The Psychological Services Center (PSC) is the in-house training center (practicum site) for doctoral students in Clinical Psychology.  The mission of the PSC is two-fold; training students in the practice of clinical psychology, and meeting the behavioral health needs of the UMass and greater Amherst area community. Activities pertaining to all aspects of clinical training take place in the PSC from the start of a student’s graduate career, including classes, student presentations, assessment and psychotherapy intervention teams, and research.  The PSC is a comfortable and quiet place where students frequently spend time together working on clinic work, coursework, or their research.  The staff room is a hub of activity and social interaction for members of our program.  The PSC also is a great place to find an available room to set up a private space to work.  Further information about the PSC can be found at http://www.umass.edu/psychological-services/.

The PSC is one of several HIPAA regulated units on the UMass Amherst campus and the privacy of PSC clients and the confidential nature of the work is extremely important. There are numerous policies and procedures that keep the work in the PSC confidential and safe.  Everyone who uses the PSC is expected to review these policies and procedures, which can be found on the PSC Wiki page in Box, which is available only to members of our program.  The PSC Wiki is a resource that can be referred to for all information concerning professional activity within the PSC. Admitted students have authorized access to the Wiki through the UMass Box Secure Online Storage.

The Clinical Psychology Program follows a mentorship model of graduate training.  The intention of this policy is to stimulate the development of research skills among our students by encouraging them to identify, at the outset of their training, with a particular faculty member working within a given research area.  Most students will continue to work in this area throughout their graduate training, but students have the option of changing advisors if their original interest shifts to another research area.  In the event that a potential change in the advisor-advisee relationship becomes pertinent, please refer to the “Advisor-Advisee Change Policy” in the Department’s Graduate Program Policies and Procedures document.

Review of Applications

The UMass Amherst Clinical Psychology doctoral program strives for diversity in cohorts of students that we invite to join our program.  Accordingly, we adopt a holistic approach when reviewing applications for admission.  We fully consider all aspects of the application.  We consider research experiences and match between applicant and faculty mentor to be of paramount importance.  Other aspects of the application – including personal statement, letters of recommendation, GPA, publications, and presentations – are fully considered.  An area of weakness can be offset by strengths in other areas. We do not accept GREs as part of the application.  

Application Process

Information describing our program and faculty research areas is available on our Clinical Psychology web page. Applicants indicate which research area they wish to pursue in their graduate training by indicating the faculty with whom they are interested in working and the reasons for making this selection.  The designated faculty will review the students' application materials and select those who will be invited for interviews.  Faculty who will accept a student each year will be listed on the web page.

Acceptance Criteria.  The following general criteria are used in selecting students to the clinical program.  These criteria are not absolute; exceptions are considered.  We give additional consideration to affirmative action candidates.

1. Applicants should have majored in Psychology, or at least have completed a minor in Psychology.  Exceptions will be considered for applicants with other majors who have taken a minimum set of psychology courses, including introductory psychology, statistics, research methods, and at least three additional advanced courses in psychology.  A background in statistics is required. 
2. Applicants must have had research experience.  This can include assistantships, honors theses, or collaborative efforts resulting in professional presentations or publication.
3. Applicants should have some clinical experience.  Appropriate types of experience include volunteer or paid work on an inpatient unit of a psychiatric hospital, community mental health center, day treatment center, clinic in which psychological services are provided, crisis intervention center, peer counseling, or other similar "help"-oriented activity.
4. Applicants should be able to describe clearly their research interests, and these interests should match those of the faculty with whom the applicant has indicated an interest in working.

Offer and Acceptance Policy

The Clinical Psychology Training Program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst participates fully in the Council of University Directors of Clinical Psychology (CUDCP) and, in cooperation with that group, adheres to the following guidelines for graduate school offers and acceptances. 

1. We will inform an applicant as soon as possible after a decision has been made to exclude them from further consideration for admission.
2. We will issue offers of admission as soon as possible after an interview has taken place.  Offers are usually extended initially via a telephone call.  These verbal offers are official and will be followed by written confirmation.
3. Regardless of when the offer of admission is extended, and whether or not the offer carries funding, applicants are not required to respond to the offer until April 15 (or the first Monday after April 15, if April 15 falls on a weekend), except as specified in point 7 below.
4. Once we have made an offer of acceptance, we will not withdraw it until the first weekday after April 15 and then only if the applicant has not responded to it.
5. If we make an offer of acceptance after April 15, we will allow at least one week from the date of the offer for the applicant to accept or reject it.
6. Applicants who will be offered admission to the Program when an offer extended to another applicant is declined will be informed as early as possible and no later than April 15 that they are on an alternate list.  Applicants will be kept apprized of their relative position (high, middle, or low) and the alternate list.
7. The Council of University Directors of Clinical Psychology (CUDCP) has stated that applicants should not hold more offers than they are seriously considering.  Holding multiple offers ties up slots, preventing programs from making offers to other applicants.  This is a complex principle, operationalized in the points below:
   • It is legitimate for students to want to visit a program, if they have not done so already, before making decisions among top offers.  Such visits should be scheduled as soon as is practical after the offer of admission is received.  If after visiting a program the student decides that program is less desirable for him or her than another program to which the student has already been offered admission, the student should inform the lower rank program that he or she will be declining their offer.
   • Whenever possible, the student applicant should inform training programs by phone of a decision, following up within 24 hours with a written confirmation of that decision.
   • Once a student has accepted an offer of admission to a Graduate Training Program, the student should inform all programs in which he or she is currently under consideration that he or she is either declining outstanding offers of admission or no longer wishes to be considered for admission.  Students should contact by phone those programs that have offered admission or have the student high on the alternate list.  These phone calls should be followed up within 24 hours by a written confirmation.  For programs for which the student is on the alternate list but not high on the alternate list, a letter withdrawing their application mailed within 48 hours is sufficient notification.
8. Except in very unusual situations (e.g., serious illness or major personal problems), a student who accepts an offer of admission is expected to start the graduate program the following fall unless other arrangements have been made with the Director of Clinical Training.  Training lines are limited and failing to use a line once it has been offered prevents other qualified students from obtaining training.

Supplementary Admissions Policy

In Spring 2012, the faculty agreed to limit incoming classes to approximately four students.  We strive for an average of four students per year, but some cohorts may have fewer or greater students.

Advisor Policy

For the most part, we expect that a student will stay with the advisor he or she began working with at the start of the program.  In some cases, however, students will elect to change advisors for various reasons, including a shift in research interests, dissatisfaction with an advisor, or personal considerations.  It is also possible that an advisor may decide a change is in the student’s best interests and may initiate the process. 

When a student or faculty member decides there is a need to change advisor or advisee, he or she should follow the steps outlined in the PBS “Advisor-Advisee Change Policy” in the Department’s Graduate Program Policies and Procedures document.  Note that at one point in the Departmental policy, the graduate student is instructed to meet with the program head about an advisor change.  If that part of the process is reached, the next steps for changing one’s advisor in the Clinical Program are:

1. Notify the Director of Clinical Training (DCT), who will remind the people involved of the process and will try to mediate if the problem is personal.  If the DCT is one of the principals, the mediator will be the clinical member of the Personnel Committee.
2. At the next scheduled faculty meeting, the faculty will review the request.  Faculty who are willing and interested in working with the student will discuss the best possible choice of advisor, given the student’s research interests and specific needs for methodological guidance.  An advisor will be appointed by the end of the meeting, or as soon as possible.
3. In the course of the review, if there seems to be a pattern in changing advisors either by a particular faculty member or by a particular student, broader issues will be discussed in a constructive spirit of collegiality.

Multiple Relationships

Although we expect that students will primarily work with their research advisor, we also encourage students to collaborate with other faculty in a number of arenas. For instance, faculty members from inside and outside the clinical program may serve as thesis or dissertation committee members. In addition, all cohorts have a cohort faculty advisor. Moreover, faculty members often serve as clinical supervisors in the PSC. Therefore, we anticipate that faculty will often have multiple professional roles (e.g., advisor, instructor, clinical supervisor) with students. We also expect that students are likely to have multiple relationships with one another, in that they may have multiple roles in their relationships with other graduate students (e.g., friends, colleagues, supervisors, supervisees) or undergraduate students (e.g., across teaching and research assistantships). Consistent with APA guidelines, we recommend that such multiple roles be considered and discussed to ensure they do not unduly bias or otherwise impact the students (see http://www.apa.org/monitor/jan04/ethics.aspx). 

CLINICAL PROGRAM COURSES

Except for the Research courses, all of the clinical program courses are offered every other year.  Thus, barring unusual circumstances, all clinical program courses should be completed by the end of the second year and before your Comprehensive Examination Portfolio is finalized.

Psychopathology

     Psych 680 Psychopathology

Research

    Psych 640 Statistical Inference in Psychology I
    Psych 641 Statistical Inference in Psychology II

    Psych 645 Nature and Methods of Inquiry/Psychometrics

Ethics and Legal Issues

     Psych 687 Ethics and Professional Development

Individual and Cultural Diversity

     Psych 891MP Multicultural Psychology

Intervention

     Psych 682 Theories and Practice of Psychotherapy with Adults
     Psych 688 Assessment, Psychopathology, and Treatment of Children, Adolescents, and Families (semester two)

Assessment

     Psych 681 Assessment, Psychopathology, and Treatment of Children, Adolescents, and Families (semester one) (Child Assessment)
     Psych 683 Adult Assessment

CLINICAL PRACTICA

In every year of the first 5 years in the program, students are required to enroll for practicum credits via the following schedule:

1. First year: Psych 789 Clinical Practicum First Year team with the PSC Director (1 credit per semester).  Clinical team observation (elective).
2. Second year: Psych 789 Clinical Practicum (3 credits PSC psychotherapy team assignment and 3 credits ADHD assessment team assignment) (6 credits per semester)
3. Third year: Psych 789 Clinical Practicum (3 credits PSC psychotherapy team assignment and 3 credits neuropsychological assessment team assignment) (6 credits per semester)
4. Fourth year: Psych 789 External Practicum (for students in good standing, 3 credits) & Psych 789 Clinical Practicum (PSC psychotherapy team assignment, 3 credits)
5. Fifth year: Psych 789 Clinical Practicum for Student Supervision experience (3 credits).  Additional variable credits possible through elective PSC and/or outside practicum placements that are demonstrated to be consistent with your clinical science research interests and career goals. 

CLINICAL PROGRAM COLLOQUIUM

All clinical program students in years 1 to 3 of the program are required to attend our colloquium.  Students should register for 1-credit of Psych 892 Clinical Research and Practice in the Spring Semester every year for their first 3 years.  Students are required to attend 80% of the colloquia offered in each of their first three years, which serves as a forum for the entire community of clinical students and faculty to address current topics in clinical science, diversity and multiculturalism, research, ethics, and professional development. With the permission of the faculty, under exceptional circumstances (e.g., a TA assignment conflicts with colloquium time) students may substitute other substantive educational experiences (e.g., CE credits).

DISCIPLINE-SPECIFIC KNOWLEDGE

Clinical psychology graduate students are required to successfully complete coursework in Discipline Specific Knowledge (DSK).  DSK includes History and Systems, coursework in five areas of psychology (i.e., Affective, Biological, Cognitive, Developmental, and Social), Advanced Integrative Knowledge, and Methods of Inquiry/Research. 

History and Systems can be achieved via a 3-credit undergraduate or graduate course (e.g., Educ 775 Historical Foundations of Psychology and Education) or via a grade of B- or better in an Introduction to Psychology course at a 4-year accredited undergraduate institution.  Documentation that a student covered this requirement prior to matriculation (e.g., undergraduate transcript) can be provided to the DCT for approval.

There are two ways that DSK educational requirements in Affective, Biological, Cognitive, Developmental, and Social can be met (see Curriculum Worksheet and an example of how to document this engagement).

(1)   Demonstrate foundational knowledge - in one or more area of psychology - prior to matriculation, paired with graduate-level training and an evaluated educational experience at the graduate-level:

a.     Foundational knowledge prior to matriculation

A student can demonstrate foundational knowledge in one or more of the areas (e.g., Affective, Biological, Cognitive, Developmental, Social) EITHER:

1.     By providing evidence (via official transcript provided to the DCT for approval) of a grade of B- or better in an undergraduate course on the topic from a 4-year accredited undergraduate institution; OR

2.     By providing evidence (via a report from ETS provided to the DCT for approval) of a score on the relevant Psych GRE subtest that is at the 70th percentile or better.  Relevant GRE subtest scores are available in Biological, Cognitive, Social, and Developmental Psychology. 

b.     Graduate-level knowledge

If the student demonstrates foundational knowledge prior to matriculation, the student must engage in coursework or in another evaluated educational experience (e.g., comps paper, independent study, research project) that includes graduate-level training (i.e., engagement with original source material) and training in Affective, Biological, Cognitive, Developmental, and Social Psychology.  The educational experience must be evaluated by an expert in the area.

(2)   Students can obtain broad exposure to the Affective, Biological, Cognitive, Developmental, and Social domains at the graduate level.  This entails taking up to four 3-credit, program-approved graduate courses that collectively cover Affective, Biological, Cognitive, Developmental, and Social Psychology:

Social Aspects of Behavior

     Psych 660 Advanced Social Psychology

Cognitive Aspects of Behavior

    Psych 615 or 617 Cognitive Psychology

Affective Aspects of Behavior

     Psych 660 Advanced Social Psychology OR
     Educ 790S Physiological Bases of Human Behavior, Affect, and Learning

Biological Aspects of Behavior

     Educ 790S Physiological Bases of Human Behavior, Affect, and Learning

Developmental Aspects of Behavior

     Psych 791 Human Development

Advanced Integrative Knowledge can be met by a variety of courses and other evaluated educational experiences (e.g., comps paper, independent study, research project; see Curriculum Worksheet).  The integration of knowledge must be paired with an evaluated educational experience that is graded by experts in the relevant areas.

Research Methods, Statistical Analysis, and Psychometrics are met via required graduate-level coursework (see Curriculum Worksheet).

Students should confer with their research mentors about how they are meeting these DSK. Students should request approval for any Foundational knowledge or use of other courses outside of those listed  by contacting the DCT by email.

COMPREHENSIVE EXAM PORTFOLIO

​​​​The comprehensive portfolio is completed during the first several years in the program.  See more details in Comprehensive Examination Portfolio  part of the handbook.

MASTER’S THESIS AND DISSERTATION CREDITS

As per the PBS Graduate Program Policies and Procedures, all students are required to register for a minimum of 1 and a maximum of 10 Master’s Thesis research credits (Psych 699).  You should register for these credits during the semester(s) when you are engaged in your Master’s Thesis research. 

As per the PBS Graduate Program Policies and Procedures, all students are required to register for a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 27 dissertation research credits (Psych 899).  You should register for these credits during the semester(s) when you are engaged in your dissertation research.  It is strongly encouraged that the dissertation proposal is approved by June 15th of the year the student applies for internship (the absolute latest date is October 15th of the year the student applies for internship).

INTERNSHIP

All students must register for 18 credits (9-credits per semester) for Psych 898 while on internship.

DEPARTMENTAL CORE COURSE REQUIREMENTS

The PBS Departmental Core Course Requirements are documented in the PBS Graduate Program Policies and Procedures.   Clinical program students meet the quantitative methods requirement via our core Research curriculum (see Clinical Program Courses above).  

The other departmental requirement (i.e., two additional courses) is that students take two 3-credit courses outside of the clinical program core courses.  Many clinical program students take electives in advanced statistical methods, which fulfills the departmental requirement.  These courses are usually offered every year (one in the spring and one in the fall):

Psych 891J Introduction to Hierarchical Linear Modeling
Psych 891W Introduction to Structural Equation Modeling

FULL-TIME ENROLLMENT AND RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS

The University of Massachusetts Amherst Clinical Psychology program requires at least 5 years of full-time academic years of enrollment prior to the internship year; this requirement applies to all students, even if they enter the program with a Master’s degree.

1. The first three years of the program are spent in primary residence on the University of Massachusetts Amherst campus.  The following benchmarks should be achieved during your first three years; see recommended ‘Typical Schedule’ below.
   1. All coursework should be completed.  In consultation with your adviser, you may leave one course for year 4 or 5 but be aware that scheduling courses around external practicum can be extremely difficult.  Course offering times cannot be changed to accommodate practicum schedules, so it is your responsibility to ensure there are no conflicts between external practicum schedules and course requirements.
   2. Your Master’s orals should be successfully defended.
   3. Your comprehensive exams portfolio should be largely completed. 
   4. By the end of your third year, you should co-author at least two presentations and have at least two manuscripts under review for publication. 
2. You will start seeing therapy and/or assessment clients in the PSC during the summer of your first year.  You will continue to carry a caseload in the PSC until the end of your fourth year in the program.  There may be some flexibility in the balance of assessment versus psychotherapy cases that you see during the course of your training in the PSC.  We ensure that you have at least two different psychotherapy and two different assessment supervisors while training in the PSC.
3. In the fourth year and/or fifth year, all students who are in good standing may engage in an external practicum but are required to be in residence in Amherst 2-3 days per week.  To be in good standing, benchmarks for the first three years should be achieved and you should have satisfactory evaluations from your clinical supervisors.  Faculty approval for the external training experience will be required.  You must select a site that is consistent with your clinical science career goals and research interests.
4. In addition, in the fifth year, good standing will be judged by completion of all benchmarks for the first three years, satisfactory progress on your dissertation (you should be on track to defend your proposal by October 15 of the fifth year at the very latest), and satisfactory supervisor evaluations from external and internal practicum sites.

Prior to applying to internship, we hope all students will have achieved the following benchmarks over the course of their graduate training:

Aspirational Benchmarks	Minimum Benchmarks
500-700 Direct contact clinical hours	Below 500 may cause concern for internships, and for most students, above 700 may have diminishing returns for internship purposes. (These hours include both psychotherapy and assessment hours).
5-8 Integrated assessment reports	100 hours (~5 integrated assessment reports)
5 or more publications (3 of which are peer-reviewed)	1 publication
5 or more presentations	4 presentations

These are targets on average - individual students will have different training goals, and should adjust their targets in discussion with mentors.

These benchmarks are derived from data from peer institutions and clinical science internship applications.

Faculty use their expertise and academic judgment when conducting student evaluations.  Specifically, faculty broadly evaluate students’ academic standing, which encompasses minimal levels of achievement in coursework, clinical practice, and research; profession-wide competencies; and technical standards – all described in detail below.

Formal evaluation meetings are held twice a year, in December and May.  First-year students are discussed at both meetings; all students are discussed at the May meeting.  However, when the faculty are concerned about any facet of a student’s academic standing in the program, ad hoc evaluations can occur at any time, as needed.  Specifically, the student for which concern(s) exists is discussed in a closed session of the next faculty meeting and in as many subsequent meetings as necessary to address the concern(s).

ACADEMIC STANDING

Academic standing is defined as meeting developmental expectations, including minimal levels of achievement, in all professional wide competencies (listed below) and technical standards.  As noted, such standing is evaluated by faculty based on their expertise and academic judgment, which are informed by multiple sources of data.  These sources include, but are not limited to, direct interactions with students; student performance in the contexts of courses, clinical practica, research labs, and assistantships; and observation of all other areas of professional interaction (e.g., in colloquia, in the Psychological Services Center, with departmental staff, students, and faculty, etc.). 

Minimum Levels of Achievement

The program minimal levels of achievement in coursework, clinical practice, and research.  Academic coursework will be evaluated on the basis of official transcripts and observational reports from instructors and academic advisors.  To remain in good standing in this area, students must satisfactorily complete all required courses with no more than one B- over the entire course of their graduate study.  Clinical practica are evaluated by supervisor ratings forms and a rating of 'on par' with developmental expectations is required by the 2nd semester in a placement.

Satisfactory progress on research varies widely based on the nature of different projects, methods, and procedures.  Faculty will regularly track and evaluate progress of each student on research milestones and clearly to communicate to students - in evaluation letters - if they are meeting competency in this domain.  All students must pass the Master’s thesis oral defense and the Dissertation oral defense.
 

All students must pass their Comprehensive Examination Portfolio, which addresses many Profession Wide Competencies, including – at minimum – Research, Ethics, Individual and Cultural Diversity, Communication and Interpersonal Skills, Assessment, and Intervention.

Profession-Wide Competencies

The goal of the clinical program is to produce the next generations of clinical scientists.  The program ensures that graduates will demonstrate competence in the Profession Wide Competencies identified by the APA Commission on Accreditation (CoA) Standards of Accreditation (SoA):

• Research
• Ethical and Legal Standards
• Individual and Cultural Diversity
• Professional Values, Attitudes, and Behavior
• Communication and Interpersonal Skills
• Assessment
• Intervention
• Supervision
• Consultation and interprofessional/interdisciplinary skills

Satisfactory progress on all aspects of profession wide competencies is discussed and judged by faculty - using all relevant and available evidence and based on faculty expertise and academic judgment - at all student evaluation meetings and more frequently, as needed.

Technical Standards

In addition to meeting the required academic standing and profession-wide competencies, the Technical Standards set forth the non-academic qualifications the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program considers essential for successful completion of its curriculum.

CLINICAL PROGRAM PROCEDURES

The Director of Clinical Training may form an Advisory Committee at the request of a faculty member, student, or when there is indication that a student is failing to maintain good academic standing.  That is, an Advisory Committee might be formed when the faculty use their expertise and academic judgment to determine that a student is not meeting minimal levels of achievement in coursework, clinical practice, and research; any of the profession-wide competencies; and any of the technical standards.  The Advisory Committee provides support and mentorship to students to help them remediate knowledge and/or skills to address poor academic standing.  We follow best-practice remediation guidelines, such as:

Vacha-Haase, T. V., Elman, N. S., Forrest, L., Kallaugher, J., Lease, S. L., Veilleux, J. C. & Kaslow, N. J.  (2019).  Remediation plans for trainees with problems of professional competence.  Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 13, 239-246.

DEPARTMENT PROCEDURES

During the designated student evaluation meetings, or in a closed session of another faculty meeting, decisions to terminate a student from the program may arise.  These decisions would be based on failure to adequately meet any facet of academic standing described above, despite reasonable and sustained efforts of the Advisory Committee, or in an instance of egregious misconduct of technical standards.  In such cases, the clinical program follows the “Termination from the Graduate Program” policy in the Graduate Program Policies and Procedures document.

Substitute or Waive One Course for Another: Departmental Course Requirements

All departmental course requirements apply to Clinical Program students. For details on how to substitute or waive such requirements, please see the Graduate Program Requirements page of the PBS Department website.

 

Substitute or Waive One Course for Another: Clinical Program Course Requirements

A student may request to waive a course required by the Clinical Program on the grounds that a course previously taken at another institution substitutes for the required course. 

 

To Substitute or Waive a Domain Specific Knowledge Course

To assure that a course waiver of a Domain Specific Knowledge course (e.g., social, cognitive, affective or biological aspects of behavior, history of psychology) is justified, the student must follow these steps:

(1) The student discusses a course substitution and waiver possibility with his or her advisor. 

(2) Given the advisor's agreement that the substitution would be in the student's best interest, the student provides the instructor of the relevant UMass course with a copy of the course syllabus of the course taken at another institution and asks that instructor to assess whether the course proposed as a substitution is substantively equivalent to the UMass course.

(3) Given the UMass course instructor's assessment of substantive comparability; the student will send an email to request a waiver with the Director of Clinical Training (DCT) along with four attachments:

(a) A copy of the course syllabus

(b) An indication of endorsement from the advisor

(c) A statement/copy of email of substantive equivalence from the instructor, and

(d) Evidence of successfully completing the proposed substitute course with a grade of B or better (typically a transcript).

(4) The DCT will present this request to the Clinical Faculty. They will consider the petition and vote on whether to approve it. A simple majority will carry the vote.

 

To Substitute or Waive a Clinical Psychology Course

Since the Clinical Program will be required to verify a student’s clinical competence and readiness for a pre-doctoral clinical internship, waiver of a clinical course (e.g., intervention, assessment, ethics, multicultural courses) is unlikely to be granted and will require an additional demonstration of clinical competence. The program will consider up to 3 course waivers (demonstrations of foundational competency at the undergraduate level do not count towards this limit). The steps for waiving a clinical course are:

(1) The student discusses a course substitution and waiver possibility with his or her advisor.  This discussion will typically include how waiving the course may affect the student’s ability to succeed in our program and how the course waiver might impact future licensure.

(2) Given the advisor's agreement that the substitution would be in the student's best interest, the student provides the instructor of the relevant UMass course with a copy of the course syllabus of the course taken at another institution and asks that instructor to assess whether the course proposed as a substitution is substantively equivalent to the UMass course. The student must also demonstrate clinical competence with the subject matter of the course.  This can be accomplished by several means, including the following:

a) the student can provide a work product from the course he or she wishes to use as a substitute that demonstrates clinical competence (e.g., an assessment report, a term paper on theories and techniques of psychotherapy)

b) the student can take an exam designed by the course instructor that demonstrates clinical competence (e.g., the UMass course final exam, a demonstration of interviewing/assessment skills).

(3) Given the UMass course instructor's assessment of substantive comparability and clinical competence; the student email a waiver request to the Director of Clinical Training (DCT) along with four attachments:

(a) A copy of the course syllabus

(b) An indication of endorsement from the advisor

(c) A statement of substantive equivalence from the instructor as well as a statement from the instructor that the student appears to have clinical competence in the course content, and

(d) Evidence of successfully completing the proposed substitute course with a grade of B or better (typically a transcript).

 

To waive a Departmental Course requirement, students must adhere to the “Waiver of Courses” policy in the Graduate Program Policies and Procedures document.

PBS Doctoral degree requirements and deliverables can be found in the Department’s Graduate Program Policies and Procedures document and the corresponding Graduate Program Milestones and Deliverables spreadsheet. The latest versions are also available on our PBS SharePoint Site.

Doctoral degree requirements can also be found in the Graduate School Bulletin.

Length of Dissertations.  The program aspires to have Dissertations that are publication-ready/manuscript-length.  Please work with your advisor to find the optimal scope and length for your thesis.

Applying for internship can be an intense and arduous process, so it requires considerable forethought and planning.  Students will apply for their internship during the beginning of their fifth or sixth year in the program.   Before you can apply, you must have successfully passed your dissertation proposal by October 15th of the application year. 

Clinical internships and the Internship application process are regulated and managed by the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC; http://www.appic.org/).  In general, an accredited internship is required for the UMass Amherst Clinical Psychology Program. There are several hundred internship sites and several thousand internship applicants each year.  APPIC administers a selection process in which applicants rate the internship sites they would like to consider attending, the internship sites rate the applicants they would like to admit, and a computer algorithm is used to match students who rated a site highly with internship sites that rated the student highly.  Securing an internship is a competitive process.  UMass Amherst clinical psychology students have been very successful in obtaining the internships and generally 80-90% of our students match with internships the first time they apply and all of our students have matched eventually.  However, the internship application process requires considerable planning, careful preparation of your application, and consideration of a range of placements. 

Some General Guidelines for Planning for Internship

Successfully securing an internship placement requires planning.  It is essential to keep track of information about your clinical work in practicum and the administration of psychological assessments as you go through the program.  This will make it easier to report your clinical achievements on the APPI (online application).

The DCT will help you prepare for internship applications starting in May of the year that you will apply and will meet with you periodically after that.  The APPIC website provides useful information on the application process that you can access at any time.  Students can explore this site to identify potential internship sites, to become familiar with the APPI, and begin to consider how you might respond to the essays on the application.  During the summer prior to your application, you should decide on the sites to which you are going to apply.  There are a wide variety of personal and professional considerations that students take into account when deciding which and how many internship sites to apply to.  We will consult with you and help you with these decisions although generally folks apply to 12-15 sites. 

You will append a current vita to the APPI.   So, you should review your vita routinely and be sure to add professional achievements such as presentations, publications, and other educational experiences. 

It is important to request letters of recommendation from faculty and adjunct supervisors early in the process.  Be sure to give your recommenders the deadlines by which you need the letters. 

Completing the AAPI – On Line

Completing the internship application process requires considerable organization.  You will be asked to collate the variety of clinical experiences you have had, you’ll need to provide transcripts of your coursework, you’ll be asked to provide a vita, you will need to provide references, and you’ll need to have the Program’s approval for you to go on internship. You will write four essays as part of the APPI online, one of which is an autobiographical statement about your professional development.  In these essays, it is critical to demonstrate how your interests, experiences, and training needs are a strong match with the programs to which are you applying.

Interviewing for an Internship and the Match Day

Internship interviewing often begins in December and generally continues throughout January.  Traveling to various internship sites can be logistically complicated and can result in considerable expense.  Most sites seek individual interviews.  A few places interview applicants in groups.  Some sites have informational sessions that are more or less required and involve minimal evaluative interviews.  Remember you are interviewing the people at the site as well as being interviewed by them so you must be prepared to ask them questions.  It is to your advantage, as well as the site's, to learn whether or not the internship site is a good match for you.  Check the APPIC Match Policies on the web site for information about interviews, offers, and the Match.

Acquired Prior to Admission to UMass Amherst

“Counting” practicum credits – on internship applications - for clinical experiences accrued prior to admission to UMass Amherst is exceptional and subject to the following guidelines:

1. The experience must be comparable to our graduate practicum (i.e., the work and supervision would qualify as practicum if proposed);
2. The experience took place in a context comparable to graduate professional training (e.g., part of a formal training program, etc.);
3. Documentation of the Master’s clinical hours and supervision are required and must be signed by the supervisor at the site;
4. The Practicum Coordinator will review such requests and inform the Director of Clinical Training of those which are approved.

Faculty Meeting & Student Representatives

Faculty meetings occur sporadically during the academic year and at least one time per month on Thursdays 1-2:15.  Every year, two student representatives are selected to attend faculty meetings.  They bring announcements from students and participate in discussion about program events and policies.  The students are self-nominated and if more than two students are interested, the students are given the option to bring the issue of representation to an election. It is expected that the representative will be democratic about including the input of all their class members on important issues, e.g., polling appropriately when input is requested by the faculty or an important issue that affects students arises.  Likewise, it is expected that the faculty will treat each representative as representing the interests and opinions of his/her entire class.  Duties include attending all faculty meetings during the semester and being available to communicate with students being represented.

Colloquium Committee & Student Representatives

The Colloquium Committee is composed of two faculty and two students.  Each member serves a 2-year term, such that one new faculty person and one student joins the committee each year.  The Colloquium Committee organizes the colloquium series, which includes outside speakers about clinical science, internal speakers, and student clinical comps presentations.  Colloquia times are Thursdays 1-2:15, when there is no faculty meeting scheduled.

Admissions Committee & Student Representatives

The Admissions Committee is composed of one or two faculty and several students from various years in the program; we particularly value 1st year student participation on this committee, since they just went thru the admissions process and can provide feedback for improvements.  The Admissions committee is formed in the fall semester and has 1-2 planning meetings in late fall. 

Social Committee & Student Representatives

The Social Committee is composed the DCT and several student representatives.  This committee plans several fun low-cost or free social events (e.g., apple picking, hiking, pot luck bruch, game night, happy hours) each semester. 

Graduate Student Wellness Committee & Student Representatives

The Graduate Student Wellness Committee is composed the DCT, another faculty member, and several student representatives.  This committee assesses student wellness, plans activities, and collates information about resources to support graduate student wellness. 

There also are leadership opportunities for graduate students in the Department, including committee positions on the Executive Committee and the Graduate Studies Committee.  If a student is interested in these position, please let the DCT know!

Clinical program students are typically funded with Teaching Assistantships (TAs), Research Assistantships (RAs), and/or competitive University or external fellowships.  TAs are funded by the Department, whereas RAs are typically funded by faculty with active research grants.  As one annual source of funding, some students may receive an incoming University Fellowship.  In our Department, the Graduate Studies Committee selects such Fellows during the admissions process, and awarded students receive the fellowship support during the second semester of their first year in the program.  The types of external fellowships available will often depend on students’ sub-discipline, though the National Institutes of Mental Health National Research Service Award (predoctoral F31) is a common program to which clinical students apply.  Additional information on fellowships is available from the UMass Graduate School here.

Note that 20 hours of assistantship per semester is considered full funding. Also, students supported on an assistantship, fellowship, and/or traineeship that pays the equivalent of at least a 10-hour assistantship can expect to have their tuition and most of their fees waived.  Additional information is available on the Department’s Assistantship and Fees webpage.  Students who do not have full funding (or their desired level of funding if that is less than 20 hours) through alternative means will be considered for TA support.  The number of TA hours available to each Departmental Program is typically determined by the proportion of tenure-stream faculty associated with each program, though this allocation decision ultimately rests with the Department Chair and can change depending on various budgetary and/or special appointment considerations for any given semester.

Although the clinical program’s goal is to provide enough TA support for each student to attain full funding (across all personally pertinent funding mechanisms), or their desired level of funding if that is less than 20 hours, this may not always be feasible.  When it is not possible, the program’s foundational principle is to use TA positions to have as many students as possible receiving at least 10 hours of financial support (in order to meet the minimum criteria for tuition remission and fee waivers).  In some semesters, ensuring 10 hours of support for clinical students will be the sole way in which Departmental TA support will be distributed, with students who are earlier in the program generally having higher priority for these funds over those later in the program (i.e., reverse seniority).  As noted, though, there may be circumstances when Department-level budgetary and/or special appointment considerations will override this program priority (e.g., when a more senior student has a specific skillset for a course that a more junior student does not possess). In these cases, the Department Chair reserves the right to approve an appointment that does not align with this program priority.

In most semesters, though, there will be enough additional TA support to fund clinical students beyond 10 hours. In these semesters, students are again generally prioritized based on reverse seniority; that is, students who are earlier in the program have higher priority for such additional TA funding (beyond 10 hours of overall existing support) over those later in the program.  For example, if every clinical student is being funded in some way for 10 hours, and there are still 40 hours of TA support left to allocate, the four most junior students will generally receive these positions to attain 20 hours of support. Again, though, the above caveat about Department-level circumstances that might override this program priority applies.

Also, across the entire Department, and therefore including the clinical program, students who have already secured 20 hours of non-TA funding (e.g., RA, external fellowship) are the lowest priority to be allocated a TA position. Put differently, students who have yet to receive full, or their otherwise desired, funding will always have priority over students who already have 20 hours of funding.

Introduction

In an increasingly technologically connected and public world, students are encouraged to remain mindful of their behavior and its consequences online, including the use of social networking, blogs, listservs, and email. It is likely that students, clients, supervisors, potential internship sites, research participants, and future employers may be interested in searching or accessing online information about you. While all information about you may not be within your control, students are urged to exercise caution and restraint and to utilize safeguards when possible. Activities online, including those that you may consider purely personal in nature, may reflect upon your professional life. Keep in mind the ideals of the preamble to the American Psychological Association's Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (APA Ethics Code) in which we aspire to do no harm to our clients, our research participants, or the profession with our actions.  Adherence to this policy also will ensure your own confidentiality and safety.

Adherence to the APA Ethics Code

Students are expected to adhere to the APA Ethics Code. In their first or second year of the program, students will take a course on ethical practices in clinical psychology, which will include an in-depth review of the APA Ethics Code. However, students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with and adhering to the Code even prior to taking this course. The APA Ethics Code can be found here: http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/

Public Professionalism Behaviors

Public professionalism behaviors are those exhibited via the following mechanisms, although this is not an exhaustive list:

• Voicemail/answering machines
• Email signature lines
• Websites
• Blogs (personal and professional)
• Social media sites (inclusive, but not exhaustive: Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter)
• Research networking sites
• Postings to listservs/forums

Information about you might be deliberately searched or discovered incidentally and used to evaluate you for the following:

• Employment
• Academic reviews
• Applications for clinical externships, pre-doctoral clinical internship, and post-doctoral fellowships Graduate program admissions
• Professional networking and professional development opportunities

Students should also note that if they identify themselves as a graduate student of the program or reveal information relevant to the graduate program in their email signatures, voicemail files, or website/blog information, then this information becomes part of their program-related behavior and may be used in student evaluations. For example, if a student reports doing something unethical or illegal on a web blog, or uses the website to engage in unethical or unprofessional behavior (e.g., disclosing confidential client or research information), then the program may use this information in the student’s evaluation, including decisions regarding probation or termination.

Thus, students are encouraged to consider the use of personal web pages and blogs, email, and other electronic media carefully. They should attend to what content to reveal about themselves in these forums, and whether there is any personal information that they would not want program faculty, employers, or clients to read or view. Anything on the internet is potentially available to all who seek. Students who use these media should also consider how to protect the security of private information.

Suggested Precautions and Modes of Professional Conduct

• With social networking sites such as Facebook, utilize privacy settings to limit access to your pages and personal information. Use thoughtful discretion when considering “friend” requests and consider the boundary implications. For example, it is not advisable to become virtual “friends” with clients or former clients or undergraduates for whom you have supervisory or evaluative responsibilities.
• With email, keep in mind that everything you write may exist perpetually or be retrievable, so be thoughtful about what you write. Emails sent via the UMass email system are considered public records and the property of UMass. Participation in listservs include the peril of inadvertently writing things to a much more public audience than intended, so be cautious with posts to such forums. Email is not an appropriate venue to discuss confidential information.
• Email “signatures” should be professional and appropriately represent one’s status and credentials. Students are encouraged to consider adding a confidentiality disclaimer to email signature files.
• Be mindful of voicemail greetings if you utilize a private phone for any professional purposes (clinical work, teaching, or research). Make sure that such messages reflect a maturity and professionalism that you would want to portray to the public.
• Online photo and video sharing, including within social networking sites, should be considered public venues; use discretion when posting such information.
• Write in the first person. Where your connection to UMass is apparent, make it clear that you are speaking for yourself and not on behalf of UMass. In those circumstances, you may want to include this disclaimer: “The views expressed on this [blog; website] are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer.” Consider adding this language in an “About me” section of your blog or social networking profile.
• Do not use your UMass email address for non-professional purposes.
• Be sure to review PSC Online Identity guidelines.

Graduate students are offered "student affiliate" or membership status in various professional organizations. One national organization for psychologists, with over 100,000 members, is the organization that provides our accreditation, the American Psychological Association (APA). Student membership in APA enables the student to receive the APA Monitor and the American Psychologist each month at no additional charge. The Monitor addresses political, financial, and social issues facing psychologists and publishes a national listing of jobs for psychologists. The American Psychologist contains APA archival documents such as yearly lists of accredited programs and internships, and also publishes articles on broad aspects of psychology. Student affiliates of APA are also entitled to discounts on journals and books.  To join APA as a student affiliate go to the American Psychological Association (APA).  In addition to becoming a student affiliate of APA, students may choose to join a more specialized group within the organization. There are over 40 divisions, divided according to specialty area (e.g., Division 12: Clinical Psychology). Several divisions are further subdivided into "sections" (e.g. Section I, Division 12: Clinical Child Psychology). Students can join as many divisions and sections as they wish, at a small charge over and above APA dues.

Many members of our clinical community belong to the Association for Psychological Science (APS; http://www.psychologicalscience.org/).  APS has a structure quite similar to APA but its membership is more focused on research and the empirical nature of psychology as a discipline.  APS also has student memberships (see http://www.psychologicalscience.org/join/). 

There are local psychology organizations within most states that have student memberships (e.g. Massachusetts Psychological Association) and regions (e.g. Eastern Psychological Association), all of which are affiliated with APA. In addition to these general associations, there are special interest organizations (e.g. Association for  Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies) that are not affiliated with APA or APS and have a more focused membership and purpose. Each of these organizations has its own dues, generally lower for students than for full members.

All of these organizations have annual or biannual conferences at which student attendance is welcome, and where members pay lower registration fees. Most offer journal subscriptions at reduced rates to members. Generally, student membership in these associations facilitates the development of professionalism, as well as affording students greater opportunity to make professional contacts within their future areas of specialization and employment. Further, early affiliation with other professional or academic psychologists exposes students to a much wider range of professional influences and interests than can be available within a single university training program.

Talk to your mentors about the professional organizations most likely to be of interest to you while you are at UMass.

Program and Departmental Procedures

If a student has a grievance with some aspect of the Clinical Psychology program, and wishes to have it addressed, they should approach the Director of Clinical Training, the Graduate Program Director, or the Department Chair for guidance and support.  In the context of this discussion, the parties should consult the Program Handbook and the PBS Graduate Program Policies and Procedures.  As just one example, PBS has an Advisor Reassignment Policy.

Graduate School Procedures

If the grievance precipitates involvement by the Graduate School, the parties should consult the UMass Amherst Graduate School Bulletin Grievance Procedure Information.

APA Procedures

If the student feels that the program is not in compliance with APA’s Standards of Accreditation (SoA) and their Implementing Regulations (IRs), the student may file a complaint with the Commission on Accreditation of APA .  It should be noted that the procedures for handling complaints against accredited programs are intended to deal only with complaints based on purported lack of program consistency with the SoA.  It is not a mechanism for adjudication of disputes between individuals and programs.  The APA Commission on Accreditation (CoA) cannot, for instance, direct a program to change a grade, readmit a student, or reinstate a faculty member.  Students who have a complaint about the program’s adherence to APA’s SoA for accredited programs are encouraged to discuss the complaint with departmental and university administrators prior to making a formal complaint to APA.

The UMass Amherst Clinical Psychology PhD program in Psychological and Brain Sciences (referred to as the “Program”) makes every effort to provide education that is compliant with national standards and to prepare students to practice clinical psychology. As recognition of our compliance with national standards, our Program is accredited by the American Psychological Association.  The practice of psychology, however, is regulated at the state level. State licensing authorities, commonly referred to as “State Boards,” determine the specific educational and training requirements for licensure in their State. Of note, many States require post-doctoral training as well as examinations beyond educational and training requirements. As such, a PhD degree from our Program in Clinical Psychology is not sufficient, in and of itself, to meet licensure requirements in most states.

More information about state-by-state licensure requirements can be found at: http://psybook.asppb.org/