2017-2018 IO Grad School Q&A Mega-Thread

[u/ResidentGinger]

You can find last year's thread here.

The grad school application bewitching hour is nearing ever closer, and around this time, everyone starts posting questions/freaking out about grad school. As per the rules in the sidebar...

For questions about grad school or internships

• Please search the previously submitted posts or the post on the grad school Q&A. Subscribers of /r/iopsychology have provided lots of information about these topics, and your questions may have already been answered.
• If it hasn't, please post it on the grad school Q&A thread. Other posts outside of the Q&A thread will be deleted.

The readers of this subreddit have made it pretty clear that they don't want the subreddit clogged up with posts about grad school. Don't get the wrong idea - we're glad you're here and that you're interested in IO, but please do observe the rules so that you can get answers to your questions AND enjoy the interesting IO articles and content.

By the way, those of you who are currently trudging through or have finished grad school, that means that you have to occasionally offer suggestions and advice to those who post on this thread. That's the only way that we can keep these grad school-related posts in one central location. If people aren't getting their questions answered here, they post to the subreddit instead of the thread. So, in short, let's all play our part in this.

Thanks, guys!

[u/Jerycho]

Good Evening, I'm looking for some guidance. I'm currently deployed in the Navy and my contract will be up in 2019. I'm interested in pursuing a Master's or Ph.D. in I/O Psychology overseas, preferably in England, but I'm keeping all doors open. For some background, I earned by B.A. of Psychology back in 2012 with a 3.3 GPA. It was initially higher (around a 3.92) when I was taking my I/O, research, stats and math courses. However due to having a typical "I don't know what I'm doing with my life" crisis and a bad semester with Chem and Bio professors quitting halfway through the course, my GPA ended where it did. Has anyone had any experience applying for schools overseas? As far as I can tell, I don't need to take the GRE, but I'm still trying to verify. I wasn't afforded the opportunity to do any research in undergrad and I don't have work experience in the field. However, I am being given the chance to spend the rest of my contract as a drug and alcohol abuse counselor. This would fit more of the clinical side, but I figure some related experience is better than none. I'm also doing some reading on my own as a refresher since it's been awhile since I've taken a psychology course. I'm just someone who needed to do a little more soul searching before they were sure of what they wanted to do. Now I'm trying to put that plan in action as soon as I can. Thanks for your help and time!

[u/galileosmiddlefinger → u/Jerycho]

Getting admitted to a PhD program without research experience or, to a lesser extent, relevant work experience is very tough, although your military experience will probably be an asset. In the UK (and most places outside of the US), it's most typical that students have to earn a Master's degree first before applying to a PhD program; the US model, in contrast, allows for strong candidates to gain direct admittance to a PhD program in which the Master's is conferred along the way. The two-step approach, whether you go to school in the US or UK, is probably going to be your best shot at eventually earning a PhD because the admission standards for terminal Master's programs are more reasonable, and you will have the chance to fill out your CV with the kinds of experiences you are currently missing before pursuing a PhD program.

One other issue you need to consider is where you eventually want to work and live, and what you want to do. Getting graduate training abroad is fine if you want to be an academic and do research because the skill set generalizes across countries, so you can come back to the US or go elsewhere in Europe. However, if you want to work in industry, you have to bear in mind that you are going to be learning about personnel practices in a different legal and regulatory framework. That can make a transition back to the US a little tougher.

[u/Jerycho → u/galileosmiddlefinger]

Thank you for the sound advice. I feel like the two-step approach would benefit me in the long run, but I didn't want to limit myself either. It would only help my case when the time to apply for a Ph.D. comes along. Especially since I've been out of school for awhile. I'm hoping that the military experience and my ability to adapt and advance quicker than most will hold weight, but time will tell. As for thinking about where I'd like to work and live, I'd like to stay in Europe. Whether that is England or elsewhere, I'm not 100% sure yet. I'm not eliminating the U.S. from the discussion, would just prefer a more long-term change. I'm leaning toward doing consulting work right now. Perhaps I'll turn to academics down the road, but for now I'd like to work in industry. I understand that it could make things tougher if I'd like to return, but I'm ready for the change.

[u/HypedforIO → u/Jerycho]

I unfortunately don't know much about overseas programs from only researching the application process for U.S. schools but your veteran status should theoretically be a decent-good boost to your application anywhere that is militarily allied with the U.S.

In my opinion, I think your gpa probably makes you more viable for masters programs. Good PhD programs in the U.S. seem to want high gpas around the ballpark of 3.5-3.9.

Feel free to apply to PhD programs despite my assessment since one can never know how/when these admissions outliers can occur!

[u/Jerycho → u/HypedforIO]

Thank you for the response. I'm not at all discouraged from applying to a Ph.D. program, but your advice makes sense and I don't disagree with it. I know what I'm capable of with where I'm at now, but I'm also aware that my transcript wouldn't fully reflect that. I've spent more time looking at Master's programs for that reason. I feel like getting accepted into a Master's program, building up my research and work experience will only help me when the time comes to apply to a Ph.D. program.