The goal of the Child and Adolescent Track is to provide students with a comprehensive experience in theoretical concepts, technical skills, and treatment methods required to be a specialist in the area of child and adolescent psychology.

Track Highlights

• Practitioner-scholar model of training for complex treatment settings
• Distinctive curriculum tailored to child and adolescent practice beginning in first year of training, and becoming highly specialized in the third year of training
• Individual mentorship by core faculty and movement through the Doctor of Psychology degree as a select student cohort
• Specialized training in diverse issues related to cognitive and emotional development, child and adolescent psychopathology, physical and neurological health, and academic performance
• Expert practitioner-faculty teach students the essential diagnostic, assessment, therapeutic, and consultative skills needed to service youth clients and their families
• Curriculum enhanced by visiting professors recognized as national leaders in child and adolescent psychology
• Strong emphasis on ability to work with diverse and underserved youth in a variety of health, community, and educational treatment settings
• Tailored practicum and internship training with child and adolescent populations

Program Objectives

• To produce graduates who possess the scientific and theoretical knowledge base necessary for successful specialization in the practice of child and adolescent psychology
• To produce graduates with strong clinical skills through increasingly complex exposure to youth clients with diverse and interacting clinical issues
• To produce graduates sufficiently skilled to work in general psychiatric, medical, neurological, educational, and community treatment settings, and to collaborate with other fields to provide innovative and comprehensive treatment
• To produce graduates who are informed, critical consumers of existing scholarship, and who contribute to the field of child and adolescent psychology in a scholarly manner

Qualifications to Apply

• Undergraduate GPA of 3.4 or higher on a 4.0 scale preferred
• Previous work and/or research experience with child and adolescent populations also preferred
• Specialized interest in child and adolescent practice
• Invitation from Clinical Psy.D. program faculty

Students following this track will receive a $3,600 fellowship for the first four years of the program.