Clinical Forensic Psychology: PhD, Fresno

Program Outcomes

Students will be able to

• identify, critically evaluate and describe, and apply foundational knowledge, systems knowledge and theory in psychology to diverse populations within and outside of the forensic realm.Students will develop, articulate, and maintain constructive, culturally sensitive and supportive working relationships with clients, colleagues, supervisors, and others with whom they interact professionally.
• examine and critically evaluate laws and policies that govern issues related to mental health and will examine the relationship between psychological principles and legal decision-making
• recognize and reflect upon their world view, biases, values, and assumptions; appreciate and respect others’ cultures and world views; understand the psychological impact of differing views; and use this awareness in the provision of psychological services and/or research endeavors.
• evaluate, conceptualize, characterize, predict, and articulate clinically relevant aspects of clients (e.g., character, behavior, strengths, challenges, symptoms, relationship quality, functioning) in general clinical and forensic context.
• utilize assessment tools and diagnostic criteria to evaluate clients and to determine, and apply, appropriate intervention.
• conduct themselves ethically and legally in all educational and professional activities.
• apply the basic skills associated with consultation, education, management, and supervision in a multicultural professional forensic environment. Students will communicate (orally and in writing) in a clear, accurate, and professional manner.
• comprehend, critically evaluate and describe research pertaining to all areas of psychology.
• conduct a systematic and culturally relevant mode of inquiry involving problem identification, selection of appropriate methodology, analysis and interpretation of data, and clear and accurate communication of findings pertaining to psychologically relevant phenomena.

Training Model

PhD Clinical Forensic Psychology students are required to participate in a minimum of 2000 hours of supervised clinical practicum (field placement) training. Students are strongly encouraged to exceed the minimum standard as much as possible. For more information, please contact the Office of Professional Training.  Third year clinical practica for Fresno students will occur at the Psychological Services Center.

Training Model Specialized Requirements

The California School of Forensic Studies requires that all doctoral students complete their first year of course work with a GPA of 3.0 or higher prior to placement in a practicum (field work) setting. The first year of course work must include at least the following courses, as required by most practicum sites and the Office of Professional Training:

• Treatment I: Introduction to Therapy
• Ethical and Legal Issues in Professional Practice
• Psychopathology
• Psychological Assessment I: Cognitive and Intellectual Functioning
• Psychological Assessment II: Socioemotional and Personality Testing
• Introduction to Forensic Psychology

Specialized Admissions Requirements

Applicants to the California School of Forensic Studies’ doctoral programs who hold a degree in a field other than Psychology, must have completed courses in Introductory Psychology, Statistics and Abnormal Psychology. Other courses may be required to meet conditional admissions requirements on a case by case basis. Applicants who hold a degree other than in Criminology, Criminal Justice or Administration of Justice must have completed a course representing an overview of the field.

Specialized Admissions Requirements: Credit for Previous Graduate Work

For applicants to the CSFS Clinical Forensic Programs, a maximum of 30 units of graduate level transfer credit is allowed. The units must have been earned as part of a graduate degree curriculum in psychology, criminology, law, or other related field; completion of the degree is not required for transferring units. These credits must have been completed with a grade of “B” or better and must be from a regionally accredited institution. No transfer credit will be allowed for courses that were taken more than seven years prior to admission.

Transfer credits will be denied for courses the California School of Forensic Studies considers central to our curriculum. Some of the courses that are NOT eligible for transfer credit:

• FOR 6425 Introduction to Forensic Psychology
• FOR xx Any Psychological Assessment course
• FOR xx Any Clinical Practicum
• FOR xx Any Dissertation Proposal Development or Dissertation course
• Any course over seven years old
• FOR 6500 Ethical and Legal Issues in Professional Practice
• FOR 8200 Specialty Topics in Forensic Psychology or FOR 8410 Elective Course

All other courses for potential transfer credit will be considered on a case-by-case review basis. Due to the interdisciplinary nature of the program, as well as the specialized focus of much of the curriculum, the review will focus on how well this interdisciplinary character was developed in the course(s) proposed for transfer credit. The degree to which the course content or field of study has changed substantively since the course was originally taken will also factor into the decision to allow transfer credit. Transfer credit cannot be considered without appropriate course outlines or syllabi.

Transfer credits allowed in the Clinical Forensic Psychology Program may reduce the number of units a student must complete in order to obtain the degree. Regardless of the number of transfer units allowed, a student must complete all requirements remaining in the program for which transfer credit was not allowed.

Curriculum and Degree Requirements

Students in the California School of Forensic Studies are required to maintain exemplary academic standing; students must maintain a minimum G.P.A. of 3.0 at all times. Students may receive one grade of C in an academic course without requiring remediation as long as the student’s G.P.A. does not go below 3.0.

All Clinical Forensic Psychology Doctoral students will be required to pass comprehensive competency-based examinations prior to advancing to their third year. Students will be required to pass their comprehensive examinations prior to advancement to doctoral candidacy and prior to applying for internship.

Prior to their internship year, students in the Clinical Forensic PsyD Program and the Clinical Forensic PhD Program are required to complete thirty (30) hours of therapy. Personal psychotherapy must be completed with a licensed psychologist, who has obtained their PhD or PsyD. It is the students responsibility to ensure the selected provider meets these criteria prior to starting the required hours. Psychotherapy hours completed with an MFT or LCSW do not meet this requirement.

Curriculum Plan

Victimology Concentration

The Concentration in Forensic Victimology prepares students to work with, and on behalf of, victims of crime. Students apply the 9 elective units included in their core program, plus an additional six units, beginning in the Fall of their second year and continuing through the Fall of their third year (including the Summer session between the second and third years).

Section I of the Program focuses upon Foundational Concepts in Victimology, including its history, relationship to the criminal justice system, and influence upon public policy. Students also learn quantitative and qualitative research methods which will be applied toward the completion of a research effort that will become the basis for a submission to a peer-reviewed journal. At the conclusion of Section I, students will have a working hypothesis for their individual research efforts.

Section II focuses upon Prevention of Victimization. Students gain knowledge of victimization antecedents and develop the skills necessary to conduct threat and suicide assessments in various milieus (public venues, households, the workplace, school campuses). Students will also learn safety planning strategies that potentially prevent victimization. At the conclusion of Section II, students will be expected to have completed the literature review and methodology sections of their research paper.

Section III focuses upon the role of victimology in offender identification and apprehension. Students learn how to conduct a comprehensive Victimology Assessment, the role of the victim in judicial proceedings, and approaches to working with Victim-Witnesses. Students are expected to finalize data collection and begin analysis related to their research endeavors during Section III.

Section IV will focus upon the intervention following victimization. The impact of victim variables (such as age, cultural and gender variables, crime dynamics, trauma history and cognitive-affective processing) upon recovery will be reviewed. Evidence-based and evidence-informed diagnostic screening and assessment tools (including the Traumatic Events Questionnaire; Traumatic Events Scale; SCID-PTSD Module; MMPI-2 and MMPI-RF) will be explored, as will trauma-informed intervention strategies (such as Psychological First Aid and Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing-EMDR). Finally, this Section will explore the challenges to the practitioner who works with crime victims; discussions and strategies for the prevention of secondary victimization, vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue will be reviewed.

To be accepted into the program, students must meet the following requirements:
1. Successfully complete all G1 course requirements.
2. Be in good academic standing.
3. Receive the recommendation of their Program Director.
4. Receive the approval from a two-person review committee composed of Victimology Program faculty.

The review will include submission of an essay as well as an interview.

Additionally, students must meet the following Program standards:
1. Complete all four coursework sections.
2. Complete one research endeavor of a caliber appropriate to submission to a peer-reviewed journal.