University of Windsor - Graduate Calendar, 1998-2000

All graduate students in Psychology are required to comply with the ethical principles, values, and standards contained in the "Canadian Code of Ethics for Psychologists", (1991) developed by the Canadian Psychological Association, the "Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct" (1992) developed by the American Psychological Association, and with current standards for research with human subjects adopted by the University of Windsor.
Failure of a student to adhere to the principles, values, and standards defined above will constitute sufficient cause to warrant dismissal from the graduate program in Psychology.

25.2.1 THE DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY DEGREE

In addition to the general requirements listed in 1.5, the following requirements must be met by all students proceeding to the Ph.D. degree.

Admission Requirements

Applicants with an honours degree in Psychology or its equivalent and who have been judged to be outstanding students may be admitted directly into the Ph.D. program. In such cases, the first phase of the doctoral program involves the completion of the Master's degree requirements which must include a thesis. Further advancement in the doctoral program would depend on the quality of performance in fulfilling the requirements for the Master's degree. Students in the doctoral program who do not complete the Master's thesis in the first year will be permitted to take courses toward the doctoral degree for one additional year only until the thesis is completed. Applicants with an M.A. degree in Psychology from the University of Windsor or from another recognized university or college may be admitted to the Ph.D. program with advanced standing in course work.

Applicants will be assessed with respect to their academic qualifications, letters of recommendation, and career-related achievements. Possession of the minimum academic requirements does not ensure acceptance. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is required of all students seeking admission to the Department of Psychology. The GRE scores, Verbal, Quantitative, Analytical, and the Advanced Test in Psychology are used as supplementary information in conjunction with the primary criteria indicated above. Applications for admission must be completed by January 15.

Program Requirements

1) Course Work: Students must complete successfully a minimum of twelve graduate courses after the honours B.A. or its equivalent. Requirements vary, however, according to areas of specialization. Up to six courses may be accepted for credit from another university. The course work includes a core curriculum involving a general statistical methodology course, a methodology course in the student's area of specialization, and courses in the biological bases of behaviour, the cognitive bases of behaviour, theories of social psychology, the historical and philosophical foundations of psychology, and ethical and professional issues in psychology. The minimum passing grade in graduate courses is "B-." A student who fails one course may repeat it once at the discretion of the Head of the Department and the Executive Dean of Graduate Studies and Research. The student may not repeat more than one course. If a student has failed two courses, a recommendation will normally be made to the Executive Dean of Graduate Studies and Research that the student be required to withdraw from the program. Together with the above requirements, students in the areas of clinical psychology and applied social psychology must complete an internship. The clinical internship is approximately 2000 hours and the applied social internship is approximately 1000 hours.

2) Academic Advisor: Each student is assigned an academic advisor at the beginning of his or her first year of graduate studies.

3) Doctoral Committee: Research undertaken as part of a doctoral program is directed by a doctoral committee. The membership of the doctoral committee must be appointed by the Head of the Department and approved by the Executive Committee of the College Council of Graduate Studies and Research. When the student is deemed ready to undertake such research, he or she proposes the name of a research advisor and, in consultation with the proposed advisor, the names of other members of the committee consisting of at least two other members of the Psychology Department and one extra-departmental member of faculty. For the defense of the dissertation, an external examiner will be selected by the doctoral committee, subject to the approval of the Department Head and the Executive Dean of Graduate Studies and Research. The external examiner is from outside of the University of Windsor and is nationally or internationally recognized as having expertise in the area of psychology in which the candidate's research is carried out. The external examiner shall not participate in the direction of the research project, but will appraise the dissertation and ordinarily will be present at the final oral examination (see below, 5b).

4) Dissertation: The principal requirement for the Ph.D. degree in Psychology is the presentation of a dissertation which embodies the results of an original investigation. The results so presented should constitute a significant and original contribution to knowledge.

5) Examinations: In addition to examinations in courses, the student must meet the following requirements:

(a) Comprehensive Examination: After completion of all course requirements (with the exception of internship courses), the student must pass a comprehensive examination in his or her area of specialization. Successful completion of the examination admits the student to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree. If a student fails the comprehensive examination, he or she may retake the examination once only at the discretion of the Head of the Department and the Executive Dean of Graduate Studies and Research.

(b) Final Examination: Each candidate will, on the recommendation of his or her doctoral committee, submit to a final oral examination in defense of the dissertation.

25.2.2 THE MASTER OF ARTS DEGREE

Admission Requirements

Applicants with an honours degree in Psychology or its equivalent may be admitted into a one-year (minimum) M.A. program, although most students are admitted directly into the doctoral program. Because of the requirements of specific programs, the length of time necessary for students with an honours B.A. to complete the M.A. requirements may be two years.

Applicants will be assessed with respect to their academic qualification, letters of recommendation, and career-related achievements. Possession of the minimum academic requirements does not ensure acceptance. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is required of all students seeking admission to Psychology. The GRE scores, Verbal, Quantitative, Analytical, and the Advanced Test in Psychology, are used as supplementary information in conjunction with the primary criteria indicated above. Applications for admission must be completed by January 15.

Program Requirements

After receiving advising within Psychology, the candidate may proceed toward the degree by completing at least four and not more than six graduate credit courses, two of which may be in a cognate field, and a thesis.

Note: A thesis is required in the first phase of the doctoral program (see 25.2.1).

25.2.3 POSTDOCTORAL CERTIFICATION IN ADULT CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY

Psychology offers a postdoctoral certification in Adult Clinical Psychology. (Note that postdoctoral certification programs in Child Clinical Psychology or in Clinical Neuropsychology are not offered.) The Postdoctoral Certification Program in Adult Clinical Psychology is designed for psychologists who: a) hold a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Psychology in areas other than clinical psychology; b) have had a minimum of three years of postdoctoral experience; and c) wish to retrain as clinical practitioners.

Admission Procedures

A committee of three faculty members (including the Adult Clinical Coordinator and the Postdoctoral Certification Program Coordinator) will constitute the admissions committee. Inquiries and requests for application forms should be addressed as follows: Postdoctoral Certification Program Coordinator, Department of Psychology, University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario N9B 3P4.

Program Requirements

The following courses are required and will be used by the advisory committee as the basis for designing the trainee's program:

46-580. Psychopathology
46-581. Ethical and Professional Issues in Psychology
46-582. Clinical Assessment I
46-583. Clinical Assessment II
46-584. Clinical Practice
46-585. Advanced Clinical Practice
46-680. Introduction to Psychotherapy

and four additional courses in psychotherapy (i.e., two-term course sequences).

In addition to required courses, the Postdoctoral Certification Program requires completion of a 2000-hour clinical internship and the Clinical Proficiency Examinations. Trainees should not expect to complete the program in less than two to three years.

The advisory committee will be composed of three faculty members, including the Adult Clinical Coordinator. The committee will evaluate the specific needs of the trainee and modify the program as necessary to meet individual training needs. The advisory committee is also responsible for guiding the trainee through the program, evaluating the trainee's progress, determining the timing for the Clinical Proficiency Examination, and, ultimately, verifying that the trainee has successfully completed the certification program.

©1997 University of Windsor
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