Core Course Requirements

Students enrolled in the MA in Clinical Psychology degree program are required to complete the courses listed below (36 credit hours) to fulfill the core course requirements.

Elective Requirements

Students enrolled in the MA in Clinical Psychology degree program are required to complete 6 credit hours of elective courses.

Professionalization Group Requirements

Students enrolled in the MA in Clinical Psychology degree program are required to complete two semesters of Professionalization Group as listed below (2 credit hours).

Practicum and Practicum Seminar Requirements

Students enrolled in the MA in Clinical Psychology degree program are required to complete two practicum courses as listed below (6 credit hours) to fulfill the Practicum  and Practicum Seminar requirements.

Enrollment in Courses Beyond the MA in Clinical Psychology Degree Program Curriculum

While students in the MA in Clinical Psychology degree program may take additional courses beyond the master’s degree program requirements as electives, the following advanced skill courses will be available only for students in the PsyD i n Clinical Psychology degree program:

• Integrative Psychotherapy
• Group Psychotherapy
• Neuropsychological Assessments I & II
• Child Psychotherapy
• Consultation and Supervision
• CRP and CRP Seminar

Professionalization Group Requirements

The Professionalization Groups, which meet on a weekly basis during each of the two regular semesters, are designed to provide first-year students with important direction and assistance as they begin their education and training. These groups are designed to provide students with an orientation to the field of professional psychology as well as an introduction to key issues in the training and professional development of a clinical psychologist. All students are required to complete both PP 7110 Professionalization Group I   and PP 7111 Professionalization Group II  during their first year of training.

Practicum and Practicum Seminar Requirements

Clinical Training Manual

 Specific policies and procedures for all components of clinical training can be found in the Clinical Training Manual. This manual is provided to students during their first semester. Students are responsible for maintaining this manual and integrating revisions and updates as they occur. Please see the Director of Clinical Training for more information. Students enrolled in the MA in Clinical Psychology degree program at the Florida School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University, Tampa gain practical experience through clinical training. Clinical training is the supervised out-of-class contact of students with a clinical population. Through the contact, students have the opportunity to apply their theoretical knowledge, to implement clinical techniques based on this knowledge, and to develop the professional and personal attitudes important to the identity of a professional psychologist. During their clinical training, students advance through progressively challenging levels of training. At each level, a student’s progress is assessed in multiple ways by multiple faculty members and field supervisors. In order to advance to the next level of clinical training, the student must pass certain courses, complete practicum and internship, and demonstrate competency in specific clinical tasks.

The Clinical Training Manual describes the progression in training and specifies how the student’s progress in training is monitored.

Pre-Practicum Experience

The pre-practicum experience is designed to offer direct clinical training experiences to students with limited mental health exposure prior to applying for regular practicum training. Additionally, direct observational experience is possible. The out-of-class training is with a clinical population in an approved mental health setting. The goal of the training experience is to allow students who have completed a portion of their assessment classes an opportunity to interview clients, administer formal assessment instruments, score and interpret data, and complete written reports. The work will be supervised by a licensed clinical psychologist. More experienced students may serve as coaches to the pre-practicum student during the training.

The pre-practicum experience will usually be completed during a single semester and generally consists of five to ten hours per week on-site. Pre-practicum experiences are requested by the student, or may be recommended or required by the Clinical Training Committee. The student will be evaluated by the supervisor using the same form that is listed in the Clinical Training Manual for practicum students and will attend a concurrent seminar during the training. Required prerequisites for pre-practicum placement and additional policies and procedures related to pre-practicum training are described in the Clinical Training Manual.

All MA in Clinical Psychology degree program students must complete a Diagnostic Practicum (800 hours, usually 20 hours per week for 40 weeks). Pre-practicum and specialty practicum experiences are also available. All practicum students are also enrolled in a weekly practicum seminar which meets throughout the training experience. The Florida School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University, Tampa places students in a wide variety of clinical field sites, according to the interests and needs of the students and availability of practicum sites. Training sites are selected which teach students clinical skills, expose students to relevant treatment populations, and provide supervision by experienced clinicians. The emphasis in training is on the development of the student as a well-rounded and balanced professional.

The practicum period generally begins in September unless a training site has different specific needs.

Some sites require a pre-practicum or have earlier start dates depending on site needs. Each practicum takes place in a single agency. A practicum may not be done in a student’s place of employment, nor with a past supervisor. Practicum requirements are not waived for any student. Students are evaluated in writing once each semester by both the practicum supervisor and the faculty seminar leader. Progress is assessed in four basic areas of clinical functioning:

• Theoretical knowledge base
• Clinical skills
• Ethical and professional attitudes
• Personal and interpersonal skills.

Supervisors are encouraged to review their written evaluations with the student and provide feedback regarding the student’s clinical strengths and areas needing strengthening.

Students are encouraged to pursue additional training through pre-practicum or specialty practicum experiences in order meet the student’s specific interests in specialized settings. However, registration for additional practicum credit hours may not be counted toward the elective credit hours required for graduation.

Diagnostic Practicum

The Diagnostic Practicum teaches students clinical assessment techniques and diagnostic formulation, so that appropriate clinical services can be recommended. The use of psychological testing instruments continues to distinguish psychologists from other mental health professionals. Competence in the use of these tests remains central to the identity of the clinical psychologist. Prior to practicum placement, students complete courses dealing with the principles of testing and learn to administer, score and interpret measures of personality, and major intelligence tests. During practicum, students can put to use what they have learned in the classroom. Students have the opportunity to learn to integrate data gleaned from several testing instruments, generate hypotheses based on patterns of psychological processes observed throughout the assessment process, develop case formulations, and prepare well written and integrated psychological reports. By the end of the practicum, students are expected to be able to demonstrate the necessary psychological knowledge base, the basic clinical assessment skills, and the appropriate professional attitudes necessary to perform effective diagnostic interviewing and psychological assessment.

Required prerequisites for Diagnostic Practicum placement and additional policies and procedures related to practicum training are described in the Clinical Training Manual.

Advanced Practicum

Students may choose to do a practicum beyond the required Diagnostic Practicum in order to gain additional experience with specialized populations. Each student must consult with his/her advisor in order to review and alter his/her degree plan as required in order to take a specialty practicum. The practicum site is obtained through the Clinical Training Department. The student will be evaluated by the supervisor using the same form that is listed in the Clinical Training Manual for practicum students and must attend a concurrent seminar during the training. Required prerequisites for specialty practicum placement and additional policies and procedures related to specialty practicum training are described in the Clinical Training Manual.

Clinical Evaluation Competency Requirements

The Clinical Evaluation Sequence (CES) is a series of competency based examinations designed to evaluate the student’s mastery of major clinical assessment and therapeutic skills. The examinations take place at designated times prior to the student becoming eligible for progression in the program. The CES monitors the growth and development of the student’s acquisition of appropriate skill levels for clinical practice.

Demonstrating competency on each section of the CES is a prerequisite for advancing to the next level of training. Students prepare to demonstrate competency by integrating classroom theoretical work with clinical experience acquired during the practicum. The three sections of the CES and procedures for their passage are as follows:

• Diagnostic Scoring Competency Students meet the requirement by passing three Florida School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University, Tampa assessment courses with a grade of “B-” or better and demonstrating adequate competency on specific skills in each class:

Cognitive Assessment (PP7370 )

Objective Personality Assessment (PP7371 )

Projective Personality Assessment (PP7372 )

• Diagnostic Interpretation Competency Students meet the requirement by passing Integrative Assessment with a grade of “B-” or better and demonstrating adequate competency on specific skills in the class.
• Comprehensive Clinical Evaluation — Diagnostic (CCE-D) The Diagnostic Practicum Seminar and the Diagnostic Practicum are designed to help the student develop the necessary competency in diagnostic interviewing and psychological report writing. The student demonstrates the competency by successfully completing both a written and an oral presentation of a client case. Specific requirements for the CCE-D can be found in the Clinical Training Manual.

Recommended Course Sequence for the Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology Degree Program — Florida School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University, Tampa (Two-Year Curriculum)

Students may follow a two-, three-, or four-year degree-completion plan.

Student progress through the MA in Clinical Psychology degree program is intended to be sequential. Certain courses are offered which provide a theoretical and practical foundation for courses that will follow in subsequent years. In addition, certain advanced courses require the student to have the background of more basic courses in order to benefit fully from the course experience. Students must satisfy all stated prerequisites for a course (or seek permission of the instructor) before a registration for that course can be considered official.

Faculty Advisors

Faculty advisors are available for consultation regarding student professional development, academic and training progress and other school and professional development issues. Students are required to meet with their faculty advisor at least once each semester, for purposes of registration. It is our belief that the process of becoming a psychologist requires more than just classroom hours and practicum experience. Therefore, students are strongly encouraged to meet more often with their advisor to review their progress through the program, to discuss their performance in classes, seminars and training sites as well as for more general discussions regarding their professional direction and aspirations. Certain advising meetings may be documented in the form of a memo to the student’s file. In those cases, a copy will be sent to the student as well. Add/Drop requests must be discussed with the faculty advisor, or if unavailable, with the Program Chair, and then forwarded to the Program Chair for signature. Students must also discuss Add/Drop requests with course instructors whenever possible.

Clinical Practice Policy

We recognize the responsibility in preparing clinical psychologists to ensure that this training protects the best interest of the public. It is entirely consistent with our training goals to require that students do not engage in professional activities that may infringe upon a primary commitment to training, have a negative impact on the quality of service provided, or are inconsistent with ethical and legal standards. Therefore, the participation of students in outside work activities should be secondary to training and should also uphold and be consistent with the legal and ethical standards of the profession.

While enrolled in the master’s in clinical psychology degree program, students are specifically prohibited from being involved in private practice or the delivery of professional services unless the following standards are met:

• Appropriate state registration, certification, credentialing or licensure relevant to the practice and delivery of mental health services
• Written notification of practice to, and approval by, the training director with the provision of evidence of appropriate credentialing
• Service delivery is within the scope of the highest degree or credential obtained and does not incorporate knowledge or skills learned through involvement with the master’s degree program.

Failure to comply with these policies will result in dismissal from the program.

Student Practice Assessment

Policy Regarding Appropriate Subjects and Informed Consent

All subjects used for psychological assessment must sign the appropriate consent form (available from the library) that must be submitted along with the report on a given subject. Students may not assess members of their immediate family, friends, Argosy University employees or other persons who might be involved in dual roles with the student assessor. Classmates may be appropriate for role play assessments. Assessment of the family and friends of fellow students may be appropriate as long as two conditions are met:

• That such testing does not constitute a dual relationship as delineated in the American Psychological Association 2002 Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct
• That no feedback regarding the assessment results are provided to any subjects or their parents

Students should consult their instructor if there are any questions about the suitability of a given subject.

Guidelines for the Disposal of Confidential Materials

Students should shred rather than discard the following types of documents when they are not being retained for future use:

• Documents containing the names of any client or volunteer
• Documents containing client or volunteer information, even if there is no identifying information (e.g., protocols)
• Copies of used test forms
• Copies of interview, interpretation, raw data, or notes related to client or volunteer assessments.

Course/Credit Transfer

Transfer of Courses/Credit into the MA in Clinical Psychology Degree Program from other Institutions

The MA in Clinical Psychology degree program does not automatically accept graduate credit from other institutions. Students who have taken graduate courses elsewhere may petition to have these courses apply towards the clinical curriculum. Transfer of a course implies that both the requirements to take that particular course have been met and that the credit for the course will be applied to the master’s degree. Transfers will be considered only for courses that are offered in the clinical psychology programs. The total number of hours of a course submitted for transfer must meet or exceed the total number of hours of the Florida School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University, Tampa course. Requests for course transfers must be submitted during the student’s first year of study.

A maximum of 15 credit hours may be transferred and applied to the MA in Clinical Psychology degree program. Students are advised, however, that only under unusual circumstances would more than one or two courses be transferred. Transfer will be considered for graduate courses:

• Completed with a grade of “B” or higher
• Completed prior to admission to the Florida School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University, Tampa
• Earned within the five years of matriculation in the clinical psychology programs

The program does not accept for transfer any credit earned as military credit, credit by examination, credit by correspondence, credit for life experience, or graduate credit from non-accredited institution.

Transfer of credits will not be considered for courses completed elsewhere after admission to the Florida School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University, Tampa.

Course/Credit Transfer from another Argosy University Campus

Students who transfer from another Argosy University campus may have these courses transferred at the discretion of the Curriculum and Training Committee. Petition for Course Transfer Forms are available from the Student Services Department and should be submitted to the chair of the Curriculum Committee. A student must complete one form for each course for which transfer consideration is requested. When completing a Petition for Course Transfer Form, a student should attach documentation that will facilitate a determination as to whether the submitted course is consistent with a course required in the MA in Clinical Psychology program.

Transfer of Credit to the Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology Degree Program from the Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology Degree Program

All required coursework completed with a “B-” or better in the Florida School of Professional Psychology at Argosy University, Tampa MA in Clinical Psychology degree program is eligible for transfer into the PsyD in Clinical Psychology degree program following acceptance, with the exception of Master’s Thesis credit.

All courses applicable to the PsyD in Clinical Psychology degree program transferred will be used in the calculation of the PsyD cumulative GPA and the determination of satisfactory academic progress. The date of the student’s enrollment into PsyD in Clinical Psychology degree program will be used in evaluating the student’s compliance with cumulative maximum time frame and incremental time frame requirements.