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| Department of Psychology | |
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(updated August 2004) The Ph.D. program in clinical psychology is offered as one of SIX major areas of advanced (doctoral) study within the Department of Psychology (the others being COGNITIVE SYSTEMS, BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE, DEVELOPMENTAL, SOCIAL, and QUANTITATIVE psychology, described in separate brochures). The clinical program is:
General Program Information Program Philosophy Many persons who inquire about a career in clinical psychology are surprised to learn how much emphasis is placed on scientific preparation. With the rapid development of basic scientific knowledge about human nature over the last 30 years, the popular notion of the clinical psychologist as a person who relies mainly on a highly developed intuitive sense about people is no longer accurate. As viewed in our Psychology Department, clinical psychology involves a thorough knowledge of the science of human behavior and the technology of its application to the everyday problems of individuals, groups, and communities. Training in clinical psychology differs from the other helping professions in its more thorough training of individuals as behavioral scientists. Indeed, the term "scientist-practitioner" refers to our goal of training students to approach their professional work with the breadth of knowledge, the conceptual clarity, and the objectivity of the scientist. We train both scientists and practicing psychologists. Many of our graduates select scientific or academic careers, but some follow careers in the professional practice of clinical psychology. You should understand, however, that this usually does not mean a career as a traditional psychotherapist. Today, the vast majority of individual therapeutic work is done by persons trained below the doctoral level, in counseling, social work, and other programs. The clinical psychologist is becoming less of a primary caregiver and more of a consultant, educator, trainer, administrator, planner, supervisor, program developer and reviewer, researcher, and specialist. This change in role identity over the past 15 years is consistent with a number of changes in the mental health and human services fields during that time: the relocation of mental health services into communities rather than in isolated institutions; the knowledge explosion in the understanding and treatment of psychological disorders; the increasing attention to preventive services; the development of significant roles as mental health caregivers for a wide variety of human services personnel; the increasing technical sophistication of mental health treatment procedures and the growing emphasis on responsibility and accountability in the provision of mental health services. Once admitted, graduate students are expected to be enrolled continuously, excluding summer sessions, until all degree requirements have been met. They are expected to be involved full-time in their studies during this period. The basic courses of training activities within the clinical program are as follows:
REQUIRED COURSES FOR STUDENTS WHO ENTER WITH A MASTERS DEGREE For students who enter our program with prior graduate training, our policy is to evaluate whether or not their prior training is the equivalent of what we offer in our required courses. The student’s advisor coordinates this process with the assistance of the Director of Clinical Training. The student is asked to submit a request for the class requirement(s) that he/she wishes to have waived, and to submit the syllabi for his/her previous equivalent classes. These syllabi are reviewed by our instructors to judge whether they are equivalent. If so, that course requirement is waived. Up to 30 hours of credit may be transferred. Students who enter with a Masters degree do not have to take the Proseminar. However, unless they have completed equivalent coursework, they must complete our requirements in community, prevention, and history/systems. This can be done either through our existing modules (i.e., modules that are coordinated with the Proseminar) or through other graduate level courses in prevention, community, and history/systems. Graduate Student Advisement Entering students are each assigned to a clinical faculty member who, on the basis of the initial match of interests, serves as a temporary academic/research advisor. During the student’s first year, there are ample opportunities to get to know other faculty and their respective interests--so that, by year two, a student will have selected his or her master’s thesis committee and major advisor. The advisor serves as the student’s primary consultant in matters such as course selection, placement and internship choices, and general career development. Student Evaluation The clinical faculty as a whole work closely with students in the program and vigorously promote open, supportive and collegial relationships. Thus, students’ progress through the program is tracked on an “informal” basis through numerous contacts with program faculty. Any academic or clinical concerns can usually be addressed early. The clinical faculty and the student’s advisor participate in a more formal review of each student on a yearly basis, evaluating progress in coursework, research (Master or Dissertation or Comprehensives as well as publications) and clinical work (performance in practica and placements). Of the 48 or so clinical students enrolled in our program in any given year, 6 to 8 advanced students are usually on their internship at APA-approved sites across the U.S. The remainder are in full-time residence. If academic or professional problems do arise, the 3:1 student to faculty ratio makes it highly likely that counseling and cooperative problem solving efforts will be available. Fewer than 10% of the students who begin training at ASU leave the program without completing the Ph.D. Family pressures or the reappraisal of career directions represent the most commonly stated reasons for student-initiated leaves of absence or withdrawals. Students provide feedback and evaluations of the clinical program in several ways. They evaluate their academic courses and clinical training placements and internships (e.g., the amount and quality of their supervision, client contact, etc.). In addition, student representatives serve on the clinical training committee, and are invited to serve on a number of subcommittees as well. SELECTING A COURSE OF STUDIES On the following pages we have outlined three different emphases within clinical that students may elect to participate in: health psychology, child clinical psychology, and community/prevention. It has been our experience that 60 to 70% of our students will choose to participate in one of the three specialty areas. These areas represent domains of faculty interest as well as clinical or preventive specialties for which an employment demand now exists. However, specialization is not a requirement of our program. Indeed, some students may begin a particular emphasis but later decide to move in a different direction. Thus, the descriptions that follow are designed to give the reader an idea of the curricular choices currently available in our program. The Health Psychology Area of Emphasis Clinical students with interests centering on the interface of psychology and medicine may select Health Psychology as an area of emphasis. In our program, health psychology is broadly interpreted to encompass the theoretical, methodological, and/or procedural (treatment and prevention) contributions from contemporary psychology that bear upon the existing and emerging problems of modern medicine. Such areas of study include (but are not limited to): patient noncompliance, chronic illness management, analysis and modification of lifestyle and thinking patterns that place individuals at risk for serious illness (e.g., cigarette smoking, alcoholism, eating disorders, AIDS/STDs, etc.), physiological correlates of maladaptive behavior patterns, psychosocial assessment and/or screening of medical patients, assessment and treatment of acute and chronic pain, the analysis of life stress in disease, psychosocial factors in immunologic functioning, neurological dysfunction and rehabilitation, the role of psychosocial moderators/mediators in stress-illness relations (including such factors as social support, temperament, goal systems, etc.). These topics and others represent the current interests of full-time and adjunct faculty in clinical psychology, as well as those in graduate programs in social psychology and behavioral neurosciences. Some features of the health psychology area at ASU are that: Students electing to emphasize health psychology are advised to take the graduate course offering, Introduction to Health Psychology, and to select from a number of topical seminars (Stress & Coping, Physiological Psychology, Neuropsychology, Adaptive Systems, etc.) or advanced treatment method courses (e.g., Eating Disorders) as dictated by their own interests and course availability. It is advisable to pursue both MA and Ph.D. research in the domain of health psychology, as well as to complete the one-year, APA-approved internship at a site permitting further development of interventive/diagnostic skills with medical populations. Over the years, graduates of our program who have emphasized health psychology have found employment both in academic and in health-care settings.
The Child Clinical Area of Emphasis The child clinical area of emphasis provides training in the etiology, assessment, treatment and prevention of childhood disorders. A major focus is on the prevention of child mental health problems among children and families under stress. Thus, most of our child clinical faculty also participate in our community-prevention area of emphasis, and in our NIMH-funded Prevention Research Center. Training is provided through formal courses, faculty-supervised research projects, in-house clinical practica, placements at mental health agencies in the community, and outreach efforts with local schools. Students have an opportunity to work with faculty who are studying topics such as: the influence of stress and coping on children’s mental health, children of divorce, effects of bereavement, minority mental health, family and contextual influences on risk and resilience, longitudinal studies linking child risk and resilience to later life outcomes, the development and intergenerational transmission of substance use disorders, outcomes for serious juvenile offenders, and the development and evaluation of prevention programs for children and their families. We emphasize the importance of a developmental perspective and students have opportunities to work with faculty in Developmental Psychology. In addition to the overall clinical core courses, several additional courses and experiences are recommended for students with child clinical interests. Students are encouraged to take Developmental Psychopathology. For their two required Advanced Treatment Methods courses, students are encouraged to select those which focus on children and families. For the cognitive and social bases requirements, students are encouraged to take courses in social and cognitive development. Also, students are encouraged to select child clinical topics for their M.A. and Ph..D. research projects. It is recommended that students complete a clinical placement and their internship at a child clinical site.
Relevant Course Offerings in the Psychology Department Over and above our core clinical curriculum, graduate courses in the Psychology Department that are focused on child clinical psychology include: Developmental Psychopathology, Stress and Adaptation, Social Development, Child Language and Drawing, Cognitive Development, Child Treatment, Seminar in Prevention Research, Child Assessment, Developing Preventive Interventions, Prevention Programs for Children of Divorce, Peer Relations and Social Competence, Growth Modeling, and Statistics in Prevention Research. Other Relevant Resources Child clinical training at ASU benefits from the presence of the ASU Preventive Intervention Research Center, which provides research assistantships, training , and a variety of large scale field projects and intervention trials focused on the prevention of mental health problems for children and families under stress. In addition, students are eligible for pre-doctoral fellowships in our NIMH-funded Training Program on Child Mental Health/Primary Prevention. All clinical students are invited to attend the weekly seminar meetings of this training program to discuss topics in child mental health and primary prevention. In addition, our in-house training clinic provides opportunities for practicum classes in child assessment and treatment and work with local schools. The Psychology Department also houses a Child Study Laboratory with programs for preschool children and research opportunities. The Quantitative program within the Psychology Department provides training in the methodologies necessary for longitudinal studies of developmental trajectories and for evaluating the effects of intervention on those trajectories. Outside of the Psychology Department, faculty from the Department of Family Resources and Human Development teach a wide variety of relevant courses and offer research collaborations and opportunities for our students. CHILD CLINICAL PLACEMENTS IN THE COMMUNITY Interested students can complete their required one-year clinical placement in a community setting that delivers services to children and families including Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Southwest Human Development, Riverside School, and Maricopa Medical Center. In addition, one-year placements are available within the child and family team of our in-house training clinic, including work with child assessment and treatment and outreach work with local schools.
The Community/Prevention Area of Emphasis We define the Community/Preventive area of emphasis to include theory, research methods, and interventions which are designed to prevent the occurrence of mental health, substance use or other problems, and to promote healthy adaptation in a range of social environments. Students study theoretical issues such as the influence of stress and coping, family processes, acculturation and cross-cultural issues, neighborhood influences, and economic hardship on the development of mental health or substance abuse problems. Students also become involved in the development, implementation, and evaluation of preventive interventions to promote healthy adaptation for children in a range of high-risk situations. Foci of preventive interventions include children of divorce, inner-city ethnic minority children, bereaved children, HIV/AIDS, and school-based programs. Some features of particular strength of the Community/Prevention area at ASU include: Students with an emphasis on Community/Prevention should take our seminars in Prevention and Community Psychology, as well as various topical seminars such as Health Promotion in Minority Communities and the weekly informal seminar in Prevention Research. Students are advised to take Advanced Treatment Methods courses in which they get hands-on experience in the development and implementation of preventive intervention programs. Students are also advised to take methodology courses such as Prevention Research Methodology and Program Evaluation, which provide skills in the development and analysis of community-based studies. It is also recommended that students become involved in field placements in community-based agencies, and conduct their MA and Ph.D. research in prevention or community research. Over the years, students with an emphasis in Community/Prevention have found employment in academic settings, research centers, and community agencies.
RESEARCH INTERESTS OF THE CLINICAL FACULTY
SAMPLE SCHEDULE Listed below is a sample schedule, which shows a typical sequence of required and elective courses for students in the clinical program.
*Some courses in human development also satisfy social and cognitive/affective bases of behavior requirements. APPENDIX A1 Courses that satisfy Advanced Treatment Methods requirements:
APPENDIX A2 Courses that meet requirements for Biological, Social, and Cognitive/Affective Bases of Behavior:
*The applicability of specialty seminars to satisfy requirements is determined by the Director of Clinical Training and program faculty.
APPENDIX B Frequently Asked Questions About Our Program Each year the program receives phone calls or letters from interested persons wishing to know “more details” about the process of graduate admissions than are usually found in our general catalogs or other descriptive materials. Some of the typical areas of inquiry include the following: “Adequate” Preparation for Doctoral-Level Studies. Individuals who did not major in psychology, or who graduated from college quite some time ago, or who have obtained advanced degrees in other areas (e.g., law, engineering, nursing, etc.) often inquire about what they should do to maximize their chances of admission to our clinical program. Our first response is that they should read the enclosed program materials carefully before deciding whether ASU is really the best choice, in light of the applicant’s perceived career needs. We weigh heavily an applicant’s demonstrated skills, talents, and knowledge base in scientific psychology when selecting potential Ph.D. candidates. There is almost no substitute for coursework in experimental methodology, statistics, personality and abnormal psychology and practical laboratory and/or field experience. Thus, many applicants are advised to spend up to two years in “making up” undergraduate-level coursework, prior to applying to our program (and spending an average of five additional years in pursuit of their doctorate). Experience in human service settings or demonstrated skills in other scholarly activities (such as obtaining advanced degrees) do not tend to predict success in programs such as ours. Finally, we have found that individuals with little formal background in psychology rarely have a realistic idea of how a contemporary Ph.D.-level clinical psychologist functions. Applicants desiring a career as full-time psychotherapists or counselors are advised to consider other routes than the Ph.D. degree in clinical psychology. Letters of Recommendation. Applicants often ask about the importance of letters of endorsement. Basically, good letters will not offset a low grade point average or poor GRE performance. However, with a strong academic record, the letters most definitely assist us in determining which applicants would best fit into our program. Who should one ask to write such letters? Letters from psychology professors, researchers, or psychologists with whom you have worked in applied settings (hospitals, clinics, crisis centers, etc.) are considered to be the most informative. Letters from one’s high school principal, family doctor, or congressman carry little weight, simply because such persons cannot make an informed assessment of an applicant’s potential as a psychologist. “Unofficial” Graduate Studies. Applicants planning to move to the Phoenix area for various reasons often ask if taking graduate-level courses, in a non-matriculated status, will give them a “head start” in our graduate curriculum. Since most of our courses are open only to students officially accepted into the clinical training program, there is no mechanism for truly saving time while waiting to be admitted, although occasional specialty seminars (PSY 591) will be open to non-matriculated students with permission of instructor. Part-Time Study. As noted earlier, students are expected to work full-time toward the completion of their Ph.D. degree while in the program. Financial Support. Financial Support: In-state and out-of-state tuition is waived for all students who are supported by university-based research and teaching assistantships. In addition to tuition waivers, research and teaching assistants typically receive a stipend of approximately $13,000 for nine months. Students are usually supported for five years of graduate study through departmental resources. Students are encouraged to compete for national awards and grants that provide training stipends and support for research activities. Admission of Students with Master’s Degree. Does having a Master’s degree in psychology help or hinder one’s chances of admission? A student who does well in a master’s program increases his or her chances of obtaining strong and informed letters of recommendation, research experience, field experience, and a better sense of career objectives. If admitted, MA-level students may exempt several required courses, and may not need to prepare another formal master’s research project. However, an MA degree will not substitute for the undergraduate GPA and GRE score admission credentials. Transfer Credits. Ordinarily, ASU doctoral students must earn at least 54 credits of ASU coursework. Transfer students who have not earned a masters degree, may transfer up to 30 credits of previous graduate work. Those transfer students who have completed a masters degree before being admitted to ASU may transfer up to 30 credits that were earned as part of masters degree and an additional 12 credits that were not used to fulfill the masters degree requirements. Some transfer students who have completed masters theses may not need to complete another masters thesis if the faculty judges the prior master’s thesis research as acceptable for a degree in clinical psychology. The decision about transfer credit is made in conjunction with the program director and the student’s program advisor. Admission Schedules. Applications are accepted for admission in the fall semester (which begins mid-August). We do not admit students in the spring or summer. HOW TO APPLY Applications are to be submitted by December 15. Send the following materials to: Division of Graduate Studies 1) Your completed application form. This can also be done electronically on the Division of Graduate Studies Web site. 2) The $50.00 application fee. 3) Scores on the Graduate Record Examination, including advanced test in Psychology. 4) One copies of your official transcript of all previous undergraduate and graduate study. Send the following materials to: Coordinator of Graduate Admissions 1) Three letters of recommendation. We prefer that at least persons within the academic community write two of the letters. If you have been away from school for some time, letters from non-academic professionals are acceptable. 2) A brief statement of purpose (900 words or less), describing your prior research training, professional goals, and the fit between your academic interests and our training program’s emphases. 3) The enclosed applicant response form. 4) One copy of your transcripts (unofficial) of all previous undergraduate & graduate studies.. 5) One unofficial copy of your GRE scores and percentiles, including advanced test in Psychology. NOTE: The department and the clinical training program values diversity among its graduate students. INTERNSHIPS A full year (11-month) internship at the level of APA accreditation is required of all students. Up-to-date reference files of available opportunities are kept in the Psychology Department. In recent years, our students have trained at the following internship centers: Alberta Hospital Edmonton, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Arizona State University, Counseling & Consultation, Tempe, AZ Atascadero State Hospital, Atascadero, CA Audie Murphy Memorial VA, San Antonio, TX Baltimore VAMC, Baltimore, MD Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX Beth Israel Medical Center, New York Boulder County Mental Health Center, Boulder, CO Brown University Internship Consortium, Providence, RI Center for Behavioral Health, Bloomington, IN Child & Family Guidance Center, Northridge, CA Children’s Hospital National Medical Center, Washington, D.C. Children’s Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL Children’s Hospital (OSU), Columbus, OH Children’s Psychiatric Hospital, U. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM Denver General Hospital, Denver, CO Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC Fairfield Hills Hospital, Newton, CT Geisinger Medical Center, Danville, PA Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA Indiana University Medical School, Indianapolis, IN Langley-Porter Neuropsychiatric Institute, San Francisco, CA Medical College of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA Medical University of South Carolina, VAMC Consortium, Charleston, SC Morison Center, Michael Reese Hospital & Medical Center, Chicago, IL Northwestern University Medical School, Chicago, IL Oregon Health Sciences University, Portland, OR Pacific Clinics, Pasadena, CA Phoenix Psychology Internship Consortium, Phoenix, AZ Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke’s Medical Center, Chicago, IL Rusk Institute, New York University Medical Center, New York Stanford Children's Hospital, Stanford, CA Taylor Manor Hospital, Ellicott City, MD UCLA School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA University of California-Davis, Sacramento Medical Center, Sacramento, CA University of California, San Diego, CA University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver, CO University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, FL University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN University of Missouri Health Sciences Consortium, Columbia, MO University of North Carolina Medical School, Chapel Hill, NC University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX University of Texas Medical School, Houston, TX University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI Veterans Administration Hospital, Palo Alto, CA Veterans Administration Outpatient Center, Brooklyn, NY Veterans Administration Hospital, Salt Lake City, UT VA Puget Sound, Seattle WA Veterans Administration Hospital, Tucson, AZ Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, D.C. Western State Hospital, Tacoma, WA Western Psychiatric Institute, Pittsburgh, PA Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven C
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