Best West Coast Undergraduate Psychology Colleges?

[ucbalumnus]

<p>[FAQ</a> - General Admissions | UC Psych](<a href=“http://psychology.berkeley.edu/students/graduate-program/faq-general-admissions]FAQ”>General Admission | UC Psych) has the following recommendations for preparing for a PhD program in psychology:</p>

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@Berkeley psychology department

Q: What steps should I take to become a competitive candidate?</p>

<p>A: First, regarding courses, there are not any specific classes that you need to complete for admission to our program, but we strongly recommend that you take an introductory psychology course, several advanced courses in the area to which you will apply, and a course in psychology research methods and statistics. Second, the admissions committee seeks students who have laboratory or field research experience, a general knowledge of psychology (and their particular subfield), and the ability to conduct high-level research in that subfield. Third, writing a strong personal statement and having extremely good letters of recommendation are both essential. Also, it is beneficial for applicants to our Clinical Science program to have at least one year of volunteer or paid clinical experience (e.g., hospital internships, suicide/crisis hotlines, educational work with children, etc.).

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<p>I.e. seek undergraduate schools which have course work and undergraduate research opportunities in your intended specialty of clinical psychology.</p>

<p>Psychology is often a very popular major, so that psychology courses often have among the larger class sizes at any given school. LACs should help in the class sizes, if that matters to you, but be sure to check the course catalogs and faculty rosters to see if your intended specialty is well represented in courses and research opportunities.</p>

<p>Of course, you need to consider your cost constraints and state of residency. Run the net price calculators on school web sites to check financial aid estimates.</p>