Dear Potential Applicant:

Thank you for expressing interest in our Ph.D. program in Clinical Psychology. Over the years we have talked to many students with varying backgrounds as they have contemplated graduate education. As a result, we are well aware of how difficult it can be to obtain all of the information you need about graduate programs in clinical psychology. We believe that this letter, along with other departmental brochures, will answer many of your questions.

Please pardon our impersonal method of communicating to you; however, a written summary enables us to provide potential applicants with a great deal of relevant information. If you have general questions about the application process or about careers in the field of psychology, we encourage you to read some of the resources noted in the P.S. below. If you have specific questions about our Clinical program after reading this material, please feel free to contact the director of clinical admissions by phone or by mail. During the academic year, we have a clinical admissions advisor who can be reached at (813)-974-0391. This advisor, Ashley Owen is an advanced clinical student who will first be available during the week of August 25, and will keep regular telephone hours throughout the academic term. In the meantime, we wish you good luck in making your decision and hope that you will seriously consider applying to our program.

Those of you who are inquiring for the first time about graduate programs in clinical psychology may find some of this material a bit discouraging. This is not our intention. We simply want to aid you in making an informed decision. Please keep that in mind as you read the information below.

1. The competition for acceptance into our Clinical program is, unfortunately, intense. Approximately 400 students apply each year but only about 11 or 12 are admitted. Many qualified students are not admitted because acceptance is determined not only by credentials but also by interests and past experiences. In general, if you are very interested in attending a Ph.D. program in Clinical Psychology, you should seriously consider applying to at least several programs (10 or more would not be unreasonable). Following this strategy will increase your chances of acceptance into at least one program.

2. Our program strongly encourages applications from minority members. Minority members are under-represented in the field of clinical psychology; thus we hope that students who represent cultural minorities will seriously consider applying.

3. Other than the minimum criteria set by the university for all graduate programs, we have no formal cutoffs for GRE scores and GPA, nor minimum experience requirements. Nevertheless, there are some guidelines you can use to evaluate your chances for admission. The median GRE score for our entering class of 1997 was 1240 (Verbal and Quantitative combined), and the average GPA was 3.63 (last two years of undergraduate). Please realize, however, that many students admitted into our program have scores lower (and higher) than these averages, and these are not the sole criteria for admission. In addition, nearly all entering students have worked as research assistants and many have had experience in a mental health facility, usually as a volunteer. Although both types of experiences will enhance your chances for admission, research experience is most important. Eight out of thirteen students in the entering class of 1997 have presented their research at a conference or have published their research.

4. You will need three letters of recommendation. Optimally, these letters will be from academic psychologists with whom you have worked in the past and who know something about you personally. For example, professors with whom you have worked as a research assistant would be good references.

5. We prefer that students have an undergraduate degree in Psychology. However, we have occasionally made exception for applicants who are particularly strong in other areas(e.g., research experiences). But it is highly desirable for a student to have at least a minimal background in Psychology and in Research Methods (e.g., Introductory Psychology, Experimental Design, Statistics, etc.).

6. The entire Ph.D. program usually takes four or five years of academic work, followed by a one-year clinical internship. All students complete two independent research projects, a masters thesis and a doctoral dissertation. In addition to intense involvement in research activities, students are involved in clinical practica throughout their training.

7. Our program is a full-time, APA-Accredited, Ph.D. program. Although an M.A. degree is awarded on the way toward receiving the Ph.D., you should not enter the program with the intention of obtaining only a masters. If you cannot commit to the Ph.D. program, you should investigate the large number of schools that offer a terminal masters program in Clinical Psychology.

8. Many students already have an M.A. and, understandably, would like to obtain full credit for their degree. It is sometimes possible to transfer credit for courses that are virtually identical to those offered by our department; however, no final decision about such courses can be made prior to your acceptance into the program. Each individual case must be evaluated after admission by the Graduate Program Committee. Likewise, it is sometimes possible to obtain credit for an already completed masters thesis if it is judged equivalent in quality to those conducted by students in our program. After acceptance into the program, a faculty committee would review your thesis to determine if it can be transferred.

9. Finally, in making your decision, you should also be aware of graduate programs in other mental health fields. For example, at USF there are excellent programs in School Psychology (813-974-3246), Social Work (813-974-2063), Rehabilitation Counseling (813-974-2855), Counselor Education (813-974-3515), and Gerontology (813-974-2414). Other universities offer additional programs at the masters and doctoral levels.

Once again, we welcome your interest in our Clinical Psychology program and sincerely hope that this letter, along with other departmental brochures, will enable you to make a more informed decision about applying. If you have additional questions after reading all of these materials, we will gladly answer them. In the meantime, good luck in your pursuit of graduate education!
 

Sincerely,
 
 

J. Kevin Thompson, Ph.D.	Thomas H. Brandon Ph.D.
Co-Chair, Clinical Admissions	Co-Chair, Clinical Admissions

 

JKT/THB:bjn
 

P.S. There are a number of excellent books that can help with the application process. Four books that our students have recommended Are: Getting In: a Step-by-step Plan for Gaining Admission to Graduate School in Psychology, Graduate Study in Psychology (both of which can be ordered from the American Psychological Association: 1-800-374-2721), Insider's Guide to Graduate Programs in Clinical Psychology (by Mayne, Sayette, and Norcross, published by Guilford Press), and The Complete Guide to Graduate School Admission: Psychology (by Spiegel, 1990, published by Lawrence Erlbaum). The last two books can be ordered from your local bookstore. We hope these references help you become more educated about the application process.