PsyD in Clinical Psychology
Location: AU Seattle
Credits for Degree: 140 quarter credits
Standard Mode of Instruction: Classroom
Standard time to completion: 80 months
Program Overview
The Psy.D. program at Antioch University Seattle prepares students for competent entry as a generalist into the practice of health service psychology through doctoral education and training. The Psy.D. program aims to educate students as health service psychologists and as scholars in psychology in order to promote health, education, social justice, and human welfare. Our curricula shall advance students in the broadest and most liberal manner, including conducting research in psychology. We seek to promote the highest standards of ethics, conduct, education, and achievement in a manner that balances traditional and contemporary perspectives in order for students to become responsible change agents in our complex world.
APA Accreditation
Antioch University Seattle’s (AUS) Psy.D. program was conferred a period of five years of accreditation by the American Psychological Association (APA) on Friday, November 17, 2017. The APA is the premiere psychology organization in the United States, overseeing standards, practices, and research in both psychology and psychiatry to “benefit society and improve people’s lives.” The organization is affiliated with over 60 national and international associations and has been influential on decisions ranging from marriage equality to conduct in war. AUS Psy.D. is the only APA-accredited Psy.D. program in Clinical Psychology in the state of Washington and in our geographic area.
Program Design
Antioch University Seattle’s Psy.D. program is a 140-quarter credit doctoral degree program that is organized into an 11-week quarter system. The Psy.D. program uses a practitioner/scholar model to educate students as professionals in clinical psychology and as scholars in psychology to promote health, education and human welfare. The curriculum promotes values of ethical practice, social responsibility and cultural pluralism.
AUS’s Psy.D. program implements a competency-based assessment process whereby students are asked to apply knowledge to practice, demonstrating that they can use the disciplinary content they learn. Competencies are woven into all classes, supervisor evaluations, and other measures of student performance. Faculty members balance traditional and contemporary perspectives in the field of psychology, educating students to become informed and effective practitioners, and agents of change in a complex world.
The overarching goal of the Psy.D. program is to prepare students for competent entry into the practice of professional psychology and meets Washington’s State licensure requirements for clinical psychology. To accomplish this, we have identified three broad goals and nine objectives. Below are the goals, objectives, and competencies for our program:
Aim #1: Graduates are competent for entry-level practice as health service providers and professional psychologists in multiple roles.
- Objective 1.A: Students intervene to alleviate suffering and promote health.
- Objective 1.B: Students assess clients and communicate their findings
- Objective 1.C: Students design, analyze, and report on research and evaluation
- Objective 1.D: Students accept and offer supervision and consultation
- Competency: Supervision and Consultation
Aim #2: Graduates are reflective practitioner/scholars.
- Objective 2.A: Students build meaningful relationships with clients, organizations, and their community.
- Competency: Communication and Interpersonal Skills
- Objective 2.B: Students integrate science with theory and practice.
- Competency: Assessment and Intervention
- Objective 2.C: Students practice ethically and professionally.
- Competencies: Ethical/Legal Standards & Policy and Professionalism
Aim #3: Graduates are socially responsible and work for social justice.
- Objective 3.A: Students celebrate diversity and avoid oppressing others.
- Competency: Social Justice & Individual/Cultural Diversity
- Objective 3.B: Students are agents of social change
- Competency: Social Justice
Features of the Program
- Antioch University Seattle provides broad and general doctoral-level study and training in the theory and application of clinical psychology. The curriculum promotes values of ethical practice and social responsibility
- The Psy.D. program is a tightly planned five year, full-time program
- Elective course options and an annual series of colloquia and workshops focusing on clinical practice trends, evidence-based practices, and social justice round out the program
- Practical experiences integrated throughout the program, including a full-year internship are required
- Clinical focus with flexibility to choose a clinically-relevant doctoral dissertation
- On-site Community Counseling Clinic for supervised training
- Potential involvement with faculty research, publication and other scholarly activities including the Institute of War Stress Injuries, Recovery, and Social Justice
- Participation in a social justice practicum
- Preparation for licensure and entry-level competence in the practice of clinical psychology
- An academic, non-terminal Master of Arts in Psychology degree is awarded after satisfactory completion of 60 required quarter credits
Elective Coursework
Elective course options for the program may include these areas:
- Forensic Psychology
- Integrated Behavioral Health Psychology
- Clinical Neuropsychology
- Pediatric Psychology
- History of War and Traumatic Stress Injuries: Social Justice Perspective
Graduation Requirements
In addition to the required courses included in the curriculum, students also must meet the following graduation requirements:
- Completion of a one-year residency defined as a minimum of nine credits each quarter, for three consecutive quarters, during the first year in the Psy.D. program. Residency during an alternate year will be considered on a case-by-case basis, and only in light of personal exigencies;
- Successful completion of 140 graduate quarter credits from courses listed for degree (students may have had some courses waived as equivalent to graduate courses from another institution);
- 300 hour Social Justice Practicum or equivalent;
- Satisfactory ratings on annual review evaluations from the faculty;
- Successful passage of the Clinical Competency Examination;
- Acknowledgement of satisfactory completion of dissertation by all dissertation committee members;
- Documentation of 40 hours of personal psychotherapy;
- Satisfactory completion of 900 pre-internship hours and at least 1,500- 2,000 hours from the Clinical Internship.
Psy.D. Competencies
The AUS Psy.D. program has adopted the Profession-Wide Competencies (APA, 2017) throughout the program, including the curriculum, clinical training, and dissertation. In addition, the Discipline-Specific Knowledge domains in curricular design and implementation.
Clinical Training Sequence
The sequence of clinical training starts with the series of first year foundational PSYC 7010 -PSYC 7030 courses, during which all students will begin a Social Justice Service Project: an approved placement in an agency, institution, or other setting that challenges students through exposure to people from backgrounds significantly different from their own. The total Social Justice Service Project requirement is 50 hours completed over Fall-Winter-Spring quarters in the first year.
Social Justice Practicum
The total Social Justice Practicum requirement is 300 hours, 100 of which must be under supervision, and meets the Washington state requirements for practicum experience toward licensure (WAC 246-924-046). Washington State describes a practicum as applied experience obtained while training for the doctoral degree and must occur over at least nine months. All students will initially be placed in the AUS Community Counseling and Psychology clinic and will be required to see 2-5 clients per week under supervision. Upon completion of the 300-hour Social Justice Practicum, students will be ready to begin their Pre-internship-I placement. Pre-internship-I hours can be earned by continued work at the AUS clinic or through a community placement.
Pre-Internship II (Third Year)
During Year 3, students will obtain an additional Pre-internship II placement (450 hours). Several Clinical Milestones are scheduled to occur toward the end of Year 3. These include:
the Clinical Competency Examination; the optional awarding of the non-terminal MA degree in Psychology;
the acceptance of the Dissertation Proposal and, following these, obtaining Internship Eligibility status. Students often use the 4th year to make progress on their dissertation, complete any additional required courses and, ideally, complete the dissertation prior to the beginning of the Clinical Internship.
Clinical Internship
The Clinical Internship is an organized 2000-hour full-time (or 20 hour/week part- time over two years) clinical internship training experience. All students must complete at least 2000 hours of clinical internship in order to graduate. Students apply to clinical internship by using the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC) Internship Match Program. Local and national sites are available for application.
Student Admissions, Outcomes, and Other Data Time to Completion
The AUS Psy.D. program is designed to be completed in five years on a full-time year-around basis, including coursework, clinical training, and dissertation. Students past 7 years must petition to continue in the program on an annual basis with the maximum time to complete the program within 10 years in extraordinary circumstances. For additional program outcome data (i.e., licensure rate, attrition rate, internships, program costs, time-to-completion rate), please visit the Psy.D. Program Website.
Admission Requirements
Application materials should demonstrate:
- Critical thinking skills
- Graduate-level writing skills
- Ability to complete a rigorous doctoral program
Admission is selective. Finalists are invited for a campus interview. The Admissions Committee of the program determines admission. Decisions of the Committee are final.
- Two letters of recommendation: one from a professional who supervised the applicant in a human services setting; one from an academic instructor who can best assess the applicant’s capabilities and readiness to enter a clinical doctoral program
- Current resume or CV
- Previous undergraduate degree from a regionally accredited institution with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0. (Applicants with a GPA below 3.0 may be considered and must submit a letter explaining the reasons for their low GPA as well as what has changed that would assist them in pursuing a graduate program.)
- Valid GRE scores (Verbal, Quantitative, Analytical Writing)
- Completed online admissions application
- Admission essay. Submit a typewritten, double-spaced, one to two-page (between 250 and 500 words) response to each question and clearly number your response for each question.
- In what ways has your academic and practical experience prepared you for becoming a clinical psychologist? What do you see as your potential strengths and areas of growth as a clinical psychologist?
- In what ways has your life history and personal experience contributed to your desire to become a clinical psychologist?
- Have you engaged in your own personal counseling/therapy? If so, in what ways do you see this as an important component of becoming an effective clinical psychologist?
- Why do you wish to attend Antioch for your doctoral study? What will be your areas of greatest challenge in undertaking doctoral study at this time? What forms of support will you use to meet those challenges?
- Completion of the prerequisite courses in Abnormal Psychology, Development Psychology, and Introduction to Statistics with a final grade of B or better. Applicants with an undergraduate degree in Psychology from regionally accredited institutions are exempt from the Abnormal Psychology and Developmental Psychology requirement. Introduction to Statistics is required of all applicants. Prerequisites must be fully completed at the time of application submission. All academic work must have been completed within the last ten years at regionally accredited institutions.
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