Public Disclosure by Accredited Doctoral Programs: Prospective Applicants' Views on Clarity, Helpfulness, and Sufficiency of Information to Make Application Decisions

• Published in: Training and education in professional psychology 2017-05, Vol.11 (2), p.100-107
• Main Authors: Hausman, Estee M., Quetsch, Lauren B., Luebbe, Aaron M., Martin, Elizabeth A., Bell, Debora J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Decision Making; Educational Program Accreditation; Female; Higher Education; Human; Male; Postgraduate Students; Self-Disclosure
• ISSN: 1931-3918; 1931-3926
• DOI: 10.1037/tep0000144

Little is known about prospective applicants' perspectives on the required content (e.g., public disclosure data) of doctoral program websites in health service psychology, despite that they are one of the primary audiences of this information. Eighty-seven undergraduate students considering doctoral study in health service psychology reviewed the public disclosure data (PDD) of two hypothetical doctoral program websites. Participants rated the clarity, helpfulness, and sufficiency of the information as well as the likelihood that they would apply to the hypothetical doctoral program. Results indicated that PDD in most, but not all, areas are clear, helpful, and sufficient to undergraduate students, although they are not particularly relevant to their application decisions. In addition, the amount of information included along with required PDD influenced the clarity of some aspects of the PDD. Participants were more likely to want to apply to more selective programs in the presence of additional information, but there were no differences in likelihood of applying to less selective programs. Implications for revision of the PDD requirements as well as ways that undergraduate programs and the larger training community can facilitate prospective applicants in researching graduate programs are discussed.