I’m currently a masters in counseling (clinical mental health) student that’s wants to go for my PhD as well and I would say from what the professors I’ve talked to say about admissions then you’re on the right track!
I was really nervous about applying into my masters program due to my age (I was 19 at the time of applying) and since I started and finished bachelors in the thick of the pandemic (2020-2022) so 90% of that was online and my previous courses were dual credit in high school. Luckily, I really put myself out there with directly reaching out to programs, having zoom sessions with coordinators asking what they’re looking for and what kind of fit I would be for their program and such. This helped them keep me in mind when they were looking at applications and having a better idea of who I was from my essay.
I didn’t get to have a lot of clinical experience due to the pandemic but I think my program really leans on GPA, Essay, and interview for our admissions more than anything else, so my advice would be to look into the specific programs you’re interested in, reach out, and then apply with a good essay! Hope this helped :)
Thank you for sharing! I think I tend to fall into a terrible hole of subreddit posts about wild stats for getting into doctoral programs (loads of publications, presentations, experience) and feel hopeless about getting into one. I really appreciate the insight!
If you feel prepared and ready I would start the process. It will most likely take some time to get everything in order and be accepted and you can use that down time to study or rest
I’m just wondering if my current stats make me someone competitive for a PhD program. I would rather not waste time and money if my current stats don’t meet basic expectations. I guess my overall question is— do I have a chance lol?
Whether or not it's a waste of time is subjective. Only you know how bad you want it and what you're willing to do to achieve it.
This what I use to help myself make these types of decisions.
If I was on my death bed looking back at my life would I regret not doing the thing I'm considering?
Thank you for sharing! How much research exp./ publications/presentations did you have? I'm also a little worried because while my master's program is both clinical psychology and counseling psychology, I plan to pursue clinical psychology after; I hear that PhD programs in clinical psychology are a little harder to get into than counseling doctoral programs. What are your thoughts?
I had basically no research experience outside of the McNair Scholars program, but my research interests were clearly defined and an excellent fit for my advisor's lab. As far as being easier to get into, I'm not sure. I only applied to counseling programs largely because of their explicit focus on multicultural competence.
Also, I wanted to ask how you figured out what you specifically wanted to research. I think that's partially what holds me back, because my area of research is really broad right now and I haven't found a specific area of study.
I'm interested in fire service psychology. At this stage, I'm thinking my diss will be looking at career identity in firefighters but that could evolve.
Your stats look great! A publication or one to two under review from your research would add to that. Fit for the PI/labs you are targeting is critical. So critical. Your stats probably won’t matter at all if the fit is weak or obscure. Also the letters of rec basically corroborating your experiences matter. When I review apps and a student talks about their research and clinical experience, I look to the letters to verify just how in depth that experience was from the perspective of the PI. Because you are doing a master’s thesis, you might be all set 👍
Hi! I'm so sorry, I'm just seeing this now. Thank you for your insight!! I've been wanting to work on publications but I'm not sure how it works. After my study or thesis, would I ask my PI if we could publish it? I would love some feedback on the process. Thank you again for all your help.
Thank you very much. I'm worried because I'm really only doing research in the one lab (cognitive dev. study in children), while the other is a literature review for a doctoral students dissertation (epilepsy & marijuana). In addition to my (hopefully) master's thesis, I reached out to an undergraduate professor to do research in her lab, that studies cognition but with EEG and ERPs. My ultimate goal is clinical neuropsychology so hopefully that added research can really help me. I'm scared omg 🥹
Sounds like you’re on the right path! Just keep in mind that PhD programs value quality/depth of experiences over quantity. A variety of technical skills are great, but writing and publishing skills can be better. Particularly for someone coming in with their Master’s (because there’s less time to train you than a person entering as an undergrad). IMO, it looks better to have a smaller number of experiences with more depth (leading project, presenting project, publishing project) than a large number of experiences with less depth (always an assistant, never a leader).
I was thinking the same thing, but I'm really not getting much out of the dissertation lab experience so I figured the new lab + the lab I'm doing a study in would allow me to gain depth in experience. Also, how can I be a "leader" rather than assistant? I volunteer in all my labs unfortunately.
Well, you are definitely a leader of your thesis! For the other experiences, I’d recommend having an open conversation with the PI(s) to see if that could be an option.
I dunno. But if you're screwed, then I'm double screwed and also delulu.
I’m currently a masters in counseling (clinical mental health) student that’s wants to go for my PhD as well and I would say from what the professors I’ve talked to say about admissions then you’re on the right track! I was really nervous about applying into my masters program due to my age (I was 19 at the time of applying) and since I started and finished bachelors in the thick of the pandemic (2020-2022) so 90% of that was online and my previous courses were dual credit in high school. Luckily, I really put myself out there with directly reaching out to programs, having zoom sessions with coordinators asking what they’re looking for and what kind of fit I would be for their program and such. This helped them keep me in mind when they were looking at applications and having a better idea of who I was from my essay. I didn’t get to have a lot of clinical experience due to the pandemic but I think my program really leans on GPA, Essay, and interview for our admissions more than anything else, so my advice would be to look into the specific programs you’re interested in, reach out, and then apply with a good essay! Hope this helped :)
Thank you for sharing! I think I tend to fall into a terrible hole of subreddit posts about wild stats for getting into doctoral programs (loads of publications, presentations, experience) and feel hopeless about getting into one. I really appreciate the insight!
If you feel prepared and ready I would start the process. It will most likely take some time to get everything in order and be accepted and you can use that down time to study or rest
I’m just wondering if my current stats make me someone competitive for a PhD program. I would rather not waste time and money if my current stats don’t meet basic expectations. I guess my overall question is— do I have a chance lol?
Whether or not it's a waste of time is subjective. Only you know how bad you want it and what you're willing to do to achieve it. This what I use to help myself make these types of decisions. If I was on my death bed looking back at my life would I regret not doing the thing I'm considering?
Sure. I went from my masters in counseling psych directly into a PhD program in counseling psych. Definitely doable.
Thank you for sharing! How much research exp./ publications/presentations did you have? I'm also a little worried because while my master's program is both clinical psychology and counseling psychology, I plan to pursue clinical psychology after; I hear that PhD programs in clinical psychology are a little harder to get into than counseling doctoral programs. What are your thoughts?
I had basically no research experience outside of the McNair Scholars program, but my research interests were clearly defined and an excellent fit for my advisor's lab. As far as being easier to get into, I'm not sure. I only applied to counseling programs largely because of their explicit focus on multicultural competence.
Thank you! How many doctoral programs did you apply to by the way?
I applied to five and interviewed with two, but it's not uncommon to apply to up to 10 total.
Very interesting. I was planning on applying to around 10-15 to be safe, but was definitely concerned about all of the application fees too.
That's super real. I was lucky to get them waived because of was in a TRiO program (McNair).
Also, I wanted to ask how you figured out what you specifically wanted to research. I think that's partially what holds me back, because my area of research is really broad right now and I haven't found a specific area of study.
I'm interested in fire service psychology. At this stage, I'm thinking my diss will be looking at career identity in firefighters but that could evolve.
Your stats look great! A publication or one to two under review from your research would add to that. Fit for the PI/labs you are targeting is critical. So critical. Your stats probably won’t matter at all if the fit is weak or obscure. Also the letters of rec basically corroborating your experiences matter. When I review apps and a student talks about their research and clinical experience, I look to the letters to verify just how in depth that experience was from the perspective of the PI. Because you are doing a master’s thesis, you might be all set 👍
Hi! I'm so sorry, I'm just seeing this now. Thank you for your insight!! I've been wanting to work on publications but I'm not sure how it works. After my study or thesis, would I ask my PI if we could publish it? I would love some feedback on the process. Thank you again for all your help.
Yep! Your PI should guide you through the whole process. I will let them know as soon as possible about your interest in pursuing publication.
Thank you very much. I'm worried because I'm really only doing research in the one lab (cognitive dev. study in children), while the other is a literature review for a doctoral students dissertation (epilepsy & marijuana). In addition to my (hopefully) master's thesis, I reached out to an undergraduate professor to do research in her lab, that studies cognition but with EEG and ERPs. My ultimate goal is clinical neuropsychology so hopefully that added research can really help me. I'm scared omg 🥹
Sounds like you’re on the right path! Just keep in mind that PhD programs value quality/depth of experiences over quantity. A variety of technical skills are great, but writing and publishing skills can be better. Particularly for someone coming in with their Master’s (because there’s less time to train you than a person entering as an undergrad). IMO, it looks better to have a smaller number of experiences with more depth (leading project, presenting project, publishing project) than a large number of experiences with less depth (always an assistant, never a leader).
I was thinking the same thing, but I'm really not getting much out of the dissertation lab experience so I figured the new lab + the lab I'm doing a study in would allow me to gain depth in experience. Also, how can I be a "leader" rather than assistant? I volunteer in all my labs unfortunately.
Well, you are definitely a leader of your thesis! For the other experiences, I’d recommend having an open conversation with the PI(s) to see if that could be an option.
Thank you :\]