Psychology Department

Clinical Program

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this the counseling psychology program?

No. The UMKC counseling programs are handled through the UMKC School of Education. Please see their website at http://education.umkc.edu/CEP/ for more information.

What will this program train me to do?

Clinical and health psychology are empirically-based disciplines. The clinical program emphasizes continuous involvement in both research and practice. For this reason, students primarily interested in psychotherapy and clinical or counseling practice without a strong interest in the scientific aspect of the scientist/practitioner model would be better served by other programs.

What is the application deadline?

The application deadline is January 15. All application materials must be received on or before January 15.

Notable clinical practica and internship information:

Please note that all students who are admitted to the program are required to complete clinical practica and an internship and that some practicum and internship sites may require criminal and other background checks before allowing students to participate.

When can I begin the program?

The program begins in fall semesters only. New students are not admitted at any other time of year.

What do I need to submit for my application?

Please click this "How to Apply" link for information on how to submit your application for the Clinical Psychology PhD program.

Do you keep the previous academic year application materials?

Although we do keep application materials filed for a required amount of time, we do not re-use these materials and thus we require previous applicants to submit new, complete applications.

What do I need to submit for my international application?

Please click this “How To Apply” link in for information on how to submit your application for the Clinical Psychology PhD program as well as contact the International Student Affairs Office for the application process to UMKC for international students.

When do I find out if I’ve been accepted?

The admissions process proceeds through April 15th. We make every effort to notify students as soon as possible if they are being offered admission, are an alternate for an offer of admission, or will not be receiving an offer of admission. However, it may take the full admissions period to make decisions and notify applicants so please do not inquire about the status of your application unless you have not heard from us by April 16th. The university reserves the right to notify the applicant by e-mail, so please make sure your current e-mail is noted on the application materials. If it (or any other contact information) changes during the admissions process please notify the department of those changes immediately. The program follows the American Psychological Association Guidelines for Graduate School Offers and Acceptances.

What are the admission criteria?

The program normally accepts 4-6 students each year. Applicants are evaluated based on the following dimensions: (1) academic potential; (2) research potential; (3) professional identity and involvement; and (4) interpersonal skills and other indications of potential for clinical work. The program follows a mentorship model. Therefore, applicants whose research interests are similar to those of a clinical faculty member will be given higher consideration. Faculty interests and research are described on the Clinical Psychology PhD Program Webpage.

What is the GPA requirement?

Undergraduate GPA of 3.0 and graduate GPA of 3.5. Alternative criteria may be accepted at the discretion of the admissions committee if there is good reason to believe the regular criteria do not adequately portray the student’s potential to do quality work in the program. However, admission to the program is highly competitive and we seek to admit students with a general history of excellence.

What is the GRE score requirements?

Competitive Graduate Record Examination General Test scores (GRE Math + Verbal greater than 1100). Students whose scores fall below this recommended minimum may present alternative criteria that indicate their capacity to do quality doctoral-level work. These alternative criteria will be considered and may be accepted at the discretion of the Clinical Admissions Committee. For specific information on submitting your official GRE scores as part of your application packet, please go to the “How To Apply” website.

How do you consider multiple GRE test scores?

It is not unusual for applicants to have taken the GRE on more than one occasion and in these cases applicants are to submit all GRE scores for the admissions committee to consider together.

What undergraduate courses do I need to have in order to be considered?

A bachelor’s degree is required for admittance. A B.A./B.S. in psychology is preferred but not required. In order to ensure that students are properly prepared for graduate work in psychology, applicants are expected to have satisfactorily completed at least 9 hours of foundational courses in the field. Completion of undergraduate courses in the following areas is required:

Introductory / General Psychology
Experimental Methods / Research Design
Statistics / Quantitative Methods

Completion of courses in at least two of the following seven areas is also strongly recommended:
Abnormal Psychology
Biopsychology
Child Psychology
Cognitive Psychology
Learning
Motivation
Personality
Sensation and Perception
Social Psychology

How do I strengthen my application?

The process of preparing for a graduate application to a Clinical Ph.D. program generally needs to begin years rather than months before applying. Applicants that are competitive generally have excellent GRE’s (at least above the 50th percentile), an excellent academic record/GPA, and research experience demonstrated in the form of presentations and publications, excellent letters of recommendation, and well-written applications. In addition, students often have practical or work experience in psychology related settings that informs their interest in clinical and/or health psychology. These accomplishments are generally indicative of academic potential, research potential, professional identity and involvement, and interpersonal skills and other indications of potential for clinical work which represent the criteria for admission. Therefore, anything you can do prior to applying that would address these aspects of your preparation (e.g., gaining research experience, performing to the best of our ability on the GRE’s, achieving good grades etc.) would likely strengthen your application, although it is difficult to do this in a short period of time. In light of the competitiveness of the program (which is similar to many clinical programs around the country) it is wise to apply to a number of programs and to consider Master’s programs as alternative. There are also numerous resources available on how to apply to graduate school that may be useful to you in preparing your application.

Do I have to have a Master’s degree before I apply to the PhD program?

Having a Master’s degree is not a requirement for entry into the program and many students are competitive without having completed a prior graduate degree. On the other hand, completing a Master’s degree may be advantageous to you if it contributes to any of the key criteria used for evaluating student applications. For example a Masters degree may provide evidence of high academic ability, increase research experience (including presentations and/or publications), and provide clinical experience.

When are the courses scheduled and could I complete the program if I could attend only for limited time periods (e.g. evenings, one day a week etc.)?

Courses are scheduled throughout the day (and sometimes vary year to year in when they are scheduled). It is not feasible to complete the program on a part-time or time-limited basis. In addition to course requirements students are typically intensively engaged in research, clinical, and other professional development activities both on-site and in the community

How many credit hours is the program and what courses will I be taking while I am in the program?

Please see the program Plan of Study at the following link: http://www.umkc.edu/catalog/2008-09/graduate/pg1379.html

Can other courses transfer from other programs?

It is possible. However, transfer course requests are considered by the program on a case-by-case basis, and no more than 6 transfer courses are allowed. After admission, students can petition for a particular course to be waived. Approval is based on the content and quality of the course being judged to be equivalent to the course required in this program. You should keep in mind that waivers are the exception rather than the rule and that, typically, course waivers will not reduce a student’s credit load because an alternative course is usually required in place of the waived course.