Clinical Psychology Program Information
The program curriculum provides academically rigorous preparation for
a career in clinical psychology. The Examination for Professional Practice
in Psychology (the psychology national licensing exam) is considered
one of the most objective criteria for evaluating the adequacy of clinical
psychology training programs. Graduates of the program at the University
of Missouri-St.Louis have consistently scored in the top 15% of all training
programs in the United States on this exam.
The graduate curriculum is rooted in a core of required courses in research
methods and content areas of psychology. All students are required to
take a two semester sequence in quantitative methods in their first year.
During the first three years of the program, students take courses in
multicultural issues, applied research methods, social psychology, personality, developmental
psychology, cognitive/behavioral processes, biological bases of behavior, and psychopathology,
as well as elective coursework.
Regularly offered electives include: Behavioral Medicine, Neuropsychological Assessment, Psychopharmacology, Women and Mental Health, Developmental Psychopathlogy, Psychopathology & Aging, Psychometric Theory, Advanced Multivariate Statistics, among others. In the first two years of the program, students complete a research project under the supervision of the research advisor. Students receive the Master of Arts Degree in Psychology for completion of the first two years of academic study.
Within the context of this base of scientific knowledge and competence, students pursue the professional aspects of clinical psychology through skill courses in cognitive and personality testing and psychotherapy and through supervised clinical practice. Monthly program case conferences provide an opportunity for all students and faculty to discuss clinical issues as a group. Available psychotherapy courses include: Introduction to Clinical Interventions, Child & Family Psychotherapy, Cognitive & Behavioral Interventions, and Group Therapy.
Students participate in practica in our Community Psychological Service and a paid clinical clerkship, which may be in a community or university-based setting. Students participate in at least one year of clerkship and three years of training in the Community Psychological Service. By the time of the internship, students have received a minimum of 1500 hours of supervised clinical experience and are highly competitive for positions in internship programs.
The program is committed to providing diversity training for all students. This training includes specialized diversity coursework (Multicultural Issues in Clinical Psychology), the integration of diversity-relevant material across the curriculum, and clinical training with diverse populations in campus-based and community placements. A number of our faculty members and students have received training in issues specific to sexual orientation, and are members of the campus Safe Zone community.
Students are engaged in coursework, practica, and research during their first four years in the program and are normally prepared for the internship by the fifth year. The internship is a paid, full-time clinical traineeship. Students select the site of their internship under the guidance of the advisor and the Clinical Director. There are two APA-approved internships in St. Louis; some students obtain positions in these programs, but the majority take an internship outside the St. Louis area. Students from our program have been highly successful in obtaining the internship positions of their choice. See the section on admission criteria for statistics on internships placements for our students.
The program does not require a language proficiency nor a preliminary examination. However, students are required to complete the Specialty Examination prior to the internship. To complete this requirement, students must demonstrate a thorough knowledge of a topic area chosen in consultation with their research advisor. Successful completion of the oral examination of the Specialty is required for advancement to doctoral candidacy.
The program is designed to be completed in five years of full-time study; however, it should be noted that some students have graduated in six or more years after beginning the program. The primary cause of this delay, when it occurs, is that students elect to take advantage of optional research and clinical opportunities prior to the internship. Students have a maximum of seven years to complete all program requirements.
Areas of Specialization (download detailed description)
Students have a number of opportunities to gain specialized training during their time in the program. An important campus resource is the Certificate in University Teaching offered by the UM-St. Louis Center for Teaching and Learning. Students who wish to do so are given the opportunity in their advanced years to become formal instructors for an undergraduate course, under the supervision of a faculty teaching mentor. Formal UM-St. Louis graduate certificates are also available in Gerontology, and in Women & Gender Issues.
Within the clinical program, three emphasis areas are offered: Behavioral Medicine, Trauma Studies, and Women’s and Gender Studies. These emphasis areas provide specialized research and clinical training in preparation for professional roles in contemporary psychology. Students have the option of selecting one emphasis area, but are not required to do so (i.e., approximately 50% of our students select an emphasis area). Clinical training opportunities in the area of Child & Family are available to all of our students; however, this year we are not accepting any students with focused research interests in this area.
Students may select their emphasis area at any time in the program. However,
selection early in the program is advisable to allow time to plan coursework,
research, and training in the area of specialization. Students who select an
emphasis area choose an advisor who specializes in that area. Students may
change advisors at any time to accommodate their changing interests across
the areas of specialization.
Student-Faculty Relations
The clinical faculty strive
to provide a supportive learning atmosphere for all students. Because the student
to faculty ratio is low, it is possible for each
student to receive ample individual attention at each stage of the program.
Classes are small in size, and core clinical faculty are available to provide
intensive
research and clinical supervision. The faculty accepts only those students
expected to complete the program; hence, there is no necessity for competitiveness
among
students. Instead, the program fosters collaborative, supportive relationships
among students within and across year levels.
Students are encouraged to provide ongoing feedback to faculty about their graduate
learning experiences. Students provide evaluations of each course in the program
and meet regularly with the clinical director to provide feedback and suggestions
for improving the program. Student input is also received from student representatives,
who attend clinical meetings to represent student viewpoints.
Program of Study
Below is a sample year-by-year listing of the program curriculum.
The fifth year is reserved for the Clinical Internship.
Sample Program of Study
Fall Semester Spring Semester
Summer
First Year
Introduction to Clinical Assessment I Introduction to Clinical Assessment II
Quantitative Methods I Quantitative Methods II
Social Psychology History & Systems
Research Team I Independent Research Project
Psychopathology Elective(Optional)
Introduction to Clinical Skills
Summer Supervision
Second Year
Introduction to Clinical Interventions Seminar: Cognitive Processes
Physiological Psychology Clinical Research
Independent Research Project Independent Research Project
Developmental Psychology Clinical Supervision
Clinical Supervision Elective (optional)
Summer Supervision
Third Year
Research Team II Specialty Examination Research
Ethical and Professional Issues Clinical Supervision
Clinical Supervision Clerkship Seminar
Clerkship Seminar Elective (optional)
Multicultural Issues
Elective (optional) Summer Supervision
Fourth Year
Dissertation Research Dissertation Research
Clinical Supervision Clinical Supervision
Elective (optional) Elective (optional)
Summer Supervision
Fifth Year
Clinical Internship Clinical Internship
Clerkship
In addition to the three years of psychotherapy and assessment
training at the Community Psychological Service, trainees complete a one-year,
20-hour-per-week clerkship placement during their third or fourth year.
Clerkship activities may involve a combination of assessment, psychotherapy,
consultation and/or clinical research. Placements have been at both on
and off campus sites in community agencies and at local hospitals.
Advisement and Evaluation
Students select an advisor at the beginning of their first
year. The advisor provides general advisement and support and serves as
the student's first research supervisor. The student is free to change
faculty advisors as his/her research interests develop and change.
Students' progress is carefully monitored, particularly during the first three years in the program. Students receive regular evaluations from their advisors, based upon coursework, research, and clinical performance. Students are given constructive advice and direction to promote their progress and growth, and special instructions and/or remedial help is offered to students whose performance is unsatisfactory.
Attrition Rate
The faculty selects for the program only those students who
have the potential to complete all aspects of the program successfully.
Hence, the termination rate in the program is very low. In addition to a small number of students terminated from the program, there have been students
who have voluntarily left the program for a variety of personal reasons.
See the admission criteria section for statistics on program attrition.
Licensure Rate
Reporting of program licensure data is an expectation of the US Secretary of Education’s National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity for program accreditors, including the APA Committee on Accreditation. Programs are expected to report the number and percentage of program graduates who have become licensed psychologists within the preceding decade.
Of the 49 students who graduated from our program during the period from 1997-2005, 38 (78%) are licensed psychologists. Of the remaining 11 program alumni, the licensure status is unknown for 5 individuals; 6 alumni have elected to not be licensed because it is not a requirement of their professional responsibilities (e.g., alumni teaching in undergraduate colleges, full time researchers, etc).
Employment Outlook
Graduates of the clinical program have been highly successful
in securing positions in the clinical psychology field. Initial employment
settings of recent graduates include: universities, Veteran's Administration
Medical Centers, private and state-funded mental health facilities, post-doctoral
fellowships in university affiliated research centers and hospitals, and
staff psychologist positions in private and public hospitals. Their job
duties include program development and evaluation, coordination and supervision
of services, basic research, and direct assessment and treatment.