How many years does it take to recieve your doctoral degree?

Question

i want to be a psychologist. well, i need a doctoral degree to be one. so can you please include details and what not about it. i really want to go to UCLA. that would be awesome.
p.s. i am in honors courses, and i am a freshman. my grades are rising and above average at the moment.

Answer 1

I am a PhD and have taught, researched and had a private practice as well as hospital privileges
and I laud your determination to enter the field of psychology.
The real pooh bahs in psych are the psychiatrists, however, they depend on the psychologist to create a picture of a patient they use to help complete a puzzle so treatment can be recommended to the treatment team.
If you are fortunate you may be in charge of a psych or alcohol/drug recovery unit and you will be the pooh bah even the RN' psych nurses and regular doctor staff look to for psychological decisions.
these might include hospitalization, drug treatment,
modality of therapy suggested, and leading the treatment team in a weekly conference about patients in your care.
Unless you are going to be a pure scientist and stick to research, I suggest undergrad at UCLA and graduate level work at one of the counseling schools such as International IU or California institute. UCLA is a fine school for teaching research for the PhD bujt if you want to be a therapist, get right in there and start working with patients such as in a college setting. Of course you aren't going to get a patient of your own for awhile but what you learn in group or individual sessions can help you remarkably. Some Students have found almost immediately that they cannot deal with what is revealed through counseling and drop out. Usually it is because they have similar issues as the patient that are unresolved. Some get into therapy themselves and return and have great success.
the PhD is about three years of intensive research and a dissertation and takes about three years. More if your PhD doesnt contain the rigid research
they are looking for, or you made someone in the committee mad, or you didnt do well in a class you taught to the freshman level psych classes, the students loved you but your advisor has you pegged as someone that reminds him of his aunt and he hated that aunt, so you're it!
I loved every minute of my work in psychology. I had a great internship and my advisor was fantastic.
Do not go into social work, they wil try to recruit you dont do it. Even a doctor in social work will get a smirk from a group of masters level counselors. Once you have the PhD, though you are treated like the doctor you are, and medical doctors will respect you as colleagues, I use to run the weekly treatment team meeting at a hospital
all the staff got together and discussed each patient. The only downside for me was the loss when a patient does a successful suicide, in alcohol and drug treatment there are a lot of them..and for me it was very tough. And psychologists have a high suicide rate but the ones that do it are usually
not part of a team and get depressed and see no end of it and check out. By the way, I got a teaching credential at UCLA. Great school.
-peace-

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Answer 2

Just ask at UCLA about your specific program because it is different at different universities, and different for different fields of study. But probably the main thing that will affect any particular person is how long it takes you to write that final doctoral dissertion. Some people do it in a year or two, some take many years--it depends on how fast you can do the research and write it. Because the idea of a dissertion is that it has to make an original contribution to your field of study--original. A new book, so to speak. One that will add something really new to the total knowledge in your field. That's a tall order! I have one relative in a doctoral program now at the University of Michigan. The classwork required is two years. Then he is told it may take another three years to finish the dissertion. But that depends on many things--no one can really tell you ahead of time, I don't think, but UCLA can tell you what the average is of others who have achieved the doctorate. Good luck!

Answer 3

Dear

Before embarking on this 5-7 years journey ....Talk to a Psychologist / Advisor . You may change your mind ...or at least have it examined.....

Just a fatherly advice.

Answer 4

that depends a lot on how long it takes for you to write your doctoral thesis or dissertation. it can take years, plus the 6-7 years to get to that stage.