PSYCHOLOGY
MA PROGRAM
Philosophy of the Clinical Track
The clinical track of the Master of Arts in Psychology follows the Boulder scientist/practitioner training model which emphasizes the integrated roles of science and practice. Training in the applied skills of clinical assessment and intervention requires a thorough understanding of the range of human functioning. The database of the psychological literature is our groundwork and the scientific method guides our work. We require students to develop an understanding of how this database is generated, how to evaluate its utility, and how to apply it. Thus, all students are required to take the core of methodology and basic psychology courses in addition to the clinical core and a practicum experience in the community. Because a two-year curriculum can provide only the basics, it is expected that we are preparing students to proceed with training at the doctoral level. For a more detailed discussion of the clinical standards and goals, see our "Statement of Scope of Training and Standards of Behavior" which can be found here.
This program values and promotes self-awareness as a significant component of training in clinical psychology. Students in this program engage in self-awareness exercises within their courses and practicum training. They are also strongly encouraged to engage in their own psychotherapy during their training.
Philosophy of the Experimental Track
The general experimental track of the Master of Arts in Psychology provides the student with a solid foundation in psychological research. The program includes coursework in experimental design, research methodology, and statistics. The student will also develop an area of concentration that will serve as a basis for elective coursework and the Master's thesis. These areas of concentration include neuropsychology, social psychology, program evaluation, psychology and the law, personality theory, and psychometric theory.
The program is primarily designed to prepare students for doctoral degrees in psychology or related fields. Consistent with this goal, a majority of our Master's students have been subsequently accepted into Ph.D. programs. The program is also relevant to non-traditional students who do not plan to pursue a doctoral degree but wish to become more knowledgeable about psychology and its applications to their particular interests.
Concentration in Psychology-Law within the MA Programs in Experimental and Clinical Psychology
The concentration
in Psychology and Law in the MA Programs in Psychology is intended to
provide a strong academic background with an emphasis in psychology and
law for students intending to eventually enroll in a PhD program in psychology
and law. Unlike other MA programs with psychology and law or forensic
emphases, this is not intended as a terminal degree. For more information, read here.
Concentration in Trauma Psychology within the MA Programs in Experimental and Clinical Psychology
The primary objective of the concentration in Trauma Psychology is to prepare graduate students for further academic and/or clinical training at the doctoral level. Students who complete this concentration would also be able to pursue Ph.D. level work in the area of clinical psychology related to trauma, homeland security and public policy related to emergency management. For more information, read here.Additional Courses for Non-Psychology Majors
In order to be considered for the M. A. program you need to have an undergraduate major in Psychology or an "adequate background" in Psychology. For people who have only had general psychology we recommend the following additional courses:
- PSY 210 Introduction to Psychological Statistics
- PSY 211 Introduction to Psychological Research and Measurement
- PSY 313 Learning and Cognition
- PSY 327 Introduction to Biopsychology
- PSY 328 Abnormal Psychology
- PSY 340 Social Psychology
- PSY 451 Seminar in History of Psychology
Graduate Coursework
The program of
study has three components that are common to both the
clinical and the experimental tracks:
(a) coursework in research and the scientific method;
(b) coursework in the knowledge base of psychology: the
proseminar series; and
(c) a research thesis.
In addition, the
clinical track requires:
(a) didactic coursework in assessment, intervention, and
applied skills; and
(b) a practicum experience in which students learn and
apply clinical skills under the supervision of experienced
clinicians. Practicum sites are selected by the student and
rotations typically include 15 hours per week for 9-12
months.
The following
research and methods courses are required of all graduate
students:
PSY 581 Research Statistics and Methodology I
PSY 582 Research Statistics and Methodology II
PSY 603 Research Practicum
The Proseminar Series
The proseminar
series is required of all Master's students. Students in
the clinical track take two of the proseminar courses,
students in the experimental track take at least three of
the proseminar courses (see Experimental track detail). The
particular proseminars chosen will vary from student to
student depending on their area of concentration. The
proseminars available are as follows:
PSY 610-3 Proseminar: Developmental
PSY 611-3 Proseminar: Cognition
PSY 612-3 Proseminar: Neuropsychology
PSY 613-3 Proseminar: Social
PSY 614-3 Proseminar: Personality
PSY 642-3 Proseminar: Aging
Research Thesis
A research based thesis is required of all master's students. The psychology faculty are actively engaged in research. Master's students are encouraged establish a mentorship relationship with a faculty person and to develop a thesis from an ongoing research project. The research and scientific method coursework is designed to help the student formulate a research proposal, analyze the data collected, and write up the results for scholarly publication. In addition to those courses, students take from 4 to 6 credit hours of Psy 700 - Thesis. Students are encouraged to present their work at regional and national meetings and to write up their research for publication.
Coursework in Assessment, Intervention, Applied Skills, and the Practicum
The clinical core consists of a set of didactic courses and a set of applied skills courses. The didactic requirements include the following courses: PSY 678-3 Advanced Psychopathology PSY 685-3 Clinical Interviewing and Personality Assessment PSY 692-3 Seminar in Psychotherapy PSY 686-3 Cognitive Assessment. An optional course in Neuropsychological Assessment (PSY 688-3) is also available.
Students in the clinical track take a course in basic interviewing skills (PSY 571, Clinical Skills Lab) during their first year and a clinical practicum (taken in conjunction with PSY 672, Professional Development I, and PSY 673, Professional Development II) during their second year. Practicum experiences are completed at several sites either on-campus (at the University Counseling Center or the CU Aging Center) or in the community under licensed, Ph.D.-level supervision. The goal of these experiences is to expose students to clinical settings, to the roles of clinical psychologists, and to begin the development of clinical skills. Placements must be approved by the DCT. Most sites require a 9-12 month commitment and students are expected to work approximately 15 hours per week at their site.
Faculty (see Faculty List)
Sample Clinical-Track Course Sequence
The clinical track requires a minimum of 42 credit hours. The required courses can be completed by a full-time student in 2 years if the following course sequence is followed:
YEAR 1
Fall: Clinical Skills Laboratory, Research Statistics and Methodology I, Advanced Psychopathology
Spring: Research Statistics and Methodology II, Cognitive Assessment, Seminar: Psychotherapy, and a Proseminar
YEAR 2
Fall: Research Practicum, Ethics and Standards of Practice (Prof Dev I), Clinical Interviewing and Personality Assessment, Masters Thesis
Spring: Cultural and Family Diversity (Prof Dev II), Masters Thesis, and a Proseminar
Clinical MA students should note that the Psychotherapy course must be taken during the Winterim semester of the 1st year (over the Winter break). There is no Winterim course in the second year.
Sample Experimental-Track Course Sequence
The experimental track requires a minimum of 36 credit hours. The required courses can be completed by a full-time student in 2 years if the following course sequence is followed:
YEAR 1
Fall: Research Statistics and Methodology I, Elective Independent Study, Contemporary Issues in Psychology, and a Proseminar
Spring: Research Statistics and Methodology II, a Proseminar, Contemporary Issues in Psychology, and Research Practicum or an optional Proseminar
YEAR 2
Fall: Applied Multivariate Techniques I, History of Psychology, Contemporary Issues in Psychology, and Research Practicum or a Proseminar
Spring: Methods and Design for Analyzing Change or Research Practicum, Masters Thesis, Contemporary Issues in Psychology, and a Proseminar
This shows 43 credits, so student should adjust where it works best while fulfilling the general requirements.
A. MA Experimental students must take at least two of the following proseminars.
1. PSY 610 - Developmental
2. PSY 611 - Cognitive
3. PSY 612 - Neuropsychology
4. PSY 613 - Social
5. PSY 614 - Personality
6. PSY 642 - AgingB. MA Experimental students must take the following three courses
1. PSY 581 - Research Statistics and Methodology I
2. PSY 582 - Research Statistics and Methodology II
3. PSY 583 - Applied Multivariate Techniques IC. One or more courses may be taken from the Proseminars listed above or from the following courses:
1. PSY 521 - Psychology of Aging I
2. PSY 522 - Psychology of Aging II
3. PSY 641 - Aging Seminar (Special Topics)
4. PSY 651 - History of PsychologyD. MA Experimental students must take one additional course listed above in A or C, or PSY 584 - Methods and Design for Analyzing Change
E. The following courses are required for MA Experimental students:
1. PSY 603 - Research Practicum
2. PSY 700 - Masters Thesis (4-6 credits)
3. PSY 643 - Contemporary Issues in Psychology (4 semesters)
Graduate Student Characteristics
The M. A. applicant pool is national in scope. Our graduate students have earned undergraduate degrees from a wide range of institutions and we have a significant proportion of non-resident students. Of the 172 students who have matriculated in the M.A. program since its beginning in 1978, about 20% earned their undergraduate degrees from UCCS. The others earned their B.A. or B.S. degrees at over 80 different undergraduate institutions across the United States, Canada, and Romania. In the past four years, 52% of our students have been non-residents of Colorado.
Scholastic Characteristics
Admissions to the M. A. program are based on Verbal and Quantitative GRE scores, undergraduate grade-point average, letters of recommendation, and applicant descriptions of their background and academic goals. the applicant pool for the past five years has ranged from 78 to 104 completed applications per year. During those same years we matriculated from 8 to 19 students per year. Our selection ratio is small enough so that the scholastic characteristics of the students who have matriculated are excellent. The medians and interquartile ranges for GRE scores and undergraduate grade-point averages are shown below.
GRE and Undergraduate Grade-Point Averages (UGPA) for Matriculated M.A. Students (N = 151)
UPDATE NEEDED
Evaluation of the MA program
What happens to the students who matriculate in the M.A. Program? Overall, we have a graduation rate of about 67% and an academic failure rate of only 1.5%. The remainder withdrew from the program. The reasons for withdrawing from the program are varied. Several of the students withdrew from the program in order to continue their studies in a Ph.D. program. For some, family and business considerations led to their withdrawal. it should be noted that the program is designed so that it can be completed in two years by a full-time student. Many of our students attend part-time and some take longer than expected to complete their thesis research.
What happens to our graduates? About half of our graduates choose to go on to doctorate programs and the other half choose to enter the work force. The percent of students who get accepted for doctoral level programs is very high. Nearly 90% of those who have applied for Ph.D. level programs have been accepted. Our graduates have gone on to places such as University of Miami, Kent State University, UC-Berkeley, UC-Davis, University of Nebraska, University of Kansas, University of Missouri, University of Hawaii, Rochester University, Fuller Theological Seminary, Purdue University, University of Alabama, Washington University, University of Arizona, CU-Boulder, Denver University, University of Kentucky, Louisiana State University, Michigan State University, and the California Schools of Professional Psychology at Berkeley and Fresno. Nearly all (94%) of the graduates who choose not to go on to doctoral level programs are working in areas that are relevant to their degrees. Most are working as therapists or diagnosticians. Several are licensed under the Colorado Licensed Professional Counselor Law.
The external review team very positively evaluated the Master of Arts program during the 1989 Academic Program Review of the Psychology Department. After interviewing graduate students in the program the external review team reported that the students "expressed high regard for their training." They report that "students felt that their professors were quite competent, readily accessible to them, and eager to involve them in interesting thesis research projects," and that most professors "served as good mentors." They summarize their findings about the master’s program with the following observations:
Many master’s degree programs in the field of psychology are weak or dubious in their quality. The M.A. Program at CU-Colorado Springs does not fall into this category. The M.A. Program at CU-Colorado Springs has an admirable record of preparing students for Ph.D. work and placing students into doctoral programs at good universities.
The external review for 1996 was equally positive. It reads, in part:
Our external review for 2003 provided superb results as well. It reads, in part:The Psychology Department has a history of offering master’s level education of the highest quality. All markers suggest that this program has been and continues to be one of the very finest general master’s degree programs in the United States. In this regard, the Review Team would rate the master’s program at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs as being among the five best such programs in the country.
Members of the faculty are an active, energetic, and professionally productive group. They received their doctorates from outstanding graduate programs followed, in some instances, by postdoctoral training and clinical internships. They have published their scholarly work in a wide variety of professional outlets. Although some publications are in less prestigious and less rigorous journals, many of the scholarly publications are in the best journals in the field. As is typical of psychology in general, members of the faculty appear to publish their work mostly in journals, although some are involved in book writing. These journal publications often involve master's level students as junior authors. There is also considerable publication with colleagues. Both of these patterns are highly desirable.
The Psychology Department has a history of offering master's level education of the highest quality. All markers suggest that this 2-year program has been and continues to be one of the very finest master's degree programs in the country.
Housing
There are two forms of housing available for graduate students, off-campus housing in apartments and houses and, for the first time, on-campus dormitories.
Off-campus
housing
A recently completed housing survey of graduate and
undergraduate honors students in psychology found that 50%
of the students lived within 5 miles of campus (range =
1-12 miles) and that it took them 10 minutes or less to
commute to campus (range 3 to 25 minutes). The mean rent
was $750/month for a one-bedroom apartment and $800/month
for a 2-bedroom apartment, not including utilities.
On-campus
housing
On-campus housing is available. See the Housing
Village page for more information including information
on the new apartment-style dorms.
The application deadline for Fall admission each year is January 1st.
Application Materials and Procedures
Graduate Student Handbook
The Graduate Student Handbook for the M.A. in Clinical and Experimental Psychology Programs can be found in .pdf format here.
For additional information about the Psychology MA program, please contact: