Chance of getting into a PhD program for psychology

Graduate School
1

Hello! I am going to be a senior in college in the fall and will most likely be applying to graduate schools for Fall 2020. I’m most interested in social/health psychology (stress and the immune system), and I’m particularly interested in going to Ohio State University or Stony Brook University (I’m from New York).

Currently:
-I go to a small, private college outside of NYC

-I have a 3.56 cumulative GPA (I’m expecting it to go up into the 3.6’s) and a 3.93 major GPA; I also have an upward trend in my grades (just got my first 4.0 for a semester)

-I have made the Dean’s list every semester except for second semester Freshman year; I’m also on the Distinguished Dean’s List (I made Dean’s List for three consecutive semesters)

-I’m in an international honor society for psychology

When applying:
-I should have 2 solid letters of recommendation (one from my professor/advisor who is an alumni of a school that I’ll be applying to and graduated from the same program), and 1 that I’m unsure of who will write it/how good it will be

-I’ve just started studying for the GRE and I’m confident that I’ll get an average/above average score (at least I hope!)

The one thing that worries me is that I don’t have any research experience. There aren’t any real opportunities to partake in research at my college (I believe the only way to do so is by taking an independent study course). I will be taking an Experimental Psychology course in the fall where we conduct our own surveys/research, but I doubt this will make much of a difference, if any at all. Also, I started college as a Communications major and didn’t switch to Psychology until the very end of my Sophomore year so, essentially, I have to complete a Psychology major in two years rather than four. However, when I was a Communications major (it’s now my minor), I did some projects that I could show to potential schools but they have nothing to do with psychology.

Anyway, I was wondering if I should actually try to get into a PhD program or if I should try to find a Masters program (I’ve only found one so far); I also have the option of staying at my current college but I would only be able to get an MSEd or an MST, nothing else is offered for psychology (besides an MSW program but I really don’t want to do that).

2

Hello! My PhD in in psychology (and a public health field) and I studied stress and health as well, although in a different direction.

Without research experience, your chances of admission to a PhD program in psychology are quite slim. Research experience is the single most important factor in applying to PhD programs - perhaps equal only to fit with the department. Most successful applicants have at least a year of experience assisting a professor, usually part-time in their lab through a research assistantship, before they apply to graduate programs.

The first thing you should do is get involved in research right away. Talk to your professors in the department about research assistantships - many of the ways in which to get research experience aren’t listed anywhere or even explicitly offered; especially if you attend a small college, sometimes the only way to get info is to ask. Talk to your advisor or a professor you feel close to; tell them you are interested in getting a PhD and you’d like some research experience.

Getting a master’s degree is one option. You can gain research experience in a master’s program by working as an RA, as well. However, there are other options that will gain you research experience without paying for graduate school, like working as a lab manager or research assistant/associate after college.