Smart Shopping: Factors to Weigh Before Applying to Doc Programs

Transcription

1 Smart Shopping: Factors to Weigh Before Applying to Doc Programs Nabil El-Ghoroury, PhD Eddy Ameen, PhD American Psychological Association of Graduate Students Slides modified slightly from APA Convention session, Wash., DC, Aug Some content was developed by colleagues Garth Fowler, Tony Crespi

2 Types of degrees o Masters o Doctorates o Subfields Topics How to evaluate programs o Objectively o Subjectively How to afford graduate school Q&A

3 The path to a degree can be winding!

4 Handouts Finding the Right Graduate Program for Me (front) and Infographic: Applying to Psych Grad School? (reverse) Doctoral Program Comparison Sheet

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6 Reflection owhat interests you? owhere do you want to work? owhat do you want to do with your degree? (see next section)

7 Degree Types

8 What do you want to do? Producing new psychological knowledge Course work, thesis or dissertation, independent research & development of experiments MS or PhD programs Practicing psychology in business, educational, and counseling/health services settings Course work, thesis or dissertation, internships and/or practicums Primarily Masters and PsyD programs Practicing and producing Knowledge Primarily PhD programs (I/0, Clinical, Counseling, School) Source: Garth Fowler, APA

9 Some Master s Degree Options MSW MFT Mental Health Counseling School Psychology School Counseling Clinical Psychology (pre-doctorate) General Psychology (not license eligible)

10 The Doctoral Degree Ph.D. Focused on research Will have to complete a dissertation Psy.D. More focused on clinical training Have to complete a doctoral project Much more likely to be Clinical

11 Doctoral Fields School Psychology children, school, system, assessment, consultation, intervention Clinical bedside, psychopathology, serious mental illness o o Scientist-Practitioner (Boulder) Practitioner-Scholar (Vail) Counseling guide, diversity, well-being, lifespan approaches Combined / Integrated Source: Tony Crespi, Univ. Hartford

12 BLS.Gov Job Outlook MHC / MFT Social Worker Psychologist Median Pay $41,500 $44,200 $69,280 Typical Educ. Master s Master s Doctorate Number of Jobs 166, , ,200 Job Outlook ( ) Employment Change, % (Much faster than average) 19% (Faster) 12% (Average) 48, ,100 18,700

13 Evaluating Programs (turning the tables)

14 Brief exercise What do you know now that you WISH you knew when you were choosing where to go for your undergraduate degree? Who was helpful to you in choosing the right school then, and who could be helpful to you now?

15 15 questions, 3 themes Remember - download these two files for the next set of slides Getting in Being a student Exiting and graduating

16 Four ways to find answers Faculty Students and alums Program websites Books like Graduate Study, Insider s Guide

17 Program info Graduate Study in Psychology Degrees offered Admissions requirements Application info, deadlines, fees Financial aid, tuition, housing Contact info Graduate Study database : $20 for 3 months

18 Where else to find answers online Program websites Faculty interests Coursework/training Accredited? APA website Verify accreditation status Licensure rate websites ASPPB for clinical, counseling psychologists ASWB for Social workers NBCC for Counselors

19 Getting in Note: Questions in bold are easily answered for accredited doctoral programs in clinical, counseling, and/or school psychology 1. How many full and part-time positions are available? 2. What is the acceptance rate of applicants? 3. What is the profile of accepted applicants (background, scores, demographics)? 4. Do the program and its faculty match my interests? Particularly important when working 1:1 Will mentor stick around for 5 years? 5. Is the program APA accredited?

20 Accredited? APA only accredits doctoral programs in clinical, counseling, school, and combined/integrated psychology Verify at Accredited programs are required to post a link on the program s homepage that reads Student Admissions, Outcomes, and Other Data Learn how to evaluate the data at psychologygradschool.weebly.com

21 Accredited? Important measure of quality training Recourse for students Protection for the public 12 states require accreditation at the doctoral and/or internship level for licensure Required for certain positions o o o VA, Department of Defense Some hospitals Some universities

22 Being a student 6. What is the culture of the program? 7. How much is tuition and other fees? 8. What kinds of funding are available? How many students are funded? 9. How much debt do graduates have? Are loans generally private or federal? 10. What are pre-requisites, required courses/labs, training approach, supports?

23 How much is tuition and other fees? Description Tuition for full-time students (in-state) Tuition for full-time students (out-of-state) Tuition per credit hour for part-time students (if applicable) University/institution fees or costs Additional estimated fees or costs to students (e.g. books, travel, st-year Cohort Cost etc.) Major factors in the table Tuition Example table required to be available online for accredited doctoral programs in clinical, counseling, and/or school psychology ctor Cost of living for students relative to the amount you re used to paying now? Consider housing, food, transportation, childcare, and other costs Testing Kits or Lab Fees Health Insurance Liability Insurance Personal Psychotherapy

24 What kind of funding is available? How many students are funded? Ask the program What percentage of students in 1 st year are funded? 2 nd? 3 rd? How much are students typically funded? Is there a tuition waiver, and if so, for how many credits? Is there a stipend? How do you determine who gets teaching, research, and graduate assistantships and/or fellowships and scholarships? How many students are funded? (not how many get fin. aid) Debt is another way to get at costs How many students take out student loans for tuition? How much debt do students have upon graduation? What kind of loans do students get? Federal? Private loans? Source: Garth Fowler, APA

25 Exiting and graduating 11. How long does it take to graduate? 12. How many students actually finish the program? 13. Where do students tend to work after they graduate? 14. What is program s match rate to APA-accredited internships (counseling/clinical only)? 15. What percentage of graduates gets licensed? Also, what percentage of student pass the licensure exam? (counseling/clinical only)

26 How long does it take to graduate? Look for: Median years to completion Variation in time to complete How many take longer than 7 years to graduate? Tuition Example table required to be available online for accredited doctoral programs in clinical, counseling, and/or school psychology

27 What is the match rate? Look for # applying for internship and # matching to APAaccredited internships Example table required to be available online for accredited doctoral programs in clinical, counseling, and/or school psychology

28 What is the match rate? Look for # applying for internship and # matching to APAaccredited internships Verify the numbers you see in this table and/or look up programs by their match rate from

29 What is the licensure rate? Example table required to be available online for accredited doctoral programs in clinical, counseling, and/or school psychology Not all programs intend for their graduates to get licensed. Interpret this rate according to a program s training intent Also important = Pass rate of EPPP, the national licensing exam. Verify at asppb.net/?page=scoresbydrprogram

30 Affording Graduate School download infographic on next slide from:

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32 % Doctors w/ Debt by Degree CCS Other PsyD PhD This is only for debt accrued during graduate education. Source: Michalski et al,

33 Median Debt by Degree CCS Other 0 PsyD PhD This is only for debt accrued during graduate education. Source: Michalski et al,

34 How much does that debt cost? 50 th Percentile of Debt (MEDIAN) Borrowed Total Owed w/interest Monthly Payment (10 / 30 years) PsyD 120, ,716 1,381 / 782 PhD 50,000 69, / 326

35 Sampling of forgiveness/ repayment options Organization National Health Service Organization Their Repayment Your Commitment Eligibility where employer located, must be at Corps National Health Service Corps Up to $170, years Licensed approved to site. practice clinically in state where US Federal Government Up to $10,000 3 years employer Varies. located, must be at approved site. US Federal Government Jobs (Various Up to $10,000 per year; 3 years Varies. Jobs per year; Agencies) $60,000 max State Loan Repayment Programs Varies $60,000 max Varies Practice. Eligibility varies by state. US Department of Veteran US Department of Veteran Affairs Up to $60,000 3 years Written determination, generally for practice related practice positions. related positions. Affairs Indian Health Service $40,000-60, years Practice. Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program Their Your Commitment Eligibility Repayment Up to $170, years Licensed to practice clinically in state Up to $60,000 3 years Written determination, generally for Indian Health Service $40,000-60, years Practice. Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program Remainder after 120 payments Remainder after 120 payments About 10 years About 10 years Only federal direct loans. Payments made under qualifying plan while working in public Only federal direct loans. Payments made service / non-profit org. Research, practice, and under qualifying plan while working in other. public service / non-profit org. Research, practice, and other. See full list at

36 Thank you and best wishes! Nabil El-Ghoroury, PhD Eddy Ameen, PhD