I heard getting in is very competitive for the ph.d in clinical psychology programs. why?

Preparation: Admittance into american psychological association approved phd programs in clinical psychology has been very competitive for at least 4 decades. Once admitted to a program, graduation requirements are also rigorous. After graduation those wanting to provide clinical services must pass both state and national licensing boards. The goal: to train the best and brightest to help others.

Ph.D. programs : One of the big reasons they are so competitive is that there are not a lot of programs and not alot of slots available for new students within those programs. On average harder than med school to get admitted tol.

Ph.D. in psychology: Yes, it is very competitive. The number of students applying for pH.D. Programs in clinical psychology vastly outnumber of the available placements in graduate programs. I seem to recall hearing that on average there are only about 8 openings each year for pH.D. Candidates per program. Many programs limit incoming students due to funding issues or staffing issues.

Psychology is a : Subject that many people are interested in. In addition, programs must be careful to select people who are mentally healthy with strong character and moral principles. Therefore it is hard to get into doctoral programs.

Popularity/resources: Psychology is a popular major to begin with, and so students run up against the economic maxim of supply versus demand. Also, resources to train psychologists are sparse. You have to remember, universities train not only psychologists, but also mathematicians, geologists, archaeologists and so on. Universities simply do not have the resources to train large numbers of psychologists.