Visit websites that make test results and faculty publication rates easily accessible.
Graduate school is a big investment for students, and ranking programs is a key tool in selecting a school that will be a good vocational fit. While many popular ranking systems can gain a lot of press coverage for programs, including clinical psychology programs, they are not exhaustive or foolproof measurements of program excellence. In addition to adviser recommendations, school perks and financial aid availability, objective data should be assessed to gain an accurate picture of the excellence of a given clinical psychology program.
Instructions
Rank Clinical Psychology Programs
1. Familiarize yourself with current popular ranking systems and publications, like U.S. News and World Report. Not only do these provide a general basis of solid programs in the last few years, they are also frequently the ranking systems referred to by clinical psychology Ph.D. programs and by other contending ranking systems.
2. Research faculty publication and citation rates as an objective way of assessing a program's scholarly impact. Clinical psychology programs that are led by a faculty with high scholarly publication rates will offer students better chances of doing research that will be published.
3. Look at graduates' test scores on the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology. Higher ranking test scores for a school indicate quality learning opportunities. This one factor can be a telling indicator of clinical psychology program effectiveness.
4. Overlap the top ranked programs from the above criteria. Programs that stand out in the top 25 in faculty publication criteria, student test scores and popular ranking systems will prove to be clinical psychology programs worth applying for.
Tags: ranking systems, psychology programs, faculty publication, popular ranking, popular ranking systems, test scores, clinical psychology