Counseling Psychology Training Program

Overview

The Counseling Psychology doctoral program at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a full-time, APA-accredited training program, housed within the Department of Educational Psychology. Three of our faculty have appointments in counseling psychology and developmental psychology, both divisions of the Department of Educational Psychology. One of our faculty members has an appointment in the Department of African American Studies and another in the Department of Latina/Latino Studies. Several faculty members are licensed to practice at the master’s or doctoral level.

 The Program has a near perfect APA-accredited internship placement rate, low student attrition, low student to faculty ratio, culturally diverse students and faculty, and nationally and internationally recognized faculty. Graduates go on to become professors, researchers, counseling center professionals, leaders in professional organizations, policy advocates, and independent licensed psychologists.

Program Educational Goals

Four central educational goals guide our multicultural scientist-practitioner training model.

1.  To provide students with a broad education in core areas related to counseling psychology, general psychology, and professional psychology
2. To educate students about a range of research approaches and sophisticated analytic tools necessary for contribution to professional psychology literature
3. To train students to be skilled in provision of a wide range of psychological services in a variety of contexts
4. To encourage the adoption of values associated with being a competent, socially responsible professional psychologist.

We facilitate these goals in a variety of ways. While there are a number of requirements, the program is designed to promote each students’ specific identity as a counseling psychologist. Faculty work with students to choose courses, training experiences, and professional activities that advance their personal and professional goals.

Faculty

Core Counseling Psychology faculty who conduct research include Jarrett Lewis, Xu Li, Melissa Morgan, Chris Napolitano, Helen Neville, and Kaylin Ratner. When applying to the program, students will select among these faculty for their advisor.

Core Counseling Psychology faculty who teach clinical courses and are licensed to practice include Jackie Beard, Josh Camins, Lydia Khuri, Lisa Kinderman, and Xu Li. With the exception of Xu Li, when applying to the program students should not select among these faculty for their advisor.

Coursework

Coursework is empirically based, sequential, intellectually challenging, and foundational to learning to theorize, to conduct research, and to practice. Coursework also promotes their integration. The program provides for increased difficulty and greater choice of courses as students advance through their training. Our program collaborates with additional faculty in Psychology and the broader Educational Psychology Department who are specialists in different areas. Many courses are designed within a multicultural context. The Counseling Psychology Course Planner outlines required courses. These courses are consistent with our goal to provide students with a broad education in core areas related to counseling psychology, general psychology, and professional psychology.

Research

All students engage in research relevant to theorizing, assessing, and understanding individual and collective behavior and systems.

Each doctoral student has a primary advisor with whom they work closely to learn the process of conducting research. Opportunities also exist for students to train with affiliated faculty and other faculty within the University of Illinois, which is known for its culture of interdisciplinary collaboration. A number of our students have pursued this avenue by working with faculty, for example, in the School of Social Work, The College of Applied Health Sciences, and the Department of Psychology.

Our program strives to educate students about a range of research approaches and sophisticated analytic tools necessary for contribution to professional psychology literature. To provide a strong empirical foundation for students, students take research methods and statistics courses in their first year. Following these foundation courses, students choose a research track in quantitative, qualitative, or mixed method research. The track should align with the types of research questions students are interested in pursuing especially for their dissertation research.

Students are required to complete a master's thesis unless they have an empirically rigorous thesis from another institution. They will complete their thesis and dissertation under the tutelage of their research advisor with regular, supportive and productive feedback from their advisor, thesis and dissertation committee members, and peers.

Students are encouraged to promote their scholarship through presenting and publishing their work, including a requirement to submit at least one article for review and to present their findings at one conference. We believe that dissemination of empirical findings supports the integration of research and practice. Through our weekly Wednesday seminar, students  find support and encouragement from peers and faculty alike, learn how to critique research, and to be good colleagues. 

Practice

Students engage in clinical training relevant to assessment and intervention at the individual and group levels. Outreach and prevention training is provided through campus and research opportunities.

Consistent with a scientist-practitioner model, training includes required and optional courses about clinical work and its dynamic relationship with research, including the study of empirically supported interventions. Students learn to think critically and contextually about applied work and provide culturally sensitive counseling and assessment to individuals and groups through sequential coursework and supervised practica.

The program provides broad clinical training that allows graduates to function in a variety of academic and clinical arenas. We endeavor to train students to be skilled in provision of a wide range of psychological services in a variety of contexts and to encourage the adoption of values associated with being a competent, socially responsible professional psychologist.

Clinical training begins with prepracticum, an introductory course to practice, followed by a year of beginning practicum where students can develop counseling skills. Beginning practicum includes weekly, individual supervision, didactic training, and supervisor review of video recordings. A range of local and virtual placements are available for advanced practicum, including other college counseling centers, VAs, hospitals, the university disability resource and educational services unit, community mental health centers, and virtual mental health companies. The Director of Clinical Training works with each student to pursue available practicum experience that best aligns with their internship and career goals. Practica are associated with courses taught by program faculty who provide didactic training, additional clinical supervision, and facilitation of peer consultation.

There are also opportunities to apply to a variety of assistantships on campus where students can get experience with a variety of additional interventions including outreach and prevention, career counseling, or employee assistance and counseling. Clinical training culminates with an APA-accredited, pre-doctoral internship. Our program has a very high match rate, and our students received excellent evaluations from their internship sites. 

Professional Development

The program supports students developing skills needed for work in academia, to disseminate their research findings, and to develop skills in a wider range of interventions. Several program requirements support development in these areas. Students must teach by having an active instructional role in at least two semesters of a paid teaching assistantship. Additionally. They must present their research in seminar the first and second years, present at a conference, submit work for publication, and engage in robust practicum experiences. To promote socialization of students into the profession of psychology and encourage adoption of related values, students become members in at least one professional psychology organization. 

More details about our training program can be found in the Counseling Psychology Program Student Handbook and the Counseling Psychology Practicum Manual. 

 Tuition and Costs

Attending the Counseling Psychology Program entails tuition, fees, and additional costs. See the how to apply page for information on financial aid. Additional costs specific to the doctoral Counseling Psychology Program include fees for student membership in a professional organization (typically under $50.00 annually); student liability insurance (typically under $50.00 annually), which is encouraged but also required for students in paid practicum; and internship application fees (typically around $600.00 -- $700.00).