The clinical science program includes coursework, research, and practicum training. The program is a 12-month per year commitment. Students will be actively involved in research and clinical work when relevant for the entire year, including winter and summer sessions.
Formal coursework is completed over a four-year period. The sequence of some coursework is fixed in order to provide the necessary background for simultaneous research and practicum activity. Flexibility is provided in meeting many program requirements, including through the completion of independent projects in lieu of some courses.
Students start their research involvement in the first year. By the end of this year, a First-Year Project must be defended to the clinical science faculty. The Second-Year Project must be defended to the clinical science faculty by the end of the fall semester of the third year. The fourth and usually fifth years are devoted primarily to dissertation research.
Some practicum training starts in the first year, when students typically conduct their first assessment at the Institute for Community Mental Health Clinic. Practicum intensifies in the second year, when students serve as primary therapists under close faculty supervision at the Psychological Services Training Center. In the third year and beyond, students work at external clinical practicum sites or continue to work at the Psychological Services Training Center.
At the end of the third year, students must successfully negotiate the comprehensive exam, which includes both written and oral components.
The internship is usually taken during the sixth year. The Ph.D. cannot be awarded until both the internship and dissertation are completed.
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