Professional Interests and Career Aspirations of Graduate Students in Professional Psychology: An Exploratory Survey

Graduate students in American professional psychology programs ( N = 498) were surveyed to examine differences between specialty area (clinical vs. counseling), degree type (PhD vs. PsyD), and gender with respect to demographics, training models, theoretical orientations, career aspirations and reasons for choices, research productivity, and expected salaries. Clinical and counseling students differed with respect to training models, theoretical orientations, career aspirations, and expected salaries, whereas PhD and PsyD students differed with respect to training models, theoretical orientations, career aspirations, and research emphasis. The changing gender composition in professional psychology is unlikely to have a dramatic effect given their professional similarities.