The Department of Psychology at the University of North Dakota offers an undergraduate minor and major in psychology and graduate programs leading to degrees of Master of Arts (M.A.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). Located within UND's College of Arts and Sciences, the Department meets a demanding undergraduate teaching mission as well as providing scholarly and professional graduate training and maintaining active research programs. In addition to its core faculty of 17, the Department also utilizes the expertise of area professionals who serve as clinical and adjunct faculty. Enrollment in graduate programs is limited to maintain a favorable student-faculty ratio. The Department offers doctoral programs in Clinical (APA-approved) and General/Experimental Psychology.

Clinical Doctoral Program Admission/Outcome Statistics

Admission Requirements

 All admissions material must be submitted through the Graduate School:  http://graduateschool.und.edu.

Students are admitted to the graduate program with the expectation that they plan to obtain the Ph.D. degree.  Applicants must have a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution and have successfully completed 18 hours of psychology courses which include Introductory Psychology, Developmental Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, Statistics, and Research Methods.  Applicants must complete the Graduate Record Exam (Verbal, Quantitative, Analytic Writing) and direct ETS to forward their scores to the Graduate School at the University of North Dakota prior to the application deadline (January 15^th).   Three letters of recommendation and the GRE Subject Test are also required prior to admission.

Applicants can apply to one or both of our graduate programs in clinical or experimental psychology. Doctoral training programs must often plan several years ahead to assure that funding, practicum opportunities, and optimal class sizes are assured. The admission of significant numbers of advanced students can complicate long-term planning. Thus, applicants who have earned, or will earn, a graduate degree in psychology, counseling, social work, sociology, any related behavioral science field will be assigned to a separate pool for consideration of admission to either the clinical (MAC) or experimental (MAE) programs. The psychology department faculty makes a judgment each year regarding the maximum number of students we are able to accept from the clinical and experimental applicants possessing graduate degrees in psychology and related-disciplines.

Applicants to the clinical and experimental Ph.D. programs will be eliminated from the initial admission review if they fail to meet any one of the following criteria:

A.  The following minimum requirements for a reviewable application must be received by January 15^th:

a)  the one page application form provided by the Graduate School;
b)  transcripts from all academic institutions attended;
c)  a vita; 
d)  a personal statement regarding career objectives and rationale for selecting UND;
e)  payment of the application fee.

B.  A cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.2 or above; or a graduate GPA greater than 3.75 for applicants applying to either our MAC or MAE pool

C.  A GRE Analytic Writing Test score greater than 2.5

D.  Verbal and Quantitative GRE scores that both equal or exceed the 30^th percentile.

The Admissions Committee will evaluate applicant’s most recent GRE scores.  GRE scores in excess of five years old will be rated, but applicants who are ultimately in a position to receive an offer of admission must first retake the exam and successfully meet the department’s minimum requirements with the updated scores.  Applicants will be given the minimum points for the GRE Subject test or letters of recommendation if they are not available once the application deadline has passed. 

The clinical psychology program also offers two federally funded positions for qualified Native American applicants. Your eligibility for consideration in our Indians Into Psychology Doctoral Education (INPSYDE) program can be determined by contacting the director of this program (Dr. Doug McDonald). Minimum GRE and grade eligibility requirements may differ for applicants who qualify for the INPSYDE program.

Approximately 25 of the top applicants will be invited to visit the UND Psychology Department in late February or early March of each year for our annual open house. The open house begins early on a Friday morning and ends around noon on Saturday. An orientation meeting will be provided by department administrators along with a brief presentation by each faculty member regarding his or her research interests. You will also be provided an opportunity to request individual meetings with faculty members of interest on Saturday morning. An interview with two or more members of the Admissions Committee will be completed.

Degree Requirements

Graduate students in the psychology department must meet all of the policies and standards that are described in both the UND Graduate and Psychology Department Student Handbooks.  Evaluations are made each semester on the academic progress and clinical skills (for students in the clinical Ph.D. program).  Students must remain in good standing to remain in the program.  Assuming compliance with university and program policy, students must meet the following requirements to complete the Ph.D.:

• Graduate Course Work (at least four years of full academic enrollment which includes completion of the Scholarly Tool for the Ph.D. which is met by the successful (GPA > 3.5) completion of PSY 541, 542 and 543;
• Successful completion of both a Master’s thesis and Doctoral dissertation;
• Successful completion of all areas of comprehensive exams;
• Successful completion of an approved (one calendar year) clinical internship and required practicum (21) credit hours for the Ph.D. in clinical psychology.

Minor in Psychology

Graduate students taking major work in other departments and graduate minor work in psychology for a master’s degree should have the equivalent of an undergraduate minor in psychology with the following specific courses: Introduction to Psychology, Developmental Psychology, Abnormal Psychology (or the equivalent). Any of the psychology courses which carry graduate credit are acceptable for the graduate minor.  If you are taking major work in another department and minor work in psychology for a doctoral degree, in addition to having the undergraduate preparation noted in the paragraph above, must also have completed a course in statistics and an undergraduate laboratory course in Experimental Psychology. No specific courses are required for the graduate minor except that one-half of the total credits for the minor must be 500-level credits.

Contact Information

Dr. Jeffrey N. Weatherly, Chairperson
Department of Psychology
University of North Dakota
319 Harvard Street, Stop 8380
Grand Forks, ND 58202-8380

Phone:             701-777-3451

Fax:                 701-777-3454

Email:             psychology@und.nodak.edu jeffrey.weatherly@und.nodak.edu

Apply ONLINE

http://graduateschool.und.edu