Clinical and School Psychology, Psy.D.

Phone: (540) 568-6439                                                                   Website: http://www.psyc.jmu.edu/cipsyd/

Graduate Program Director
Dr. Anne Stewart

Admission Requirements

Admission to the doctoral program requires that applicants:

• have completed an advanced degree (M.A./M.S. or Ed.S.) in clinical, school or counseling psychology or a related field.
• provide general (verbal, quantitative and analytic) GRE scores (previous GRE scores may be accepted); advanced Psychology GRE scores recommended but not required.
• submit a typed personal statement that includes description of professional goals.
• submit three letters of recommendation from professionals familiar with their academic work and any relevant professional experiences.
• submit transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate programs attended.
• submit a current professional vitae.

The program is typically initiated at a post-master’s degree level; however, in some rare cases students may be admitted without a master’s degree. Any exceptions to these admission requirements must be approved by the core faculty of the program.

Five to seven full-time students are admitted each year. Priority will be given to application materials received by February 1 in anticipation of fall admission. Group and individual interviews with both faculty and current students to assess abilities, characteristics and readiness for the program are scheduled in February. All applicants are notified of admission decisions no later than March 15. Students offered admission are expected to reply no later than April 1.

Mission

The mission of this doctoral program is to produce leading health service psychologists who are broadly trained in the science and practice of psychology, actively self-reflective, optimally prepared to work in a wide variety of settings with diverse clientele across the lifespan, and demonstrably committed to an ethic of personal responsibility, social awareness and global engagement.

Combined-Integrated (C-I) training is an innovative concept that merges the traditional professional areas of clinical, counseling and school psychology into a generalist approach that provides students with a broad foundation from which to operate. A generalist orientation opens up pathways to draw from each of the three practice areas in a manner that is complementary and synergistic. The rationale for C-I training stems from the fact that there is a) tremendous overlap in the basic training of the three specialty areas of clinical, counseling and school psychology; b) there is a need to define the core competencies of professional psychologists; and c) there are emerging trends for greater unity within the field.

In regards to training objectives, we work to graduate C-I health service psychologists who can:

• understand and integrate contributions and perspectives from the three major areas of applied activity in our larger field (i.e. clinical, counseling and school psychology);
• develop conceptualizations of human behavior that integrate biological, psychological and social dimensions of analysis;
• integrate various theoretical perspectives into a coherent whole; and
• work effectively in an interprofessional context.

A limited number of full-time students are admitted each year. All students receive a full-time teaching or graduate assistantship that includes tuition and stipend.

This doctoral program exhibits strong commitment to diversity through:

• Required apaplied experiences specific to multicultural issues
• Multicultural/gender issues covered in course work throughout the curriculum
• Practical experiences with clients from a variety of cultures and backgrounds
• Faculty with interests in international issues

Curriculum

Students in this doctoral program earn a doctor of psychology (Psy.D.) degree. An individualized doctoral plan of study is developed for each student consisting of courses in psychological foundations as well as courses and field experiences in the required core curriculum. Academic progress is monitored throughout the program and feedback is provided to each student periodically.

Previous graduate course work may be accepted to meet the psychological foundations courses. A minimum of 59 credit hours of doctoral core courses, however, must be taken at JMU. All students must complete a 12-month internship and a scholarly dissertation. Internships must be approved by the American Psychological Association or meet the standards set forth by APA. In addition, students completing the doctoral dissertation will be required to pay an additional fee (approximately $55.00) for the electronic presentation of their research.

In addition to the foundational course work listed in the program handbook, the following are required courses that must be taken at JMU; any exceptions to this curriculum must be approved by the Core Faculty.