Doctor of Psychology in Marital and Family Therapy (69-unit)

Program Description/Overview

The COAMFTE accredited doctoral program in MFT provides advanced training for pursuing a career as a professional marriage and family therapist, faculty, clinical director, researcher, or supervisor. Students receive advanced and intensive theoretical and practical skill-based training to prepare them for their professional careers. Students gain real-world experience with a diverse clientele in community-based practicum and internship sites under the oversight of supervisors who meet rigorous AAMFT professional standards. The program requires students to be continuously engaged in marriage and family therapy clinical practice. In addition, students complete a doctoral internship that prepares them for professional careers through advanced training in teaching, research, supervision, program evaluation, and clinical practice.

The program requires completion of a minimum of 69 units. The program is designed to be completed in 3 years (full-time), with a maximum of 8 years.

Admissions to the PsyD program were paused for Fall 2025 and Spring 2026. The program will resume admitting students in Summer 2026.

Program Mission

The mission of the Couple and Family Therapy graduate programs is to provide high-quality education, training, clinical experience, scholarship, and service grounded in systemic and relational perspectives. The programs prepare clinicians to understand and address psychological concerns within the context of relationships, families, and broader social systems, emphasizing interactional patterns and cultural and contextual influences. We train ethical professionals to foster the well-being and mental health of individuals, children, couples, families, organizations, and communities primarily through improving relationships. Our CFT programs specifically focus on the understanding and respect for the diversity of human relationships across different populations from a variety of multicultural, socioeconomic, and international backgrounds. CFT students are encouraged to respect the many dimensions of human diversity, develop a mature personal and professional identity in couple and family therapy field, stay current with professional knowledge and practice in relational and systemic perspectives, and make a positive difference for clients and society.

Program Manuals 

CFT Program Manual  
CFT Program Manual (Online)
CFT MA Level Practicum Clinical Training Manual
CFT Dissertation Guidelines
CFT Doctoral Exam Manual
CFT Internship Guidelines

Emphasis/Concentration/Tracks

The Chemical Dependency Concentration

The Chemical Dependency Concentration will prepare students to work with individuals, couples, and families who have experienced addiction. This concentration area includes the 39 units that the California Association for Alcohol/Drug Educators (CAADE) requires for their accredited Chemical Dependency Certificate program. Students who select this concentration will receive this certificate upon their completion of the master’s program, which they can include on their resume or CV. Students who choose this Concentration will be prepared to work with families facing addiction, and they will understand the best care clinical practices for treating chemical dependency in the family from a systemic perspective in the current managed care market. Students in this concentration must choose a practicum site that allows them the opportunity to obtain a minimum of 250 hours working with clients who experience addiction (i.e., a residential treatment center or intensive outpatient program). These 250 hours can be included in the total 500 hours required to complete the CFT master’s degree. 

The Medical Family Therapy (MedFT) Concentration

This concentration will prepare students to work in and with the medical health care system to help individuals, couples, and families struggling with medical issues. Students are taught to work systemically with the complex biological, psychological, relational, social, and spiritual dimensions of health care. They are trained to work with a variety of health care professionals and health care systems using collaborative, multidisciplinary, and multidimensional approaches to treatment. Graduates work in diverse settings including hospitals, clinics, and group and private practices. The curriculum includes three courses, which are to be taken as electives. The complete curriculum is offered online so students in all locations may take the courses.

Program Learning Outcomes/Goals

Program Goals (PGs)

1. PG 1 Practice: The MFT Program graduates students who are able to deliver MFT professional services competently  
2. PG 2 Diversity: The MFT Program graduates diverse students prepared to meet the needs of diverse communities.  
3. PG 3 Community: The MFT Program engages various communities through the application of the knowledge and skills of couple and family therapy.  
4. PG 4 Scholarship: The MFT Program contributes to both the understanding and creation of couple and family therapy scholarship  
5. PG 5 Ethics and Professional Responsibility: The MFT Program advances ethical practice, legal competence, and professional responsibility in the field of marriage and family therapy. 

Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)

1. SLO 1 Practice Foundation Knowledge and Skills: Master’s and doctoral students comprehend and demonstrate CFT conceptual, perceptual, executive, evaluative, professional, and theoretical skills
2. SLO 2 Diversity Knowledge and Skills: Master’s and doctoral students comprehend and demonstrate knowledge of human diversity with a multicultural and international emphasis.
3. SLO 3 Community Knowledge and Skills: Master’s and doctoral students comprehend and demonstrate knowledge of how to engage community behavioral health care resources.
4. SLO 4 Scholarship Knowledge and Skills: Master’s and doctoral students demonstrate a basic knowledge of CFT research methodologies and scholarship.
5. SLO 5 Ethics Knowledge and Skills: Master’s and Doctoral students comprehend and demonstrate knowledge of ethical standards, legal requirements, and professional responsibilities in marriage and family therapy practice.
6. SLO 6 Practice Supervision Knowledge and Skills: Doctoral students comprehend models and methods of CFT supervision.
7. SLO 7 Practice Specific Knowledge and Skills: Doctoral students articulate and demonstrate the application of a personal CFT model of therapy.
8. SLO 8 Scholarship Application Knowledge and Skills: Doctoral students demonstrate the ability to understand and apply CFT research methods.

Training Model

The program is offered in Irvine, Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego, and Online and leads to a Doctor of Psychology in Marital and Family Therapy degree. The program is based on the scholar-practitioner model and provides an integrative approach to the major systemic theories and interventions. Students are trained to work with individuals, couples, and families from a systemic perspective and serve as faculty, clinical directors, supervisors, and researchers.

Professional Behavior Expectations/Ethical Guidelines

AAMFT Code of Ethics

Licensure

The 69-unit MFT doctoral program provides academic training that may assist with meeting the requirements for licensure in California for those who already have a master’s degree in MFT from other states and who would like to obtain their LMFT licensure in California while earning a doctoral degree.

All marriage and family therapists and licensed clinicians in related fields 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 MA or doctoral degree in marriage and family therapy or related fields from an approved or accredited educational institution. They also must have completed 3,000 hours of supervised professional experience (of which at least 1,700 must be post masters). Candidates must have passed the California Law and Ethics Exam and the LMFT Clinical Exam. In addition, they must submit evidence of having completed coursework in human sexuality, child abuse, substance abuse, spousal abuse, assessment, psychopharmacology, California Law and professional ethics, and aging and long-term care. Continuing education is required to maintain the license.

Students considering or planning to apply for licensure in states other than California are required to contact the University Admissions Office for information about program availability in their respective state.

For further information on licensure in California contact:

Board of Behavioral Sciences
1625 N Market Blvd., #S200
Sacramento, CA 95834
BBS Main Phone Line: (916) 574-7830
BBS Email: BBS.info@dca.ca.gov

General Questions and Information Only: https://www.bbs.ca.gov/

Programmatic Accreditation

The program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE) - and is one of only two universities in the state of California with a COAMFTE-accredited doctorate program. As the national accrediting body for MFT programs, COAMFTE accreditation ensures that you are receiving the highest quality education in the field of marriage and family therapy.

The program is also accredited by the International Accreditation Commission for Systemic Therapy Education (IACSTE), which is affiliated with the International Family Therapy Association (IFTA). IACSTE focuses on the development and implementation of quality standards for programs around the world that provide systemic therapy education and training.

Internship, Practicum, and/or Dissertation Information

Practicum: The program includes the clinical requirements to bring students up the COAMFTE foundational training standards. Practicum program requirements are described in the Master of Arts in Marital and Family Therapy  program description and in the Master’s Level Practicum Clinical Training Manual. The doctoral program requires that students are continuously involved in the practice of couple and family therapy.

Students must supplement their program with 50 hours of professional development activities; 25 of these hours may involve personal counseling or psychotherapy with a licensed mental health professional who is not core faculty at Alliant.

Students who completed an MA degree that was not COAMFTE-accredited must submit a Request for Waiver of Practicum Hours and may have some practicum hours/practicum courses to take, which must be taken in place of elective units.

Waiver of Practicum Hours

Please view the Decision Tree for Practicum Requirements for Students Accepted to the CFT Program on the CFT Student Hub > Clinical Training Information.

1. Transfer students who request to waive practicum hours must submit a completed Request for Waiver of Practicum Hours form (located on the CFT Student Hub) to the CTC. 
2. The decision to waive practicum hours will be based on the completion of this form with necessary documentation attached.
3. Doctoral students who are either licensed MFTs or who have obtained master’s degrees from Alliant or other COAMFTE approved programs will not be required to complete supervised practicum hours if their experience is evaluated to be equivalent to the practicum experience. Students will need to confirm with CTC and Branch Director the number of remaining units to be completed if a waiver of hours is granted.
4. Requests for Waiver of Practicum Hours must be submitted prior to matriculation in order for the Student Advisor to create an accurate program plan. No more than 18 doctoral units may be completed prior to the practicum hours being completed.
   

Internship: To prepare doctoral level couple and family therapists to perform different professional and academic functions competently in their future workplace, and to comply with COAMFTE accreditation requirements, students are required to choose two components and must complete their pre-degree internship in two semesters. Students can only choose a maximum of two core faculty supervisors. Each of the following options must account for 50% of the total internship. Students must be registered in internship until they have completed all internship requirements.

• Students Without a COAMFTE-Accredited Master’s Degree:
  Students who did not complete a COAMFTE-accredited master’s program and who are not licensed at the time of internship enrollment are required to complete the Clinical Internship Track as one of their two internship tracks. This requirement ensures alignment with COAMFTE accreditation expectations.
• Students who are not pursuing MFT licensure (e.g., those already licensed in another mental health field or seeking licensure in a different discipline) are also required to complete the Clinical Internship Track. Specific requirements are outlined in the CFT Internship Guidelines and are reviewed upon admission.

Dissertation: the dissertation is the capstone for the doctoral program. Students should start the dissertation sequence of classes either concurrently or after completion of the advanced research methods courses. Students who do not finish the dissertation after taking PSY99130  will go into dissertation extension: PSY99800 - MFT Dissertation Extension .

Credit Units

Total Credit Units: 69

Total Core Credit Units: 60

Total Elective Credit Units: 9

Total Concentration Credit Units: N/A

Degree Requirements

Doctoral students must successfully complete the MA Comprehensive examination to receive their degree. Doctoral students who completed a comprehensive exam as part of a COAMFTE accredited master’s program or are licensed MFTs are not required to take the test.

1. Incoming PsyD students with a MA degree from COAMFTE-accredited programs are not required to take our MA Comprehensive Exam.
2. Incoming PsyD students with a MA degree from non-COAMFTE accredited programs who are not licensed in the field of MFT are required to take and pass our MA Comprehensive Exam at the end of their first semester or the first semester after finishing required masters level classes.

Doctoral Exam: During the third year of the doctoral program, students take the doctoral exam. Once the student successfully passes the doctoral exam and the dissertation proposal the student is “Advanced to Candidacy.” Students must successfully pass the doctoral exam to defend their dissertation.

Emphasis/Concentration/Track Requirements

Elective Requirements

Nine elective units are required for completion of the program. The classes must be taken at Alliant or must have been transferred in at the beginning of the program. Students may take their elective classes either on-ground or online. However, they must take courses that are on the 15-week semester schedule. Elective courses (on-ground or online) must be pre-approved by the Branch Director or the Student Advisor.

Curriculum Plan