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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]As a clinical psychologist:

-Five years is an underestimate.  Graduate school itself would take five years at a minimum, for many it takes six to get through everything (including internship).  Depending on where you want to become licensed, you would then need at least a year of supervised practice before applying for licensure.  
-Also: depending on what coursework you had in undergrad, you may need to complete additional course requirements, along with taking the GRE and psych GRE
-Getting into decent clinical psych programs is very, very difficult.  Harder than getting into medical school.  Most of the successful applicants have some experience in research and clinical work--not independent, of course, but maybe they've worked as a research assistant while volunteering for a crisis hotline.  Many will have a publication or two and several presentations on their CVs.
-Starting salaries are not high, particularly not for someone unlicensed.  You can earn a decent salary in private practice, but that takes time to build.  I wouldn't expect to see six figures for a while.  If you were to practice someplace like the VA or a hospital, the pay isn't super high but also is more stable.

So, you may well be looking at a 10 year endeavor, from getting the experience you need to get in, to actually getting in, to internship and licensure.  Also: could you apply to programs all over, or just in the DC area?  Those are quite competitive, as many people want to live here.

Last but not least, stay far, far away from any programs at for-profit places like Argosy, or various schools of professional psychology (and anything online, heaven forbid).  You will pay an exorbitant amount of money for subpar training.

All this said, it's been worth it to me (I primarily do research now but am licensed and have done a lot of clinical work in the past).  I love research and clinical work, though: if you're only interested in clinical practice, it's a ton of effort when a masters in social work, say, would probably suffice.  You wouldn't do assessment, but could still do psychotherapy, program evaluation, etc.  Happy to answer any more questions if you have them![/quote]

+1 to every bit of this. Bottom line: Unless you really want to do research, become an LCSW instead. [/quote]

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