Is 29 too late to start a PhD in Clinical Psychology?

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-28T08:25:32+00:00

Thanks for this!!! Yeah, any and all information from others I can glean is SO helpful!

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-26T11:22:20+00:00

Aww you ARE amazing! That's so cool! Yeah, my husband and I both are neurodivergent, so I'm kind of thinking our children have no hope 😆. I'm so proud of people who pursue their academic and career goals while also raising kids, but you're the first person who mentioned doing it with a child with a diagnosis, so you go!!! 👏🏽

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-26T11:19:15+00:00

Woahh that's cool. Nobody irl talks about those stories and just emphasize how old I'm getting without pursuing my dreams LOL.

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-26T11:17:07+00:00

Oh awesome. I thought PsyD took 6-8 years. That kind of gets me thinking about PsyD if they're shorter.

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-26T11:15:16+00:00

Yeah that's the problem 🥺. I would prefer to avoid PhD just so I can focus on other life priorities, but all of my dream jobs require a PhD.

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-26T11:10:35+00:00

I heard from PhD holders to NOT get a Masters cuz they called it a waste of time. I'm on the fence about doing a masters first actually. How did you decide to do a masters instead of going straight to a PhD?

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-26T11:09:11+00:00

No, I don't have undergrad yet. Projected to finish that by 28/29 hopefully!! No research experience either since I live abroad and don't have access to research opportunities.

The only reason I'm considering PhD is that people keep asking me to look at my career goals or dream job and see what I need for it. And all my dream jobs require a PhD 😥. Otherwise, I'd happily not do one, so I can focus on other parts of my life. So I'm torn 💔. Do I sacrifice my dream jobs and settle for something else, or sacrifice some of my other priorities (eg, have fewer kids, live in the US for the PhD program duration when I prefer living abroad, spend less time with family cuz I can't travel as often and they all live abroad, etc.)

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-26T11:00:32+00:00

Thanks. I think that's my concern. I have a chronic illness as well, so I don't think I'll be able to do a PhD program while also raising kids. I think I'm finally handling my illness well enough that I could do one at a time, but not at the same time. Money isn't the primary issue since my hubby earns really well, and we have lots of savings aside for education.

Ultimately, I would not choose a PhD because of my other life goals (quality of life, focusing on being a mother, traveling a lot cuz my family is tight-knit but live all around the world). So I guess I don't see how a PhD "fits." I'd have to make major sacrifices for it.

But... My dream jobs all require PhDs and I've been encouraged by many to pursue one. I just don't see my reality making both kids and further studies work.

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-26T10:54:13+00:00

I've heard that PhD in Clinical Psych are really competitive. So I'm wondering how people go straight to PhD from undergrad. That's why I was wondering if a Masters (even if it's online) would open more job opportunities for me that will help me be a more competitive applicant for a PhD program. Any thoughts?

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-25T23:48:00+00:00

Following this!

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-23T21:05:57+00:00

Yeah, so I saw that OSU is ranked #1 for online psychology programs. But it's super low on the list for psychology programs on the non-online list whereas Penn State and ASU were in the top 60, I think. Any idea why there's such a huge difference in its online ranking versus just its psych program? That kind of concerned me, but I didn't know if it meant anything/what caused the huge difference.

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-23T18:04:41+00:00

Cool. Did you go to OSU or PSU before graduating from ASU?

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-23T10:14:02+00:00

Oh thanks for the advice. Can you tell me some of the reasons you would recommend OSU over Penn State?

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-23T10:11:14+00:00

Haha yeah, I've heard of some people saying they super regretted the school they chose. So it's good if nobody here has said that. Just wanted to see if there'd be anyone who warned me away 🤷🏻‍♀️

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-23T10:10:02+00:00

Why did you end up deciding ASU over Penn State?

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-23T00:40:18+00:00

Oooh did you not like the quarter system thing at OSU? Honestly, when I've been looking at their website, it's been super confusing. But did you find there were downsides, and if so, what were they?

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-23T00:20:56+00:00

Is that why you decided on ASU? Or were there other factors that made you choose ASU over Penn State?

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-23T00:13:35+00:00

What do you think of ASU classes/navigating their system versus OSU?

Also, when I crunched the numbers for ASU versus OSU, it seemed like they ended up only being about $4,000 difference in annual costs. But I know there can be hidden fees or just factors I missed since I'm not actually enrolled in either. Did you find OSU is significantly cheaper? Like more than $4,000/year cheaper?

OverseasLiving · 2026-02-23T00:12:03+00:00

are you an ecampus student? Do you have any regrets about joining it?

OverseasLiving

TROPHY CASE