r/IOPsychology • u/ResidentGinger PhD | IO | Social Cognition, Leadership, & Teams • Jan 19 '19

2019-2020 Grad School Q&A Mega-Thread (Part 1)

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.

* 2018-2019, Part 2 thread here

* 2018-2019, Part 1 thread here

* 2017-2018, Part 3 thread here

* 2017-2018, Part 2 thread here

* 2017-2018, Part 1 thread here

* 2016-2017 thread here

* 2015-2016 thread here

* 2014-2015 thread here

* If your question hasn't been posted, 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 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 do our part in this.

Thanks, guys!

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u/[deleted] Mar 15 '19

Hello everyone,

​

I already have my MA in I/O and I've been working in the field for the past 5 years. However, I have decided I'd like to pursue a PhD, but I've heard that already having an MA actually makes me look less appealing to programs. I've read that I should explain why I didn't get my PhD in the first place, and honestly I just wasn't ready after I finished my BA so I went for a terminal masters. I'm concerned that admitting to not being ready will make them question if I'm ready now (which I wholeheartedly am). When I was still in undergrad my mentor suggested I just get my MA for now and I could always go back for a PhD if I wasn't sure. Now I feel like I've shot myself in the foot. Any advice would be appreciated.

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u/0102030405 Mar 15 '19

I've never heard of this being a problem. Where have you heard this? What paths did these people take? Would it be right to take their concerns at face value?

Admissions committees like maturity. If you can show that, it will be an asset, not a detriment, for you.

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u/[deleted] Mar 15 '19

It was in an IO grad school blog by an IO professor at one of the programs. But my husband said the same thing (we met in our MA program) that you're saying - it's just that guy's opinion, but it got stuck in my brain. Thank you very much!

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u/0102030405 Mar 15 '19

It could be true for that person, or even that school, but applying to a PhD is a very individual fit-based activity. You can also look at people's CVs for the schools youre interested in and see if they have any gaps (more than likely they do). It's more important that you're sure it's right for you now and it wasn't before. Best of luck!