Seeking doctorate degree -- need advice

Hi everyone,

Long-time lurker here.....I've been impressed with some of the opinions and advice I've read on this forum and am hoping someone would have some sage advice for my situation.

In short, I am seeking a doctorate degree primarily to expand my teaching and/or employment opportunities. Currently, I am going broke teaching basic courses (english and communication) part-time in a local community college.

My educational background:
~Bachelor of Business Administration with Psychology minor from esteemed local RA (regionally-accredited) B&M (brick and mortar) university -- F2F (face-to-face) classes. 3.8 GPA.
~Master of Human Services, Marriage & Family concentration from B&M university, but I went through their online program. 3.9 GPA.
~M.B.A. from esteemed local RA B&M university, although I went through their online program. 3.4 GPA.
~Attended one year in esteemed RA B&M Master of Social Work program (F2F classes). 3.9 GPA.

My varied work background:
~Self-employed in e-commerce for 8 years.
~Traveling medical software trainer.
~Case manager in state residential psychiatric hospital.
~Community college instructor.

My dilemma:
I have 2 different ideas from which to write a dissertation, both of which I am passionate, but neither of which makes much use of my business background. One is the development of a much-needed K-12 school program for use by school guidance counselors. The other is the development of software to be used by those in the counseling profession. My interests and ideas fall into the area of counseling, possibly psychology, but I am having trouble finding an online doctorate program in either of these areas.

There is one local B&M, F2F psychology doctorate program, but they only accept 6 students a year with GRE scores over 1,200 -- my GRE score is not that competitive, so I am sure I will not qualify for that program.

Additionally, I prefer an online program at this stage in my life so I can have a little flexibility for my familial responsibilities.

Could anyone recommend an online doctorate program in the area of human services, counseling, marriage & family therapy, psychology, or similar, that would cost less than $50,000? Capella, Walden, NCU and the like are out -- I do NOT want to spend 50K+ on a degree.

If I could become licensed (LPC, MFT, PsyD, etc), all the better. I desire to spend more time teaching or in practice than in the pressure-to-publish game (although I do wish to devote some time to research and publishing).

CalSouthern is in my price range, but the national rather than regional accreditation would prevent me from becoming licensed in my state. However, if I become licensed in CA and one other state, I *would* qualify for licensing in my state -- not sure how difficult that would be to accomplish. Could I make much use of a PsyD without a license?

Hope I'm not seeking a miracle here. I truly feel something appropriate is out there for me but I just haven't stumbled upon it yet. I'd sincerely appreciate any and all help. Thanks a million.

 

Liberty University has one but I don't think it's fully online.

PhD in Counseling | Liberty University Online

 

Do a doctorate because you have a passion for the subject you want to study and the topic you want to research. Anything short of that risks failure. Figure those things out and then you'll find the right program for you. In fact, once you have figured those out, ask here.

 

I've inquired into LUO's counseling PhD program. There are 16 courses that require a 1-week residency each (Monday-Friday), so that's 16 weeks of living in motels in Virginia.....not to mention the high cost of the week-long residencies.

But their tuition rate per credit hour is good. I would enroll in that program if I were within a 2-hour drive of their campus.

 

That would be counseling, psychology, and human services; as I stated in my original post.

 

I inquired into LUO's counseling PhD program. There are 16 courses that require a 1-week residency each on their Virginia campus. If I were within a 2-hour drive of their campus, I would apply for their program.

The residencies, called intensives, are over $1,000 each and that is in addition to the cost per credit hour of the course (3 cr hrs each).

 

Why not get your degree in I/O Psychology. I can encompass your business degree, and your human service degree. If you think about it, counseling is another form of coaching and in business coaching is highly important. It's a great option which offer a hybrid of both business/psychology; it's kind of an interdisciplinary degree because it encompasses avenues from business, psychology, leadership, coaching, training, etc.

 

That's like saying you want beef, fish, or chicken for dinner. And this supports my point: figure out what it is you want to pursue, then pursue it.

You've listed three separate disciplines/professions, each of which have dozens of variations professionally and academically. And even when you find one variation within one discipline/profession, you'll still have to figure out what niche you're going to create with your doctoral work.

Making this decision will require more discipline and more decision-making than merely selecting a degree program. It's about what you want to do with your life.

 

It seems that you have already many degrees but yet you are looking to get a new one. Are you hoping that a new degree will give direction to your life? You seem to have experience in different unrelated things and now looking for a new direction.

I think that at this point, a PhD wouldn't be the best thing in particular one from an online institution like Capella, this will just put you in more debt and you will be exactly at the same point where you are now but with a new degree.

I agree with Rich and feel that you would need first to figure out what you really want in life rather than just getting more education.

You really need to find what is your passion and develop working experience in this field.

Collecting more degrees is not going to help if you don't know where are you going.

 

There was no difference in the graduate courses I took in social work and human services, and my undergrad psych courses -- they all required individual and group counseling, diagnosis, assessment, and treatment courses, in addition to the basics like ethics and dealing with diverse populations.

I'm not limiting my employment options. In all due respect, it appears I'm being asked to build a box and climb inside. Pursuing a doctorate does not equate to giving up ALL related interests......they all intertwine anyway.

I'm great in business matters, but have lost all interest in that subject entirely thanks to this wonderful economy and a nation full of disgruntled salesmen and healthcare providers (U.S. manufacturing is gone forever).

I desire to teach or counsel in any of the above areas -- I do not prefer one profession over the other. Ideally, I will continue teaching as a paying profession and counsel on a volunteer basis. I also have a book idea (but who doesn't) and like to write and research, so I'm sure I've got some journal articles in me somewhere too.

I looked into I/O Psych in 2009, even met with the director in-person at the near-by B&M university, but there was waaaaay too much statistics involved in that program (my worst subject). I'd prefer to run the tests and gather the data, then get with a statician. haha Great suggestion though.......too bad I'd rather have a root canal than run numbers all day long.....there's money in I/O psych.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a reasonably-priced online doctorate program in the area of human services, counseling, or psychology? Thanks.

 

This is the 3rd time I'm trying to reply to the above comment. If anyone is interested, I've already looked into Liberty's counseling PhD program. There are 16 courses that each require a 1-week on-campus residency (Monday-Friday). The cost of the 16 residencies is in addition to the credit hour cost for the course (all of them 3 hours each).