How to get into Grad School

I feel that for the general public, a lot of academia is wrapped up behind a wall of mystery. Not that it is particularly closed to the public, but it’s simply just not in the public eye. Despite the kind of work we do, there’s a sizable gap between the academic world, and the interest of the public. Perhaps we’re just not interesting enough. A lot of academic language is quite formal, and not oriented towards the consumption of the common reader. So it may be that we come off as uppity or boring. While I do think that this is the case for some researchers, I also think that most academics want the public to know about their research, and to learn more about what we do. After all, we do get a lot of our funding from the government, and we are a democracy, so it’s in our interest to communicate with the public – as they’re sorta our boss. There’s a lot to academia, so for now, let’s talk about how to get into academia and what it’s like being a student.

So What do I Do? (What is Psychology, what is a Psychologist?)

Maybe we got off on the wrong foot. Last week I wrote about job prospects for graduate students in psychology, but I didn’t exactly explain what we do in the first place. After speaking with a reader the other day, I realized that it’s tough to have a good discussion on psychology without first setting the groundwork. So that’s today’s goal. Let’s delve into what psychology is and what do psychologists do.

What is Psychology?

Before we can really begin, we have to first talk about what psychology was and is. If I were to phrase it simply, I’d say that ‘psychology is the study of behaviour’. This is very broad, but it’s the most accurate description of it. We’re simply people interested in understanding why and how we behave the way we do.

Day 2ish?

I suppose the title of this post would be more appropriate if I had started it around the same time that I began my degree, but it’s not. It’s not even the second day after I began this blog. But hey, this is how it’s being run. Think of the titles of this blog as a interaction between two dimensions, one being the day after my last post, the other being the actual number of the current blog post in the chronological order of blog posts… .. Upon further thought, this will likely change.

But a blog post wouldn’t be much good if it was just a discussion about the title of the blog post. So let’s get to it.

Last week the lab met with our Supervisor. Though the meeting covered a number of the topics, the one that stood out was a lengthy discussion on how it’s extremely unlikely myself and other graduate students would find a job in academia, especially directly after we finish our Ph.D.s. Though this idea has been on the fringe of my awareness for awhile now, it was still tough to have it so focused on, especially coming from the Psychologist I work with and study under. This is unfortunately the reality of a career in Psychology, and perhaps academia in general. But let’s break this down. What does a career in academia look like and why would it be so difficult to get one today.