Psychology PhD
psyapply@umn.edu
Please note that the Department of Psychology offers only a PhD. We do not admit students to a terminal master's degree; however, students in the PhD program may earn a master’s degree on the way to their doctorate.
PhD training is intended to produce high levels of expertise in developing and conducting research, analyzing and interpreting data, and interpreting existing theory and research in psychology (i.e., scholarship). Consequently, our curriculum consists of hands-on research experience, high-level graduate seminars in each student's area of interest, and a certain number of graduate-level foundation courses dealing with quantitative methods and substantive areas of research and theory. These are all critical for students' program goals. The program typically takes students five years to complete, with an additional year of internships for our clinical and counseling students.
The Psychology PhD is a full-time, residential program that typically takes students five or six years to complete. All students in the Psychology PhD program complete a first-year project, preliminary written and oral examinations, and a dissertation and final oral examination in addition to required coursework and 24 thesis credits. Students in the Psychology PhD may start completing thesis credits early in their program to ensure timely progress through credit requirements for the specialization’s curriculum.
CLA’s Graduate Programs Office offers graduate students access to funding resources, health and supportive services, diversity initiatives, and other valuable information.