Main Departmental Office
Terrill Hall, Room 351
Mailing address:
1155 Union Circle #311280
Denton, TX 76203-5017
940-565-2671
Web site: www.psyc.unt.edu
Graduate Faculty: Boals, Callahan, Campbell, Clark, Collins, Critelli, Doster, Guarnaccia, Hayslip, Jenkins, Kaminski, Kelly, Marshall, Murrell, Neumann, Petrie, Riggs, Rogers, Ruiz, Schneider, Sewell, Taylor, Terrell, Vosvick, Watkins.
The Department of Psychology affirms the importance of scholarship, research and quality of education for all students, whether they are preparing for careers in basic research, applied research, teaching, or service delivery. This training takes advantage of numerous resources within the department, including the Psychology Clinic and specific laboratories for statistics, psychophysiology, psychosocial health research, neuropsychology, and psychoneuroimmunology. Graduates of the department have gone on to distinguish themselves in research, administrative, teaching and service careers in a range of settings, including universities, medical schools, hospitals, mental health centers, counseling centers, rehabilitation facilities, and private practices in consulting, therapy and assessment.
Faculty in the Department of Psychology are active researchers. Their programs of research offer students a variety of experiences, topics and perspectives, using a number of different methods. Faculty’s expertise include topics and methods traditional to subdisciplines and theories of psychology (e.g., psychotherapy, vocational decisions, psychopathology, cognition, aging, physical and psychological health, physiology). Some faculty conduct purely theory-based research using a variety of perspectives (e.g., moral development, personal construct theory, personality theory, stress theory). Other faculty are expert in applied research, designed to address social problems (e.g., abuse, HIV/AIDS, sexual aggression). Many faculty members have programs on the cutting edge of psychology (e.g., psychoneuroimmunology, sport psychology, cognitive neuroscience, memory). In addition, there are ongoing projects on ethical and professional issues, ethnic diversity, minority and women’s concerns.
From the time that students enter our graduate program they are given many opportunities and are encouraged to be actively involved in conducting research. Students gain competence in research through course work, vertical research teams headed by a faculty member and informal research experiences. This involvement allows students to gain valuable skills from different faculty members while learning the substantive and methodological knowledge necessary for their future careers. A student’s research experience culminates in an independent doctoral dissertation that contributes to the knowledge base of psychology.
Center for Psychosocial Health Research. This center consists of a multidisciplinary group that draws upon the disciplines of anthropology, behavioral medicine, education, psychology, public health and sociology to pioneer research on psychosocial phenomena involved in healthy living. Basic research on wellness within a chronic illness context provides a foundation for the future development of psychosocial and behavioral interventions that encourage health-related behavioral change. As chronic illness can affect anyone—regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and socioeconomic status—we strive to identify, from a multicultural perspective, psychosocial factors critical to the development of effective interventions.
Center for Sport Psychology and Performance Excellence. The Center for Sport Psychology and Performance Excellence (CSPPE) is a multidisciplinary center devoted to offering sport psychology interventions, research and training. The center combines knowledge, skill and expertise from psychology and exercise science to produce the most comprehensive and state-of-the-art sport psychology services available. In addition, through the center, graduate students are able to pursue specialized training in sport and exercise psychology.
Psychology Clinic. As part of the department’s Applied Training Unit, the Psychology Clinic is a training site for graduate students. Through the clinic, psychological services are offered to the community within the Dallas–Fort Worth region. Services available to the community include psychotherapy, vocational counseling, psychological assessment and biofeedback.
1. Before being admitted to either the master’s or the doctoral program, the applicant must meet the requirements for admission to the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies specified in the Admission section of this catalog.
2. Admission to graduate degree programs in psychology is competitive, as available facilities do not permit admission of all qualified applicants.
Applying is a two-part process. First, prospective applicants for graduate degree programs must obtain and file an application for admission to the UNT graduate school from the graduate dean’s office. Second, applicants for graduate psychology degrees also must obtain and file a separate application for admission to psychology programs from the psychology department’s graduate office. The application deadline for graduate programs in clinical psychology, counseling psychology, and health psychology and behavioral medicine (HPBM) is the first university work day of December preceding the fall term/semester for which the student is applying. All other programs will commence review of application files on February 1 and continue to admit students through the year according to the university calendar for admission for the fall term/semester. (See the Academic Calendar at www.unt.edu/catalog/calendar.htm for admissions deadlines.) All academic prerequisites for the clinical, counseling and health psychology/behavioral medicine programs must be completed by the end of the spring term/semester preceding the fall term/semester for which the student is applying.
3. All applicants must submit competitive scores on the verbal and quantitative sections of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) prior to admission. For standardized admission test requirements, contact the department or the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies. Undergraduates who plan to apply for graduate training should arrange to take the GRE during their senior year.
4. References and recommendations must be submitted by applicants for admission to the doctoral and master’s programs in psychology. Applicants are required to submit three satisfactory recommendations on special forms provided by the department, including one from their last professional employer (if they have had such previous experience) and one from the last academic institution attended.
In all cases, the Department of Psychology maintains the right to make independent inquiry of the applicant’s employers and the faculties of institutions previously attended, as well as to deny admission to an applicant who in its judgment, or in the judgment of any of the psychology departments of the federated universities (in the case of doctoral applicants), fails to meet personal or academic admission standards.
The department offers graduate programs leading to the following degrees:
The doctoral programs in counseling psychology, clinical psychology, and health psychology and behavioral medicine have been approved by the American Psychological Association (750 First Street NE; Washington, DC 20002-4242; 202-336-5979).
The counseling psychology doctoral program is offered through the Federation of North Texas Area Universities.
The master’s degree is intended to prepare students for higher degrees and to qualify them for a number of subdoctoral positions.
The experimental psychology curriculum is intended to provide a highly individualized program for the student interested in study and research in one of several specialized areas.
The doctoral curricula in clinical psychology and counseling psychology are designed to serve a variety of purposes that focus on the development of a well-rounded professional psychologist. These purposes include a thorough grounding in scientific methodology and an orientation to the profession, development of competency in psychological assessment and evaluation, and training in various psychotherapeutic and counseling techniques and skills.
The program in health psychology and behavioral medicine prepares psychologists for service delivery roles in medical and other health care settings as well as roles in program development and evaluation. There is strong emphasis on mind/body interaction as students focus on the matrix of psychological, social, physiological and environmental processes in understanding etiological and diagnostic factors of illness, prevention and recovery. Fundamental skills in clinical assessment, evaluation and psychotherapy are integrated with scientific advances in health psychology/behavioral medicine in order to meet the holistic needs of the individual.
All departmental PhD programs require successful completion of a doctoral dissertation.
The minimum criteria for consideration for admission are 24 hours of psychology (12 advanced) plus the following:
PhD minimum criteria for application requires one of the following six:
Applicants must submit their GRE verbal and quantitative scores.
MS minimum criteria for application requires one of the following four:
Applicants must submit their GRE verbal and quantitative scores. No minimum score is required.
Applying to more than one program is not encouraged. The student who elects to apply to more than one program must submit a separate application packet for each program. Each application submitted must be in packet form and mailed under separate cover to the individual programs. Each packet must include a completed psychology department application, photocopies of transcripts, photocopies of GRE score reports, personal resume and a statement of goals. Separate letters of recommendation are required for each program to which the student is applying, and letters must have a program specified. We prefer that letters of recommendation accompany the application packet; however, they may be submitted under separate cover directly from the recommender. If they accompany the application packet, these letters must be sealed and signed across the back flap by the referee. Materials submitted to the School of Graduate Studies do not need to be duplicated for each program to which the student applies.
Please refer to the department web site at www.psyc.unt.edu for questions regarding department application deadlines, etc.
Applicants must have taken the GRE general test prior to the application deadlines. The psychology subject test is not required. Applicants should enclose a copy of the score report with the application, if available. It is the applicant’s responsibility to make sure the department receives a copy of these scores.
Applicants should list the names of all colleges attended, even if no degree was received from an institution. When applicable, the name of degree received, date degree was awarded or expected to be awarded, and major should be specified.
Applicants should list specific undergraduate prerequisite courses to be considered as psychology prerequisites. These specific prerequisite courses cannot be waived and must be completed
Graduate programs in psychology admit students only to fall terms/semesters.
Applicants who have not already taken these courses should make note on the application form of when they will be taken. This prerequisite course work includes two courses for master’s applicants:
The requirement for Experimental Psychology or Research Methods/Design and Statistics must be completed in two courses.
For doctoral applicants, statistics plus three of the following broadly named courses are required as prerequisites:
Applicants must enclose either a catalog description (Internet printout is acceptable) or syllabus for these specific prerequisite courses. A course in statistics from a department other than psychology could apply to fulfill the prerequisite requirement, and the grade points from this course would be included in the psychology hours GPA. However, such a course is not credited toward the required prerequisite psychology semester hours. To calculate Quality Points, multiply grade (4.0, 3.0, 2.0) by hours of the class (4.0, 3.0, 2.0, 1.0). Example: a grade of A (4.0) in a 3 hour class would equal 12 quality points.
Those doctoral applicants who hold a master’s degree with a major in psychology, but not an undergraduate degree in psychology may elect to use master’s course work to satisfy psychology prerequisites. If admitted to a graduate program, the courses used as prerequisites may not be used toward a degree plan as transfer work.
In addition to the specific courses outlined above, the applicant must also have psychology course work of 24 semester hours (12 hours upper level) to be considered. Those applicants with a bachelor’s or master’s degree with a major in psychology would have completed, in the course of the degree, more than the required 24 semester hours. All of these courses must be taken in a psychology or educational psychology department. Courses listed to fulfill the total number of hours requirements should be converted to semester hours using a four-point system.
All GPA’s should be computed on a 4.0 scale (A=4, etc.). The Department of Psychology computes plus- or minus-grades as the straight letter grade. Applicants must meet one of these requirements based on the degrees held.
1. For master’s applicants with a completed bachelor’s degree:
2. For doctoral applicants with a completed bachelor’s degree only:
3. For doctoral applicants with a completed master’s degree in psychology:
Applicants with completed bachelor’s or master’s degrees in a field other than psychology must meet the GPA requirements stated above and also have completed the minimum hours of prerequisite psychology courses with the minimum GPA requirements stated above.
A program committee has been constituted by the department to consider the possible separation from the degree program of any student who in the committee’s judgment appears unlikely to succeed professionally, regardless of grades earned. Students who do not make satisfactory and continuous progress may be dismissed from their program.
Students interested in becoming licensed and certified as psychologists or psychological associates in the state of Texas are required to have specified supervised experiences that are approved by the Department of Psychology. Departmental program directors should be consulted for details.
The Master of Science degree is available in the Department of Psychology. For any master’s degree that does not include a thesis, a final oral comprehensive examination is required.
All degree programs must be planned in consultation with the student’s advisory committee. Students are strongly urged to file a degree plan during their first term/semester of graduate study.
61–64 Hours
Required courses: PSYC 5340, 5420, 5430, 5470, 5680, 5690, 5700, 5780, 5820, 5831-5832, 5880 and 5950.
Other courses will be selected in consultation with the student’s advisory committee.
Students interested in becoming licensed professional counselors in the state of Texas should notify the director of their program area so their degree plan may be arranged to include appropriate course work.
An option to substitute 6 hours of academic courses, practicums or field work for the thesis is provided for the student who does not intend to proceed with doctoral work. Such substitutions must be approved by the student’s advisory committee. For such a substitution 750 clock hours of practicum, and a minimum grade of B must be made on courses substituted for the thesis.
Track 1, 32 Hours
Will not lead to eligibility to take the psychological associate examination in the state of Texas.
Required courses: PSYC 5640, 5700, 5710, 5840 and 5950.
Electives: 6 hours selected from the remaining 5000-level psychology courses, in consultation with the major professor.
Minor: a 6-hour minor from a field outside the Department of Psychology may be selected.
Track 2, 44 Hours
Required courses: PSYC 5640, 5700, 5790, 5840, 5900 and 5950.
Electives: 12 hours selected from the remaining 5000-level psychology courses, in consultation with the major professor.
Minor: a 6-hour minor from a field outside the Department of Psychology may be selected.
The PhD degrees in psychology require a minimum of 90 semester hours beyond the bachelor’s degree, plus a one-year supervised internship for the clinical, counseling, and health psychology/behavioral medicine programs. The qualified and accepted student may enter a degree program holding either a bachelor’s or master’s degree. No more than 30 hours from a master’s degree can be applied toward deficiencies for the doctoral degree.
A student entering with a master’s degree or equivalent may, upon the consent of the advisory committee, transfer a maximum of 12 appropriate semester hours beyond the master’s degree, provided the work has been taken in a department offering a doctoral degree in psychology. Thus, a minimum of 48 hours in residence would remain to be completed.
Students should be aware that internship training sites are spread across the country. Responsibility for an internship training site’s compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act rests with the internship site. Internships are competitive and the student is responsible for securing an internship that meets with departmental approval.
This program requires a minimum of 96 semester hours plus a one-year internship. The 20 hours in general core psychology include the following: advanced social psychology, advanced research design, advanced statistics, theories of learning, advanced history and systems, and advanced physiological psychology. The clinical core consists of professional issues and ethics; assessment, evaluation and diagnosis; psychotherapy; psychopathology; and clinical service skills.
50–60 Hours
Required courses: PSYC 5420, 5430, 5700, 5780, 5820 (6 hours), 5831-5832 and 5950.
Electives: PSYC 5640 and one additional course selected from 5010, 5070, 5640, 5680 and 5710.
Additional courses: two courses (at least 3 hours each) selected from (a) the remaining 5000-level psychology courses, or (b) one field outside the Department of Psychology, as a minor.
This program requires a minimum of 111 semester hours plus a one-year internship and includes 20 hours in general core psychology: advanced social psychology, advanced research design, advanced statistics, theories of learning, advanced history and systems, and advanced physiological psychology.
The counseling core consists of 45 hours that includes course work in the following areas: developmental issues, assessment, individual and group techniques, legal and ethical issues, psychopathology, vocational psychology, personality and multiculturalism. Counseling majors are required to take a pre-practicum for which they receive 4 hours credit. A research core composed of 16 hours and practicum training consisting of 12 hours also are required. The elective cluster is composed of 12 hours selected to represent an organized and integrated sequence in the student’s area of interest.
This program requires a minimum of 92 semester hours and includes 20 hours in general core psychology: advanced social psychology, advanced research design, advanced statistics, theories of learning, advanced history and systems, and advanced physiological psychology. The experimental core consists of a minimum of 15 hours in experimental psychology, statistics and research practicums. The student is expected to be involved in research throughout the program. Further experimental core requirements are selected in consultation with the student’s major advisor, to be selected from one of four concentration areas. A minor field consisting of 12–18 hours may be selected. Each student must also complete a 6- to 12-hour integrated elective area in psychology that is consistent with individual interests.
This program is offered in collaboration with our sister department at the UNT Health Science Center. Professional study requires a minimum of 103 semester hours, including 20 hours of general psychology (social psychology, research design and statistics, learning and cognition, history and systems, and physiological psychology) and 42 hours of clinical core courses (psychological assessment, psychopathology, medical and behavioral disorders, professional ethics, cultural aspects of health, psychotherapy methods, behavior analysis, developmental health psychology, applied psychophysiological procedures, and psychoneuroimmunology). Students are continually involved in clinical and research experiences before culminating professional preparation with a one-year, full-time clinical internship.
All doctoral programs make provisions to allow the completion of a master’s degree in general psychology.
Behavioral medicine makes provision for this plus two other master’s programs. En route to completing the requirements for the PhD students may select behavioral analysis or public health.
These additional options require separate application to and admission by the Department of Behavior Analysis or the School of Biomedical Science respectively. The option with behavioral analysis provides a knowledge base in the principles, theory and research methods of behavioral analysis for applications in medicine and health contexts. The option with public health prepares students for roles in the development, implementation and evaluation of models involving the promotion of health behaviors, the prevention of physical and psychological trauma, and the creation of environmental contexts supportive of personal well-being.
Candidates must present evidence that they have a reading knowledge of one foreign language (see the Doctoral Degree Requirements section of this catalog for details) or have demonstrated competency in a research tool subject that has been approved by the Department of Psychology and the graduate council. If the tool substitution involves taking additional courses, the student must make a minimum grade of B in each course. Credits earned are in addition to the hours required for the degree.
The candidate must meet the doctoral residence requirement as outlined in the Doctoral Degree Requirements section of this catalog.
Each of the departmental PhD programs requires successful completion of a comprehensive examination in the student’s respective program. The faculty in each program area is responsible for the format, administration and grading of the examination.
Students complete two dissertation-related examinations: the proposal and the final comprehensive examination. Students first defend their dissertation proposal, which can be done only after successfully completing the language requirement, master’s thesis or its equivalent, and the qualifying PhD examination for the program. Upon completion of the dissertation research, the student may schedule the final comprehensive exam for the dissertation.
A temporary degree program advisor is assigned to doctoral students during the first term/semester of enrollment. The dissertation committee is formed at some point later in the student’s program. Each dissertation committee in the Department of Psychology is to have, as its basic structure, the following:
1. Three persons employed as faculty members by the Department of Psychology or as regular members of a Department of Psychology program committee.
2. Each committee may, but is not required to, have additional members from outside the Department of Psychology. An additional member may be (a) a UNT faculty member from another department; (b) a community professional especially appointed to the committee through the Department of Psychology; or (c) a faculty member from another university especially appointed to the committee through the Department of Psychology. Additional members may not replace the three departmental members.
3. Programs may place other restrictions on dissertation committee composition, but cannot authorize deviation from the basic structure (e.g., the three departmental faculty) described above.
All Courses of Instruction are located in one section at the back of this catalog.
The “Course and Subject Guide,” found in the Courses of Instruction section of this book, serves as a table of contents and provides quick access to subject areas and prefixes.
Date of initial release: July 1, 2009 — Copyright © 2008 University of North Texas
Page updated:
February 23, 2010
— Comments or corrections: catalog@unt.edu
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