Counseling Psychology Doctoral Program
Last Updated: 06/30/2008
Program Overview:
The University of Utah's Counseling Psychology Doctoral Program is an organized sequence of study in scientific and professional psychology that has received continuous accreditation from the American Psychological Association since 1957. The program is offered through the Department of Educational Psychology in the Graduate School of Education.
Counseling psychology is a professional specialty area within the science and profession of psychology. The specialty emerged shortly after World War II encompassing concepts and procedures from the vocational guidance, mental hygiene, and mental measurement movements. Students who complete the counseling psychology program develop comprehensive knowledge and skills in core areas of scientific psychology, psychological inquiry, and the professional practice of psychology. Upon graduation, students accept a wide variety of entry-level positions in higher education (academic departments or counseling centers), hospital and medical settings, community mental health centers and agencies, managed care organizations, departments of corrections, private agencies, and business and organizational settings and with diverse clientele.
General prerequisites for graduate study in the program include undergraduate and/or previous graduate preparation in psychology. Students' previous preparation should include a background in (a) general and experimental psychology, (b) human development, (c) neuropsychology, (d) normal and abnormal behavior, and (e) elementary statistics and research methods. Course work in philosophy, sociology, anthropology, mathematics, or education also may be helpful. The application of previous graduate course work to requirements in the doctoral counseling psychology program is decided through consultation with department faculty and by reference to Counseling Psychology Committee policy.
About the Counseling Psychology Doctoral PRogram:
The professional Counseling Specialty is designed to prepare students for entry level counseling positions in community mental health and human service agencies. This specialty is currently designed to meet the educational requirements for licensure as a Professional Counselor (LPC) in the state of Utah, and is congruent with national standards for master's level licensure in most other jurisdictions across the country. Accordingly, the Professional Counseling Specialty requires a minimum of 60 credit hours, typically over three years, with the final year culminating in a 1000-hour field-based internship.
The faculty is committed to offering a manageable program of study, with course offerings that accommodate those balancing work and family. Consequently, most required courses meet once per week in the early evening. Moreover, we are dedicated to providing close, individualized attention to our students, selecting only 6-12 students per year. Because we limit our numbers, students regularly provide feedback that they are well-known among the faculty, receive close supervision, and appreciate the small class sizes. Students also comment on both the non-competitive, collegial atmosphere among their class peers and the close connections they are able to develop because of the smaller cohort size.
Students admitted to the Professional Counseling specialty have completed at least a bachelor's degree and have relevant experience and/or education in psychology. Please consult Information for Applicants for specific details on requirements for applying to the program. Please also consult the Program Booklet above, which is revised annually for our incoming students, providing details regarding the Professional Counseling program's objectives, curriculum, and internship requirements.
