<p>If a foreign student (from a latin american country) was interested in getting a PHD in the USA in the field of psychology, how likely/possible would this be? The student has already received a psychology degree in their country and is a practicing psychologist-- but the degrees don’t match up in the USA. </p>
<p>Thanks for the advice! </p>
<p>(And this is for a friend, not for me). </p>
<p>Exactly what country is the student? Different education systems may line up differently. if it’s a 3-4 year degree from a university (they may have certain accreditation standards in foreign countries) it shouldn’t be an issue.</p>
<p>Peru — he has a 5 year degree.
Is it possible for him to get funding/be accepted/ all that?</p>
<p>Clinical psychology has two “different” types of PhD degrees: research-oriented degrees offered at research universities (students are funded, hard to get into) and practice-oriented degrees offered by professional schools (expensive but easy to get into). </p>
<p>If your friend has the money to attend a professional school, he’ll probably get a spot. If your friend has his sights set on a research program, he better have a convincing story for why he wants to shift gears from practice to research. (Most research programs are hoping to produce future scholars, not future practitioners. That’s why, for example, they tend to look for applicants with prior research experience.) </p>
<p>By the way, if his sole goal is to get a degree that would allow him to practice as a therapist in the US, he could also get a Master’s degree in social work (to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker) or marriage and family therapy (to become a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist). If he ends up having to pay out-of-pocket for his degree, it would be a lot cheaper to pay for a 1-2 year Master’s degree than a 4-5 year PhD or PsyD. </p>
<p>Despite the names sounding different, all of these professions actually do the same work and see the same clients, if they work as a therapist in private practice. As far as I can tell, there are 3 main differences between these educational paths:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>The focus of the education is different. Social work programs will place much more emphasis on ‘social systems’ than clinical psychology programs, for instance.</p></li>
<li><p>The non-therapist career options are different. A clinical psychologist might choose to become a university professor instead of a therapist, whereas a social worker might become a case manager for foster youth. </p></li>
<li><p>The insurance reimbursement rates are higher for PhD-level practitioners than Master’s-level practitioners. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>One more thing: if it is actually your friend’s goal to practice psychology in the US, have him think about the visa situation. In other to work in the US, he would either need to have a green card, be sponsored for a work visa by an employer, or start his own practice on an investor visa (which requires an investment of at least half a million dollars and the creation of at least 5 jobs for Americans). </p>
<p>I think it’s extremely unlikely that he would get a work visa as a practicing psychologist. The employer would have to pay several thousand dollars to submit a visa petition, win a lottery (there are more work visas requested than allowed by law, so there’s a lottery to decide whose visa petition will be processed) and then wait for a half a year before the foreign employee may start work. Employers usually won’t jump through those hoops unless a position cannot be filled by a qualified American worker. Unfortunately, there’s no shortage in sight for practicing clinical psychologists. </p>
<p>His odds of getting a work visa would increase dramatically if your friend decided to pursue an academic career…</p>
<p>The easiest way (and only way for many) to get a green card is through marriage to a US citizen. Other ways include sponsorship by an employer subject to even harsher conditions than a regular work visa; winning the green card lottery; applying for political asylum; being a native of Cuba; etc…</p>