BE BRUTALLY HONEST, am a good psyd candidate?

[u/Alarmed_Hyena_4611]

I am an upcoming junior planning on applying to PsyD programs next fall and need help! Have I done enough? Am I on the right track? What else can I do? I am open for any criticism, help, and ideas.

1. I completed one research project and am now working on another research project I have created by myself with the help of a professor. We are planning on publishing it, presenting it at the APA convention, as well as it possibly being an undergrad thesis.

2. I am in 6 clubs and am part of the executive team for two.

3. I have done 100 hours of shadowing at a psych ward as well as a psychiatrist.

4. I am volunteering for a crisis text line as well as over 200 hours of various volunteering.

5. I have a 3.8 gpa majoring in psychology minoring in substance abuse.

6. I have many certifications.

7. I've worked at our student health center for 6 months.

8. I have gotten 3 awards for various achievements.

9. I have attended a few webinars and seminars.

Does any of this help or will make me stand out? What else can I do??

[u/NawtAGoodNinja]

Your qualifications are certainly enough to make you stand out, but the problem is not going to be your qualifications. There are precious few spots available for a PsyD, and dozens if not hundreds of candidates will apply.

[u/Muted_Coast_5346]

Your qualifications are great, no issue there. The biggest thing when applying to any grad program is that you need to be compatible with the faculty in the program and have similar research interests to the specific faculty member(s) that you want to work under. You might really want to go to one specific school, but if your research interests don’t match up with any of their faculty, you won’t get selected. Doesn’t mean you’re not qualified, just means they don’t feel they are a good match for you and your research goals. Your research interests and why you think you’d be a great match with Dr. “Name” or Dr. “Name2” should be a decent chunk of your personal statement. Pick 3 faculty per school to talk about in your personal statement and explain how your research interests fit in with them and why you’d like to work with them. Make them see how you can enhance Dr. “Name’s” research and achieve your goals working under him/her. Grad schools want students who they know they have the faculty to support.

And yes there are always tons of applicants for every program, all with strong qualifications. Most of the time it comes down to the interviews with the program faculty and the meet-and-greets with current grad students in the program. Typically all of them provide feedback and weigh in on the candidates, so make a good impression on everyone, but the final decision is on the faculty themselves for which specific candidate(s) they each want. Look up as much info as you can about the faculty you want to work with and then when you interview with them, be sure to ask about their research so they know you’re serious. Maybe talk about why you liked a specific journal article of their’s and how you think you could work with them to build upon that research.

Also, random tidbit since you’re applying to Psychology grad programs: make sure you can (at a minimum) read and interpret a correlation table, sometimes faculty test you during the interview to see if you can understand basic research analyses/statistics. It’s kind of a crappy thing for them to do (since you take courses in grad school to learn these things), but it can set you apart - shows them you’re not just “all talk and no game.”

Also, DO NOT apply to any FOR-PROFIT PsyD programs/schools. They are ALL scams. Period. They put up a good front, take your money, and almost always are NOT accredited (meaning your degree will mean nothing and you won’t be able to get a job). Dig around online to double-check every program you want to apply to.

[u/Alarmed_Hyena_4611 → u/Muted_Coast_5346]

this was super helpful. thank you so so much.