Should I pursue this internship/assistantship? (Psychology major)

Career Opportunities & Internships
1

Hello all,
I am in my Junior year at Cal State Fullerton and was recently offered the position of ‘Phone Interviewer’ at the Social Science Research Center. The duties essentially involve administering surveys/questionnaires to the public via phone calls and occasionally running numbers (I am assuming through SPSS). Anyways this position does pay just over minimum wage, but would it be very beneficial if my goal is acceptance into a clinical psych phD program or should I pursue a research lab position under a professor?

A little background, I do have a 4.0 in my major of psychology and a 3.7ish overall. My GRE scores are TBD, as I will be taking the exam next year. I do not have any research experience outside of assigned class presentations, though I do have an internship with a non-profit social work council. I know competition is fierce, but would I stand a chance if I were to take this position for a year then do research under a professor for a second year? I am between that and the aforementioned two years of research in a lab. Any help would be appreciated!

2

Do you really need to work at the interviewer job for a year? Working until fall starts would be nice and then you could look for a lab job to start then. What will you do if you turn down this job?

3

That is a good point, my main concern is whether or not it would be harmful to mention such a short term position. I was kind of operating under the belief that positions lasting less than 6 months can show a lack of commitment.