Psychology, Clinical Concentration, M.A.

Admission Requirements

Admission to graduate study in Clinical Psychology is competitive and not automatic for students meeting minimal admission requirements. Students are selected from a pool of qualified applicants. Each year the number of students admitted to the program depends on the availability of adequate faculty supervision.

In order to be considered for unconditional admission, candidates must meet two standards: an undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 or higher and a minimum score on the Graduate Record Exam (GRE). A minimum of 291 on the combined Verbal and Quantitative sections is expected for the Clinical Psychology concentration within the Master of Arts in Psychology.

Applications for Summer/Fall admission must be complete by March 1 and applications for Spring admission must be complete by October 1. Late applicants who meet the admission criteria may be considered on a case-by-case basis. Applicants to the Clinical Psychology program should see below for a supplemental application and reference forms.

Students who do not meet admission requirements may be admitted conditionally to the Clinical Psychology program. Students admitted conditionally must maintain a 3.25 GPA in their first semester (9 hours minimum) of required graduate courses to be fully admitted to the program.

Applicants must demonstrate knowledge of the core areas of psychology by completing the following courses at either the undergraduate or graduate level prior to entering the Clinical Program or during enrollment in the program (relevant courses offered at MTSU are listed in parentheses):

1. group measurement/testing (PSY 4260/PSY 5260  or PSY 6050 );
2. abnormal psychology (PSY 3230/PSY 5230 );
3. learning or cognition (PSY 4040,  PSY 4480, PSY 5480 *, or PSY 6190 *);
4. social or developmental (PSY 2210, PSY 2300, PSY 4190, PSY 4210/PSY 5210 , PSY 4610/ PSY 5610 , PSY 6120 *, PSY 6130 *, PSY 6410 );
5. brain and behavior, sensation and perception, or research methods (PSY 3070, PSY 4780/PSY 5780 , PSY 4240/PSY 5240 , or PSY 4030/PSY 5030 );
6. basic statistics (PSY 3020).

Courses marked with an asterisk (*) may be counted as approved graduate electives depending upon specialization.

Most applicants have completed 15 semester hours of psychology classes prior to admission to their graduate programs. Those applicants without 15 semester hours of undergraduate psychology may be admitted to the programs but must complete those credits in addition to their graduate programs.

Previous students seeking readmission to the Clinical Psychology program should contact the graduate program director and refer to the program handbook for readmission policy. All potential students must apply to the clinical program and will be evaluated on the current criteria as delineated in the graduate catalog (i.e., GRE, GPA, transcript, three supplemental reference forms, and the supplemental clinical application).

If a student already has an M.A. degree from either the Clinical or School Psychology programs at MTSU and wants to return to take specific courses to prepare for either the psychological assistant or the behavior analysis specialization, they may be considered in the applicant pool. If admitted, however, no new degree would be obtained; the student would be a non-degree-seeking student but would be admitted to take specific clinical courses.

If a student has a master’s degree or graduate coursework from another MTSU program or from another university, they may also be considered in the applicant pool. If accepted, credit for previous coursework would be allocated on an individual basis, consistent with the following MTSU policies:

1. If no previous graduate degree was obtained, up to 6 graduate credit hours may be applied to the Clinical master’s degree.
2. If a previous master’s degree was obtained, no credit that applied to that degree can be applied to the Clinical master’s degree at MTSU. Additional coursework would be necessary to meet the 46-hour program requirement.

Application Procedures

All application materials are to be submitted to the College of Graduate Studies.

Applicant must

1. submit an application with the appropriate application fee (online at www.mtsu.edu/graduate/apply.php). Once this initial application has been accepted, the applicant will receive directions on how to enter the graduate portal to be able to submit other materials.
2. submit official transcripts of all previous college work;
3. submit official scores on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE);
4. submit the required supplementary application (online at www.mtsu.edu/psychology/forms/clinicalsupappl.pdf);
5. submit three required supplemental reference forms (online at www.mtsu.edu/psychology/forms/clinicalsupref.pdf);
6. submit a current resume or curriculum vitae.

NOTE: To be considered for a graduate assistantship, students must submit additional materials. Information about the application procedure is available at www.mtsu.edu/psychology/grad/assistantship.php.

Degree Requirements

The Master of Arts degree in Psychology with a Clinical concentration requires completion of a minimum of 46 semester hours including at least 33 hours in psychology. Only 30 percent of the total number of hours may be dually listed (5000-level meeting in conjunction with 4000- or 3000-level) courses.

Candidate must

1. complete PSY 6640  (3 hours);
2. successfully write and orally present an empirical thesis evaluated by a committee of psychology faculty in conjunction with PSY 6640 ;
3. pass a written comprehensive examination prepared by the faculty in the student’s concentration (may be taken no more than twice).

Curriculum: Psychology, Clinical

The following illustrates the minimum coursework requirements.

Program Notes

Students must be admitted to the clinical program prior to enrolling in most required clinical core courses. Non-degree-seeking students may not enroll in required clinical courses, except by special permission.

Professional liability insurance ($1,000,000 each incident/$3,000,000 annual aggregate) must be maintained throughout enrollment in the program with a current insurance binder filed with the department at all times.

Students must be able to meet the demands required for professional work in psychology. Therefore, students may be subject to dismissal from the Psychology Department if they (a) commit a serious breach of ethics or gross professional negligence or (b) present evidence of impaired psychological functioning that would present a danger to themselves or others in a professional role. Students who are dismissed may reapply and will be considered for readmission on a competitive basis. Students who reapply may be asked to provide evidence of improved ability to meet performance requirements.

If changes to the program are needed (such as course substitutions), students should file a Revision Form available on the Graduate Studies website at www.mtsu.edu/graduate/forms.php.