Graduate Programs for Psychology Students:
A Brief Guide
(with a Canadian focus)


Many psychology students are interested in finding out more about graduate programs. Other psych students are just interested in knowing about their options. And some just want to know ways they can get volunteer experience for some other professional programs or to broaden their horizons and skill sets. 

This page outlines some detailed information as a reference to help undergraduate psychology students interested in graduate school to get started in exploring and understanding this process. The info may also be relevant for students interested in psychology-related fields.

At any rate, I think it's a good idea to find out what the options are early on, and for students to build up their experience set as they go through undergrad so they will be able to know what's right for them. I hope this page gives you some ideas about directions you can take and experiences you can gain.

Applications for graduate programs are typically due in December or January for admission in the coming September, so it's important to plan for the application process well in advance of the deadlines and in advance of graduation. 

This page features information about:

And for psychology students interested in continuing into other graduate or professional programs:



Types of graduate programs in psychology


There are two main types of graduate programs in psychology:

Experimental psychology and clinical psychology. 


These programs are offered by psychology departments. Not every university offers both experimental and clinical psychology training; some schools offer only experimental training (and not clinical training). 

Usually, a student completes their Master's degree and then proceeds directly into the doctoral degree program. Sometimes a student may enter a PhD program directly from their BA/BSc.


Experimental psychology -- This type of program places a heavy emphasis on research training. Students typically are trained to become professors or researchers. 
  • Experimental programs typically encompass areas like social psychology, developmental, cognition, cognitive neuroscience, behavioral neuroscience, sensation & perception, animal cognition, personality, measurement/quantitative, industrial/organizational, health psychology, etc. 
  • Most schools use a mentorship model, where students work closely with one professor who trains and supervises the student's research, and there is typically only limited coursework. 

Clinical psychology -- Most clinical PhD programs in Canada follow scientist/practioner approach. Clinical psychology programs place a great deal of emphasis on researchtraining on working with patients/clients. A PhD in clinical psychology usually leads to a career as a clinicial psychologist (i.e., a clinician who works in hospitals, private practice, schools, prisons, etc.), professor, or researcher.
  • Usually one specializes in adult-clinical, child-clinical, or neuropsychology. 
  • As with experimental programs, most schools use a mentorship model, where students work closely with one professor who trains and supervises the student's research. 
  • Clinical students typically have a fair courseload in their early years in graduate school. 
  • Some US schools offer a PsyD in clinical psychology; as I understand, the PsyD degree places little emphasis on scientific research compared to a PhD program [see this article]. But usually a doctorate is called a PhD. 

Most graduate programs in experimental or clinical psychology primarily accept students who want to complete their doctoral degree. Although many programs first require the students to complete a Master's degree, most will not accept students who only want to earn a Master's degree, since the doctoral degree is typically required for a research career (e.g., a professor, research scientist) or for clinical practice in Canada (except in Quebec). 

It typically takes 2 years to complete a Master's degree, and 4 to 6 years to complete a PhD degree. Clinical students also do a 1-year internship and typically have to pass board certification exams to be certified as clinical psychologists; specifics may vary from province to province.




Other types of graduate programs in, or related to, psychology

(1) Master's of Applied Science (MASc)

A number of schools offer specialized Master's degrees in psychology, usually with degrees called Master's of Applied Science. These programs are usually designed as 2-year Master's programs designed as practical programs to train students for specific career fields such as industrial/organizational psychology, health psychology, and community psychology. For example, check out the MASc program options at the University of Waterloo. 



(2) Psychology & Law

Psychology & Law graduate programs typically classified as "experimental psychology" since they place their primary emphasis on research. These programs offer PhD degrees and some offer joint PhD/LLB or PhD/JD degrees (LLB and JD are law degrees; students in these programs earn both a PhD and law degree). These programs designed for students who want to become researchers, like a professor or a government researcher. Students with joint PhD/LLB or PhD/JD degrees may also work as lawyers (if they take and pass the bar). 
  • In Canada, specific training in Forensic Psychology & Law is available through a joint program offered from Simon Fraser University. There are also researchers in many psychology departments across Canada who study issues relating to psychology & law in more traditional experimental psychology programs -- for example, many professors who do psychology & law research work in the areas of social psychology, cognitive psychology, developmental or clinical psychology at schools that don't have a formal 'forensic' stream in their graduate program.
  • In addition to the regular courses recommended for a graduate degree in psychology, a course in Psychology & Law or Forensic Psych would probably be a good idea, if your school offers it. (At King's, Prof. Melnyk teaches a 2000-level course called Psychology & Law, and a 3000-level called Forensic Psychology).


(3) Forensic Psychology

Forensic psychology is traditionally regarded a branch of clinical psychology. Students are trained or careers as clinical psychologists (e.g., psychologists who work directly with clients/patients) and their focus is on prison populations. These programs are usually PhD programs. 
  • Just to keep things mildly complicated: Some schools are now calling their psych-law programs "forensic" even if there isn't a clinical focus; check with the program to be sure about what it is offering.
  • Note that despite what you see on television and movies, there are very few jobs in criminal profiling in North America. It's estimated that there are less than 20 profilers, and these profilers primarily high-ranking FBI agents (or in the RCMP in Canada).


There are also programs that are related to Psychology that are typically offered by other departments:


(4) Counselling Psychology

Counselling psychology is an M.Ed. program (Master's of Education) offered through faculties of education, not psychology departments. These programs are usually 2-years in length, and these programs train students to be counsellors, such as in schools, hospitals, government agencies, etc.  Some schools also offer a doctoral degree (Ed.D.) in counselling psychology. 
  • Grades, experience, and references are important in gaining admission to this type of program; see the section on "the application process" below. (Note that throughout this webpage, "graduate programs in psychology" refers strictly to programs offered by psychology departments, not faculties of education).

In Canada, counselling psychology is offered at several schools, including: 


(5) Family Relations

The Family Relations & Applied Nutrition department at the University of Guelph has two graduate programs that may be of interest to psychology graduates:



The application process for graduate programs in psychology

Simply put, graduate programs are very competitive.

So it's important to do well in your undergraduate (Bachelor's) courses and get yourself the types of experience you'll need to be a competitive candidate.

Generally speaking, the following is required for application to graduate programs in psychology:


(1) An honors degree in Psychology. The specific course requirements are usually quite broad, but usually the undergraduate program should include Research Methods and Statistics and an honors thesis. At King's, the honors specialization module includes the honors thesis course, so this is the degree module that is recommended for students considering graduate school.

The honors thesis serves as evidence that you can do fairly independent research and it gives you the chance to see if you enjoy research (since the bulk of grad school is conducting research!). It's a good idea to take courses related to your general interests; for example, if you want to do developmental research, you should take basic and upper-level courses in Developmental Psychology as an undergrad. 

Fundamentals such as cognition and social psych are also useful for most domains, a course in neuropsychology or neuroscience is becoming increasingly important. Abnormal/clinical is usually necessary if you are interested in clinical psychology.  

Note that an honors degree isn't always required -- but it usually is because it shows that the student has excelled at the undergraduate level relative to their peers and has performed well in the types of more challenging courses that serve as the foundation for graduate studies.


(2) Very good grades. Let's be honest; graduate programs in psychology are highly competitive. Grades in your core psychology courses in 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year are particularly important. The odd poor grade may be forgiven (thankfully), but overall, good grades are very important.

It's worth pointing out that what courses you take may matter -- taking low-level 'survey' courses in psychology isn't good preparation for graduate studies; you need to take challenging courses. This will also help you to discover which area(s) are most appealing to you.

A note on math/stats: Some psychology undergrads dislike the often-required math and/or statistics courses. Math/stats grades are generally considered important; graduate studies involves research, which typically involves a fair amount of math and stats, so be honest with yourself when considering your options -- i.e., if you loathed stats class, do you really want to go to grad school where you will take more stats classes and perform stats and work with numbers on a regular basis?


(3) Research experience. 

This serves two purposes: 
  • First, it ensures that you have some basic research training.
  • Second, it gives you chance to see if you actually like research, since the bulk of graduate training is research-based, even in clinical psych.  Research experience can be gained by doing some paid or volunteer work as a research assistant (RA) during the school year or during the summer. 
One's honors thesis also counts as research experience, but since this is only in the student's 4th year of their undergrad program, it means that by the time the student applies for grad school, they'll have only had about 4-months of research experience if this is their only measurable research experience (because applications are typically due in December/January of the student's 4th year for the coming September). 

Relevant research experience is best, but if that's not possible, the experience should be at least related to the area of psychology you are hoping to study in grad school (e.g., social psych, developmental, etc.).

Be proactive: If you'd like to gain research experience, approach profs who you have impressed (e.g., by earning good grades in their class) and let them know that you are interested in volunteering or working in their lab.


(4) Relevant experience. This is especially important for clinical applicants. This again serves two broad purposes: 
  • First, you may gain basic experience and develop some skills working with clinical populations. Note that research experience is important for clinical applicants, since most programs follow the "scientist-practioner" model (i.e., students are trained as both researchers and practioners).
  • Second, experience gives you chance to see if you actually like clinical work.

For applicants to clinical psychology, some ideas for volunteering or working include:


Forensic-clinical ideas:

Students interested in forensic-clinical may wish to gain experience working with people who have been in conflict with the law (or at risk of conflict with the law); for example:


Volunteer/work ideas for applicants to clinical neuropsychology include:
Some ideas for applicants to child-clinical include volunteering or working at:
  • Eating disorder centre -- here in London, Hope's Garden has volunteer opportunities
  • King's Kids (for students at King's University College)
    • From the President of King's Kids a few years back: "King’s Kids is a program founded on a partnership between King’s University College and the Children’s Aid Society. Volunteers from King's are matched up with a child in need whose family has a case open at the Children’s Aid Society. The King's student visits the child approximately once a week, and through these visits, as well as monthly events run by the club, the child learns and practices healthy social and relationship skills and has the opportunity to get to know a positive role model. King’s Kids is a rewarding opportunity for not only the children involved, but the students as well. Aside from gaining valuable volunteer experience, students will also be able to develop positive leadership skills, a connection with a child in need and meet other students like them."
    • King’s Kids are usually present at a booth during clubs week at King's; you may also locate them through the Students' Council.

Do you have other ideas for volunteering? Please let me know and I'll add them to my list.


Practical experience is also valuable for applicants to counselling psychology. Check your university's career center or student placement center for other positions. Here's the UWO site.

This type of experience may also be useful for applicants to experimental psychology programs, demonstrating the student's interest to apply their knowledge and be involved.

Working as an undergraduate TA/grader also provides solid experience -- it helps profs to write you better letters if you can impress them with your commitment and responsibility. A professor you impressed may ask you if you are interested in working as a TA/grader, or you can be proactive here; if you did very well in a course, let the prof know that you're interested in working as a TA/grader. Profs are often looking for good, keen students who want to gain experience. 


(5) Contact a potential supervisor. Graduate programs in psychology typically use a mentorship approach to training; that is, most of your training is supervised by a single professor with whom you develop a close relationship, and this prof serves as your primary research supervisor and mentor. 

  • In the summer/fall before you apply for a graduate program, contact potential supervisors that you may be interested in working with; check the department's web site to find out about their faculty research interest and read a few of the profs' articles to see if their research is interesting to you. 
    • Make a connection with the prof -- this is essential. Don't send a bland form letter; make it personalized (e.g., "I learned about your research in my 3rd-year seminar course..." or "I read your recent article XYZ for my honors thesis research..."). Remember, the prof is trying to decide whether they want to invest 6 or more years of their career working with you and (often) large amounts of grant moneys to support you; this letter is your first chance to make a connection.
    • Be professional in this email -- address the professor directly (e.g., "Dear Dr. Blank") and cite specific reasons why you would like to work with this prof.
    • Be honest about your plans; don't say you are interested in cognitive neuroscience when you really want clinical.
  • It is typically recommended that students do their graduate training in experimental or clinical psychology at a different school from their undergraduate university; this broadens the student's horizons/perspectives, experience base, and allows the student to work with someone whose research interests truly match their own. Indeed, many schools flat-out refuse to take their own undergrads into graduate programs. (And honestly, it's a great experience to take your undergrad training and mix with students from different academic backgrounds and to broaden your horizons. )

(6) References letters from 2 or 3 professors. 

To write a student a compelling reference letter, professors need to know the student fairly well. For a professor's view on writing strong letters, here's a good article on "strong" reference letters from the Observer, published by the APS (American Psychological Society).

Working directly with a professor (e.g., for your honors thesis, independent study, work-study, and/or volunteering) is the best way to improve the quality of your references, since the prof will know you better and can cite examples of your skills. But this requires some advance planning, so if you are a year or two from graduating, get involved in your classes now, so you're not struggling to find references when you're in your final year. 

Participating in class (long before you seek out references) is another way for your profs to get to know you.  


(7) GRE scores. Applicants are also usually required to write some standardized tests (in Canada and the US, the main test is called the Graduate Record Examination, or GRE) prior to applying. It's a good idea to practice before taking the examination. (It seems to me that some schools place more, or less, emphasis on GRE scores. For example, doing well in undergraduate math/stats may reduce the impact of doing poorly on the math section of the GRE. But this seems to vary from school to school.)
  • These tests usually need to be written in the summer or early fall before you apply for grad school -- so basically one year before you would start the program, if accepted.
  • The GRE-General is a standardized test which assesses your language skills, math skills, and analytical skills. Scoring is relative, based on the percentage of the other test-takers that your score beats (i.e., a score of the 80th percentile means that your score was better than 80% of the other test-takers).
  • Many schools also require applicants to take the GRE-Psychology test. This assesses the breadth of your knowledge in Psychology. Be sure to review your intro psych text and basic stats. 

(8) Submitting the application on time. Applications are typically due in the December or January for admission in September -- so you have to be organized to make your application successful. It's a good idea to start to develop your skills base for a successful application in 2nd or 3rd year of your undergraduate degree. 



Funding


Most Canadian and many American graduate programs in psychology offer their students some base level of support through internal funding. (This level of support is the norm in psychology departments and the sciences in general, but it is not the norm in other fields.) This internal funding may be (in part) covered by:

  • Teaching assistantships -- also called "TA-ships." The student works as a TA, marking papers, leading tutorials, etc. Working as a TA is a terrific way for students to develop their teaching skills (there's nothing like being thrown right in the trenches!). 
  • Research assistantships -- also called "RA-ships." The student assists a professor with a research project. This can be a good way for students to broaden the scope of their research experience and develop relationships with professors in addition to their primary mentor. 
  • Institutional scholarships (scholarships offered by the university). Most universities offer a wide variety of scholarships for graduate students. Sometimes the student needs to apply for these scholarships; other times, the application is automatic with admission to the school's graduate program.
  • Government scholarships -- Be sure to check what types of funding are available at the schools you are applying for; many schools require that their applicants have applied for all government scholarships for which they are eligible, prior to applying to their graduate program -- for example:
Government scholarships are normally handed in to your undergraduate school for ranking. The deadlines are in the early fall of the year before the student plans to attend graduate school, so be sure to check with the UWO psychology department's graduate secretary or our department chair at King's for the internal deadlines so you can submit your applications on time!  


The level of funding from TA-ships, RA-ships, or scholarships is usually sufficient to live from while in grad school; grad students in psychology typically do not need to hold down a part-time job to afford their studies. (Indeed, when I was at McGill, grad students were not allowed to hold down a part-time job, as being a grad student was our "job.") Graduate school the start of your career, so it's important to focus on developing your CV (short for "curriculum vitae" -- this is an academic resume) and your skills. 

Note that professional programs like counselling psychology, OT, speech pathology, social work, law school, etc. (discussed below) typically do not offer funding in this manner, but students may be eligible some provincial scholarships for graduate studies, like the Ontario Graduate Scholarship; you'd have to check with the specific graduate program to ask about this.



Other Resources & Ideas
You should also check specific schools' sites to find out their specific applications processes for their graduate programs. For example, the following schools have excellent online overviews of their programs and applications processes
University of Western Ontario
University of Waterloo
McGill University
University of Victoria



Some other graduate programs relating to psychology
 
Other popular choices that psychology students may consider for graduate/professional training include "helping" fields like rehabilitation sciences, as well as medical school, law school, and teacher's college. 

Applications to these programs typically require many of the same things that applications to graduate school in psychology entail: Strong grades, solid reference letters, and relevant experience, for starters; the details are above.

Here's a brief overview of these fields and their requirements:


(1) Rehabilitation sciences are popular "helping" fields that may be appealing to psych grads:
  • Speech-language pathology
  • Audiology
  • Occupational therapy (OT)
  • Physical therapy (PT)
These programs are offered at several schools, including UWO and University of Toronto in Ontario, as well as McGill in Montreal and UBC in Vancouver.

Some programs for speech pathology, audiology, and OT do not require that applicants hold a BSc, but they may have certain course requirements for admission. You'll want to check with the individual schools to see what they require. The Ontario Council of University Programs in Rehabilitation Sciences has a complete listing of Ontario universities offering degrees in these fields. This site also has useful overviews of each of these career fields.



(2) Medical school
  • Ontario has several medical schools: McMaster University, University of Ottawa, Queen's University, University of Toronto, and University of Western Ontario (and a new program at the Northern Ontario Medical School).
  • Admission to medical school in Ontario is centralized through the Ontario Medical School Application Service (OMSAS) -- check the OMSAS site for information and important dates.
  • Each school has its own admissions requirements. Although medical schools typically require applicants to hold a bachelor's degree from the sciences (or certain science courses in undergrad) some medical schools (e.g., McMaster) do not require applicants to hold a BSc, but they often place heavy emphasis on academic excellence, references, and experience.
  • Applicants to medical school are usually required to take a standardized test called the MCAT.


(3) Law school
Ontario has six law schools offering law degrees (usually called an LLB; sometimes called a JD).
  • Queen's University
  • University of Ottawa
  • University of Toronto
  • University of Western Ontario
  • University of Windsor
  • York University - Osgoode Hall
Application deadlines are usually in the mid-fall; for entry in 2010, the centralized application deadline was November 2 2009.


(4) Teachers' college
  • Applications information
  • Remember that experience is important for applicants, such as volunteering in a classroom with the approximate age group you are interested in teaching.


(5) Other ideas

I'd be happy to talk about graduate programs with any of my current/former students and any King's students. Unfortunately, I can not respond to emails from anyone else; thanks for understanding.
For specific information on specific programs, it's best to contact the school's graduate program secretary directly.

And of course, the disclaimer: This page exists solely as a courtesy to provide a starting point for students investigating graduate programs. While I have tried to ensure that the information presented is as accurate and up-to-date as possible, absolutely no responsibility for errors or omissions is expressed or implied.

If you have links you think may be useful, corrections/expired links, if you spot typos, or just have compliments or flames, please let me know.


Laura Melnyk PhD
Associate Professor
King's University College at the University of Western Ontario
London, Canada



© 2004-2011 lemg. All rights reserved.
updated jan 18 2012
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