<p>Hi. I am currently a senior at a research university in the midwest (I'm an international student who transfered from a community college out west).
I am in the process of applying to MA biopsychology programs for next fall. I really want to apply to PhD programs but am not sure if I'm a competitive candidate, so I'm thinking of applying to an MA program first, which I'm hoping will boost my chances. Please let me know what you guys think my chances are for getting admitted into MA psych programs such as NYU, Rutgers, and George Mason? Any response will be GREATLY APPRECIATED. </p>
<p>GPA: 3.83
Major GPA: 4.0 </p>
<p>My GRE scores (2nd try) are pretty embarrassing. </p>
<p>Verbal: 530-630
Quant: 510-610 </p>
<p>My first try was worse (V390 Q550). </p>
<p>Research experience (Undergraduate RA):
- I/O psychology lab - Spring 2011, Summer 2011, Fall-2011
- Social psychology lab - Summer 2011
- Perception and Cognition Lab - Fall 2011 - Spring 2012
- Summer 2011 - present: I'm currently in the process of writing a manuscript with a Sociology professor from another university. </p>
<p>Work experience: I work with professors and researchers in a hospital too. I don't know if that will help my application too?</p>
<p>The only problem I see is your GRE score for the schools you are applying to. Your GPA is good, and a reasonable amount of research experience could cause them to overlook the GREs, and it also depends on your personal statement and letters of recommendation. But my issue is not with any of that.</p>
<p>If your goal is ultimately the doctorate, you should apply to doctorate programs first and at least try. If you spend 2 years in an MA program, it will likely only cut off about a year of your doc. program if you continue on, and the funding is usually not nearly as good. Also, deadlines for the doctorate programs tend to be December - January, whereas MA programs are usually in the early - mid spring. You could apply to doctorate programs and see where it gets you, and apply to MAs afterward if you are uncertain. You should at least try for a PhD first, even if it means taking a year off and applying next year if you feel it is too late for you to try now. I hesitate to tell you to take the GREs again and try to raise them, since you already took them twice. Another mild improvement will start to look pathetic, and a huge improvement may look incredible or like a fluke, it all depends on the adcomms and how they look at multiple scores.</p>
<p>Are the MA programs you’re looking at heavily research oriented, or do they have more of an applied curriculum? Some research-focused MA programs have better funding and are designed as stepping stones for students who aren’t sure they want to commit to the PhD just yet, but they are difficult to come by. Most MAs are designed to prep you for a job right out of the program and are more applied, less research/academia focused.</p>