The MA degree requires a total of 35 credits.  Departmental requirements include statistics (6 credits), a nonclinical breadth course (3 credits) and the thesis (9 credits).  The schedule below outlines the curriculum (credits in brackets).  The second statistics course and the breadth course may be taken in either the first or second year of the MA degree.  The summer practicum (described below) may be done in after the second year of the MA or after the first year of the PhD.

Recommended Sequence of Courses for MA

Year l (MA)
Fall	Winter					Summer
PSYC 537 Ethics & Professional Issues (3)						finalize MA thesis proposal
PSYC 541 Intro to Psychotherapy (2)		PSYC 510 Descriptive Psychopathology (3)
PSYC 530 Assessment: Critical Survey (3)		PSYC 531 Assessment: Clinical Implications (3)
PSYC 545/546a Advanced Statistics (3)		PSYC 560 Clinical Research Design (3)
Year 2 (MA)
Fall			Winter		Summer
PSYC 534 Practicum (3)					Thesis Completion
Case Conference / Professional Issues Seminar
PSYC 542 Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (3)				Another statistics course (3)
Breadth Course I (3)				PsychFest Presentation

Over the course of the MA and PhD programme, students must take at least three courses (i.e., 9 credits) to complete the Assessment requirement (the basic introductory courses 530 and 531 plus one advanced assessment course such as Child Assessment, Medical-Legal Assessment, or Neuropsychological Assessment), two courses in Psychopathology (the basic course 510 as well as either Adult Psychopathology or Child Psychopathology), and two courses to complete the didactic Therapy requirement (the basic course 542, plus one advanced therapy course such as Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, Advanced Topics in Behavioural Medicine, or Treatment of Childhood Disorders).  One of these advanced clinical courses must have a focus on children (i.e., Child Psychopathology, Treatment of Childhood Disorders, or Child Assessment). 
The PhD degree requires an additional 18 credits that include 6 credits of non-clinical breadth courses.  These and the breadth course taken during the MA degree must cover biological, social, and cognitive/affective bases of behaviour.  Additionally, students must complete the advanced clinical course requirements outlined above.  At the PhD level, students must also complete the comprehensive examination, a dissertation, and an approved accredited internship. Before being approved to apply for internship, students must demonstrate knowledge and skills across a wide range of competencies identified by the programme as reflecting achievement of programme objectives and readiness for internship.

Recommended Sequence of Courses for PhD

Students must complete an empirically-based Master's thesis (or equivalent; see also the Graduate Student Handbook) prior to admission to the PhD programme.  Departmental guidelines encourage MA completion in a maximum of 2 years.  The expectation is that students start early with their research and that supervisors and students adopt MA research plans that can be completed within the 2-year timeframe.

To accomplish the general objectives of the programme, the plan of study includes a series of clinical and non-clinical courses and practica supervised by professional psychologists in university and community agencies.  In the first year, students gain basic clinical knowledge and skills to prepare them for practica in subsequent years.  In the second and third academic years, students carry out clinical work under the direct supervision of departmental clinical faculty.  In subsequent years of the PhD programme, students engage in advanced practica in community settings to prepare them for internship and beyond.  As students progress through the programme, they engage in ongoing assessment of their developing competencies reflecting broad and general training in clinical psychology as well specialization in the student's area(s) of interest. In order to acquire sufficient breadth, all students must adhere to the following guidelines. In consultation with their faculty advisor, students may also plan additional experiences to supplement development of relevant competencies.

1. Required Clinical Programme Courses: Psychopathology, Assessment, and Therapy.  Requirements for each of these areas were outlined above.  All first year students must take Ethics and Professional Issues in Clinical Psychology (PSYC 537) and Introduction to Psychotherapy (PSYC 541), and all first and second year students are required to attend the weekly Clinical Case Conferences during the Spring semester.  Third year students are encouraged to attend the case conferences as well.
   
   Clinical Research Design (PSYC 560) is required of all students.  Students are required to take at least one course with a focus on children (either Child Assessment [PSYC 532], Psychopathology of the Child [PSYC 536], or Treatment of Child Disorders [PSYC 556]). 

1. Required Departmental Courses:
   
   a)  Statistics:  MA students (and PhD students who have not already had 6 credits of a comparable graduate course) are required to take two 3-credit courses in statistics.  Advanced Statistics (PSYC 545 or 546a) is taken in the first semester of the first year.  A second 3-credit course must be taken during MA Year 1 or 2.  Available courses cover topics such as Analysis of Variance, Multiple Regression, or Factor Analysis.  Additional advanced topics courses may be taken at any time.  The goals of the courses are (a) to provide practical understanding and experience with the major parametric statistical techniques, (b) to convey a reasonable understanding of the theoretical underpinnings of modern statistics to the extent that students can grasp the nature of obvious statistical/design fallacies, and (c) to sharpen the capabilities of the student in reading, writing, and criticizing the method and results sections of experimental reports.
   
   b) Breadth courses:  As a departmental requirement, students are required to take 9 credits outside of the clinical area (in biological, cognitive, developmental, health, personality, or quantitative areas).  Departmental requirements stipulate 3 breadth credits for the MA and an additional 6 credits for the PhD.  The clinical programme requirements (in accordance with CPA/APA accreditation guidelines) require students to take at least one course (3 credits) in each of the following areas (see also p. 8 of the Graduate Student Handbook for additional details):
   
   (i)  biological bases of behaviour (e.g., physiological psychology, comparative psychology, functional neuroanatomy, psychopharmacology)
   (ii) cognitive/affective bases of behaviour (e.g., learning, memory, perception, cognition, motivation, emotion)
   (iii) social bases of behaviour (e.g., social psychology; cultural, ethnic, and group processes; social development)
   (iv) individual behaviour (e.g., personality theory, human development, individual differences, abnormal psychology).  Psychopathology courses such as 535 and 536 fulfill this requirement.
   
   In addition to these courses, students who have already achieved considerable exposure to one of these areas of psychology (usually through undergraduate courses) may petition the programme for permission to take a more specialized graduate course in that content area to delve further into an area in which the student already has basic knowledge.

1. Practica/Internship (Refer also to the Practica and Internships: Policies and Procedures Handbook):
   
   a)  In the first year, students prepare to begin clinical training by taking Descriptive Psychopathology, Introduction to Psychotherapy, the two Assessment courses, and ethics.  Formal supervised clinical practicum begins in the second year. Students are required to take Clinical Practicum (PSYC534) in both Years 2 and 3.
   
   b)  A community-based practicum experience (minimum 450 hour placement) is required of all students.  This practicum takes place in a community agency. It can be done as a fulltime experience during the summer after Years 2 or 3 or as a part-time experience during the 4th year of graduate studies.  Practicum plans are developed in conjunction with the student’s faculty advisor and are submitted in writing for approval by the Clinical faculty.  See the Practica and Internships Policies and Procedures Handbook for more detail.
   
   c)  Students subsequently identify community settings for elective practicum training to augment their clinical skills in preparation for internship.  As with the required practicum, plans for these elective training opportunities must be developed in conjunction with the student’s faculty advisor and are submitted in writing for approval by the Clinical faculty. Practica that are not approved in advance by the clinical programme will not be certified as training hours toward readiness for internship and are not covered by the university's liability insurance that covers required practicum training in pursuit of a degree.
   
   d)  A year-long internship in an APA and/or CPA accredited setting must be completed prior to awarding of the PhD.  Internship plans are submitted in writing for approval by the clinical faculty.  The student must have all dissertation data collected before an application for internship can be submitted, and all required course work must be completed before beginning the internship. 

Clinical Comprehensive Examinations

Purpose and Timing

The comprehensive examination in clinical psychology is required of all doctoral students. The broad purpose of comprehensive examinations at UBC is to assess whether the student has developed strong analytical, problem-solving, and critical thinking abilities; sufficient breadth and depth of knowledge and skills of the discipline; the academic background required for the specific doctoral research to follow; potential ability to conduct independent original research; and the ability to communicate knowledge of the discipline. This examination must be passed within two years of admission to the Ph.D. programme (i.e., by the end of the fourth year of graduate study).

Format

The comprehensive examination requirement is fulfilled by completing a paper, which may take one of several formats (see Description below). The formats have been constructed to require comparable time and effort. Students should choose the option that best addresses their particular career and professional goals. Students may consult with their research advisor, the Director of Clinical Training, or other clinical faculty regarding the most appropriate format.

Deadline

The department expects the comprehensive examination to be written by the end of the 2nd PhD year. Meeting this deadline requires that you begin work on your comprehensive examination well in advance.

Description

The clinical comprehensive examination can be fulfilled through completion of a review or conceptual paper of relevance to clinical psychology.  The paper can take one of many forms, including: a) narrative review of empirical research that integrates or consolidates information in a manner that substantively benefits the field, b) meta-analysis of empirical research, c) a conceptual paper which offers a new or revised theoretical perspective based on a body of empirical research, or d) written essay responses to four essay questions.

For options a through c, the paper should take the format of those published in journals such as Psychological Bulletin, Psychological Review, Clinical Psychology Review, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, or other similar journals.  Examples of papers consistent with options a through c can be provided by the student’s research advisor and/or other clinical faculty.  The paper should be written with the aim of making a substantive and potentially publishable contribution to the literature.  A proposal must be approved by the Examiners (see Committee below) before the paper is written. 

For option d, the written examination consists of four essay questions corresponding to each of four clinical breadth topics: a) clinical research methods, b) measurement and psychopathology, c) intervention, and d) ethics/professional issues.  A large pool of questions corresponding to each topic has been generated.  Questions will be written to address both child and adult domains.  For each topic students will select one question at random from an envelope containing several possible questions.  Students then have three weeks to conduct a literature review and complete an 8-12 page written response (8-12 pages of text, double-spaced, APA format).  Only one question is completed at a time.  Therefore, total time to complete the written examination is 12 weeks; however, students may allow as little or as much time as they like between essays, as long as all four essays are completed by the deadline (end of 2nd PhD year).  Each essay is submitted to Examiners when it is completed, but the paper will not be considered complete and ready for evaluation until all essays are completed and submitted to the Examiners.  Unlike options a, b, c, essays written for option d are expected to be in exam format rather than a potentially publishable format.

Differentiation from Dissertation

Differentiation from dissertation is a concern for those choosing a review paper format falling under options a, b, or c. The comprehensive examination may address the same topic as the student’s dissertation, or a different topic.  However, the paper produced must be more than the Introduction section to a dissertation or empirical paper.  Whereas an Introduction sets the stage for a study, a review/conceptual paper offers a more substantive contribution.  For example:

Committee

The Examination Committee consists of a Principal Examiner and an Examiner; the Chair of Comprehensive Exam Committee serves as the Chair ex officio (without vote). The Principal Examiner must be a primary clinical faculty member and will be appointed at random by the Comprehensive Exam Committee Chair. The student, in consultation with the Principal Examiner, will recruit an Examiner, who must be a UBC faculty member. Neither the Principal Examiner nor the Examiner may be the student’s research supervisor.  In case of an unresolvable difference in judgment between the two examiners, a third examiner selected from among the core clinical faculty may be consulted for resolution.  After the Examiners make their final evaluation, the Principal Examiner should notify (email is sufficient) both the Director of Clinical Training and the Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Psychology.

Role of Student's Research Supervisor and Consultants

For options a, b, and c, the student's research supervisor may act in a consultative role to the student up until the point at which the proposal is submitted. In this capacity the research supervisor can help the student select a topic and format that meet the guidelines for the clinical comprehensive examination paper. The supervisor can also be helpful in ensuring that the scope and aims of the proposed paper will offer a potentially substantive contribution to the literature that is more than an Introduction section to a dissertation or empirical paper. However, the student's contribution must be sufficiently original and independent to clearly warrant first-authorship on a published version. Although the supervisor can play a consultative role leading up to the proposal, and can play a co-authorship role in a publication-version once the comprehensive exam is completed, the student should complete the paper independently once an appropriate topic has been selected and approved. In addition, once an appropriate topic has been selected and approved, the student may not receive assistance from anyone – including peers, faculty, or statistical consultants.  Such consultation is only permitted in advance of the proposal's approval.

Steps For Completing the Requirement

After requesting that the Chair of the Comprehensive Exam Committee select Examiners, students selecting options a, b, or c must submit a two-page proposal for the comprehensive examination paper for approval by the Examination Committee. The proposal should include an explanation regarding how the topic is distinct from a literature review that would comprise the Introduction section of a paper or dissertation. The proposal is reviewed by the Committee and approved in writing within two weeks (e-mail from the Principal Examiner is sufficient) as an indication that the proposed paper appears to meet the requirements. Upon approval of the proposal, students will have a period of three months to complete and submit their paper. Students should plan to submit the comprehensive examination paper sufficiently early so that it can be resubmitted if necessary to pass before the end of the second year of the Ph.D. program. The Examination Committee must provide a decision on the paper within two weeks of submission (which means the student must gain committee members' agreement on a submission date well in advance).

For option d, after requesting that the Chair of the Comprehensive Exam Committee select examiners, the Chair allows the student to select the first of the four topics to be addressed, and arranges a time at which the student can select a question at random from a large pool of potential questions on that topic. The student then has 3 weeks to complete the response. The process is repeated for the next three topics. After all four essays are completed, they are assembled into a single document, and submitted to Examiners for review. Examiners must provide a decision on the examination within two weeks of submission. Because examiners have just two weeks from the date of submission to complete their evaluation, the student must obtain committee members' agreement on a submission date well in advance.

Evaluation

When the student submits the clinical comprehensive examination paper, the Principal Examiner and Examiner confer with each other to assign an outcome of Pass, Revise-and-Resubmit, or Fail. The Principal Examiner will communicate the decision and any feedback to the student.

Historical and Scientific Foundations of Psychology

All students in the clinical psychology programme are required to demonstrate substantial understanding of the historical and scientific foundations of psychology.  This material is presented in most courses, particularly those didactic courses that satisfy breadth requirements for clinical students. 

Students who entered the clinical program in 2007 or later must demonstrate their graduate level understanding of historical and scientific foundations of general psychology by preparing a 2-3 page book report on at least one book on this topic (see suggested titles below). Another option that may be used to demonstrate such knowledge is to take either PSYC 500 or PSYC 312, the upper-level undergraduate course UBC offers on this topic. This requirement may be completed at any time before applying to internship. Students who choose the book report option should select a book that covers the breadth of scientific psychology, its history of thought and development, including its research methods and applications. Examples of books that would be appropriate include:

Benjafeld, J. (2004). A history of psychology (2nd Ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Benjamin, L.T. (2006). A brief history of modern psychology. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
Godwin, C.J. (2004). A history of modern psychology (2nd Ed.). New York, NY: John Wiley.
Hergenhahn, B.R. (2004). An introduction to the history of psychology (5th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing.
Leahey, T.H. (2000). A history of modern psychology (3rd Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Robinson, D.N. (1995). An intellectual history of psychology (3rd Ed.). Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press.
Schultz, D.P., & Schultz, S.E. (2007). A history of modern psychology (9th Ed.). Fort Worth, TX: Wadsworth.
Wertheimer, M. (1999). A brief history of psychology (4th Ed.). Fort Worth, TX: Wadsworth.

To promote the development of skills in self-directed learning in psychology, students are expected to fulfill this requirement in a relatively independent manner.  That being said, students must obtain advance approval from their research advisor regarding the book they will use for this requirement.  The research advisor is also responsible for assessing the quality of the book report on a pass/fail basis.  The faculty’s expectation is that the book report will concisely review major themes presented in the book and make connections between material presented in the book and the science of clinical psychology.  For example, students may highlight historical foundations of major theoretical approaches underpinning their own clinical training thus far or outline the historical foundations of theories, methods, or research questions examined in their own laboratories.

Students who have previously taken a senior undergraduate course on historical and scientific foundations of general psychology may apply to the clinical programme for exemption from this requirement. Application for exemption includes a letter requesting the exemption, a hard copy of the undergraduate transcript showing the course, and a copy of the course syllabus. The course must be similar in breadth and rigor to PSYC 500, and the student must have achieved a mark of at least 80% in the course.

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