Doctor Of Psychology Curriculum

To ensure that students are prepared to serve as professional psychologists, our curriculum consists of a combination of theory, science, training and practice. Students enrolled in our PsyD program may choose to complete an optional concentration to fulfill the program elective requirements.

To complete the doctoral program successfully, students must demonstrate competency in a number of specific clinical and conceptual skills, and must complete a Clinical Research Project in the area of applied clinical psychology.

Course Listing

Students enrolled in the PsyD in Clinical Psychology degree program at The American School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University | Southern California are required to successfully complete 98 credit hours distributed as follows: scientific foundations requirements, 21 credit hours; statistics and research methodology requirements, 6 credit hours; ethics requirements, 3 credit hours; psychopathology requirements, 9 credit hours; diversity requirements, 3 credit hours; consultation and supervision requirements, 3 credit hours; assessment requirements, 9 credit hours; interventions requirements, 15 credit hours; professionalization group requirements, 2 credit hours; elective requirements; 12 credit hours; clinical research project requirements, 3 credit hours; practicum requirements, 12 internship requirements, 0 credit hours. Students who receive a grade below “B-” in any course must retake the course during the next academic year or sooner.

Full Course Sequence

Graduation Requirements

To be eligible for graduation in the PsyD in Clinical Psychology degree program, students must meet the following requirements:

• 98 semester credit hours, all of which must be completed by the end of the seventh year of matriculation. The total credit hours must include:
  • 69 credit hours of core course requirements*
  • 12 credit hours of elective course requirements (9 credit hours of coursework and 3 credit hours of advanced practicum)
  • 2 credit hours of professionalization group requirements
  • 12 credit hours of practicum and practicum seminar requirements
  • 3 credit hours of clinical research project requirements
• Successful completion of the Comprehensive Examination no later than the beginning of the fifth year
• Successful completion of all sections of the Clinical Competency Evaluation (CCE)
• Successful completion of a one year, full-time internship or its equivalent (two half-time internships)
• Successful completion of the Clinical Research Project (CRP)
• Grade Point Average (GPA) of at least “B” (3.0 on a 4.0 scale), with no grades lower than “B-” or better in all courses, excluding CCE courses in assessment and professional issues, which require a “B” for CCE credit
• Completion of Professionalization Groups I and II
• Completion of these requirements within seven years of matriculation into the program
• A completed Petition to Graduate submitted to campus administration

Note
*Core courses are taken in the following distribution areas: scientific foundations, statistics and research methodology, ethics, psychopathology, diversity, consultation and supervision, assessment, and interventions.

Research Training

Consistent with our practitioner-scholar model and goals, this program can help you learn the knowledge and skills needed to critically evaluate professional literature, use this literature to inform your professional practice, and engage in research that aligns with your career objectives. Across the curriculum, your studies will be informed by current empirical research, and you will be taught to critically evaluate the literature and assess outcomes in a manner consistent with the model of the local clinical scientist. Formal training in research methods and statistical analysis occurs in two required semester-long courses, and, with this knowledge and experience, you may then begin work on your Clinical Research Project (CRP).

The Clinical Research Project (CRP)

The CRP is designed to develop and refine the skills necessary to integrate your clinical knowledge with research literature to produce original, scholarly research in clinical psychology. During this project, you will be expected to:

• Significantly deepen your knowledge about a particular area (or areas) of clinical psychology
• Sharpen your critical thinking and writing skills
• Develop and apply skills in research methodology

The CRP requires you to analyze and synthesize the psychological literature, to develop and investigate original research questions, and to draw conclusions based on the results of your study. CRPs may involve original empirical research using quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methodologies. The Clinical Research Project can serve as a launching point for students and alumni to pursue further scholarship such as publications and presentations, often in collaboration with program faculty. Recent examples of such collaboration include:

• Hensen, C., Vander Dussen, K, & Parekh, B. (2010, April). Early intervention for the underserved autism spectrum disorder population. Poster presented at annual conference of the American Psychological Association, San Diego, CA.
• Hermann, C. & Parekh, B., (2014, April). An examination of insulin restriction in women. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Western Psychological Association, Portland OR.
• Huerta, P., Lopez, T., & Hume, M. (2014, March) Therapeutic assessment: countertransference and patient satisfaction. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Society for Personality Assessment, Arlington, VA.
• Knapp, A., Berger. S.E., & Parekh, B., & Hume, M. (2013, August). Early versus late autism spectrum disorders diagnosis and parental stress anxiety and coping skills. Poster presentation at the annual conference of the American Psychological Association , Honolulu, HI.
• Meisner, T., Parekh, B., & Hume, M.(2013, April). Expanding the horizons of assessment: investigating the use of attachment styles and projective measures a means of assessing substance use. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Society for Personality Assessment, San Diego, CA.
• Nawalanic, G., & Parekh, B. (2014, August). An examination of sexting in a young adult population.” Paper presented at the annual conference of the American Psychological Association, Washington DC.
• Paniagua, E., & Parekh, B., (2014, April). An examination of trauma within chronic pelvic pain patients. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Western Psychological Association, Portland, OR.
• Thams, K., Lopez, B., Parekh, B., & Hume, M., (2013, April). Alcohol consumption and safe sex practices in community college students. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Western Psychological Association, Reno, NV.
• Tobin, J., & Oleynik, A. (2014, April). Teaching critical thinking skills to graduate students in clinical psychology: A novel method and case example. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Western Psychological Association, Portland, OR.