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Introduction Welcome to the University of Kansas Clinical Psychology Program where we have been educating clinical psychologists since the mid 1940s. We have been continuously accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) since 1951 and have produced over 500 Ph.D. graduates who have, in turn, spread the Kansas influence throughout the world. Welcome to the long and proud tradition of Jayhawk clinical psychology. The Larger Scholarly Context As you participate in our Program, you should be mindful that we are part of a much larger institution. The University of Kansas, which was established in 1865, has grown to its present faculty of almost 2,000, with approximately 30,000 students, over 6,000 of whom are in the Graduate School. Accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, the University also belongs to the select American Association of Universities, which reflects quality graduate education and research. Also, because of its emphasis on graduate education and research, the University is rated as a Carnegie I Research University. For a more detailed description of the University mission statement, visit the KU website: www.ku.edu. The Structure of Our Clinical Psychology Program The Clinical Psychology Program at Kansas is one of five graduate programs (Clinical, Social, Cognitive, Quantitative, and Developmental) within the Department of Psychology. In addition, a Clinical Health Psychology Specialization operates as a subunit within the Clinical Psychology Program, and there is a Clinical Child Psychology program which is jointly administered by the Psychology Department and the Department of Applied Behavioral Sciences. The Department of Psychology Chairperson oversees the Program Directors. There also is an Associate Chairperson who typically oversees the department’s undergraduate program. The Clinical Program Director is elected by Clinical faculty and five graduate student representatives. His or her selection is ratified by a vote of the entire Psychology Department faculty. The Program Director delegates various responsibilities, including committee appointments, to one or more members of the Clinical faculty and graduate student body. The Program Director consults with the faculty and student representatives about matters ranging from advising and colloquia to curricular decisions. Issues involving Program policy decisions are taken to meetings of the entire Clinical faculty and the graduate student representatives. Such meetings occur, on average, once each month. Five graduate student representatives (one from each of the first four years in the program and another representing students in the fifth year-and-beyond) have full voting rights in the Program meetings. Graduate student representatives also participate on all major committees in the Program. Committee memberships are announced by the Program Director at the beginning of each fall semester. The KU Psychological Clinic, Which serves as a practicum training facility for the Clinical Program in housed on the third floor of Fraser Hall. The Clinic Director is administratively responsible for the day-to-day and long-range developmental operations of the Clinic and oversees two office staff persons (the Clinic Administrative Assistant and the Clinic Secretary) and a student Clinic Systems Coordinator (an advanced student who helps in the daily functioning of the Clinic). The Clinic Director also chairs a Clinic Administrative Subcommittee that advises the Clinic Director on Clinic policies and procedures and has the major responsibility for implementing policy and procedure changes. Other Clinic committees are formed to carry out specific, time-limited functions.
Clinical Health Specialty Program The Clinical Health Specialty has been a key part of the Clinical Psychology Program since 1977. A separate, detailed overview of the Clinical Health Specialty is available from the Department's Graduate Admissions Secretary in 426 Fraser (e-mail) and from the Clinical Health Specialty page on this web site. Work in this specialty centers around the psychosocial and biomedical aspects of physical health, illness, and disability. Students are prepared to apply the knowledge and techniques learned to problems of prevention, assessment, treatment and rehabilitation. In addition to the Clinical Health Specialty Coordinator, there also is a Steering Committee made up of the Health Specialty Coordinator, the Director of the Clinical Psychology Program, the faculty associated with the specialty, and five student representatives from the specialty. This Steering Committee meets as necessary.
Program Philosophy and Training Model The objectives of the KU Clinical Psychology Program are to educate students about: (1) the content issues that presently define the knowledge base in clinical psychology; and (2) the processes of learning and problem-solving that may be used across the span of their subsequent professional careers. Because we believe that the education of a sophisticated clinical psychologist requires systematic exposure to both the academic/research and clinical/applied areas of professional activity, our curriculum adheres to the “Boulder Model” so that these two areas are taught and integrated (Raimy, 1950). Additionally, depending on their particular career trajectories, students may take elective coursework or practica to augment either or both clinical/applied and academic/research skills. At graduation, our students are prepared to work in academic, research, and practice settings. Our objective is graduates with the ability to engage competently and ethically in research as well as to adopt a research- and evidence-based orientation in their clinical practices. Our educational model is reflected in our training faculty. As a group, we embrace a dynamic/cognitive/behavioral orientation that is informed by the constructivist views of many of our faculty. Our shared belief is that the inner workings of the human mind and how it interprets circumstances, as well as the actual environmental circumstances, together form a basis for understanding an individual’s strengths and liabilities. Our faculty prefer to understand people within their context, including attention to diversity stemming from gender, race, age, sexual orientation, or cultural background. Such understanding is based not only on idiographic principles, but also on nomothetic, empirically-based behavioral or physiological markers whenever possible. This approach is similar to what has been called the "Local Clinical Scientist" (see Stricker & Trierweiler, 1995; Trierweiler & Stricker, 1996). Our educational model holds to the premise that there is a synergy between the practice and the science of psychology. In constructing our program’s curriculum, we labor to strike a vital balance between the scientist and practitioner facets of clinical psychology. Our program, for example, currently requires a minimum of 84 hours to graduate. (The Clinical Health specialty requires an additional 12 hours for a minimum total of 96 hours.) Of those hours, 30-32 are focused primarily on the scientist perspective (i.e., statistical methods [6-8 hrs], human learning and memory [3 hrs], research methods [3 hrs.], thesis [6 hrs], dissertation [12 hrs]); 24 emphasize clinical practice skills and issues (i.e., abilities and personality assessment [6 hrs.], psychotherapy practica [15 hrs.], and internship [a year-long experience for which students enroll in 3 hrs.]), and 24 provide a mixture of scientist and practitioner perspectives (i.e., diversity issues [3 hrs], biological foundations [3 hrs.], theories and methods of psychotherapy [3 hrs], history and systems [3 hrs], psychopathology [3 hrs], social psychology [3 hrs], ethics [3hrs] and professional issues [3 hrs]). The remaining 6 hours are electives. In practice, then, the Boulder Model is operative in the mixture of courses taken by our students. The balance of required courses is as follows (the 6 elective hours may be added at different points on the dimension depending on the particular student's use of those hours): Scientist = 30-32 hrs -- Scientist/Practitioner = 24 hrs -- Practitioner = 24 hrs /\ This balance is solidified further when one considers that all 48 of the practitioner and scientist/practitioner hours reflect the perspective wherein the therapist's approach is informed by the science stemming from the empirically supported psychotherapy literature. Although it cannot be counted with any certainty, it probably is the case that some portion of the total remaining 36-38 scientist and electives hours also reflects the scientist/practitioner approach.
The General Program Requirements (84 Credit Hour Minimum) Except for courses that are graded on a Satisfactory/Fail basis, all courses that count toward the fulfillment of specific program requirements must be passed with grades of B- or higher. Any such course taken with a grade of C+ or less must be re-taken and passed with a grade of B- or higher. Elective courses must be passed with grades of C or higher. (A grade of C- is not considered a passing grade.) Receiving grades of C+ or less in more than two courses, including electives, constitutes potential grounds for dismissal from the program. I. Psychology Core Requirements (12 to 14 credits)
II. Clinical Requirements (72 credits)
Required Research Skill Proficiency Because these courses have been noted in the required curriculum under I.A. & II.A. above, they do not represent additional required credit hours. The research skill proficiency requirement is normally fulfilled by completing all of the following with a grade of B or better in each: (a) Statistical Methods in Psychology I (PSYC 790) or Multivariate Statistical Methods (PRE 904); (b) Statistical Methods in Psychology II (PSYC 791) or Statistical Methods II (PRE 811); and (c) Research Methods in Clinical Psychology (PSYC 968). Clinical Practicum Requirement (15 credits) The basic clinical practicum requirement involves enrollment in 15 credit hours of clinical practicum coursework (i.e., PSYC. 964, 965, 966, 969 or 835, 970 or 836). In addition to this 15 credit-hour enrollment requirement, the clinical program requires students to accumulate a minimum of 275 direct, face-to-face client contact hours. If students have not completed the 275 contact hour minimum by the time they have completed their required 15 credit-hour enrollment, they must continue seeing clients (typically by enrolling in PSYC 977--Specialized Clinical Practicum or PSYC 842--Specialized Health Psychology Practicum) until they have satisfied the 275 contact-hour minimum. Students in the general program must accumulate all 275 contact hours within either the KU Psychological Clinic or within specifically approved practicum settings. For students in the Clinical Health Specialty, a minimum of 125 of these contact hours must be garnered within the KU Psychological Clinic. The remaining 150 contact hours may be completed within any of several Health Specialty-approved practicum settings. Although students generally are encouraged, to continue their practicum training beyond completion of the program's basic requirements, students in the sixth year of the program or beyond are restricted from enrolling in elective practica unless they have petitioned the program and have received permission to do so. The primary criterion for receiving permission to continue with elective practicum training beyond the fifth year of the program is that the student can demonstrate that doing so will not impede their completion of the program's research and academic requirements. "Proseminar" (Psych. 898) Requirement (3 credits) The Clinical Program maintains an active proseminar series aimed at exposing students and faculty alike to historical, current, and emerging professional issues in clinical and clinical health psychology. This proseminar series consists of a variety of presentations and activities including such things as faculty colloquia, visiting speakers, student research presentations, student job talks, case presentations, etc. Such activities are planned to occur, on average, approximately once every two weeks during the academic year. Over the course of their first three years in the program, clinical program students are expected to attend a minimum of 75% of scheduled proseminar activities. In addition, during some semester within the first three years of the program (usually the first semester in the program), students are required to enroll in PSYC 898 (Proseminar: Professional Issues in Clinical and Health Psychology). This single, 3-hour enrollment is designed to cover the entire three-year envelope encompassing students’ obligation to attend at least 75% of all proseminar offerings, but it is ?bundled? into a one-time 3-credit enrollment. Empirical Thesis Requirement (6 credits) All students are required to complete an empirical Masters Thesis (minimum of 6 credit hrs) and to defend the completed thesis in a Thesis Defense Orals. The Masters thesis should ordinarily be completed by the end of the second year in the program and is to be written in a form suitable for journal submission. Within one month of the beginning of students? second (i.e., spring) semester in the program, they are expected to present a letter to the Program Director indicating that a mentor relationship for the thesis has been arranged. These letters, which are co-signed by the mentor, are then placed in the student?s file. If such a relationship has not been established, the Program Director will try to facilitate the matching process. Ultimately, however, arranging for a thesis mentor is the student?s responsibility. The thesis mentor assists the student in preparing a thesis proposal and in selecting the other two faculty members comprising the Masters Thesis Committee. Once the thesis mentor judges the thesis proposal to be sufficiently developed, the student schedules a meeting of the thesis committee to review the proposal and to make sure that it is acceptable to the committee members. Only after the thesis proposal has met with the committee?s approval can the student proceed to conduct the thesis research. Given that our program encourages students to get started on the thesis process in their first year in the program, it is expected that most of them will be able to complete the thesis by October 1 of the third year. If the thesis has not been written up and defended by then, the student must petition for an extension of the program's two-year, Thesis Rule time limit. Successful petitions often involve extenuating circumstances related to equipment needs or procuring a sample of research participants. If approved, thesis rule extensions commonly are given for one semester at a time. Students whose petition requests are granted must petition again if the thesis has not been defended at least two weeks prior to the first day of classes of the semester specified in their thesis extension approval letter. Although the faculty reserves the right to impose more restrictive enrollment guidelines, student's whose extension requests are not granted ordinarily are allowed to enroll only in thesis hours, thesis-supporting courses and, if appropriate, specifically required clinical practicum courses (i.e., PSYC 970 or PSYC 836) in the subsequent semester. The thesis progress of students both receiving and not receiving thesis rule extensions is reviewed each subsequent semester until the thesis has been completed and defended. Once the thesis project is completed and written up, it is defended in a two-hour Thesis Defense Oral Exam. The three members of the oral exam committee are the members of the thesis committee. Should the student not pass the oral defense, the exam committee may require a new thesis project or may require the student to make specified improvements in the thesis write-up before being allowed to sit for a second (and final) thesis defense. Students who are admitted into the Clinical Program with M.A. Degrees already in hand are also required to fulfill our program’s “empirical thesis” requirement. If such students completed an empirical thesis for their masters degree program, they may submit the thesis to the Program Director for an evaluation of its “equivalency.” The Program Director submits the thesis to a subcommittee of Clinical Program faculty members who evaluate it and judge whether or not it is “comparable” or “equivalent” to theses that are performed by students in our program. If the thesis is judged to be comparable, the student is credited for having completed the program’s “empirical thesis” requirement. If the thesis is judged not comparable, or if the student did not do an empirical thesis as a part of his or her masters degree program, the student is required to complete an empirical thesis as a part of our program.
Task Requirement (0 Credits) In addition to oral defenses of the thesis and dissertation, each student in the Clinical Program must propose and demonstrate competency in one task or project. A detailed description of the task system can be obtained in the Clinic Office. (The description also is available on the web page titled "Task (Comprehensive Exam) Guidelines.") This task typically is done in the student's third year of the program. The task may be in the areas of clinical application, research/methodology, or program evaluation. The task involves an independent demonstration of competency by the student. After completing the task, the student writes a detailed summary, which is submitted to a two-person faculty committee via the Program Director. The task is rated as "pass," "fail," or "revise and resubmit." If a student fails a task, then she or he must submit a new one. Students are allowed one such "do over." Students use the task system in a manner that correlates with their projected careers. For example, students going into academic/research positions usually perform an empirical task project, although occasionally they will do an applied or program evaluation task that is of special interest or relevance to them. Students anticipating careers as applied professionals sometimes prefer applied or program evaluation tasks. Dissertation Requirement (12 credits) Once a student has successfully completed all program requirements, with the exception of the dissertation and internship, they become a Ph.D. “candidate” and may begin working on the dissertation. The dissertation is expected to be a substantial empirical project for which the student takes the lead. Each student, however, has a dissertation chairperson who provides constructive feedback as the student prepares the formal dissertation proposal document. Dissertation proposals include an introduction, research questions and hypotheses, research methods, proposed analyses, and the implications of potential outcomes. The proposal document is defended in a two-hour, Comprehensive Oral Exam. The Comprehensive Oral Exam is ordinarily taken prior to the completion of four calendar years in the Program in the case of students entering the Program with a B.A., and three years for students entering with an M.A. Although the dissertation proposal is the main focus of the Comprehensive Oral Exam, questions also may be asked about anything else in the area of clinical psychology. Should the student not pass the Comprehensive Oral Exam, the exam committee may fail the student and require a totally new dissertation project or may require the student to make specified improvements in the proposal before being allowed to sit for a second (and final) Comprehensive Oral exam (dissertation proposal defense). Alternatively, if the student passes the Comprehensive Oral Exam, a three-member dissertation committee is formed. This Dissertation Committee, plus two other faculty members (usually also from the Comprehensive Oral Exam committee), will later be responsible for evaluating the student's write-up and oral defense of the completed dissertation during a required Final Oral Exam (Dissertation Defense). According to Graduate School rules, the Comprehensive Oral Exam Committee and the Final Oral Examination Committee each consist of 5 faculty members, at least one of which is from a department other than Psychology. This "outside" member represents the Graduate School for quality assurance purposes. The Dissertation Committee is distinct from, but typically is composed of members of the Comprehensive Oral Exam and Final Oral Exam Committees. The Dissertation Committee is composed of three faculty members who are regarded as having more specific responsibility for advising the candidate and for insuring that the dissertation meets the graduate school standards for dissertation quality. All Dissertation Committee members must be members of the graduate faculty. In addition, the Dissertation Committee chairperson must specifically be authorized to chair dissertations. The three-member Dissertation Committee need not have a member from outside the department, although it may. In addition to the Graduate School policies governing the composition of Comprehensive Oral Exam, Dissertation, and Final Oral Examination Committees, the Clinical Program imposes the following, supplemental requirements: (1) At least 50% of the members of each of the above committees must be graduate faculty with at least a 50% appointment in the Psychology Department, even if it means having more than 5 members on a Comprehensive Oral Exam and/or Final Oral Examination Committee. (2) At least two members of the above committees must be from the Clinical Program graduate faculty. (3) When a Clinical Program doctoral student's dissertation chairperson is from a department other than Psychology or does not have at least a 50% appointment within the Department of Psychology, the student must have a co-chairperson from within the Clinical Program who does have at least a 50% psychology appointment. In such instances, the Clinical Program co-chairperson will be the chairperson of record (i.e., the person who signs the "Do-All" form certifying the outcomes of the oral exams).
Internship Requirement (3 credits) Students are required to complete a 12-month pre-doctoral, American Psychological Association approved internship. In order to apply for internships, students must pass their Oral Comprehensive Exam (dissertation proposal defense) by October 15. This means that the students will have completed all program requirements, save their final dissertation defense and internship, prior to applying for internship. (Internships typically have application deadlines ranging from late October to early December.) Although it is not a program rule, the faculty believes that students are best served by completing the dissertation, including the final oral defense, prior to beginning the internship if possible. Taking this approach enables students to concentrate on maximizing the internship experience. It also makes it unlikely that students will fail to complete their dissertations following their internships. In order to prepare our students for the internship application process, we have a faculty committee that coordinates internship matters. In yearly workshops, every aspect of applying for internships is covered, including role plays of potential interview situations that students might encounter. Students also are counseled individually about their particular needs regarding internships. Additionally, current or former interns often conduct a workshop for our aspiring interns to give their first-hand impressions about the application, recruitment, and selection process, as well as what it is like to be on internship (e.g., the hours, types of assignments, etc.). Perhaps as a result of such preparation, as well as the high caliber of our students and the educations they receive at Kansas, our students typically obtain one of their top internship choices. In recent years, obtaining a good internship has become a more competitive process, and we encourage students to start thinking about internship well ahead of the actual application time.
A Sample Sequence of Program Requirements: The curriculum proceeds from core courses providing an educational foundation to more specialized topics geared toward students’ individual interests. During the first year of the program, students complete courses aimed at ensuring basic knowledge in psychopathology, research methodology, psychological assessment, statistics, and biological foundations of psychopathology. Also during the first year, students begin attending colloquia and other professional issues-related presentations designed to acquaint them with current research in the program and field more generally, to orient them to current ethical and professional issues in the field, and to further the process of professional enculturation. Additionally, students are encouraged to attend any research groups that interest them. Students are welcome to attend more than one group despite working officially with one professor, allowing for a greater breadth of exposure to various methods and topics. During their second year, students begin seeing clients in the KU Psychological Clinic, having been prepared for this by a comprehensive clinic orientation during the summer of their first year. Second-year students also are working on completing their masters theses, as well as taking other core psychology and clinical psychology courses. The “task requirement” is a central feature of the third year. As noted previously (see above section titled “Task Requirement”) it may take the form of a literature review, a clinical intervention demonstration, or a program evaluation project. The course work during the third year is comprised of both elective and required classes, and students continue their practicum training in the KU Psychological Clinic (or the KU Medical Center in the case of students in the Clinical Health Subspecialty). Fourth-year students generally have completed most of their course work and their required practica, and focus on the doctoral dissertation. Also, during the fall of the fourth (or fifth) year, most students complete the application process for the predoctoral internship, thereafter spending their final year in the program at an internship site. The following listing represents one example of a yearly set of courses reflecting the previous description. 1st YEAR-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Credits Fall Semester
Spring Semester
Summer Semester
2nd YEAR Fall Semester
Spring Semester
Summer Semester
Total, 2nd Year: 22-27 3rd YEAR Fall Semester
Spring Semester
Summer Semester
Total, 3rd Year: 18-24 4th YEAR Fall Semester
Spring Semester
Summer Semester
Total, 4th Year: 12-24 5th YEAR Fall, Spring, & Summer Semesters
Overall Minimum Hours Required: 84
Student Progress The Clinical faculty are committed to ensuring that our students obtain a top-flight education in an efficient manner. We currently require a minimum of 84 hours in our general Clinical Program (although many students, especially those in the Clinical Health Specialty, obtain more total hours). In recent years, when our general clinical program required a minimum of 97 hours to graduate, our graduates usually obtained their Ph.D. degrees (including internships) in approximately 6.5 years. Our goal is for each student to succeed in obtaining the Ph.D. degree. Students are evaluated and must meet performance standards, of course, but we want our students to succeed and try to help in whatever way is best suited to the individual student’s needs. This supportive stance does not preclude dismissing students from the program if their performance warrants it, but this is not common. A first source of student evaluation involves the course grades and reviews students receive from faculty members. Beyond this, however, the Program evaluates each student each year until they have applied for and been accepted for an internship. Students are required to select an advising committee by February 15 of their first year in the program. This committee consists of two or three members of the clinical faculty and is chaired by the student’s thesis advisor. Ordinarily, advising committee members also serve on the student’s thesis committee. In consultation with their thesis advisor, students may change any members of the committee, including the thesis advisor, when appropriate. The advising committee meets at least yearly with the student for both advising and ongoing evaluation. During the latter half of each spring semester, the clinical program faculty meet to evaluate all students who have not yet applied for and been accepted for internship. In preparation, the Program Director sends a memo to students and faculty alerting them to the upcoming evaluations and instructing students to begin preparing by meeting with their advising committees. Students then meet with their advising committee and submit a current curriculum vita, a summary of their practicum activities, and a listing of all courses and program requirements completed. Students are welcome to attend the program meeting in which their performance is evaluated by the entire program faculty, but they are not required to do so. In this meeting they are represented by their advising committee. Following the program evaluation meeting, the chair of the student’s advising committee composes a letter to the student (and for the student’s file) describing the outcome of their evaluation. If sufficient concerns are raised about a student’s performance, special Clinical Program meetings may be scheduled, with the student attending if she or he so desires, to discuss possible remediation. In the past, remediation plans have included, first-and-foremost, intensified and/or additional advising relationships and specific skill remediation experiences. On occasion, one- or, perhaps, two-year leaves of absence are recommended in order for the student to address personal or health problems. Personal therapy has also been recommended, although never mandated. (We have several local psychotherapists who will treat our students at reduced rates, and the Program can help to pay up to the first $150 out of our Development Fund.) If the concerns arising from evaluation meetings are such that the faculty does not foresee remediation as appropriate, the student is notified of his or her termination from the program--in person and via a formal letter from the Program Director. Through that letter, the student is also informed that she or he can request a reconsideration of the termination decision. In such an appeal meeting, the student may attend, may bring supporting written information, and may speak as to why the decision should be reversed. If the Clinical faculty does not support the appeal, the student is so notified (in person and by letter), and given information about the next level of appeal (if appropriate). The next formal feedback comes when the student is on internship and the internship director and supervisors deliver quarterly or semi-annual feedback about the student’s progress. Although our students routinely are evaluated positively, there may be rare instances where the student's internship performance raises serious concerns about deficiencies in skill or professional judgment. On such occasions, the clinical program meets to review input from all parties involved with the goal of developing an appropriate course of action. Special evaluations may be called at any time should faculty members have a need to discuss the progress of any particular student. When such a special evaluations take place, the students are notified in advance and have the usual set of appeals. You also should know that the Graduate School has a rule mandating that, once students are admitted into a doctoral degree-granting program at KU, the student has either eight years (if entering KU with an MA) or 10 years (if completing both the MA and Ph.D. at KU) to complete all degree requirements or the student will have to appeal for an extension. For such appeals to succeed, they must be supported by the Clinical faculty. A summary of some of the key issues in evaluations may help to give you an overall sense of what we expect from our students. The evaluations take into account students' grades, research progress, clinical performance, response to supervision, ethical and professional deportment, professional and peer relations, and general progress through the program. Although there are no absolute markers for evaluation feedback, and the faculty members consider many aspects of the student's performance in providing feedback, the student generally is expected to (1) maintain mostly A grades and relatively few B grades; (2) have few or no incompletes; (3) make significant progress and achievement on the master's thesis; (4) demonstrate satisfactory clinical skills and judgment in working with clients (including issues related to ethical and diversity matters); and (5) maintain close contact with the advisory committee, the research mentor, and the faculty more generally so that a thorough sense of progress, openness to feedback, and personal demeanor may be accurately assessed.
Student Appeal and Grievance Rights and Procedures Whenever faculty make decisions regarding a student's progress, the student is encouraged to talk with the Program Director and his or her advisory committee. Students have the right to appeal any adverse decisions and to ask the Clinical faculty to reconsider said decisions. The student is informed that he or she can attend the appeal meeting and present his or her material orally, in writing, or both. If a student's appeal is not upheld at this stage, the student is informed in person (if possible) and via letter of the decision and of the reasons for it. Such students are also informed of their next level of appeal. This usually involves contacting the University Ombudsman, although the student may elect to move immediately to a higher appeal level. If the Ombudsman is recruited by the student, the Ombudsman reviews the case and speaks with those who may be involved in the situation. The role of the Ombudsman is to work out a solution that is agreeable to both the student and the Program. If no compromise can be reached, the student is informed by the Program Director that an appeal may be made to the Psychology Department Chairperson. The specific procedure for that appeal can be obtained from the Clinical Program Director or the Psychology Department Chairperson. A copy of these procedures typically is given to all graduate students via mass distribution when they first enter the department. Basically, the Psychology Department Chair establishes a special committee formed of uninvolved Psychology Department faculty. If the decision of this Committee is not acceptable to the student, he or she is apprised by the Psychology Chairperson of the reasons for the decision, as well as of the subsequent appeals that may be available. (A full exposition of students’ rights and responsibilities is contained in each semester’s timetable of classes.) To summarize, the steps available to students who appeal academic decisions made about them are: (1) If the Clinical Psychology faculty makes a decision about a student, that student is apprised of the decision and any available appeal process in a feedback letter and in person by the Program Director. (2) The student can present an appeal in person, via a written document, or both, to a full meeting of the Clinical Psychology Faculty members. The student can attend that meeting. (3) If the student’s appeal at the Clinical Program level is not upheld, the student is informed of the reasons (in writing and in person) and of the next step in the appeal process -- mediation by the University Ombudsman. The student may bypass this step and go directly to step #4. (4) If mediation is unsuccessful or is not pursued, the student may appeal to the Psychology Department Chairperson who appoints an appeals committee comprised of uninvolved faculty from other programs in the Department. (5) The Psychology Department Appeals Committee conveys its written decision to the student. If the decision is adverse, the student is informed of appeal steps available at the University level. In the instance of other grievances brought by students, the steps outlined in the Department of Psychology Grievance Procedure would be taken. These Grievance Procedures can be obtained from the Clinical Program Director or the Psychology Department Chair, and a copy of these is be given to all entering Psychology Department graduate students via mass distribution.
Student Support Services The first line of students' support comes from their advisors, course instructors, and Clinical Program Director. At the Program level, there is a fund that can provide modest amounts of financial assistance to help students defray such expenses as thesis and dissertation costs, travel expenses for conferences, and personal therapy. In particular, we want to support and encourage any student seeking psychotherapy during their time here at the University of Kansas. Below are some of the resources available in the community and that students have utilized in the past:
The KU Endowment Association also will supply short-term, no-interest loans to our students. For students with disabilities, the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities offers assistance in an attempt to level the playing field so that persons with disabilities can succeed more readily. Support services available on campus include:
Financial Aid Various types of financial assistance are available to students in the Clinical Program. These include University Fellowships administered through the Graduate School, and teaching assistantships and research assistantships funded through the Department of Psychology. Although the Clinical Program has been able to offer financial assistance for the first year to almost all of its entering and continuing graduate students in recent years, we cannot guarantee this in the future. However, it is expected that a reasonable supply of paid, part-time positions of a psychological nature in various programs of the University and surrounding areas will be available for advanced students, along with research assistantships on faculty grants. Students are encouraged to explore other sources of financial aid for their graduate education as well.
References Cited Raimy, V. (1950). Training in clinical psychology. New York: Prentice-Hall. Stricker, G., & Trierweiler, S. J. (1995). The local scientist: A bridge between science and practice. American Psychologist, 50, 995-1002. Trierweiler, S. J., & Stricker, G. (1996). The scientific practice of professional psychology. New
York: Plenum.
For additional information or questions on the accreditation of the KU Clinical Psychology Program, contact the Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation, American Psychological Association, 750 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20002-4242. Web: http://www.apa.org/ed/accreditation/ Phone: 202-336-5979. E-Mail: apaaccred@apa.org . |
