• Training assignments provide valuable "field experience" in teaching, research, and service (clinical, counseling, or applied research work).
• Students typically gain some experience in a variety of areas, but emphasize areas of greatest career relevance.
• Assignments each year are based on student preferences, faculty preferences, and programmatic and departmental needs.
• Teaching opportunities include basic course management, running discussion sections, grading papers, supervising projects, assisting with web-based instructional material, and may include teaching sections of courses.
• Research opportunities may involve any or all aspects of the research process, from literature review and problem identification, through design, data collection, and data analysis, to writing and submission of conference presentations and manuscripts.
• Service opportunities reflect a student's program, interests, and career goals. The Department maintains a collaborative relationship with a wide range of sites on- and off-campus that provide valuable experiences in clinical work, counseling, and applied research.

Financial Support

The Psychology Department has a strong commitment to providing financial support to students, allowing them to focus on their course of study.

• Training assignments are a departmental academic requirements, but also serve as the basis for financial support for students.
• All students admitted to the program, who remain in good standing, are guaranteed support for the first academic year (9 months) and typically receive support for four academic years (9 months per year). Support during the summer is variable depending on funding, but typically consists of one month.
• Support comes from teaching assistantships, fellowships, research grants, and service contracts with various mental health and human service agencies.
• Support for 2009-2010 is $1340/month for pre-MA and $1502 for post-MA assistantships. The assistantship rates increase each year.
• Assistantships include tuition waivers, but students are responsible for University fees (typically $1,000+ per semester)
• Although financial support beyond the first year cannot be guaranteed, the Department has successfully provided support as outlined above for several decades.

Application

Applications are accepted once a year for Fall admission. Application deadlines are as follows:

• December 15, 2009 for the Counseling and Clinical programs
• February 1, 2010 for the Applied Psychology and Brain & Cognitive Sciences programs
• Note: to be considered for fellowship opportunities, we recommend that you complete your application before January 15

A complete application packet includes the following