Ph.D. general clinical psychology students integrate their academic and scientific knowledge with practical experiences through a series of practicum training courses.
Read on for details about training time frames, placement sites, and preparations required of student trainees.
Beginning in the second year of the program and extending through a minimum of six semesters, students integrate their academic and scientific knowledge with practical experiences through a series of practicum training courses.
Practicum training is sequential, cumulative and graded in complexity. The training provides opportunities for students to achieve and demonstrate profession-wide competencies in assessment, intervention, ethics, and diversity.
Practica involve opportunities to work under close supervision with diverse and underserved populations through didactic and practical experiences that promote cultural competency.
Students will progress through experiences that gradually increase in complexity and responsibility, from gaining foundational competencies in evidence-based assessment and intervention practices, to preparing for more advanced supervisory and consultative roles in health-care delivery systems.
Placements are available both on and off campus. Practice settings include private and not-for-profit clinics and public agencies that serve individuals with a variety of clinical needs. Knowledge from courses in psychopathology, ethics, assessment and evidence-based treatments are integrated into each practicum experience.
In addition to on-site supervision, students also participate in supervision groups and are assigned faculty supervisors who hold a psychology license.
Practicum placements are made by the Clinical Faculty. Student trainees receive individual practicum evaluations by clinical supervisors based on Clinical Competency Ratings. Practicum grades are assigned by program faculty in consultation with site supervisors.
Some practicum sites require that trainees submit a criminal background check and drug screen before starting. Students should check with the Director of Clinical Training to determine what preparation is required for each practicum.
The pre-doctoral internship is a year-long, 2,000-hour, intensive, supervised, in-residence clinical training experience that is the capstone of professional training in the doctoral program. Typically done during the fifth or sixth year, internship is usually the final step before the Ph.D. is awarded. Students are expected to complete internships accredited by APA. Students have completed internships at sites including University of Colorado Medical School, Utah and Kansas State Hospitals, Patton State Hospital in California, and VA Medical Centers in Florida, New York, and Texas.