INSIDER’S GUIDE TO GRADUATE PROGRAMS IN CLINICAL AND COUNSELING PSYCHOLOGY pdf

1

Praise for the

Insider’s Guide to

Graduate Programs in Clinical and

Counseling Psychology

“Like many other Directors of Clinical Training, I could continue to pull my hair out over the

increased individual inquiries regarding how to get into graduate school, or simply refer each indi￾vidual to the well-written, fact-based latest edition of the Insider’s Guide.” —Sally H. Barlow, Ph.D.,

Director of Clinical Training in Psychology, Brigham Young University

“The authors have created a valuable guide for applicants. The wealth of practical information and

insights gleaned from their research and personal experiences should help applicants make the

strongest possible application to the schools of their choice.” —Barry A. Hong, Ph.D.,

Washington University School of Medicine

“I love your book! This book is excellent for focusing upon specific areas of interest as well as going

about the process in a systematic, logical manner. Great job!” —Helen Rowan, M.A.,

clinician returning for her doctorate

“The book is written in a pragmatic, conversational tone that is easy to understand. The advice is re￾alistic, which is important when each year applicants in the triple-digits usually compete for slots in

the single-digits. Highly recommended.” —Choice Reviews

“I cannot express enough gratitude to you for authoring the Insider’s Guide. Your book was the most

important resource that I used during my applications to PhD programs in counseling psychology.

It is exceptionally written, incredibly applicable, and, most important, clear, concise, and pragmatic.

Thank you so much for remembering how stressful and chaotic the application process can be, as

well as being empathic enough to pull together a resource that I am sure has helped so many grad￾uate students.” —Kimberly Tran, doctoral student

“Prospective graduate students will significantly increase their chances of gaining admission to clini￾cal doctoral programs when they use this outstanding guide.” —Arnold A. Lazarus, Ph.D.,

Distinguished Professor of Psychology, Rutgers University

“Simply a godsend! I found it to be instructive, informative, and a great comfort.”—Emily M. Douglas,

psychology undergraduate

“Students need to realize that the Insider’s Guide is much more than a shopping list of statistics about

programs to be picked up before sending off the first wave of applications. In fact, this is a resource

that all students seriously considering careers in professional psychology will find valuable as soon

as they declare their major.” —Bryan D. Fantie, Ph.D.,

Director of Behavioral Neuroscience, American University

Sayette Insider's Guide quote page:Layout 1 12/4/09 12:03 PM Page 1

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INSIDER’S GUIDE TO

GRADUATE PROGRAMS

IN CLINICAL AND

COUNSELING PSYCHOLOGY

CONTENTS

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iii

INSIDER’S GUIDE to

Graduate Programs

in Clinical and

Counseling Psychology

2010/2011 Edition

Michael A. Sayette

Tracy J. Mayne

John C. Norcross

THE GUILFORD PRESS

New York London

iv

© 2010 The Guilford Press

A Division of Guilford Publications, Inc.

72 Spring Street, New York, NY 10012

www.guilford.com

All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any

form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording, or otherwise,

without written permission from the publisher.

Printed in the United States of America

Last digit is print number: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

ISBN-13: 978-1-60623-463-1

ISSN 1086-2099

CONTENTS

CONTENTS

v

Tables and Figures ix

About the Authors xi

Acknowledgments xiii

Preface xv

Chapter 1. Introducing Clinical and Counseling Psychology 1

Clinical and Counseling Psychology 1

Combined Programs 5

A Word on Accreditation 5

Online Graduate Programs 7

Practice Alternatives 8

Research Alternatives 11

On “Backdoor” Clinicians 13

To Reiterate Our Purpose 13

Our Approach 14

Chapter 2. Choosing the Ph.D. or Psy.D. 15

The Boulder Model (Ph.D.) 15

The Vail Model (Psy.D.) 16

Salient Differences 16

A Continuum of Training Opportunities 19

Your Informed Choice 19

Chapter 3. Preparing for Graduate School 21

Different Situations, Different Needs 21

A Master’s Degree First? 23

Graduate School Selection Criteria 24

Course Work 26

Faculty Mentoring 28

Clinical Experience 29

Research Skills 31

Entrance Examinations 36

Extracurricular Activities 42

Chapter 4. Getting Started 44

Common Misconceptions 44

Acceptance Rates 45

CONTENTS

CONTENTS

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Costs of Applying 46

Starting Early 46

For the Research Oriented and Dually Committed 48

For the Practice Oriented 54

For the Racial/Ethnic Minority Applicant 56

For the LGBT Applicant 57

For the Disabled Applicant 58

For the International Applicant 58

Assessing Program Criteria 59

Chapter 5. Selecting Schools 64

A Multitude of Considerations 64

Research Interests 65

Clinical Opportunities 66

Theoretical Orientations 69

Financial Aid 71

Quality of Life 75

Putting It All Together 76

Chapter 6. Applying to Programs 78

How Many? 78

Application Form 79

Curriculum Vitae 80

Personal Statements 83

Letters of Recommendation 86

Transcripts and GRE Scores 92

Unsolicited Documents 92

Application Fees 93

Check and Recheck 93

Chapter 7. Mastering the Interview 95

Interview Strategically 96

The Dual Purpose 96

Rehearsal and Mock Interviews 97

Interview Attire 98

Travel Arrangements 99

Interview Style 100

Stressful Questions 103

Group Interviews 104

Additional Tips 105

Telephone Interviews 105

A Note of Thanks 106

The Wait 107

Chapter 8. Making Final Decisions 109

Acceptances and Rejections 109

The Financial Package 112

The Alternate List 113

Decision Making 114

Finalizing Arrangements 114

If Not Accepted 115

Two Final Words 118

CONTENTS

vii

Reports on Combined Psychology Programs 119

Reports on Individual Clinical Psychology Programs 127

Reports on Individual Counseling Psychology Programs 285

Appendix A. Time Line 329

Appendix B. Worksheet for Choosing Programs 332

Appendix C. Worksheet for Assessing Program Criteria 334

Appendix D. Worksheet for Making Final Choices 335

Appendix E. Research Areas 336

Appendix F. Specialty Clinics and Practica Sites 377

Appendix G. Program Concentrations and Tracks 400

References 407

CONTENTS

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ix

Tables

1-1 Popularity and Doctorate Production of Psychology Subfields 2

1-2 Professional Activities of Clinical and Counseling Psychologists 4

1-3 APA-Accredited Clinical Psychology Programs That Are Members of the Academy 7

of Psychological Clinical Science (APCS)

2-1 APA-Accredited Psy.D. Programs in Clinical Psychology 17

3-1 Importance of Various Criteria in Psychology Admissions Decisions 25

3-2 Importance Assigned by Clinical Psychology Doctoral Programs to Various 25

Types of Undergraduate Preparation

3-3 Undergraduate Courses Required or Recommended by APA-Accredited Clinical 26

Psychology Programs

3-4 Minimum GRE Scores Preferred by APA-Accredited Clinical Psychology Programs 38

3-5 Average GRE Scores of Incoming Students in APA-Accredited Clinical 39

Psychology Programs

3-6 Comparison of the GRE General Test and the GRE Psychology Subject Test 41

4-1 Average Acceptance Rates for APA-Accredited Clinical Psychology Programs 45

4-2 Institutions with Most Citations, Most Papers, Greatest Impact in Psychology/ 49

Psychiatry, and Strongest Clinical Faculty Production in Psychology

4-3 Institutional Origins of Clinical and Counseling Psychology Diplomates 53

and Fellows

5-1 Questions to Ask about Psy.D. Programs 70

5-2 Theoretical Orientations of Faculty in APA-Accredited Clinical and Counseling 70

Psychology Programs

5-3 Percentage of Students Receiving Financial Aid in APA-Accredited Clinical 72

Psychology Programs

6-1 Professors’ Pet Peeves: Avoiding Neutral Letters of Recommendation 87

7-1 Common Interview Questions to Anticipate 98

7-2 Interview Questions an Applicant Might Ask 102

8-1 Student Reasons for Choosing a Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program 111

8-2 Median Tuition Costs in Psychology by Institution Type and Degree Level 112

8-3 Median Assistantship Stipends in Psychology 113

TABLES AND

FIGURES

CONTENTS

x

Figures

4-1 Sample E-mail Requesting Application and Information 62

5-1 Sample E-mail of Introduction—Research Oriented 67

5-2 Sample E-mail of Introduction—Practice Oriented 68

5-3 Getting In and Getting Money in Various Types of Clinical Psychology Programs 73

5-4 Amount of Graduate Debt for Recent Clinical Ph.D. and Psy.D. Recipients 73

6-1 One Format for Curriculum Vitae 81

6-2 Another Format for Curriculum Vitae 82

6-3 Portion of a Sample Autobiographical Statement 86

6-4 Sample Letter to Request a Letter of Recommendation 89

7-1 Preadmission Interview Policies of APA-Accredited Programs 95

7-2 Sample Telephone Card 106

7-3 Sample Letter of Appreciation to an Interviewer 107

8-1 Sample Letter of Acceptance 115

8-2 Sample Letter Declining an Admission Offer 116

TABLES AND FIGURES

xi

Michael A. Sayette received his baccalaureate cum laude from Dartmouth College. He

earned his master’s and doctorate in clinical psychology from Rutgers University and com￾pleted his internship at the Brown University School of Medicine. He is Professor of Psychol￾ogy at the University of Pittsburgh, with a secondary appointment as Professor of Psychiatry

at the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

Dr. Sayette has published primarily in the area of substance abuse. His research, supported

by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and by the National Institute on

Drug Abuse, concerns the development of psychological theories of alcohol and tobacco

use. Dr. Sayette is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA) and of the As￾sociation for Psychological Science (APS). He has served on National Institutes of Health

grant review study sections and is on the editorial boards of several journals. He also is an

associate editor of Journal of Abnormal Psychology and a former associate editor of Psychol￾ogy of Addictive Behaviors. Dr. Sayette has directed graduate admissions for the clinical psy￾chology program at the University of Pittsburgh, and has presented seminars on applying to

graduate school at several universities in North America and Europe.

Tracy J. Mayne received his baccalaureate from the State University of New York at Buf￾falo, where he graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa. He received his Ph.D. as

an Honors Fellow from Rutgers University and completed his internship and postdoctoral

fellowship at the University of California at San Francisco Medical School and the Center

for AIDS Prevention Studies. He spent 2 years as an international scholar at the Institut

National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale in France and 3 years as the Director of

HIV Epidemiology and Surveillance at the New York City Department of Health, where he

received the Commissioner’s Award for Outstanding Community Research. Dr. Mayne spent

5 years conducting research in cardiovascular medicine at Pfizer Pharmaceuticals and cur￾rently works in Global Health Economics at Amgen Inc., conducting research in cancer￾supportive therapies. Dr. Mayne has published numerous articles and chapters in health

psychology, health economics, and emotion, and is the coeditor of Emotions: Current Issues

and Future Directions, published by The Guilford Press.

John C. Norcross received his baccalaureate summa cum laude from Rutgers University.

He earned his doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Rhode Island and com￾pleted his internship at the Brown University School of Medicine. He is Professor of Psychol￾ogy and Distinguished University Fellow at the University of Scranton, a clinical psychologist

ABOUT THE

AUTHORS

CONTENTS

xii

in independent practice, and editor of the Journal of Clinical Psychology: In Session. He is

past-president of APA’s Division of Clinical Psychology and Division of Psychotherapy. Dr.

Norcross has published more than 300 articles and has authored or edited 18 books, the

most recent being Leaving It at the Office: A Guide to Psychotherapist Self-Care, Clinician’s

Guide to Evidence-Based Practices: Mental Health and the Addictions, Authoritative Guide

to Self-Help Resources in Mental Health, and Psychotherapy Relationships That Work: Thera￾pist Contributions and Responsiveness to Patients. Among his awards are the Pennsylvania

Professor of the Year from the Carnegie Foundation, Distinguished Practitioner from the

National Academies of Practice, and the Distinguished Career Contribution to Education and

Training Award from APA. Dr. Norcross has conducted workshops and research on graduate

study in psychology for many years.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS