Programs of Study

Graduate studies leading to the Ph.D. degree in psychology are designed to offer the student training in a major research area within psychology, expertise in analysis and study design, and varied research opportunities. Students study either Psychological Science or School Psychology. The School Psychology program is accredited by the American Psychological Association. You may write to faculty members at the Department of Psychology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118. Faculty members can be reached by email or telephone at (504) 865-5331.

Note: The department does not offer graduate training in counseling or adult clinical psychology.

School Psychology

The APA-Accredited School Psychology Doctoral Program utilizes a scientist-practitioner model of training grounded in the developmental ecological model and is co-administered by school, child clinical, and developmental psychologists. Our students are exposed to multiple disciplines, research methodologies, and practice contexts. They engage in basic developmental science and applied community-engaged research as well as deliver evidence-based psychological services. A key focus of their training is to address societal inequities in New Orleans, the Gulf South, and the world, thus integrating research, practice, and community service. In addition, the Program offers a doctoral certificate in Trauma-Focused School Psychology. Doctoral student research is mentored by the Department’s tenure-stream school, child clinical, and developmental psychologists, who have diverse research interests including school-based mental health, multi-tiered systems of support, stress and trauma, developmental science, developmental psychopathology, societal inequities and social justice, and prevention science. Faculty research programs are community-engaged, use state-of-the-art methods, and are interdisciplinary within the department and across the University, including collaborations with the Tulane Violence Prevention Institute, Brain Institute, and Schools of Medicine, Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Social Work, Liberal Arts, and Professional Advancement. Our PhD students are competitive within the APPIC Match for predoctoral internships, typically obtain licensure as health service psychologists, and contribute meaningfully and at a high level to scholarship, practice, training, advocacy, and service within careers in schools, districts, and charter management organizations; community mental health clinics and hospitals; private practice; and academia. 

Requirements for the School Psychology Track

67 Hours of Graduate Course Didactic Credit Hours 
Additional Elective Courses may be Selected in Consultation with Advisor
8 Semesters in Practicum (24 Credits)
Master’s Thesis
Comprehensive Examination
Dissertation
One-Year APA-Accredited Predoctoral Internship

For additional detail please see the School Psychology section of the website.

 

Psychological Science

Psychological Science provides training in basic research areas of psychology. Current areas of research interest include brain, cognition and developmental science, social psychology and health psychology. Throughout the graduate career, students conduct research with any department faculty member, and often elect to conduct research with several faculty to support interdisciplinary interests. The majority of our program graduates secure academic positions.

Requirements for the Psychological Science Track

48 Hours of Graduate Course Credits Including:

  • 3 Area Core Courses (i.e., 9 Credits)
  • 3 Quantitative Methods Courses (i.e., 9 credits)
  • The Professional Issues Course (1 Credit)
  • Additional Elective Courses are Selected in Consultation with the Advisor, to Complete the Remaining 29 Credits

Master’s Thesis
Comprehensive Examination
Dissertation