Doctor of Philosophy in Counseling Psychology
Admission Requirements
The applicant must meet the School of Graduate Studies’ current minimum general admission requirements as published in the graduate catalog.
- Keep grade of B or higher in at least four graduate level counseling courses or equivalent, including Counseling Methods, Theories and Techniques of Counseling, Counseling Practicum and Research Methods (for post-Master’s applicants).
- Overall GPA of 3.0.
- Eighteen (18) semester credits of undergraduate psychology including coursework in general psychology, developmental psychology, abnormal psychology, personality theory, experimental and research methods, and statistics.
- Satisfy the School of Graduate Studies’ English Language Proficiency requirements as published in the graduate catalog.
Students are selected on the basis of undergraduate GPA; master’s degree GPA (if applicable); reference letters; clinical experiences; career goals; research and clinical interests; and the applicant’s personal statement.
Most students are eligible for full-time fall and spring tuition waivers for the first two years of their program, and for the past several years this has also been true for advanced students beyond their second year. Students from minority racial/ethnic groups are strongly encouraged to apply. We value and encourage applications from individuals interested in research related to social justice and/or identity factors (including but not limited to race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, ability, religion/spirituality, and social class). We are an open and affirming community, with many students and faculty identifying as sexual, gender, and racial/ethnic minorities.
Degree Requirements
Students seeking the Doctor of Philosophy degree at the University of North Dakota must satisfy all general requirements set forth by the School of Graduate Studies as well as particular requirements set forth by the Counseling Psychology and Community Services Department.
Below is a list of coursework required to complete a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology (students entering with a Master's degree in Counseling or Psychology can transfer verified equivalent courses, except that COUN 501 can not be transferred). COUN 995/997/998 is only required for students who are Direct Admits (post-bachelors degree).
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| COUN 501 | Ethics: Counseling and Counseling Psychology | 3 |
| COUN 505 | History of Psychology | 3 |
| COUN 510 | Counseling Methods | 3 |
| COUN 515 | Methods of Research | 3 |
| or EFR 509 | Introduction to Applied Educational Research | |
| COUN 517 | Assessment in Counseling | 3 |
| COUN 518 | Group Theory and Process | 3 |
| COUN 519 | Career Counseling | 3 |
| COUN 530 | Theories of Counseling, Personality and Development | 3 |
| COUN 532 | Multicultural Counseling | 4 |
| COUN 535 | Child, Family, and Couples Counseling | 4 |
| COUN 540 | Advanced Vocational Psychology | 3 |
| COUN 552 | Counseling Psychology Professional Seminar I | 1 |
| COUN 551 | Research Issues in Counseling Psychology | 3 |
| COUN 553 | Counseling Psychology Professional Seminar II | 1 |
| COUN 554 | Preparation for the Predoctoral Internship | 1 |
| COUN 560 | Supervision and Consultation Theory and Practice | 3 |
| EFR 512 | Survey Design and Analysis | 3 |
| COUN 568 | Personality Assessment | 3 |
| COUN 569 | Cognitive Assessment | 3 |
| COUN 580 | Counseling Practicum | 4 |
| COUN 583 | Doctoral Practicum | 6-12 |
| COUN 582 | Child and Adolescent Counseling Internship | 6 |
| COUN 584 | Community Counseling Internship | 3-6 |
| or COUN 582 | Child and Adolescent Counseling Internship | |
| COUN 586 | Practicum in Supervision | 1-3 |
| COUN 999 | Dissertation | 1-15 |
| COUN 995 | Scholarly Project COUN 998 is 4 cr.; COUN 995 and 997 are 2 cr. | 2-4 |
| or COUN 998 | Thesis | |
| or COUN 997 | Independent Study | |
| UNIV 994 | Professional Internship | 1 |
| COUN 565 | Professional Seminars (Interprofessional Health Care) COUN 565 (3 cr.); PH 504, PH 510, and PH 541 (3 cr.) | 1-3 |
| or PH 504 | Public Health Management, Planning, and Health Care Systems | |
| or PH 510 | ||
| or PH 541 | Public Health Communication | |
Coursework in Discipline Specific Knowledge:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 537 | Physiology of Behavior and Psychophysiological Measurement | 3 |
| PSYC 539 | Cognitive Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC 551 | Advanced Developmental Psych | 3 |
| PSYC 560 | Advanced Social Psychology | 3 |
Coursework in Research Methodologies (select one of the following options):
Option A
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 541 | Advanced Univariate Statistics | 3 |
| PSYC 542 | Multivariate Statistics for Psychology | 3 |
| or EFR 518 | Multivariate Analysis | |
Option B
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| EFR 516 | Statistics II | 3 |
| EFR 518 | Multivariate Analysis | 3 |
| or EFR 523 | Structural Equation Modeling | |
Option C
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 541 | Advanced Univariate Statistics | 3 |
| EFR 510 | Participatory Qualitative Research Methods | 3 |
| EFR 520 | Translational and pluralistic designs in qualitative research | 3 |
| or EFR 522 | Mixed-Methods Research | |
Coursework in Assessment/Diagnosis:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| COUN 520 | Diagnostic and Prevention Strategies in Counseling | 3 |
| COUN 517 | Assessment in Counseling | 3 |
| COUN 568 | Personality Assessment | 3 |
| COUN 569 | Cognitive Assessment | 3 |
Optional Child and Adolescent Emphasis:
Students must be selected or approved by the program to complete the optional Child and Adolescent Counseling Emphasis. Related to the course requirements listed below, their dissertation topic must involve children and/or adolescents in some capacity (approved by their dissertation committee) and they must complete two practica with a child/adolescent focus.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| COUN 535 | Child, Family, and Couples Counseling | 4 |
| COUN 569 | Cognitive Assessment | 3 |
| COUN 999 | Dissertation | 1-15 |
| PSYC 551 | Advanced Developmental Psych | 3 |
| COUN 583 | Doctoral Practicum | 1-2 |
Other Program Requirements:
A. Coursework/experiences to fulfill two Scholarly Tools;
B. Specialization Area;
C. Research Mentorship Sequence;
D. Teaching Experience;
E. Social Justice Project;
F. Professional Benchmark;
G. Accumulation of Supervised Experience in Practice Settings;
H. Behavioral Healthcare Rotation;
I. Integrated Assessment;
J. Observed Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE);
K. Successful Completion of Comprehensive Examinations;
L. Successful Defense of the Dissertation; and
M. Internship.
See the Counseling Psychology Ph.D. handbook for more details.
Cognate in Counseling Psychology and Community Services
A cognate in CPCS, consisting of a minimum of nine semester credits of counseling coursework, may be taken by master’s or doctoral students in related fields. Cognate coursework should be planned in consultation with a member of the department faculty. Cognates will not include practicum or internship; students interested in these experiences should consider a formal minor in Counseling (below).
Program Evaluation of Students
The CPCS faculty conduct periodic reviews of students’ progress in the MA and PhD programs, including their academic performance, counseling and psychoeducational skills, professionalism, and ethics. An interview may be required as part of the review. Deficits identified through faculty review may result in either a requirement that the student engage in remedial work or the removal of the student from the program.
As noted in Standard 7.04 of the 2017 Ethics Code of the American Psychological Association, students may need to disclose personal information if that information is necessary to evaluate or obtain assistance for students whose personal problems could reasonably be judged to be preventing them from performing their training or professionally related activities in a competent manner or posing a threat to the students or others.
The practice of counseling requires significant self-disclosure for the person receiving counseling. CPCS students must become very familiar with this process. Therefore, it is an essential training component of the CPCS programs to provide assignments and classroom experiences that call for student self-disclosure of a personal nature, in an atmosphere of respect and confidentiality, to an extent not expected in other academic disciplines. The nature or extent of expected self-disclosure is specified in each course syllabus.