Phd programs - Dissertation scares me =/

[WillyG4444 10+ year member]

I just wanted to see if anyone was or is in the same boat I was at the end of their undergrad schooling. I'm a Psychology major and although there are a lot of things I'd like to do in the field, I always wanted to be a clinical psychologist having my own practice. However, it's pretty necessary today that you have a Phd or Psyd for that type of practice. I'm great with book work, but writing the dissertation is scaring me off and I hate it. And then you read the statistics about people who drop out because of the dissertation etc. and it's overwhelming. I guess you have to REALLY want it. I just don't feel my writing ability is developed enough to write a book. Do people usually go into it with little writing ability and develop it over time? Help me out, I need some opinions I'm stuck //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

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[RAM_Designs 5,000+ posts]

My g/f is a psych major and is in the same boat...

 

[faulkton 5,000+ posts]

You should have worked closely with a prof during your time as an undergrad.

I thought that i would like to go on to grad school so i have purposely set myself up to have as big of an advantage as i can.

Over the last year i have worked closely with a prof on a research project, used data from the project to present a paper at a professional conference, and I am finalizing the paper to submit for publication. I also entered the paper in a student paper competition sponsored by the professional association and won the undergrad division.

I cant underestimate how much i have learned doing this. I have the greatest respect for the amount of work that it will take to earn a graduate degree and have made great contacts at grad schools by doing this.

If you are seriously considering grad school, start talking to your current profs asap.

The way i look at it, grad school will about as different from undergrad, as undergrad was from high school.

It is a major step up in expectations and if you arent willing to put in the effort, then it probably wont work out for you.

 

[Flipx99 5,000+ posts]

You should have worked closely with a prof during your time as an undergrad.
I thought that i would like to go on to grad school so i have purposely set myself up to have as big of an advantage as i can.

Over the last year i have worked closely with a prof on a research project, used data from the project to present a paper at a professional conference, and I am finalizing the paper to submit for publication. I also entered the paper in a student paper competition sponsored by the professional association and won the undergrad division.

I cant underestimate how much i have learned doing this. I have the greatest respect for the amount of work that it will take to earn a graduate degree and have made great contacts at grad schools by doing this.

If you are seriously considering grad school, start talking to your current profs asap.

The way i look at it, grad school will about as different from undergrad, as undergrad was from high school.

It is a major step up in expectations and if you arent willing to put in the effort, then it probably wont work out for you.

Biggest understatement of the year.

I am in the process of getting my PhD in economics and I do not think I will finish. I will prolly end up getting my master's in economics with the concentration in finance, then get my MBA, and maybe return to finish my PhD some day in the future.

Writing the dissertation is not a much a big of deal as learning statistical programs.

If you school offers a "Data Gathering and Analysis" type of class, I would highly suggest you take it.

One of my classes requires us to do this as just an assignment

create topic, gather data, analyze data, input data in equations, test the results, review with other classmates (to check the work, conclusions, etc).

The data gathering is far more elaborate than typical "searching the web. We have to purchase rights to economic databases and then convert the data in something that can be read by statistical programs. Since you are in the liberal arts, you will probably be using SPSS for your research.

Go for it. Even if you fail, you can get a master's. And you wouldn't believe the respect you get when you tell people you are in the PhD program.

 

[faulkton 5,000+ posts]

This is a good book, the one that thought was the best out of the four books on SPSS that i have looked at.



If you were a slacker, who did the least amount to get by as an undergrad, it will be a long and hard road to a phd.

I have gone above and beyond what is required of an undergrad and am still unsure i will have the dedication it takes to earn a graduate degree.

 

[Lubega 10+ year member]

I'm on my way to a Ph.D in computer science. I want to do encryption. Yes, it will be a challenge (to say the least) but I am up for it.

 

You can do it, my brother.

 

As the movie Rocky 5 said, "Go for it!"

 

See ya at the top!

 

[WillyG4444 10+ year member]

Thanks for the replies guys. I was actually an English Major/ Psychology Minor, but I just decided to double major in Psych and English recently, so I was behind from the get go with the research part. I'm also really involved on campus and busy enough as it is, but I guess what you are saying is I NEED some sort of research to be accepted to a good Phd program. Ugh, I still have some time I better get on that.

 

[faulkton 5,000+ posts]

You probably don't NEED to work on a research project, but it will certainly give you a look at what you are in store for if you do decide to pursue a graduate degree.

Although, you will NEED some good references and a good score on the GRE.

 

[Brock 5,000+ posts]

I'm writing 2 dissertations for 2 separate majors as an undergrad right now. I'm not going the PhD route (although its possible I might in the future) but I'll still have my *** handed to me through my Diplomacy Masters and Law School.

If you don't think you're up to the challenge of writing, you need to start working on it right now. A liberal arts education is really nothing more than taking in information and spitting it back out in your own written form. If you graduate with a BA and can't write, well, you just wasted 4 years and a lot of money.

 

[WillyG4444 10+ year member]

I never said I couldn't write lol =P. I always get As on my papers, but the problem is I haven't been assigned anything more than an 8 page paper. I guess I've just been looking at it from the "wow I have to write a whole book" perspective, and not realizing that it may not be too difficult when I think of it in terms of sections. Eh, I guess it can't hurt to apply to a Phd program. The worst that could happen is I'd get my masters as a consolation prize =P. I was under the impression that they didn't rely heavily on the GRE scores, but rather extra curriculars and such? Life is just going by too fast ugh..

 

[Flipx99 5,000+ posts]

I never said I couldn't write lol =P. I always get As on my papers, but the problem is I haven't been assigned anything more than an 8 page paper. I guess I've just been looking at it from the "wow I have to write a whole book" perspective, and not realizing that it may not be too difficult when I think of it in terms of sections. Eh, I guess it can't hurt to apply to a Phd program. The worst that could happen is I'd get my masters as a consolation prize =P. I was under the impression that they didn't rely heavily on the GRE scores, but rather extra curriculars and such? Life is just going by too fast ugh..

Not all dissertations are like that. You will have to contact the program advisors.

Ours requries a series of papers...no specific length but 50 pages or so.

bolded is the attitude I took when I enrolled in a PhD program.

The GRE is very important...but since you are liberal arts, I don't think you have to worry about it is as much as say Econ, which is mostly math.

 

[Flipx99 5,000+ posts]

You probably don't NEED to work on a research project, but it will certainly give you a look at what you are in store for if you do decide to pursue a graduate degree.
Although, you will NEED some good references and a good score on the GRE.

May not need it, but I would highly reccomend it. Yours is certainly going to give you a leg up on the competition and assist when you are assigned real projects.

x2 on the other stuff