When I first enrolled in psychology graduate school, I thought I had it made. You see, I had been a psychology major as an undergrad, so I thought I had the system pretty well figured out. I was great at psychology. Not only did I have an almost photographic memory, but I also had a real ability to understand people and how they worked. That meant that I did well in my classes, but also knew that I would do well in my career. I wasn't sure if I wanted to get into research or clinical psychology, but either way I figured that I had a bright future ahead of me.
It took me a while to come up with the perfect graduate school of psychology to attend. I looked at a lot of graduate school rankings before it decided, and carefully made my decision. Picking among the best psychology graduate schools isn't easy. You see, when you are first going to college it is all a matter of getting a school with the best rankings. With graduate school, however, things are different. Different psychology graduate programs focus on different things and, if you don't know your specialty, it can be difficult to pick out the perfect program.
After I chose my psychology graduate school, I thought things would be pretty easy going from there. I didn't really realize how much work graduate school is. It is nothing like undergrad. First of all, a graduate degree program has a much different structure. Basically, it is all geared toward your thesis. In undergrad, you are there to learn a set curriculum along with however many other students are in your department. In psychology graduate school, things are different. You're there to pursue an individual course of studies. It is sort of like a preparation for your future as a professional, either in the business world or the academic one.
Going to psychology graduate school, I had to really change my approach to classes. I couldn't procrastinate anymore and I couldn't simply memorize the book and give the teacher back what he or she wanted. A graduate degree program demands responsibility and innovation. You have to be studious, but you also have to be willing to be creative. If you're willing to take a chance on new ideas, you can go far. If, on the other hand, you are too cautious and closed-minded, you'll never make a name for yourself.
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