gvh]

It think it's obvious that the advice given by @FeelTheBern's LOR writer makes sense, but I also think simply "aiming high" can be misleading because it's hard to know what that means. In other words, placement rates for schools can depend on a number of factors, including departmental reputation which can be at odds with overall school name/brand.

From where I'm standing, I think it makes most sense to see where prior grad students have ended up going and what they are doing, both at the departmental level but also at the level of the advisor you would be working under. 

[St0chastic]

9 hours ago, Gvh said:

From where I'm standing, I think it makes most sense to see where prior grad students have ended up going and what they are doing, both at the departmental level but also at the level of the advisor you would be working under. 

I agree with this.  If you are working with an advisor who has a good track record of alumni placement, your institution's ranking may not matter much.  I wouldn't put too much stock in the NRC or US News rankings.  I believe that the NRC rankings are quite old, and the US News rankings are basically determined purely on the reputation a school has rather than objective criteria.

I wouldn't ignore rankings entirely, but it shouldn't be the primary factor in your decision process.  All of the programs listed in your signature are reputable, so you probably don't need to worry about this.  

Edited January 25, 2016 by St0chastic

[dancedementia]

There's that old adage.... something about how - in PhD programs at least - it's not the prestige of the institution that matters, but the prestige of the professors you're working under (and can co-author publications with!)