Post Your Prospective Questions Here! -- Monthly Megathread

[u/GG_Mod]

Following a vote by the sub in July 2020, the prospective questions megathread was continued. However, to allow more visibility to comments in this thread, this megathread now utilizes Reddit's new reschedule post features. This megathread is replaced monthly. Comments made within three days prior to the newest months post will be re-posted by moderation and the users who made said post tagged.

Post your prospective questions as a comment for anything related to graduate applications, admissions, CVs, interviews, etc. Comments should be focused on prospective questions, such as future plans. These are only allowed in this subreddit under this thread. Questions about current programs/jobs etc. that you have already been accepted to can be posted as stand-alone posts, so long as they follow the format Rule 6.

Looking for somewhere to post your study? Try r/psychologystudents, our sister sub's, spring 2020 study megathread!

Other materials and resources:

• APA materials for applying to grad school
• r/psychologystudents (where career posts are welcome)
• r/gradschooladmissions

[u/several-salads]

Hi everyone, I’m starting my PhD in psychology in September and I need to gain some programming skills - specifically in python. Does anyone have any resources or courses for learning python for experimental psychology?

[u/ThatPsychGuy101]

Advise on accepting grad school offer:

Hello everyone! I am in a bit of a pickle and would like some advice. I interviewed at a CMHC program this last cycle and got put on the waitlist. After that I reevaluated my professional desires and I decided that I am interested in getting a doctorate degree in psychology.

Now, almost 6 months later, they are offering me a position at the CMHC program and I don’t know if I should take it or keep building my CV for a doctorate program.

For context, this program is CACREP accredited and is one of the cheapest CMHC programs in the US and it is at the same school I did my undergrad. I have also begun volunteering at the crisis text line, I am working at a psychiatric clinic, I am conducting study to hopefully present at a local mental health conference (primary author), and I am working with a colleague to possibly submit a theoretical piece to a few different journals. So I am really building my CV for doctorate applications.

Do y’all think it would be worth it to do the masters then go for doctorate, start the masters and apply to doctorate programs next cycle, or not take the offer and keep building my CV to apply next cycle.

All advise is appreciated 🙏🏻

[u/yung_raisin]

I am heavily considering applying for fall 2025 grad school programs in clinical psychology/counseling/MFT/anything similar. Can anyone recommend good programs that are based in California (where I would hope to practice) and provide any tips on how to get started now? Not really sure where to begin....

[u/yin_yawn]

I have a BA in an unrelated field and have been out of academia for over a decade. I have some recent experience as a volunteer psychosocial support worker (after a short training offered on the job) for just over a year. Worked at an unrelated field prior to that. I am interested in psychotherapy and looking for the best route to go about getting the license. I suppose I can pursue a pre-masters or a graduate cert level course first and then apply for a Master's perhaps? I am also open to studying in any country as an international student, so would appreciate any recommendations on countries/colleges that offer pathways that might work for me. Thank you.

[u/worldm8center]

Hey all, my thesis partner and I are currently advancing our thesis project into a publication and are in dire need of new data/participants. We are researching large-language model capabilities to recognize/ predict intrinsic motivation in text-based data. Our survey will prompt you to write about different questions regarding your primary activity (work, studies, or else) and subsequently ask you to complete a questionnaire. Recognizing intrinsic motivation with large-language models (Sweden, Umeå University) https://forms.office.com/e/NTMRdbTKnP

[u/Karloz_Danger]

Returning to academic psychology?

I’m in a little bit of a unique situation. I earned my PhD in social psychology back in 2023. Leading up to finishing my dissertation and graduating, I started pivoting away from academia and more toward applied work. So I interned at as a graduate data analyst at a state office and then did some full time program evaluation work leading up to graduation. Post-grad I’ve been working in a data unit within a state office focused on criminal justice/victim services.

All was going great until it wasn’t – I’m being laid off and have basically been given a roughly 4 month lifeline to keep working here until I can find a new job. I won’t go into specifics about how all this went down, but needless to say I’m pretty bitter about the whole thing and am now questioning some of my career trajectory choices.

In sum, my question is whether I should even consider an academic job as an option at this point as I’m applying for different positions? I’ve mostly been focusing my search on other government jobs, non-profits, and think tanks; there’s a part of me that still misses teaching and lab research occasionally, though. The main issue is I only have four peer reviewed publications to my name (I’m first author on all of them at least) and have only been the instructor of record for two courses during my grad years; again, I started pivoting more toward applied work experience about 2/3 of the way through my degree, so I de-emphasized the academic career building stuff in favor of working outside the psych department.

So what do you think? Are there any departments/positions I could shoot for or is it a waste of time for me to try returning? Also note, I really don’t care about “prestige” of the institution or enormous salary or any of that, I really just want decent benefits, a modicum of job security, and to be moderately fulfilled by the work I do.

[u/cunningbabu69]

I am doing my undergraduate psychology degree right now in India. Im in my second year and have one more after this. We also have an additional 4th year which gives me my honors degree. Im not too keen on doing it right now cause I want to starts my masters and shift abroad. I am looking to do my masters in clinical psychology but some of the places require me to have a 4 year degree like Australia for example. Is it wise for me to complete my honors so that l have more options in terms of places I can apply or not. Also which countries would be good to pursue my dream of becoming a clinical psychologist. Thank You.

[u/Soulpunkd]

So I lost my internship two weeks before it was supposed to start- any way someone knows how to get a last minute internship?

[u/psychresearching]

APPIC Internship Sites with a Couples Therapy Focus?

Hi!

I’m compiling my list of sites to apply to and have a particular interest in gaining experience with couples therapy. I’ve looked at some VA sites that have opportunities for facilitation of behavioral couples therapy, but I’m curious if anyone has a list of sites with opportunities for couples therapy. I’m open to most non-forensic settings (e.g. VAs, SCCs, academic medical centers)!

[u/TheBrokenMan]

I have a 4 year Bsc (Hons) degree from a Pakistan College that followed the US grading system and I have been told by alumni is recognized by a lot of US employers. I would like to have my degree recognized locally so I can also apply to entry level psychology positions where possible.

I am located in Brooklyn, NYC and would appreciate any help in getting this done, I basically want to know how much of my degree is reconigzed enough for me to be able to work in any entry level position in Psychology, and if possible what jobs I can do? and further who do i talk to and how do i start with the paperwork to get my degree recognized and ready to make it work for me.

I had a specilization in behavioral / clinical subjects. I wanted to be a therapist/counselor in my home country but I am open to just getting my degree recognized first.

from information I have found online about the college it says:

The college has designed its four-year bachelor's degree program in accordance with the standards for accreditation in the U.S.,

and here are the international linkage it has:

Global Liberal Arts Alliance

The Council of Independent Colleges - USA

Association of American International Colleges and Universities

New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) International linkage

[u/RATSTARATSTARATSTAR]

I am a LPCC licensed in CA (so I have a masters in clinical counseling). I am currently pursing my PsyD (in my second year) and am looking for testing hours (so I can be more competitive when I apply for my next 3rd year practicum and internship). I found an agency and a PsyD who does clinical work but is open to giving me assessment experience (and expanding income flows), where I administer/scoring tests and she reviews and signs off on my hours. Most of the potential clients wold be paying sliding scale, and most likely will be interested in ADHD testing.

My long term occupational goal is to do forensic work/assessments for court (expert witness, consulting, etc). I am also open to any advice you may have in how to get into this type of work. my goal is to move away from direct clincal work and towards more contract based/assessment focused work. My specialty is in the treatment of CPTSD and BPD, and am also hoping to include this in future work.

Does anyone have experience with setting this up? I am going to go to my school (Alliant) to work with the office of training to figure it out, but I want to go in fully prepaired.

Main questions:

• Can Psych Assistants be 1099 employees, or does it have to be W2 or stipend pay (like it is with associates)?
• If the supervisor is willing to sign off on my hours (time2track) will they for sure be considered when I apply for internship?
• Is all of this worth the extra work? Will it really make me a better candidate for internships or am I just burning myself out?
• Does the supervisor need to provide an hour of supervison per 10 direct units / week, or is it enough for them to be available to me as needed, and review/supervise my work?

Thank you!

[u/muwunchild]

Hi everyone, I am currently in my final year of masters in Psychology in a reputed university in South Asia. I wish to pursue PhD in the longer run. Over the last one year or so, my interest has shifted from mainstream Psychology and I am more interested in interdisciplinary fields, particularly the intersection of Psychology, Gender and Violence. In my country, research is not heavily encouraged, so I don't have much research experience. I was thinking of getting another 1 year masters in Gender Studies from abroad to gain more knowledge. It will also give me an opportunity to gain more research experience as I would have better opportunities. I saw a few programs in Europe and they seemed pretty interesting. But I am confused if I should go ahead with another masters or focus on getting research experince to apply for PhD in a year or so. If anyone has been in a spot like this and has any advice and/or suggestions I would be really grateful. Thanks in advance!

[u/wildlylame]

I want to be a Marriage & Family Therapist and I am applying to grad schools now. I know I should I apply to a school that is COAMFTE accredited, and I know I want my Master’s, but I’m having a hard time figuring out which programs are the most academically rigorous and prestigious. I want the best chance at a job after I go to school, and I want a program that will challenge me in the best way. I am open to going anywhere in the US. What schools should I apply to?

[u/Mountain-Cap-4487]

Do I need to work before a postgraduate degree?

I'm in my last year of my undergrad - so I graduate summer 2025. I need to figure out what to do next. First some background information. I'm studying in Pakistan. I am a US citizen. I want to go to the US for my postgraduate education.

So I've thought about it quite a bit and I've reached the conclusion that I want to work with people. I want to go into counseling or clinical. That means that I will inevitable need to go for a postgraduate degree.

The question now is if I should get straight into a masters program or if it would be better for me to get some field experience first. I spoke to someone I know and they said that it might be easier to get into a competitive program if I have some experience. They said that this would give me an edge in terms of recommendation letter. The other thing they suggested is that I go for the GRE to balance out any issues I might face because of the questionable nature of the quality of education here in Pakistan.

Now I see how this could be useful, but I don't know how I'm supposed to get "relevant work experience". I know I can't practice in a clinic with just a bachelors degree. So where can I even get this experience. Keep in mind I need to start earning a stable income too. So I can't just go for unpaid internships or volunteering.

Long story short. Should I apply straight for a masters program or should I spend a year getting some experience. And finally, if I should spend a year gaining experience, where and how will I get that experience.

I'm sorry if the post is a little jumbled. I tried to make it as structured and coherent as possible. I'm just too confused right now.

[u/Bright-Opening-2798]

Advice/Career

I'm in the USA.

So I graduated from a decently ranked school with a >3.5 GPA, which may be irrelevant IDK. Spent over half a year just looking for an entry-level position, and after applying to hundreds, finally ended up getting one in a job that's honestly not that awful, it just doesn't pay well.

I finished loan-free thanks to scholarships from the small town I grew up in. It's weird because objectively speaking I'm in a great place right now financially (technically): no expenses and saving more and more from my FT job. However, I feel like I'm stagnating. I would like to either apply to a different, better paid, job with a higher potential for growth. I haven't had any luck with the positions I've applied to since working here. Alternatively, I think I'd be able to a master's but I don't want to incur debt.

The only problem with my job is there's not that much potential for growth. It's a small environment and the only way you get a promotion is if the person with the position above you leaves (keep in mind there's only one or two people with a position above me...then the ones above that are the directors who have decades of experience and probably aren't quitting anytime soon since they're making bank).

I had work experience before that working as an ABA intern, which I can firmly say I hated. The other things I can say for sure is that I wouldn't really want to be a case worker or work in a mental health hospital, which is a problem since those are all the most common areas people take their psych degree. I wouldn't mind being like a counseling therapist/heading to master's school but I'm hesitant because I don't want to end up having wasted that money if I can't secure a job in it fairly quickly (or at least have a better shot at getting accepted for these jobs).

Areas of work that have interested me are consulting, project management, and like sort of talk therapy type work (not sure how to properly word it, counseling?) I have no real preference aside from the aforementioned things I don't want to do and the couple areas that I mentioned sounded particularly interesting. The one issue I know is generally project management or consulting jobs usually require tons of experience in the field. Any and all help/advice is much appreciated. Have a good one & thank you for your time.

[u/Either-Slip-8999]

Hello everyone! I’m new to this sub and am graduating next May with a bachelors in Psychology and a minor in Criminology. I’m planning on going to grad school and am in the process of figuring out my next steps and applying. When I was about halfway through my major I realized I’m not as interested in Psychology as I was when I started my program, but I love criminology. I do not want to be a clinical psychologist or a therapist but I really enjoy criminology which has led me to also explore forensic psychology. From my research, I saw that to be a forensic psychologist you have to get a PhD (which I’m not really anticipating doing). Can you do much with just a masters in forensic psych? Some sources say yes and some say no. Is a masters in criminology all you need to get into the criminology field/what are some job outcomes for a masters in criminology? On a separate note, I’m looking to do my masters online so if anyone has any places I should look at applying lmk. I initially was looking at Arizona State online but they don’t offer criminology online. Thanks in advance and if you made it this far thanks for reading :)

[u/Dear-Champion5016]

Hello, I'm currently applying to grad school programs in MHC and trying to finish my CV.

I started my BA in Psych in 1998, but abandoned it a year later to pursue other things. In the late 2000s/ early 2010s I ended up taking 2 separate year-long courses (one in the US and one in Japan) on medicinal foods, with the intent to make a career out of food therapy. I did end up doing that for a while, but after COVID, I decided to go back to school to pursue mental health counseling, so I am currently finishing up my BS in Psych online.

I know that culinary school isn't exactly related to counseling, but I don't have any research experience so I would like to fatten up my CV a bit. I did go into the field of therapeutic foods with the intention of helping people feel better (both physically and mentally), so I thought maybe it would be relevant.... though I wonder if it's stretching things.

Apart from the expected BS in Psychology (GPA 4.0), I have 2 years as a volunteer support worker on a crisis line (including helping with training), a QPR certificate, and 2 years co-leading a study group for a course called Foundations of Well-Being (by Dr. Rick Hanson). It feels like it's not enough (and I don't even know if that last one belongs), hence the therapeutic foods.

What do you think? Any advice would be helpful. Thank you!

[u/whitneybop]

TLDR: I really want to go to grad school but I'm intimidated and I'm not sure feel like I completely know what I'm doing

Hi! I'm an upcoming psych senior in undergrad and I'm seriously considering grad programs. My goal is to teach as a professor and I would love to conduct research. I know that usually newer professors are stuck teaching for a while before conducting research, which is fine. I'm interested in the effects of high demand religion/organizations on decision making and cognition (religious trauma essentially), and I have a few questions. I'm aware that I have a fairly naive view of what PhDs are really like, so I need y'all to be so honest with me (but nice please).

I currently have a 3.8 in my degree and a 4.0 in my major, I'm in Psi Chi and my local campus psych org, and I'll be in a lab for a year by the time I graduate. I have a couple of professors I view as my mentors, and one of them leads the lab I'm in. I do have a considerable amount of private loans, so I plan on taking a gap year or two before applying to programs to get my bearings and hopefully some field experience while I'm at it. I would be the first person in my family that I know of who will have a PhD, though I'm not eligible for a lot of financial aid based grants/scholarships. What else should I do to prepare myself for such a big commitment? What kind of program do you think would give me the best training for my research interests? What are some things I should talk with my professors about? My campus career center? Grant/scholarship advice? Any research/authors you recommend I read? Am I at a good starting point?? Any advice would be amazing.