My BS is in Psychology, 3.9 GPA, I have over a year research/intern experience, but was rejected from all Ph.D programs last year. I am currently in my first year of my MA Psychology degree with a 3.5 GPA. I will be retaking the GRE in April and will be graduating with my MA in December this year. I want to apply to clinical ph.d programs again this fall, but I am nervous about whether my MA will help/hurt my application. Currently I am pursuing more research experience while I prepare for Fall 2017 applications. Also, how much does the rank of your current university affect the application for doctoral programs? Should I also rewrite my personal statement?
Also, I understand that the most important piece of the application process is goodness of fit with professors of interest. I am specifically concerned with competitiveness of the application in addition to being a good fit for the program’s research prospects.
It won’t hurt you, and could help. Probably the most important aspect of doing an MA in psychology in between is getting more research experience. If you had only a bit over a year when you applied last year, that may have been the reason you were rejected - so getting two years in in a master’s program can improve your chances significantly. You also have the secondary benefits of showing that you can excel at graduate-level work and that your interest isn’t an idle one.
The rank of your MA university can help but won’t hurt. If you got an MA at a well-regarded psychology department, that can help, especially if your faculty there are active in the field and perhaps have connections at some departments you’re applying to. But if you went to a relatively unknown university, that won’t necessarily hurt you either.
And yes, you absolutely should rewrite your personal statement. You’ve got more experience under your belt and your statement should reflect that. Your interests and goals may also have changed slightly and you want to reflect that, too.
Thank you very much! I appreciate the feedback. I am retaking the GRE in April, trying to get into 80%+ percentile for Q/V/W. Along with my degree, I’m feeling much more confident this time about the process. I will be rewriting my personal statement. I think that now with the MA under my belt then I may actually be more secure in the specifics of my research goals and my experience should reflect that. I hope that my dedication to the field will be noted this time around.