Catalog 2014-2015 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Clinical Psychology: PsyD, Los Angeles
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The Clinical Psychology doctoral programs prepare students to function as multifaceted clinical psychologists through curricula based on an integration of psychological theory, research and practice. The Clinical Psychology PsyD program is a practitioner oriented program. The Clinical Psychology curricula have four major areas of study: foundations of psychology, clinical and professional theory and skills, applied clinical research and professional growth. Students can follow their own clinical interests and further their individual career goals by selecting a specialized series of courses, research and field placements related to a particular area.
The Los Angeles PsyD program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of the American Psychological Association (750 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20002-4242; Phone: 202-336-5979; Email: apaaccred@apa.org; Web: www.apa.org/ed/accreditation).
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Program Outcomes
Goal 1: To develop graduates who have mastered the scientific foundations of clinical psychology and who apply this knowledge to their work.
Objectives for Goal 1: Students will:
- Acquire knowledge of psychology as a scientific discipline that serves as the basis for professional practice.
- Integrate, synthesize, and critique scientific knowledge from multiple sources, taking into account and weighing the significance of multiple determinants of human behavior.
- Apply scientific knowledge to the practice of clinical psychology.
Goal 2: To develop graduates who understand research methods and skillfully apply them to significant human problems.
Objectives for Goal 2: Students will:
- Be knowledgeable about test construction and quantitative and qualitative research methods.
- Be able to critically evaluate literature in terms of its scientific rigor and attention to diversity issues.
- Understand that research informs effective practice and that useful research often arises from clinical work.
- Master the scientific literature on a clinical topic, identify lacunae, and then design and create a scholarly product for professional dissemination.
- Communicate research findings at an appropriate level to both professional and non-professional audiences.
Goal 3: To develop graduates who identify as clinical practitioners and who use ethical and legal principles to guide professional practice, self-evaluation, and professional growth.
Objectives for Goal 3: Students will:
- Acquire knowledge of and adopt values and ethical principles of professional practices as outlined in the APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct.
- Understand legal and state regulations pertaining to psychological practice and research.
- Apply ethical principles of practice in the various roles of a clinical psychologist (therapist, manager, consultant, educator, supervisor, researcher).
- Take responsibility for their own professional behavior and actively seek supervision when appropriate.
Goal 4: To train students to understand clinical phenomena within social and cultural contexts in order to apply this understanding in evaluation/assessment, consultation/education, and supervision/management.
Objectives for Goal 4: Students will:
- Possess an in-depth understanding of clinical phenomena that integrates social and cultural considerations (e.g., psychopathology, therapeutic processes, and associated phenomena).
- Identify assessment tools appropriate to the clinical questions and the target population, and be able to administer an assessment battery, interpret results, and complete a psychological report in an objective, accurate, and culturally competent manner.
- Understand that assessment is not a discrete event but is an ongoing process informing practice and research.
- Understand the role of the psychologist in complex systems and the general principles of consultation, education, supervision, and management.
Goal 5: To develop graduates who are able to intervene using multiple methods, with diverse populations, across populations, across many settings and in changing and evolving contexts.
Objectives for Goal 5: Students will:
- Demonstrate knowledge of the theoretical and research bases of interventions in professional psychology.
- Establish and maintain productive and respectful working relationships with clients, colleagues, and supervisors from diverse social and cultural contexts.
- Understand the needs of clients on individual and systems levels and within social and cultural contexts.
- Demonstrate the ability to create treatment plans that are culturally appropriate and informed by current evidence-based clinical research and utilize multiple intervention strategies consistent with these treatment plans and with standards of practice.
- Evaluate the efficacy of their interventions and use this information to continuously assess the treatment plan and intervention methods.
Goal 6: To develop graduate students with the attitudes, knowledge, and skills to work professionally in a multicultural society.
Objectives for Goal 6: Students will:
- Understand the presuppositions of their own culture and attitudes towards diverse others as mediators of their worldview.
- Develop knowledge of themselves as cultural beings in assessment, treatment, consultation, and all other professional activities.
- Integrate knowledge, sensitivity, and relevant skills regarding individual and cultural differences into all aspects of their work.
- Possess the ability to articulate an integrative conceptualization of diversity as it impacts self, clients, colleagues, and larger systems, and an ability to engage in effective dialogue about multicultural issues.
Goal 7: To train students who engage in lifelong learning and professional development.
Objectives for Goal 7: Students will:
- Develop positive attitudes about life-long, self-directed learning, and take responsibility for their ongoing development as professionals.
- Be able to identify challenges and problems in clinical practice and to undertake self-directed education to resolve these challenges and problems.
- Present the results of self-directed education in educational presentations verbally and/or through written documents incorporating scholarly integration of practice, theory, and/or research findings.
- Inform clinical practice with the results of self-education and using both traditional tools and contemporary technologies.
Training Model
The PsyD program in clinical psychology addresses the societal need for professionals who deliver or facilitate the delivery of psychological services to diverse populations and to underserved or poorly-served populations. This societal need is for practitioners and programs that are culturally aware, culturally sensitive, and responsive to human problems of developmental deprivation, dysfunction, and trauma.
The PsyD program includes multicultural training to address issues of diversity in regard to race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, age, social class, inherent-psychometric-intelligence variances, and religion. This is reflected in the required course Intercultural Processes/ Human Diversity as well as through the integration of multicultural perspectives in all core and elective courses. Additionally, elective courses and the availability of field training sites that provide experience with diverse groups offer opportunities to develop skills that enhance work with culturally diverse clients. Finally, diversity is a major focus of faculty and student research in the Clinical PsyD program at the Los Angeles campus. Field Training
At the predoctoral stage, students’ professional development occurs within the context of both formal coursework and clinical training experiences supervised by faculty and professionals in the field. Students develop and acquire clinical skills through professional training experiences in a variety of mental health service settings in the community.
Each student works with a field training liaison who assists the student to develop and implement an individualized training plan designed to assure (a) that the student receives a solid base of clinical experiences with a variety of clientele and professional role models and (b) that professional training experiences are well-matched to the student’s level of skill and longer-term professional goals.
In the first year of the PsyD program, students take their first practicum through CSPP-LA’s Professional Services Center (PSC). In this practicum, students spend 5 hours per week in a school-based mental health experience.
In their second and third year practica, students are placed for 15-18 hours per week of professional training in diverse agencies in the Los Angeles area. All professional training programs are carefully reviewed and continually monitored by the Los Angeles campus Office of Professional Field Training to assure consistent and high quality training.
Students complete a full-time internship in their fourth year. The internship is a culminating experience that integrates the students’ academic and clinical experiences and prepares them for their professional role as a psychologist. As an alternative, students can pursue a half-time CAPIC internship in the fourth and fifth years.
Students should be aware that various postdoctoral training positions and some employers (e.g., the Veterans Administration) require that successful applicants have APA-accredited internships. Students have extensive opportunities to discuss with their academic advisors and assigned clinical field training liaisons the various internship options available and to develop a training plan that assures that students’ needs and goals are met.
The majority of affiliated practicum training sites exist within a 40-mile radius of the campus. Many students leave the Los Angeles area for their final full-time internship experience in order to gain specialized training at APA and APPIC accredited internship sites. Full-time APA and APPIC accredited internships provide a stipend to students during their internship year. The majority of half-time internships and virtually all practica do not offer stipends. Students should not count on training stipends as a means of financing their education. Research Training
The PsyD program trains practitioners to be critical reviewers and consumers of research. Students begin their Clinical Dissertation development in their second year, and are expected to complete their dissertation by the end of their third year, before the commencement of their internship training. These clinical dissertations involve mentoring by a Clinical Dissertation Chair and an academic consultant (i.e., dissertation committee member) and involve interaction with at least three field consultant-practitioners who are experts on the dissertation topic. Upon thoroughly reviewing and critiquing the professional literature and interviewing experts to gain input on current clinical perspectives, students are expected to demonstrate their abilities to professionally apply and disseminate the knowledge that they have gained to the mental health community. The method by which students demonstrate this competency will be determined by the student’s dissertation committee. Specialized Admissions Requirements: Credit for Previous Graduate Work
Students may submit requests for transfer credit for some previous graduate work. The maximum allowed for transfer credit is 30 semester units of graduate level courses, involving mostly foundational courses (i.e., transfer credit will not be considered for core and/or elective courses). Students may apply for transfer credit for those courses in the CSPP-LA Clinical PsyD Program which are designated as transfer credit-eligible. For credit consideration, these graduate courses must have been taken at a regionally accredited graduate institution in a related field, and the student must have passed with a grade of “B” or better. Courses must also have been completed within seven years previous to matriculation to CSPP. The actual class syllabus for each of the courses taken at the previous graduate institution must accompany the application paperwork for content review, and there must be at least an 80% overlap between the CSPP course and the course taken elsewhere according to syllabi content. Contact the Academic Affairs Center for a list of courses that are eligible for transfer credit, as well as information on the paperwork that is needed for this review request. In the event of transfer credit awards, the CSPP-LA Clinical PsyD program does not guarantee financial aid eligibility in all semesters. Curriculum and Degree Requirements
The CSPP-LA Clinical PsyD Program involves a 4-year (for full-time APA/APPIC/CAPIC students) or a 5-year (for students opting to do two half-time CAPIC internships) academic curriculum. Both are 120 units total; all coursework is taken during the first three years with concurrent practicum training leading up to final internship training(s). At the end of Spring semester of the first year, students must pass an Assessment Comprehensive Exam. At the end of Fall semester of the second year, a Research Comprehensive Exam is given covering the content of the Research & Test Design course and the Statistics course. At the end of the third year, a written and oral Clinical Proficiency Assessment examination is given in the areas of assessment and testing, case conceptualization, treatment planning and intervention strategy, legal and ethical issues, therapeutic relationships, self-examination, and multicultural competency.
Finally, 45 hours of individual psychotherapy with a psychologist licensed in California are required prior to graduation. For students with prior psychotherapy, this requirement may be satisfied by 45 hours of documented therapy conducted by a licensed psychologist within three years of matriculation. First Year - Fall
17 units
Intro to Emphasis Area (Choose one as required by emphasis area):
First Year - Spring
17 units
First Year - Summer
6 units
Second Year - Fall
11 units
Choose one additional yearlong Intervention class:
Second Year - Spring
11 units
Continue additional yearlong Intervention class started in Fall:
Second Year - Summer
6 units
Third Year - Fall
11 units
Choose one additional semester-long PSY7605 course for Fall or one yearlong PSY9500 for Fall and Spring
Third Year - Spring
11 units
Choose one additional semester-long PSY7605 course for Spring or one yearlong PSY9500 started in Fall
Fourth Year - Fall
11 units / 5 units
Fourth Year - Spring
11 units / 5 units
Fourth Year - Summer
8 units / 5 units
Fifth Year - Fall (if applicable)
5 units
Fifth Year - Spring (if applicable)
5 units
Fifth Year - Summer (if applicable)
5 units
Notes:
Required Electives
Over the course of their program, CSPP-LA Clinical PsyD students must take FOUR (4) PSY7605 semester-long Practice Seminar: Clinical Elective courses, or TWO (2) PSY7605 semester-long Practice Seminar: Clinical Electives and ONE (1) PSY9500 yearlong Advanced Clinical Elective course.
- Electives with different course numbers (e.g., PSY7607, PSY8500) will not count towards the Clinical Elective requirement, unless a Petition for Academic/ Administrative Exception clearly stating the rationale for taking a different course numbered elective is approved by the Program Director. Approval MUST be obtained PRIOR to registration.
- Emphasis area students MUST take a minimum of TWO (2) PSY7605 electives offered from their emphasis area.
- Some specific PSY7605 electives may be required by the emphasis area. Please check with the emphasis area coordinator for requirements.
- Emphasis area students will receive priority registration for emphasis area electives. MIO students may take any elective, but will not receive priority registration.
- PSY9500 year-long electives are not offered by emphasis areas and may not meet emphasis area elective requirements.
Clinical Dissertation Course Requirements
If the Clinical Dissertation is not completed by the add/drop deadline of the Fall semester of the Fourth Year, students must enroll in Dissertation Extension EVERY SEMESTER (excepting summer) until their dissertation is completed and filed in the library. Students enrolled in half-time or full-time internship must enroll in PSY9945 for 1 unit. Students not enrolled in an internship must enroll in PSY9985 for 3 units.
Internship Course Enrollment Requirements
The THREE (3) semester (Fall/Spring/Summer) enrollment requirement for internship is intended to provide students with financial aid over the summer.
- If a student’s half-time or full-time internship has an end date in MAY, the student should request enrollment in a TWO (2) semester internship unit model for that internship year. Please contact the Academic Affairs Center for information.
- If a student’s full-time internship has a start date in June, the student may request enrollment in a Summer/Fall/Spring internship unit model. Please contact the Academic Affairs Center for information.
Financial Aid Eligibility Requirements
A minimum of FIVE (5) units enrollment is required in any semester for financial aid eligibility. The program does not guarantee financial aid eligibility in the event of transfer credit awards.
Accurate Registration Requirements
It is the student’s responsibility to register for the accurate course titles, numbers, and units; consistent failure to register accurately may result in referrals to SERC. Proactive communication with academic advisors and Academic Affairs Center staff is highly recommended.
Health Emphasis
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines health “as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” The Health emphasis in Los Angeles embraces WHO’s comprehensive definition of health in identifying clinical health psychology as the application of psychological principles to achieve the goals of total “physical, mental, and social wellbeing.”
The Health emphasis in Los Angeles offers cutting-edge education and training in the 21st century mind-body approach to health care while giving students thorough preparation for clinical and community practice. Students in the Clinical Health Psychology emphasis cultivate innovative knowledge and skills for service in a variety of clinical settings. They learn highly practical interventions that promote mental and physical health, prevent illness, and restore functioning.
Employment prospects for psychologists with advanced skills in behavioral medicine and health psychology are manifold and involve a range of possible settings. Some recent graduates emphasize private practice, while others serve as a sport psychologist (for an NFL team), run corporate wellness programs, lead primary prevention research at a major university, serve as CEO of a health psychology corporation, administer community mental health centers and HIV/AIDS centers, work at medical centers and in outpatient practices, practice pain management, and work as psychologists in law enforcement agencies. Graduates take on various roles in psychological and medical group practices, hospitals, medical centers, universities, clinics, hospices, government agencies, rehabilitation centers, community-based organizations, school clinics, employee assistance programs, trauma centers, consulting firms, and public health agencies.
Students in the Health emphasis are prepared for a variety of opportunities in the rapidly evolving psychological and physical health care systems. While some of our graduates practice traditional clinical psychology, others serve as valued members of teams of professionals dedicated to promoting the mind-body health of individuals, families, and communities in our multicultural society. Family/Child and Couple Emphasis
Our goal in the Family/child and Couple Emphasis (FACE) is to introduce graduate students to the theory, research, and clinical practice of family and couple psychology. This is accomplished through coursework in which students learn about families, couples, adults, and children from diverse backgrounds. Students are taught to work with families, couples, and individuals from a systemic perspective. Skills are developed in the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of relationship systems.
In the first two or three years of the FACE emphasis, students learn how to conceptualize, assess, and interview families and couples. FACE students take four family systems courses. The family psychology course prepares students for an advanced FACE family systems intervention course taken exclusively by FACE students. The Family/child and Couple Emphasis is for students who are dedicated to learning family and couple psychology intervention.
The emphasis area also provides a choice of one of two sets of courses as follows:
Family Therapy: Students may take the following two courses: Clinical Interventions with Children and Families and Interventions with Adolescents and Families. Other courses offered periodically are: Child Assessment, Family Violence and Sexual Abuse, Family of Origin Therapy, Advanced Family Therapy, Divorce Theory, Therapy with Alternative Families, and Group Psychotherapy.
Couple Therapy: Students examine relationship dynamics through either the year-long Integrated Approach to Sex, Intimacy and Relationship Problems course or the one-semester Couple Therapy and Sex Therapy courses. Other courses offered periodically are Family Violence and Sexual Abuse, Family of Origin Therapy, Advanced Family Therapy, Divorce Theory, and Group Psychotherapy.
Students meet with their FACE academic advisor to determine which other advanced clinical electives and seminars best fit into their plan of study so their career goals are met. Creating a niche entails taking courses as well as networking in the community. Multicultural Community-Clinical Psychology Emphasis
The Multicultural Community-Clinical Psychology (MCCP) emphasis area was established at the Los Angeles campus in 1990. A synthesis of the previous ethnic minority mental health and community clinical proficiencies, MCCP reflects the state-of-the-art in training philosophy, curriculum, and applied experiences relevant to training clinical psychologists with special competence in multicultural and community psychology. The year-long course required of clinical psychology students in all emphasis areas, Intercultural Processes and Human Diversity, provides basic competence in multicultural issues. The MCPP emphasis area provides the additional opportunity for students to develop (1) more advanced conceptual and intervention skills relevant to psychotherapy with culturally-diverse populations; (2) competence beyond individual psychopathology that includes conceptualization and intervention with community-level distress and social problems; (3) an understanding of sociopolitical and sociocultural influences on psychological functioning and well-being; (4) skills to develop programs and activities focused on the prevention of psychopathology and social problems; and (5) knowledge of community psychology theory and practice.
The mission of the training is to nurture the development of clinical psychologists who will work to understand, prevent, and reduce psychological and community distress, as well as enhance the psychological well-being of historically underserved, stigmatized, and oppressed groups. In doing this, special attention is paid to the cultural and sociopolitical context of the individuals, families, and communities we serve. Faculty members in the emphasis area are committed to fostering a climate of inclusion, respect for differences, and a sense of community both within and outside of CSPP. Ultimately, faculty members strive to empower individuals and communities and to facilitate personal and social healing.
Through coursework, field experiences and mentorship by our faculty, students learn theory, research, and intervention strategies applicable to working with adults, adolescents, children, families, groups, and communities. Students share the core curriculum in clinical psychology with students from all emphasis areas. MCCP students build upon this basic curriculum by learning alternative theories and strategies for intervention with communities, institutional systems and specific multicultural groups. Faculty focuses on training clinical psychologists who are critical thinkers about the etiology of psychological distress and who can conceptualize multiple pathways to healing individuals, families, and communities.
Examples of MCCP Advanced Clinical Electives:
- Advanced Psychodynamic Interventions with Multicultural Populations
- Alternative Intervention Strategies
- Belief Systems and Psychotherapy
- Clinical Interventions with Lesbians and Gay Men
- Community Consultation
- Interventions with Victims of Violence
- Multicultural Couple Therapy
- Multicultural Family Therapy
- Pediatric Neuropsychology and Culture
- School and Community-Based Interventions for Children and Adolescents
- Spirituality and Spiritual Development in Psychotherapy
MCCP students also choose several advanced clinical electives available to all students such as Group Therapy, Dream Interpretation, Sex Therapy, Neuropsychological Assessment, Object Relations, and Forensic Psychology. MCCP students participate in professional field training experiences that emphasize clinical services to multicultural and under- or inadequately-served populations. Settings can range from hospitals and mental health clinics to community-based agencies or university counseling centers. Students’ Clinical Dissertations must reflect an aspect of multicultural and/or community psychology. Multi-Interest Option (Non-Emphasis)
The Multi-Interest Option (MIO) is designed for students who do not choose to enter one of the three above-mentioned emphasis areas. The Multi-Interest Option offers students flexibility in their choice of elective courses and topics for their clinical dissertations and other scholarly and field training interests. The faculty and students affiliated with the Multi-Interest Option offer colloquia and social gatherings that, like those sponsored by the emphasis areas, are open to all members of the Los Angeles campus community. MIO have sponsored presentations that promote awareness of diverse roles in professional psychology by enlisting alumni to discuss their career trajectory, offering an introduction to grant writing, and hosting a panel discussion on professional consultation as a professional activity. The MIO faculty members seek to encourage students’ scholarly and professional growth in a wide range of interest areas. Clinical PsyD Program Faculty: Los Angeles
Core faculty for the Los Angeles PsyD program are listed below:
John Bakaly, PhD, Associate Professor
John Caffaro, PhD, Distinguished Professor
Victor Cohen, PhD, Associate Professor
Ronda Doonan, PsyD, Assistant Professor and Associate Program Director
Judith Holloway, PhD, Associate Professor
Erica Holmes, PsyD, Associate Professor
Cristina Magalhaes, PhD, Associate Professor
Joan Murray, PhD, Associate Professor
Randy Noblitt, PhD, Professor
Erin O’Callaghan, PhD, Assistant Professor and Program Director
Lekeisha Sumner, PhD, Associate Professor
For a detailed description of program faculty background and research interests, please see the alphabetical listing of faculty for the California School of Professional Psychology.
Licensure
All psychologists who offer direct services to the public for a fee must be licensed or certified by the state in which they practice. Applicants for licensure in the state of California must hold an earned doctoral degree in psychology, educational psychology, education with a specialization in counseling psychology, or education with a specialization in educational psychology from an approved or accredited educational institution. They also must have completed 3,000 hours of supervised professional experience (of which at least 1,500 must be postdoctoral) and have taken and passed the national Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP) and the California Psychology Supplemental Examination (CPSE). In addition, they must submit evidence of having completed coursework in human sexuality, child abuse, substance abuse, spousal abuse, and aging and long-term care. Continuing education is required to maintain the license. CSPP doctoral course requirements are designed to fulfill the programmatic requirements for licensure in California, and in some cases they exceed the requirements.
Every state has its own requirements for licensure. Therefore, it is essential that all CSPP Clinical PsyD and PhD students who plan to apply for licensure in states other than California contact the licensing board in those states for information on state requirements (e.g., coursework, practicum and internship hours, supervision, or nature of the doctoral project or dissertation). Students seeking licensure in other states should plan ahead to ensure they meet all of those states’ requirements.
For further information on licensure in California or other states contact:
Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards
PO Box 241245
Montgomery, AL 36124-1245
(334) 832-4580, asppb@asppb.org
or
California Board of Psychology
2005 Evergreen Street, Suite 1400
Sacramento, CA 95815
(916) 263-2699, bopmail@dca.ca.gov
or
Practice Directorate American Psychological Association
750 First Street NE
Washington, DC 20002-4242
(202) 336-5979, apaaccred@apa.org
APA Education and Training Outcomes
The CSPP Los Angeles Clinical Psychology PsyD program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of the American Psychological Association (APA) and publishes the following outcome data as required by APA:
- Time to Completion
- Program Costs
- Internship Placement Rates
- Attrition
- Licensure
Please visit the “About CSPP Programs” section of our website to view these data.
Questions related to the program’s accredited status should be directed to the Commission on Accreditation:
Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation
American Psychological Association
750 1st Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002
Phone: (202)336-5979
Email: apaaccred@apa.org
Web: www.apa.org/ed/accreditation |
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