Admission requirements, acceptance rates, and financial assistance in clinical psychology programs: Diversity across the practice-research continuum.

129 directors (80% response) of APA-accredited clinical psychology programs provided information pertaining to admission requirements, acceptance rates, financial assistance, and theoretical orientations. Summary data are presented and comparisons are made among 4 types of clinical programs: PsyD programs, practice-oriented PhD programs, equal-emphasis PhD programs, and research-oriented PhD programs. Clinical doctoral programs held similar expectations for undergraduate preparation in psychology, but robust differences emerged on preferred Graduate Record Examination scores, acceptance rates, and financial assistance. In the most extreme comparison (PsyD vs research-oriented PhD programs), students were 4 times more likely to gain acceptance but 6 times less likely to receive full financial assistance in PsyD programs. Implications of these results for potential graduate students and for the future of applied psychology programs are briefly discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Getting in and getting money: A comparative analysis of admission standards, acceptance rates, and financial assistance across the research–practice continuum in clinical psychology programs.

The diversification and proliferation of doctoral programs in clinical psychology call for their periodic comparative analysis to inform prospective applicants, their advisors, and the entire field. The authors surveyed directors of the 232 American Psychological Association (APA)–accredited doctoral programs in clinical psychology (98% response) regarding application numbers, acceptance rates, financial assistance, and credentials of incoming students. Results are summarized for all clinical programs and then separately for 6 types of programs along the practice–research continuum: freestanding PsyD, university professional school PsyD, university department PsyD, practice-oriented PhD, equal-emphasis PhD, and research-oriented PhD. Lower acceptance rates and higher Graduate Record Examination scores were strongly associated with programs oriented toward more research training; for example, research-oriented PhD programs admitted far fewer applicants (7% vs. 50%) than did freestanding PsyD programs. Freestanding PsyD programs awarded significantly less full financial assistance to incoming students (1% vs. 89%) and required 1 less year to complete than did PhD programs. Overall, PhD-level students were more likely to secure an APA or Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers internship than were PsyD students. The authors conclude with observations about the historical changes and heightened differentiation of doctoral training in clinical psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Survey of current clinical and research trends in clinical psychology.

Surveyed directors of 115 clinical PhD and PsyD psychology programs with accreditation from the American Psychological Association to explore trends in the training of clinical psychologists. The most popular area of clinical research appeared to be behavioral medicine/health psychology. The most popular specialty clinics allowing training in a specific domain of clinical psychology were family therapy, behavioral medicine, neuropsychology/rehabilitation, and couples therapy. Ss in PhD programs were more likely than those in PsyD programs to subscribe to a cognitive-behavioral/social-learning orientation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Career experiences of doctors of psychology.

Surveyed 184 graduates (mean age 37 yrs) of 9 PsyD programs to determine the professional activities in which they were engaged, satisfaction with careers and graduate training in professional psychology, and public acceptance of the PsyD degree and compared the results with similar data on PhD clinicians. Most Ss were primarily engaged in direct professional services in professional settings. They were generally satisfied with their careers in professional psychology and significantly more satisfied with the graduate training they had received than were clinical psychologists trained in traditional PhD programs. More Ss reported that the PsyD degree was an advantage rather than a disadvantage when competing for jobs with candidates who had other degrees. PsyD Ss were found to be active joiners of professional associations. 91% of PsyD Ss who applied for licensure or certification encountered no difficulty due to their degree. Almost no unfavorable attitudes toward the degree were perceived among clients, employers, or colleagues. It is concluded that fears about perception of the PsyD as a second-rate credential are unfounded. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Substance abuse training in APA-accredited doctoral programs in clinical psychology: A survey.

A survey addressing training provided in the area of substance abuse was mailed to all 160 doctoral clinical psychology programs provisionally and fully accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA). A total of 95 replies were received (59%). This study was conducted to ascertain whether levels of doctoral training in this area have changed appreciably since comparable surveys by J. A. Selin and S. Svanum (1981) and B. Lubin et al (1986). Because of the considerable increase in number of APA-accredited PsyD programs since the previous 2 surveys, it was also possible to compare relative levels of training in substance abuse in PhD, PsyD, and combined PhD/PsyD programs. Survey results did not suggest that substance abuse training either has changed markedly over time or differs substantially across types of degree programs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teaching of controversial and empirically validated treatments in APA-accredited clinical and counseling psychology programs.

Surveyed the directors of 126 American Psychological Association (APA) accredited clinical and counseling psychology PhD and PsyD programs to determine whether they teach controversial memory recovery techniques for suspected childhood sexual abuse and the controversial technique, facilitated communication. The authors also asked about training in empirically validated treatments. Results show that counseling psychology programs were more likely than clinical psychology programs to teach memory recovery techniques, and counseling programs were less likely to discourage the use of both memory recovery techniques and facilitated communication. More emphasis on research, less on practice, and a higher percentage of behaviorally-oriented faculty was related to less training of controversial techniques. Empirically validated treatments were reportedly taught more in clinical than in counseling psychology programs and in programs that emphasize research and have a higher percentage of behaviorally-oriented faculty. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Professional interests and career aspirations of graduate students in professional psychology: An exploratory survey.

Graduate students in American professional psychology programs (N = 498) were surveyed to examine differences between specialty area (clinical vs. counseling), degree type (PhD vs. PsyD), and gender with respect to demographics, training models, theoretical orientations, career aspirations and reasons for choices, research productivity, and expected salaries. Clinical and counseling students differed with respect to training models, theoretical orientations, career aspirations, and expected salaries, whereas PhD and PsyD students differed with respect to training models, theoretical orientations, career aspirations, and research emphasis. The changing gender composition in professional psychology is unlikely to have a dramatic effect given their professional similarities. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Supplement to listing of APA-accredited doctoral and predoctoral internship training programs in psychology": Clarification.

Reports an error in the American Psychologist, 1994[Jul], Vol 49[7], 671. The supplement noted the phasing out of the accredited program in clinical psychology at Yeshiva University. However, this notice referred only to Yeshiva's clinical PhD program, not to its clinical PsyD program. (The following abstract of this article originally appeared in record 1994-42940-001.) Reports the changes announced by the American Psychological Association (APA) Committee on Accreditation in the list of APA-accredited doctoral programs in professional psychology and predoctoral internships for doctoral training in psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Selected outcomes of accredited programs.

For a representative sample of 149 accredited doctoral programs, 3 types of outcomes are reported: activities of students, time to degree, and employment settings of graduates. Comparisons of activities on the basis of program specialty area yielded a difference only for the activity of providing professional services (with clinical?>?counseling?>?school). Comparisons on the basis of degree type (PhD, PsyD) yielded differences for all activities except providing professional services, with PhD students and faculty reporting higher median levels of involvement. Students in PhD programs require significantly longer (approximately 1.5 years) to complete their degrees than do PsyD program students. Graduates' employment settings tend to be consistent with the specialty area of their doctoral programs with interesting shifts from initial to subsequent employment. Recommendations are made for expanding outcome assessment of graduate education and training in professional psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Need for the doctor of psychology degree in professional psychology.

The Vail Conference on professional training in psychology recommended development of explicitly professional programs and use of the PsyD degree to certify competence in professional psychology. Policies governing use of the degree, however, as well as the concepts of professional function which degree titles should symbolize, continue to be controversial. Opponents of the Vail Conference recommendations have argued that professional psychologists are most appropriately regarded as scholar-professionals, and have urged award of the PhD degree upon completion of graduate training in such fields as clinical psychology. As counterargument, a multiple definition of the term scholar-professional is stated, and the surplus meanings implied by scholarship are shown to be either false, misleading, or redundant. The difficulties that arise from using the PhD degree as a credential of professional competence are then discussed, and the advantages of employing the PsyD degree both affirmatively, as a certificate of professional competence in psychology, and restrictively, to exclude inadequately trained people from the practice of professional psychology, are asserted. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Graduate preparation in research methods: The current status of APA-accredited professional programs in psychology.

Graduate preparation in research methods is needed to help ensure that the next generation of psychologists is prepared to consume and engage in research. This study examined the availability of courses in research methods in 192 American Psychological Association (APA)-accredited programs based on reports from program directors in clinical, counseling, school, and combined psychology programs. Results suggest that, although most doctoral-level psychology programs require introductory methods courses, the requirement to take more advanced courses in research methods is less common. Although many programs offer advanced methods courses as electives, fewer than 10% of program directors believe additional courses are needed. Among the areas of specialization, significant differences in required coursework in research methods were found only for factor analysis, which was required most by school psychology programs, followed by clinical psychology and then counseling psychology. In addition, PhD and PsyD programs generally do not differ in requiring coursework in research methods. Data from this study reflect a significant improvement in course offerings in research methods during the last two decades. Implications of these findings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evaluative comparison of PsyD and PhD students by clinical internship supervisors.

Internship supervisors evaluated the preinternship preparation of 67 PsyD students and 228 PhD students in regard to several core clinical skills and general dimensions of professional competence. In contrast with previous studies that suggested serious dissatisfaction among supervisors with the general quality of preinternship training, most interns evaluated individually in this study were considered at least adequately prepared for most kinds of clinical work. Except for slight superiority of PsyD students in "sensitivity" and of PhD students in "scientific attitude," there were no reliable differences between interns from practitioner programs and those from scientist-practitioner programs. For future evaluation research, the need to move beyond ratings to performance-based measures of competence is imperative. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training for independent practice: A survey of graduate programs in clinical psychology.

Administered a questionnaire to 112 directors of clinical training programs to investigate the types of training opportunities relative to independent practice that doctoral programs in clinical psychology are offering students. Findings indicate that 87% of PsyD programs and 35% of PhD programs offered some training. Results indicate that private practice as a professional activity for psychologists has become more accepted, that increased training is being offered, but that negative attitudes toward private practice still remain in a small sector of academia. (4 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Bootstrapping it in the Big Apple: A history of school psychology at New York University.

Discusses the 1st school psychology training in the US at New York University (NYU) in 1929 and attempts to place it in the historical context from which clinical psychology and school psychology emerged. The history, philosophy, and economic struggles of the current NYU programs are described. It is contended that 3 coexisting current programs, a PhD, PsyD, and Certificate program, shared strong commitment to basic psychological theory, an intensive psychodynamically grounded assessment base, a client-oriented philosophy, and an eclectic curriculum that also includes behavioral, consultative, and systems orientations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Qualifications of assessment faculty in Clinical Psychology Doctoral Programs: An analysis of American Psychological Association membership data.

The first results from the Study of Training in Psychological Assessment in APA-Accredited Clinical Psychology Doctoral Programs are based on an analysis of American Psychological Association (APA) membership entries from the Directory of the American Psychological Association, 1997 Edition (APA, 1997a) for 316 APA members identified by 84 clinical doctoral programs as teaching assessment courses. These faculty members had a wide range of interests but only 21% listed assessment as a primary or secondary interest area. They have considerable postgraduate experience (M?=?17 years) and include accomplished psychologists (14% are APA Fellows) and accomplished practitioners (11% hold American Board of Professional Psychology Diplomates). Those who taught in PsyD and PhD/PsyD programs were less likely than those teaching in PhD programs to hold an academic position as principal employment but more likely to belong to state psychological associations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Roles, functions, and training in clinical psychology: A survey of academic clinicians.

Describes a questionnaire sent to 239 academic clinical psychologists in American Psychological Association (APA)-approved clinical training programs to obtain their attitudes towards a number of critical issues in clinical psychology. 75% returned the questionnaire. A PhD degree in psychology, with equal emphasis on scientific and applied training, was endorsed by most respondents, as was the training of MA and MS clinicians. Other doctoral programs for training clinicians, including PsyD degrees, did not receive strong endorsement. Activity areas of clinical psychologist were rated from 6 reference points ranging from adequacy of present training to training emphasis expected in 7 yr. Results indicate that: (a) therapy and research were rated high by most respondents; (b) many respondents believed that consulting and teaching should be emphasized more and that their clinical training programs did not adequately train in these areas; (c) the emphasis on diagnosis was expected to decline in training and future usefulness; (d) in addition to research, respondents believed that APA should support other interest areas; and (e) clinical psychology should be more attuned to social problems. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A PsyD degrees for every practitioner: Truth in labeling.

At present, nearly 70% of American Psychological Association members are identified as health care providers. The PhD degree, a generic scholarly degree, is most commonly used to certify completion of doctoral studies in professional psychology. As a result, the consumer has difficulty determining which psychologist is qualified to provide health care. The Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) should identify those psychologists who provide doctoral-level health services. Licensed, qualified PhD psychologists could be awarded the PsyD retroactively on the basis of a credential review, as the JD degree was awarded to lawyers previously holding the LLB. Applicants for the PsyD would not relinquish their PhD degrees. Upon review and approval, they would identify themselves with both degrees: PsyD, PhD. Mechanisms for accomplishing the change are suggested. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinical and counseling psychology: Can differences be gleaned from printed recruiting materials?

Students and professionals alike often ask, "What is the difference between clinical and counseling psychology?" An even more basic question for educators and trainers is, "Are students accurately informed of the differences between the two specialties?" To address this question, we examined recruitment and application materials from 227 APA-accredited doctoral programs in counseling psychology (CoPhD, n = 56), clinical psychology PhD (ClPhD, n = 137), and clinical psychology PsyD (ClPsyD, n = 34). It should be noted that 83% of both clinical and counseling psychology programs, respectively, were represented in the data. An eight-page coding instrument was used to examine similarities and dissimilarities between each discipline. The results of this study suggest few differences in program or faculty characteristics, student and faculty demographics, or admission and training requirements, as advertised in program recruitment materials. Implications of these findings are discussed and directions for future research are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Lloyd Girton Humphreys (1913-2003).

Obituary for psychologist educator Lloyd Girton Humphreys (1913-2003). Among other things, the obituary reports that Lloyd helped to form the organizing committee that established the Psychonomic Society in 1959. Lloyd was also involved in several efforts toward the enhancement of graduate education in psychology. In 1964, he chaired a meeting of the Council of Chairmen of Graduate Departments of Psychology, and he was elected the first chairman of the resulting organization--which later became the Council of Graduate Departments of Psychology. Also, Lloyd was actively involved in advocating for the designation of the doctor of psychology (PsyD) degree, against rather considerable opposition from some other members of the academic community. He was a member of the 1963 American Psychological Association Committee on the Scientific and Professional Aims of Psychology that ultimately proposed the initiation of the PsyD in 1967, and as department head, Lloyd was instrumental in helping D. R. Peterson start the first PsyD program at the University of Illinois in 1968. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training in law and psychology: Models from the Villanova conference.

Although the domain of law and psychology is a burgeoning and popular field of study, there has never been a concerted effort to evaluate current training models or to develop newer, more effective ones. 48 invited participants attended a national conference held at Villanova Law School to remedy this deficiency. Working groups addressed issues of education and training for the undergraduate level; for doctoral-level programs in law and social science; for forensic clinical training; for joint-degree (JD/PhD–PsyD) programs; for those in practica, internships, and postdoctoral programs; and for continuing education. This article delineates levels and models of training in each of these areas. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)