Important Information about the Psychological Services Center (PSC)

It can sometimes be confusing to people when there are multiple mental health treatment centers on a large University campus.  The PSC serves a particular purpose in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences (PBS) that is distinct from other clinics and services on campus.  Here is some information that aims to reduce confusion about the PSC and what we can and cannot do:

Who We Are

The PSC is the training center (practicum site) for doctoral students in Clinical Psychology in the PBS.  Some services are also provided by Doctoral Students from the School Psychology program in the College of Education.  We accept clients who can benefit from outpatient treatment, and who will also help our doctoral students to become competent psychological providers.  Our goals are two-fold; primarily we are a training clinic, and secondarily we strive to meet the needs of the community at large.

We welcome clients for therapy from Amherst and surrounding communities as well as UMass students.  We are a fee for service clinic and are not funded by student fees of any sort.  We offer our services at a low fee, and all clients seen in the clinic will be billed at our regular rates for psychotherapy or assessment.

Who We Are Not

We are not an extension of the Center for Counseling and Psychological Health (CCPH).  The CCPH serves the UMass student body, and is funded in part by student fees.  They provide limited free services.  While we take referrals from CCPH when appropriate, and may be able to see clients for longer term treatment, clients at the PSC will be charged for our services whether they are from the community at large or the UMass student body.