First, decide what you want to study.
If you are not sure - you are not alone! Don’t panic. Do research on career options: use counselors, books, web, professional organizations, people etc.
Some areas of psychology include:
- Clinical
- Counseling
- Social
- Personality
- Developmental
- Biopsychology
- School
- Forensic
- Cognitive
- Experimental
- Community
- Health
- Industrial Organizational
Of course you can also Google "areas of psychology".
American Psychological Association (APA) Divisions—one for everyone!
- Society for General Psychology
- Society for the Teaching of Psychology
- Experimental Psychology
- Evaluation, Measurement, and Statistics
- Behavioral Neuroscience and Comparative Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Society for Personality and Social Psychology
- Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI)
- Society for the Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity and the Arts
- Society of Clinical Psychology13Society of Consulting Psychology
- Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology
- Educational Psychology
- School Psychology
- Society of Counseling Psychology
- Psychologists in Public Service
- Society for Military Psychology
- Adult Development and Aging
- Applied Experimental and Engineering Psychology
- Rehabilitation Psychology
- Society for Consumer Psychology
- Society for Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology
- Behavior Analysis
- Society for the History of Psychology
- Society for Community Research and Action: Division of Community Psychology
- Psychopharmacology and Substance Abuse
- Psychotherapy
- Society of Psychological Hypnosis
- State, Provincial and Territorial Psychological Association Affairs
- Society for Humanistic Psychology
- Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
- Society for Environmental, Population and Conservation Psychology
- Society for the Psychology of Women
- Society for the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality
- Society for Child and Family Policy and Practice
- Health Psychology
- Psychoanalysis
- Clinical Neuropsychology
- American Psychology-Law Society
- Psychologists in Independent Practice
- Society for Family Psychology
- Society for the Psychological Study of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues
- Society for the Psychological Study of Ethnic Minority Issues
- Media Psychology
- Exercise and Sport Psychology
- Society for the Study of Peace, Conflict, and Violence: Peace Psychology Division
- Society of Group Psychology and Group Psychotherapy
- Society of Addiction Psychology
- Society for the Psychological Study of Men and Masculinity
- International Psychology
- Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology
- Society of Pediatric Psychology
- American Society for the Advancement of Pharmacotherapy
- Trauma Psychology
Most of these represent areas for graduate study!
Clinical Psychology
- General Career Pathways
- Education options
What does “clinical psychology” mean as an area of work and education?
- Related to the study and treatment of mental illness
- Related to the study and promotion of mental health
- This is not limited only to “clinical” populations
- May also include “non-clinical” populations
Will I get rich?
- Probably not
- Will you earn a good living? Probably so.
For more information check the American Psychological Association (APA) website for salary surveys.
What about Getting a “License”?
To “do therapy” you need a license. If you seek a Ph.D. only to do research (which is really what the Ph.D. is for) you don’t need a license—though you can get one. The PsyD and many MA degrees provide options for licensure. Getting a license requires a combination of coursework and therapy training. Licensure is on a state-by-state basis.
Some Licensable Degrees:
- Ph.D.
- Psy.D.
- M.D.
- MSW
- M.Ed
- Masters in School Psychology
- Masters in Counseling
- Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy*
- MS in Autism Studies
Educations related to Clinical Psychology
Ph.D.
- This is a research and teaching oriented degree.
- If you don’t like research you should not pursue it.
- If you only and/or mostly want to do treatment, you should not pursue it.
Ph.D. in Clinical
- A Scientist Practitioner Model
- Available through Universities
- Usually includes some funding
- If you don’t get funding you should not go
- Very competitive
- Programs typically get 300-600 applications in a year and take 6-8 applicants
- Mentored (usually)
- An applicant works with an individual faculty member
- Completes the masters and dissertation with this person
- Choice based on shared interests
- Includes clinical training
- Requires a one year clinical internship
- Focus is on research
- Quantitative/Qualitative
- Collecting data
- Publishing
- A Ph.D. program is not just more/more difficult, classes
- It is possible to flunk out of a Ph.D. program
- It is not a degree to rush into
- If you aren’t really really sure, you are better off waiting
- And it helps tremendously to have research experience
- Consider working in a research lab for a year or two before applying
Psy.D.
- This is a clinical treatment oriented doctoral degree
- Four years (typically) of coursework and training
- Focused on clinical work
- Research is a minor focus, but necessary
- Whether it requires an internship varies by state
- Licensure requirements vary by state
- Programs are most often free standing professional degree programs
- Like some law or medical schools
- Accept a larger cohort than Ph.Ds
- For example around 100 in a class
- May not have much access to funding
- May be costly
Psychiatrist
- A medical degree
- Requires you to go to medical school
- May lead to research
- Commonly leads to practice
- Private, clinic, hospital all common
- Practice is usually oriented towards medication related treatment
- It may also include therapy
Master of Social Work (MSW)
- A two-year degree
- Will confer an opportunity for a clinical license
- Can be a treatment related degree
- Can also lead to other applied work
- Policy, community organizing, human services management
Master of Education (M.Ed.)
- A two year degree typically
- May be a treatment related degree
- Can lead to licensure in counseling, school counseling, marital counseling
- May be an education related degree
- If you want to go into teaching and have a more advanced understanding and training in the field
- Can also lead to licensure as a teaching professional
Masters in Counseling
- Also a treatment related degree
- Typically two years
- Can lead to licensure in counseling
- May include individual, group, or system related counseling work
Masters in School Psychology
- May be a treatment degree
- Typically two years
- Usually orients towards working within a secondary school system
- Clinical treatment
- Assessment and testing
Master of Arts (MA) in Marital and Family Therapy
- Programs that focus education specifically on this area
- Not all states offer licensure
- You should check the program/state guidelines carefully to be certain
Some Programs In The Area
Ph.D. in Clinical:
- UMass Boston (also counseling and school psych)
- Clark University
- UMass Amherst
- Harvard
- Northeastern (Ph.D. in counseling)
- Boston University
- Boston College
Psy.D. in Clinical:
- Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology
A Few Area MA Programs
- Simmons
- Assumption College
- Boston UNiversity
- Boston College
- UMass Boston
- UMass Amherst
- UMass Lowell
- Salem State University
- Worcester State University
Deciding What To Study
- Call the UMass Lowell Career Services & Co-ops office at 978-934-2355 and talk to a Career Counselor
- Talk to people: professors, friends, alumni - INFORMATIONAL INTERVIEWS
- Get experience in different fields to better understand options
- Think about what you really like to do and relate it to jobs and academic areas
- Review different Graduate School offerings
Initial Graduate School Search
- Do a google search with key words that are most relevant to your search:
- “graduate program” plus
- Area of psychology (clinical, social, developmental)
- Location
- Type of degree (MA, PhD, MFCC)
- “graduate program” plus
- The American Psychological Association website has information on graduate & postdoctoral education as well.
Researching Graduate Schools
- Compile a list of schools offering your field of study
- Directories and websites list
- schools by fields of study
- Check out grad programs at UMass Lowell.
- Talk to people about programs at other schools:
- Professors
- Administrators
- Staff members
- Professionals
- Friends
- Read professional journals: what schools are represented / professors?
Next narrow the list of schools. Use factors like:
- Location
- Admission requirements - Test scores, grades, field experience, etc.
- Time frame of program:
- Day, evening, part-time, full-time - start time also
- Reputation and mission of school, program
- Programs and coursework offered
- Professors’ backgrounds and interests
- Current Students’ and Alumni’s comments
- Accessibility of faculty
- Accreditation
Choosing A School
Attend the best school to which you have been accepted AND can afford.
Keep in mind:
- Academic Requirements:
- Entrance Test Scores
- Grades
- Class and Program Offerings:
- Cost
- Financial Package offered to you:
- Free Monies - Scholarships, fellowships, grants
- Loans
- Graduate Assistantships: teaching, research, administrative, resident halls
- Size of student body in relation to size of faculty
- Facilities (library, housing, study space, etc.)
- Demographics of student body
- Enrollment and class size
- Make a site visit (research professors before visit)
School Admission Criteria:
- Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) scores
- Grade Point Average (GPA)
- Personal Essay
- Work experience
- Letters of reference / recommendation
- Interview
- Samples of previous work (optional)
- Financial Aid Application
GRE
- Computer adaptive test
- General aptitude test of three parts
- Analytical
- Verbal
- Quantitative
- fee
- GRE Subject test – 8 tests of major fields of study: for example: Biology, Psychology
- is not computerized
- fee
- check with school if required
For more information visit the GRE website.
Potential Benefits of Waiting a Year or More
- Work in related profession and decide if field is right for you
- Earn money to help pay for education
- Gain work experience which may assist admissions chances
- Relax before the rigors of Graduate school
- Mature
Potential Costs of Waiting a Year or More
- May lose some reading, writing, and analytical skills
- May be difficult to motivate yourself to go back to school (may indicate your desire was not as strong as you had thought)
- The longer you wait, the longer it will take to finish
- Some schools have a deferment policy
- May lose contact with references: Go ahead and secure letters of recommendation before leave undergraduate institution.
Application Tips
- Follow Directions of application
- Start Early--Most applications due in December, January or February
- Contact schools to be sure application is complete
Letters of Recommendation
- Should come from people who know you well enough to offer a truly informed assessment of your abilities
- Academic references carry most weight
- Provide your references with:
- a copy of your personal statement and CV
- Instructions on how the letter should be submitted
- May be a checklist format or a letter request:
- ***Which box do you check? Do you waive your right to view the letter?
Personal Statement
- Usually in some manner covers the question:
- Who are you, and why do you want to go to graduate school?
- Include your “plan” for graduate school
- research and experiences you hope to attain at that specific program
- Writing should be clear and concise
- Draw attention away from your weak points by focusing on your strengths.
- Try to not exceed 2 pages (length may be mandated)
Funding Graduate School
- Forms of financial aid
- Grants / scholarships which do not require repayment
- Scholarships - check out the FastWeb Scholarship finder website.
- Wages, which are provided in return for work
- Loans, which require repayment
- 75% students finance education with loans
Time Table
- Spring semester of your junior year:
- think about what type of program you're interested in
- start talking to the faculty
- if you haven't already done so, find out if you can get involved in faculty research or an Independent Study project; consider taking a fieldwork course
- Summer before your senior year: look over Graduate Study in Psychology
- make a rough list of schools you might apply to
- start writing your personal statement
- begin studying for the GREs
UMass Lowell Grad. Programs
Figure out which program and increase your success of getting accepted.
Some areas of psychology:
- Clinical
- Counseling
- Social
- Personality
- Developmental
- Biopsychology
- School
- Forensic
- Behavioral
- Cognitive
- Experimental
- Community
- Health
- Input / Output (I/O)
- Education
You can also Google "areas of psychology".
M.S. in Applied Behavior Analysis & Autism Studies
The M.S. in Applied Behavior Analysis & Autism Studies launched in September 2012. It is a 39 credit program with a mix of online and on-campus courses. It enables individuals to meet the education, experience and supervision requirements for board certification.
How do I figure out which program is right for me?
By getting involved you will figure out what you like and what you don’t like.
- GET INVOLVED!!!
- Volunteer - join the River Hawks in Service Club
- Work in the field (Melmark, May Institute)
- Conduct research with faculty
- Volunteer to participate in research
- Interview faculty
- Take advantage of all of your opportunities
- Join the Psych Club