Undergraduate grades and the Miller Analogies Test as predictors of graduate success.

Ss were "124 students who entered the graduate program at the University of Michigan during the years 1951 through 1955… . Information available on each applicant at the time of entrance included the following measures": total undergraduate grade point average (GPA), undergraduate GPA in science and mathematics, undergraduate GPA in psychology courses, MAT score, objective comprehensive examination in psychology. Measures of "success" included: GPA in graduate courses, marks on doctoral preliminary examinations, faculty ratings of potential professional contribution and potential scientific contribution. 6 tables of results are presented. The best predictor of marks in graduate courses was undergraduate GPA in science courses; it also best predicted preliminary examination grades. "The MAT significantly predicted graduate course grades and was the best predictor of potential scientific contribution of the student." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Issues in undergraduate education in psychology.

A number of specific questions are raised and discussed with regard to the role of psychology in the undergraduate college "contributing to the development of the well-rounded individual." Among those discussed are: Who is responsible for planning the over-all undergraduate program in psychology? Who is responsible for the objectives of a single course in the psychology program? Should courses be student centered or content-centered? Questions relating to the role of psychological theory, the stress on special psychological vocabulary, the desirability of placing psychological concepts in an historical perspective in an undergraduate curriculum are considered, as are several other issues regarding recruitment for graduate training. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On recruiting graduate students.

"In the fall of 1955, the Committee on Undergraduate Education conducted a questionnaire survey of American colleges regarding their undergraduate psychology programs." About ? of the country's 4 year liberal arts colleges cooperated. 73% of responding institutions offer a major in psychology. About 75% of the colleges offering majors have 1 term courses in introductory psychology, the other 25% have 2 terms 10 colleges require less than 20 semester hours work for the major in psychology, 12 require 35 semester hours or more. Data are also presented in answer to the following questions: (a) How many students enter graduate school each year? (b) What proportion of seniors and senior majors continue into graduate study? (c) Are small colleges better at producing graduate students? (d) Did the survey identify any single variable associated with rate of producing graduate students? (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Issues in the education and training of women in Canadian psychology.

The high attrition rate of female students in graduate programmes in psychology is documented. Some of the literature (largely American) on the problems of female students is explored for possible reasons for this high rate. The problem areas identified are: admissions practices, financial support, inflexibility of graduate programmes, faculty attitudes toward graduate students, scarcity of female role models, and psychology as a "masculine" discipline. Recommendations for action by the Canadian Psychological Association are made in each of the problem areas with a special plea for the inclusion, in both graduate and undergraduate psychology programmes, of courses on the female experience. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Current status of graduate education in psychology.

Surveyed chairmen of psychology departments in 32 state universities and 9 private universities offering doctoral-level programs in basic and applied psychology, to determine the extent to which education and training is available for graduate students in the applied areas of psychology, specifically clinical psychology. Results indicate the following: (a) For all practical purposes, the PhD degree is the only doctoral degree being awarded in both basic and applied psychology. (b) The majority of the departments offering advanced graduate work in psychology insist on a variable core of required courses. (c) The comprehensive examinations taken by students in these programs are largely broad and integrative and are more likely to be administered by either a departmental examining committee or the student's own program committee. (d) For those departments in which a core of courses is not required of all doctoral students, there are substitute requirements, including demonstration of competencies and knowledge in content areas through examinations, or in the successful completion of a minor academic area. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Professional ethics for graduate students in psychology.

Results of 2 independent questionnaires concerning the availability of courses on ethics for graduate students in psychology sent to various schools offering graduate work in psychology are combined. "Very few departments offer a course solely on professional ethics in psychology though several expressed plans for one in the future." "Ethics is handled best on a graduate level, in a seminar or colloquium, preferably on a required basis for all students, and definitely so for clinical students." "The APA code of professional ethics and journals are preferred sources of reference." "Professional training in ethics is a recent phenomenon coinciding with the APA research in this area and with the rise of clinical psychology." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Community psychology training in Canada in the new millennium.

Ten years ago, Walsh-Bowers (1998) described in Canadian Psychology the marginalized status of community psychology in Canada. The purpose of this research was to investigate the current status of community psychology training in Canadian universities. The online calendars for undergraduate and graduate programs in departments of psychology in Canadian universities were reviewed for course offerings in community psychology. Subsequently, an e-mail survey of program directors was conducted to confirm and extend the findings of the online search. Results were compared with those of similar previous surveys conducted in 1980–1981 (Nelson & Tefft, 1982) and 1992–1994 (Walsh-Bowers, 1998). Findings show a small amount of growth in community psychology training at the undergraduate level since the last survey in 1992–1994, with more courses available in more Canadian psychology departments. There are also marginally more graduate courses in community psychology offered now than 15 years ago, but these are located in fewer psychology departments. Findings are discussed in the context of contemporary professional psychology and future directions for growing community psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Nonwhite Students in Counseling Psychology: A Closer Look.

Thirty-three doctoral programs responded to a survey assessing the racial/ethnic composition of doctoral students and student applicants. Different conclusions were drawn from four methods that were used to calculate the representation of the racial/ethnic groups in the applicant pools and enrollments in American Psychological Association (APA) and non-APA-approved counseling psychology programs. The data suggest that underrepresentation of nonwhites in our graduate programs is not due to the differential utilization of admissions standards for nonwhites, as opposed to other applicants, but rather to the small number of nonwhite students who apply. Although most programs design activities to recruit nonwhite applicants, few programs do as much as possible. Suggestions are presented for making psychology in general, and counseling psychology in particular, more attractive to undergraduate blacks. More nonwhites must view psychology as an appropriate major if the potential pool of graduate school applicants is to increase. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teaching the psychological aspects of international relations: An SPSSI questionnaire.

In 1964, the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI) Committee on International Relations conducted a survey to establish the present extent of teaching in the psychology of international relations and the possibilities for its expansion. A questionnaire was mailed to the chairmen of the 194 psychology departments with graduate programs, and to a random sample of 41 departments with only undergraduate programs. Returns were received from 74% of the former and 54% of the latter departments. 75 of the 144 graduate departments and 8 of the 22 undergraduate departments sampled would appear interested in teaching material bearing on the psychological aspects of international relations. The SPSSI Committee on International Relations will, therefore, attempt to obtain support for a fellowship program designed to provide instruction in political science, a review of pertinent psychological material, and the opportunity to develop a course on the psychological aspects of international relations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Current enrollment characteristics of graduate students in psychology.

Presents some perspective on the general characteristics of graduate training in psychology provided by an assessment of data collected from the chairmen of 296 graduate programs by the American Psychological Association Educational Affairs Office as of October 1970. Almost 3/4 of the 23,859 students were enrolled in psychology departments proper and most of the others were in educational psychology programs. Size of programs varied considerably: 8 reported enrollment ranging above 300 (to a high of 924 students), whereas 46 programs enrolled 20 or fewer students. Most graduate psychology training took place in institutions that were public, large (10,000 or more students), and at middle levels of selectivity. Students were generally well dispersed regionally, although almost 1/2 of those in educational psychology were concentrated in the midwest. 60% of all programs reported some parttime enrollment. However, only 24% of the student population was on parttime study. 40% of all students were women, 4% were black, and 3% were from other backgrounds (Oriental and Spanish-American, primarily). Students in educational psychology (21% of the total enrollment) were somewhat distinctive in that larger proportion were women, nonwhite, or parttime students. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Canadian graduate training in psychology.

As a result of a questionnaire sent to all Canadian graduate training schools in psychology, a tabulation was made of a) qualifications for admission to each programme, b) graduate training specialty in each department, c) broad numerical comparisons of size of university with number applying and accepted for study. Overall the results indicate that the minimum qualifications for entry are a B average in 7 or 8 undergraduate psychology courses including basic experimental psychology and statistics. Qualifying years are usually offered to those who do not reach these minima. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Back to the future in the education and training of psychologists.

In this article, I discuss issues concerning the training and education of psychologists at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. I propose a new introductory course on the applications of psychology to oneself and to society. This course would cover many applications of psychology and would also explain what the major psychological specialties do and the specific training needed to pursue a career in a chosen specialty. A common core of graduate courses is recommended for all graduate students regardless of specialty. A broad-based interdisciplinary course is recommended to ensure that all psychologists know the basic scientific principles that are ultimately essential to the understanding of psychology itself. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychology requirements for admission to counseling and counseling psychology programs.

The number of courses and the credit hours required in psychology for admission to the various programs were analyzed. Data were obtained from catalogs or from the Graduate Studies in Psychology 1980–1981. Results show that psychology counseling programs required considerably more psychology courses for admission than did other programs. Most nonpsychology counseling programs required no psychology courses for admission. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Future funding for clinical students.

Surveyed clinical psychology training programs and internships to estimate the impact of federal budget cutbacks. For the 1973–1974 academic year, there were 20 graduate school applicants and 9 internship applicants for each funded position. Funded positions decreased 9–22% compared with the previous year. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Graduate education of Negro psychologists.

The "Council on Psychological Resources in the South was impressed with the dearth of psychologists in the South, particularly Negro psychologists" and appointed a committee "… to study the facts in this regard and to make recommendations for pertinent action." Fifty-six (98.2%) of fifty-seven graduate departments of psychology surveyed answered questionnaires concerning Negro psychologists receiving graduate degrees and the undergraduate origin of these students. "Negro personnel in psychology come in considerable proportion (one-third) from Negro undergraduate schools in the South." "In the process of bridging the gap between inadequate undergraduate training and high level graduate work, Howard University is making an exceptional contribution toward training in scientific and professional psychology." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Richard Pardee Youtz (1910–1986).

Presents an obituary for Richard Youtz. Youtz's dissertation research was the first extensive study of extinction and spontaneous recovery of a "Thorndikian" (instrumental) response. In a series of articles, he showed that resistance to extinction increased as a function of the number of training trials and as a function of the delay between training and extinction, that the degree of spontaneous recovery was directly related to the delay between extinction sessions but was not affected by the number of training trials, and that extinction of one response reduced resistance to extinction of another response (secondary extinction). These articles were frequently cited, and the phenomenon of spontaneous recovery after extinction of an instrumental response is considered to be of such importance that contemporary laboratory courses in learning frequently include an experimental exercise that is modeled after Youtz's original work. Youtz's career took him to Barnard College, Oberlin College, the U.S. Army Air Force during World War II, and back to Barnard College. He built a strong undergraduate major there during his time as chair. He was an experimentalist who believed that the best way for people to learn was by doing. He implemented an undergraduate curriculum that had, at its core, courses that provided hands-on experiences in experimental psychology. This curriculum led many Barnard psychology majors to pursue graduate training and careers in the field. Youtz passed away in 1986. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Undergraduate Training of Some Psychologists.

The author points out some problems, as he sees them, in undergraduate psychology training. He suggests urging some selected undergraduate students, who express an interest in psychology, to develop skills and understanding in some other area of science during their college years. In this scheme, and along the minimal lines for training in psychology states that he has included a course in general, experimental, psychological statistics, and perhaps one other such as tests and measurements. Among the major areas he has recommended are mathematics, physics, and zoology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The GRE Psychology Test as an unobstrusive measure of motivation.

The Psychology Achievement Test of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE-P) and failure to prepare for it may serve as an unobstrusive measure of motivation necessary for success in graduate school whether or not the content of the test taps abilities necessary for success. To test this hypothesis, records of 31 male graduate psychology students were obtained. Predictors included GRE-P, GRE Verbal and Quantitative Aptitude Test, Miller Analogies Test (MAT), undergraduate overall and undergraduate psychology GPA, and number of psychology courses taken prior to the GRE. Criteria included percentage of "A" grades in graduate school and graduation vs. termination. Only GRE-P and a difference score consisting of GRE-P minus MAT showed significant validity against the criteria. The results were interpreted as supporting the hypothesis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Present status of psychological research and training in hypnosis.

Anonymous questionnaires on training and research in hypnosis were returned by 54 of 55 psychology department chairmen with approved clinical psychology training programs and 39 of 85 American Medical Association approved medical schools. 8 psychology departments and 2 medical schools have courses in hypnosis. Unless the "psychological profession is more active in protecting its rights to research and clinical use of a methodology which is basically psychological, it may find itself legally excluded from the field." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A training unit in individual testing at the undergraduate level.

"An undergraduate training unit in individual testing, conducted properly, is very much in accordance with good educational principles and in the best interests of psychology as a profession." The testing unit takes eight weeks, is part of a two semester course; prerequisites are two semesters of general psychology and one semester of statistics; average enrollment is fourteen students largely psychology majors. Textbooks used at present are Cronbach, the training manual on military psychology, and Terman and Merrill. The test used is the Stanford-Binet Form L. An evaluation of the course including verbatim comments of students is presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)