FAQ

Dr. Jack is affiliated with the Applied Developmental Psychology (ADP) and Cognitive Behavioral Neuroscience (CBN) programs in the George Mason University Department of Psychology.

Students in the JackLab gain experience in both development and human neuroscience. However, students in the ADP program will engage in more formal coursework related to developmental psychology (e.g., Lifespan Development), and students in the CBN program will have requirements related to neuroscience (e.g., Mammalian Neurobiology).

You can get an MA in Psychology with a concentration in either ADP or CBN; or you can get a PhD in ADP or CBN. Current undergraduates at Mason can also apply for the Accelerated MA with a concentration in CBN. An accelerated Master’s in ADP is not available at this time.

PhD programs are highly competitive, and successful PhD applicants typically have strong research experience prior to applying. An application to the MA program is more appropriate if you do not have much prior research experience.

You should email Dr. Jack prior to applying. The subject line for the email should be “Interest in (PhD/MA) in (ADP/CBN) program.” Attach your CV and an unofficial transcript. In the body of your email, briefly describe your background and why you want to work in the lab. If you have previous research experience, please describe it.

Dr. Jack typically provides a personal reply to emails that appear to have been personalized for her/the JackLab. (That is, emails where the candidate appears to know what the JackLab does and expresses specific, relevant experience/interest). Dr. Jack typically does not reply to emails that appear to be “form” emails where the candidate could send the exact same email (possibly with very minor edits) to many psychology faculty around the country.

Students interested in the accelerated MA: please email Dr. Jack with the subject line “Interest in CBN accelerated MA” to begin a conversation. Usually, accelerated MA students have already done some work in the JackLab.

First, review application guidelines specific to the Psychology Department. You will then submit your application on the Mason admissions website.

Applied Developmental Psychology

PhD: December 01, 2022

MA: January 15, 2023

Cognitive Behavioral Neuroscience

PhD: February 01, 2023

MA: February 01, 2023

Accelerated MA: See university and CBN guidelines. You must have completed 60 credit hours before applying.

Please note: There is a big gap between the deadline for ADP and CBN! If you are interested in working with Dr. Jack in the CBN program, you should reach out prior to December 1 (the ADP deadline) to ensure that she knows your application will be coming, because she makes her selections for PhD student(s) out of both the CBN and ADP pools.

The JackLab is a diverse and supportive team of individuals. Some of us are autistic, others non-autistic; some are neurotypical, and others are neurodivergent; some are cisgender and others are diverse in gender identity and/or expression; some are first-generation college students, and others are from families with a long tradition of higher education. We come from a variety of ethno-racial backgrounds and religious and cultural traditions. Thus, Dr. Jack is looking for students who will enter the lab with a spirit of respect and a willingness to collaborate with and learn from those different from themselves.

We value kindness and scientific ethics very highly in our lab. Ideal candidates for the JackLab, in addition to demonstrating academic promise in their chosen area of study, should be committed to promoting the welfare of their labmates, classmates, and our participants, and conducting their research with the highest level of transparency and rigor.

Each student will have a program tailored to their individual professional development goals (especially PhD students). Students may have opportunities to gain experience in the following:

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

• Functional MRI (fMRI) analysis

• Structural MRI (sMRI) analysis (with mentorship from Dr. McQuaid)

• How to run scans, including with children

• How to run a “mock scan” in our MRI simulator

• How to design and code fMRI experimental paradigms

• Analyses of cerebellar data

• Integration of genetic, epigenetic, and phenotypic information in MRI analyses

Computing & statistics

• Using a high performance computing cluster

• Using R for statistical analysis

• Basic unix/linux shell scripts; Python

• Rich quantitative course offerings through the department, including, e.g., psychometrics, structural equation modeling, longitudinal data analysis, etc.

Online data collection

• SONA system

• REDCap

Cognitive & behavioral assessment

• Learning how to administer standard assessments, such as different IQ measures, under the supervision of a neuropsychologist

• Select, well-qualified students may have the opportunity to receive training to research reliability on the ADOS-2 and ADI-R

• Behavioral observation coding (using Noldus system)

• Eye tracking, in or out of MRI scanner

We also have robust collaborations with our colleagues at the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders (CASD) at Children’s National Health System, who have rich experience in diagnosis, clinical practice, gender in autism, and qualitative and community-based research.

With a PhD:

• Autism and/or developmental neuroscience research at an R1 university

• A mix of research and teaching

• Teaching in a psychology department at a university focused on undergraduate education

• Consulting and/or nonprofit work in the realm of statistics, grant writing, research/program evaluation, autism advocacy, or related areas

• Research at an autism center, children’s hospital, medical school, or the NIH

With a MA:

• Preparation for a competitive application to the PhD program of your choice

• Consulting and/or nonprofit work in the realm of statistics, grant writing, research/program evaluation, autism advocacy, or related areas

Please note that academic and/or research careers, while rewarding, are highly competitive. If you wish to pursue the “research track,” you will need to let Dr. Jack know early in your training (ideally within the first year) to ensure you are on track for professional development and research activities that will prepare you to be competitive upon leaving graduate school.

Dr. Jack is not a licensed clinical psychologist. The ADP and CBN programs will not prepare you for clinical licensure. You will not be able to engage in clinical practice with any of these degrees. However, the MA may be an option for helping prepare you for application to a clinical or school psychology PhD program, as you will gain research experience focused on autism, and Dr. Jack has a rich network of professional contacts in clinical psychology programs.