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Psychology Department
N218 Elliott Hall
75 East River Road
Minneapolis, MN
55455-0344

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Phone: 612-625-2818
Fax: 612-626-2079

 


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Counseling Psychology Curriculum

The Counseling Psychology Program curriculum is designed to train graduate students in the skills necessary to use scientific approaches to solve a variety of human problems originating from intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental sources. This training is accomplished through

  1. structured academic study
  2. applied practice
  3. training in research
  4. training in instruction

The curriculum reflects the Department's long-standing commitment to applied psychology and to the scientist-practitioner model of Counseling Psychology. Thus, a strong, broad-based foundation in the science of psychology is expected of our graduate students and an empirical-research viewpoint toward Counseling Psychology is taken throughout the academic process.

A student's academic progress through the Ph.D. program can be traced through six stages:

  1. completion of formal coursework
  2. completion of coursework for Department's General Area Distribution Requirements
  3. completion of the counseling psychology written special exam
  4. completion of the preliminary oral exam
  5. conduct research for and prepare the dissertation
  6. defense of the dissertation in a final oral examination.

The student officially becomes a Candidate for the Ph.D. degree only upon successful completion of the special written and preliminary oral examinations.

Academic Curriculum

The Academic Curriculum was developed to meet the requirements of the Department of Psychology and the University of Minnesota as well as the requirements established by the American Psychological Association (APA) for accredited Counseling Psychology Programs. Further details about each of the following aspects of the curriculum can be gained by clicking on hyperlinks, below, or locating the appropriate section in the printed Student Handbook which all students receive. Students should be sure to consult the printed Student Handbook, as this has more detailed information about all aspects of the graduate student experience than is available in this abbreviated online handbook of policies and procedures. Students should also consult the sample 6-year plan for guidance about specific timelines and deadlines in progress towards the degree.

Counseling Psychology Curriculum Areas

The Counseling Psychology Program includes instruction for all graduate students in seven curricular areas through a series of courses and applied and research experiences:

  1. The Counseling Core Curriculum
  2. Scientific and Professional Ethics and Standards
  3. Research Design and Methodology
  4. Statistics
  5. Psychological Measurement
  6. Assessment
  7. History and Systems

Courses related to each of these areas are detailed in the section on Counseling Psychology Curriculum Areas.

Department/APA Substantive Areas

In compliance with the APA accreditation requirements and in keeping with the philosophy of graduate education in the Department which requires that each student be trained in breadth, students must demonstrate competence in each of the following substantive areas:

  1. biological aspects of behavior

  2. cognitive-affective aspects of behavior

  3. social aspects of behavior

  4. individual differences in behavior

  5. history and systems

  6. psychological measurement

  7. research methodology

  8. techniques of data analysis

  9. evaluating the efficacy of interventions

  10. human development and personality

  11. dysfunctional behavior or psychopathology

  12. professional standards and ethics

  13. theories and methods of assessment and diagnosis

  14. consultation and supervision

  15. cultural and individual diversity

  16. intervention

Courses that satisfy these requirements are listed here.

General Area Distribution Requirements, Written Special, Prelim Oral, Final Oral

Five major academic benchmarks are the successful completion of:

  1. coursework for the General Area Distribution Requirements
  2. a Special Written Examination in Counseling Psychology
  3. a Preliminary Oral Examination
  4. completion of the Dissertation Proposal, and
  5. completion of the Final Oral Examination.

The General Area Distribution Requirements are mandatory for all graduate students in the Department and are designed with the intent that the student's preparations for successfully completing the General Area Distribution Requirements will ensure the breadth of knowledge required of a Doctoral Candidate. To satisfy the General Area Distribution Requirement, students must demonstrate proficiency in five courses across their choice of four areas of psychology. Specific courses that satisfy the General Area Distribution Requirements are listed here.

The Special Written Examination assesses the student's competence in Counseling Psychology. The exam is designed to provide an opportunity for the student to demonstrate detailed knowledge of research methodology and of the empirical literature in Counseling, as well as to demonstrate originality and rigorous thinking in developing research design and research ideas. The Special Written Examination cannot have content that overlaps with one of the four general areas.

The next major indication of progress after the successful completion of the Special Written Examination is the Preliminary Oral Examination. The Preliminary Oral is a general examination required by the graduate school that is intended to assess both the breadth and depth of expertise. Students who fail the Preliminary Oral are no longer considered to be doctoral students. Department regulations require that the Preliminary Oral be successfully completed within four calendar years of the semester the student was admitted for graduate work (i.e., by the end of Fall semester of the fifth year). Failure to meet this deadline also leads to termination from the program.

All students in the program write a Dissertation Proposal to outline their plans for their dissertation research. The Dissertation Proposal must be approved by the advisor and the final oral committee by December 15 of the year a student plans to apply for internship.

The Final Oral Examination focuses on a defense of all aspects of the dissertation research and is scheduled when the dissertation advisor and the two readers on the final oral committee agree that the student's dissertation is in a form appropriate for the final oral defense.

Supporting Programs/Minors

All graduate students in the Department of Psychology are required to complete a Supporting Program or Minor that includes a series of courses related to a particular subject or theme distinct from the major. Students are encouraged to select courses that match their own special areas of interests and to develop their Supporting Programs or select their Minors with the assistance and approval of their advisors. The section on Supporting Programs and Minors identifies several example specialty areas and related coursework which would allow in-depth study of one or more specific problem areas or populations of relevance to Counseling Psychology.

Applied Practice

Integration of counseling theory and practice within the Counseling Psychology curriculum is planned from the beginning of the academic program. The counseling sequence requires concurrent participation in didactic and applied work beginning in Year 1 with coursework in Theories, Intervention, and Assessment, and continuing in Years 2 and 3-4 with Practicum and Advanced Practicum, respectively, and in Years 5 or 6 with the Internship.

The introductory counseling psychology core courses include laboratory experiences in interviewing and assessment. The practicum and advanced practica experiences focus on developing the student's counseling and supervisory skills. The internship, which follows the practica, provides additional opportunities for working with a variety of clients on a wide range of client concerns.

Specific information on practicum, advanced practicum, and internship requirements is presented in the Practice Training section of the printed Student Handbook and online (more comprehensive material is contained in the printed Handbook).

Research

One of the Counseling Psychology Program's main objectives is to train students for academic and research careers. This focus, supplemented by experiences in practicum and internship settings, also serves those students who enter practice settings. Thus, all students are required to integrate coursework in general psychology and counseling psychology with an active research program that includes working with Department faculty as Research Assistants, initiating independent research projects, and completing the Ph.D. dissertation.

Additional research training information is presented in the section on Research.

Instruction

The University of Minnesota is one of the largest universities in the country, thereby providing many opportunities for students to gain valuable instructional experience. Each semester, there are numerous teaching assistant and instructor positions available to graduate students through both Day School and Continuing Education.

Information about teaching assistantships in the department of psychology is available here.

Information about teaching workshops and other resources available to teaching assistants and graduate student instructors to help improve their teaching skills is available from the University's Center for Teaching and Learning.

Many counseling students choose to complete the Preparing Future Faculty program, which offers a sequence of courses to develop teaching skills for higher education.

Dual Majors

In recent years, some students have elected to complete a dual major in Counseling Psychology and another area of psychology, such as Social or Personality Psychology. Completing a dual major is a substantial undertaking, and involves -- in addition to all the Counseling curriculum requirements outlined above -- identifying and securing the support of an advisor in the other area, gaining formal admission to the other area, and completing all of the requirements for graduate education in the other area. This typically includes additional coursework and research experience, and the completion of the additional area’s special preliminary written exam or paper. However, students completing dual majors typically take only one preliminary oral exam, with advisors from both areas serving as examiners. In addition, students completing dual majors typically write and defend a dissertation that integrates the major research concerns of both counseling and the outside area. Regardless of their other requirements, students who seek to complete a dual major must complete all of the required Counseling curriculum, including the completion of an additional supporting program or minor. Students who are interested in possibly pursuing a dual major should consult with advisors or potential advisors in both areas to determine the feasibility of completing the dual major, and ideally should also consult with students or alumni who have completed a dual major in the areas of interest to the student.