Confused any advice

[Psychstudent!721]

I am 24, I graduated with a BS in psychology. I was accepted into an MSW program, but chose not to do it. I want to pursue a career that will allow me to do research on the brain and human behavior as well as be able to do therapy. I’ve found that neuropsychology allows me to do that. I am enrolled for the fall in bio courses because I thought my only option was psychiatry. However now I’m in a jam between not doing the post bacc program in bio and take courses to prepare for the GRE. I don’t believe I need the biology courses for the neuropsychology.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[deleted343839]

Not sure why you started a second thread here, but some biology coursework would be helpful if your goal is a career in neuropsychology. In my first semester of graduate school I took a functional neuroanatomy course, and I was very glad to have taken general bio, neuroscience, psychopharmacology, etc. as an undergraduate. But it isn't strictly necessary - you'll just have some catching up to do.

As others commented on your other thread, psychiatry is a good career choice that is also in line with your goals. But if you decide not to pursue medical school, then there is no need for the post-bacc and you'd do better to focus on obtaining research experience.

 

[Psychstudent!721]

Not sure why you started a second thread here, but some biology coursework would be helpful if your goal is a career in neuropsychology. In my first semester of graduate school I took a functional neuroanatomy course, and I was very glad to have taken general bio, neuroscience, psychopharmacology, etc. as an undergraduate. But it isn't strictly necessary - you'll just have some catching up to do.

As others commented on your other thread, psychiatry is a good career choice that is also in line with your goals. But if you decide not to pursue medical school, then there is no need for the post-bacc and you'd do better to focus on obtaining research experience.

I didn’t mean to start the new thread, not very savvy with phones. Since I like research and I want to provide clinical therapies I believe becoming a psychologist would be the best idea. Would you recommending not doing the post bacc but instead applying to master degrees in psychology. From the programs I found I’ll do research as part of the curriculum as they prepare me for a doctorate program. However, only one program does rolling admissions, the rest I would have to wait until February. In the meantime o would take GRE classes and prepare for the GRE as some programs require it. Would you recommend going the psychology route instead of the biology route?

One thing really discouraging me from doing psychiatry is that I keep reading and I’m told they hardly do psychotherapy anymore. I think I’d be interested in it more if I can do the therapy and have the medication option as a last result.

 

[deleted343839]

Since I like research and I want to provide clinical therapies I believe becoming a psychologist would be the best idea. Would you recommending not doing the post bacc but instead applying to master degrees in psychology.

If you decide that you want to become a psychologist, you definitely don't need the biology-focused post-bacc. Whether to do a master's in psychology depends on your grades as an undergraduate and how much research experience you have.

 

[Psychstudent!721]

If you decide that you want to become a psychologist, you definitely don't need the biology-focused post-bacc. Whether to do a master's in psychology depends on your grades as an undergraduate and how much research experience you have.

Most of the programs I’ve found have gpa requirements of 3.0 I had a 3.2 and although I have little research aside from research courses I did internships and ran psychotherapy groups in hospitals

 

[deleted343839]

Most of the programs I’ve found have gpa requirements of 3.0 I had a 3.2 and although I have little research aside from research courses I did internships and ran psychotherapy groups in hospitals

Because of your limited research experience and relatively low GPA, you do not have a good chance of gaining admission to a PhD program. You might consider a master's in quantitative or experimental psychology to strengthen your academic record and get a better feel for research. For psychology doctoral programs, clinical experience is not as important for admissions as grades and research experience.

 

[Psychstudent!721]

Because of your limited research experience and relatively low GPA, you do not have a good chance of gaining admission to a PhD program. You might consider a master's in quantitative or experimental psychology to strengthen your academic record and get a better feel for research. For psychology doctoral programs, clinical experience is not as important for admissions as grades and research experience.

I intended on doing masters first. I’m hopefully, not euphoric about my gpa lol. I found a MA in general psychology that provides a strong foundation in research and specifically prepares its students for doctoral programs. Where could I find a coherent listing of master programs for psych I can’t seem to find many

 

[deleted343839]

I'm going to reply to this, but on your original thread on the PhD/PsyD board...

 

[Katlen]

Perhaps you should initially take the courses you want most, and then think about continuing to study the discipline.

 

[Anne02]

I didn’t mean to start the new thread, not very savvy with phones. Since I like research and I want to provide clinical therapies I believe becoming a psychologist would be the best idea. Would you recommending not doing the post bacc but instead applying to master degrees in psychology. From the programs I found I’ll do research as part of the curriculum as they prepare me for a doctorate program. However, only one program does rolling admissions, the rest I would have to wait until February. In the meantime o would take GRE classes and prepare for the GRE as some programs require it. Would you recommend going the psychology route instead of the biology route?

One thing really discouraging me from doing psychiatry is that I keep reading and I’m told they hardly do psychotherapy anymore. I think I’d be interested in it more if I can do the therapy and have the medication option as a last result.

I would get a master's in either clinical psychology or counseling psychology and I bet after that you'll know if you want to pursue PsyD, PhD, or look at other options that are dependent upon location such as Ed Spec or a specialty certificate. Good luck!