Department of Psychology at Illinois State University
In graduate school, students focus on one specific area of psychology that interests them (e.g., clinical, cognitive, developmental, industrial-organizational, school, social, etc.). Students receive specialized training in research and/or practice in the chosen area and, depending on the program, students may be qualified to practice, teach, or continue conducting research in this area of interest.
The choice of graduate programs depends on many factors including students' area of interest, career goals, grades, and amount of research experience. The admission requirements for most master's and doctoral programs require a background in research methods and statistics. Students should consider applying to programs of varying competitiveness to give themselves a range of possibilities for acceptance into either a master's or doctoral program.
Master's programs typically require about two years to complete and may not focus on a specific area of psychology. Master's programs usually require students to write and defend a thesis or pass a comprehensives exam. Counseling psychology master's programs allow students to become licensed after graduation usually by passing an examination or after completing a certain number of practice hours. Some master's programs may also help raise a grade point average or provide more research experience if students do not have the minimum requirements for admission to a doctoral program. There are many careers in practice or industry that require only a master's degree in psychology.
Doctoral programs (i.e., Doctor of Philosophy or Ph. D.) can require five or six years to complete. Doctoral programs usually focused on a specific area or psychology and require a research project for a dissertation. Becoming an instructor in psychology at a college or university generally requires completion of a doctoral degree.
Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) programs can be very different from the Ph. D. programs. Psy.D. programs are often located in a professional school of psychology, and lead to a career as a licensed, practicing psychologist.
The following links provide more information about graduate study in different areas of psychology:
Clinical-Counseling Psychology
Cognitive and Behavioral Psychology
Developmental Psychology
Industrial/Organizational Psychology
Quantitative Psychology
School Psychology
It is generally not a good idea for students to pursue graduate school simply because they have nothing else to do after completing their undergraduate degree. Graduate school requires a strong commitment and students, who are not committed, perform poorly. It is also not a good idea to go to graduate school simply to avoid employment. Most successful graduate students work on their degree for more than 40 hours per week. Graduate school involves intensive study of a specific area of psychology. Therefore, having only a vague interest in psychology is usually not enough motivation for students to complete a graduate degree.
