This program is not yet accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA). Â鶹¹ú²úAV is a founding member of the APA accredited Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology and has led the administration of the Consortium and trained doctoral students in clinical psychology for over 43 years.
Â鶹¹ú²úAV is seeking APA accreditation as a clinical psychology PhD program independent of the Consortium. Although the timeline and application outcome are not assured, we hope to receive APA Accreditation on Contingency in Spring 2027; if a student completes a program that is Accredited on Contingency prior to graduation, that student is deemed to have completed an APA accredited program. We will provide updates on the status of our ongoing efforts to secure independent APA accreditation on this website.
We follow a scientist/practitioner model.
Ph.D. with a concentration in Clinical Psychology.
The program requires a minimum of five years, with four years in residence in a combination of coursework, clinical practica, and research, culminating in a final predoctoral full-time clinical internship. Â
Students admitted into our program typically guaranteed funding for their four years in residence. Funding is at least $20,000 annually during the academic year, with at least $5000 of funding for the first two summers of the program. Student tuition is also waived during students’ four years in residence. Students are generally funded through teaching or research assistantships. Should you receive an offer of admission, all details about the funding package are provided in writing in your offer letter. Students are also eligible for financial aid through Â鶹¹ú²úAV.Ìý
No, full-time enrollment is required to ensure timely completion of all program requirements and to meet your responsibilities toward your assistantship. ()
No, a master’s degree in any discipline is not required. A background in psychology is required. We typically expect students to have 24-30 undergraduate credits in psychology which must include statistics and research methods. ()
Students entering a graduate program at Â鶹¹ú²úAV are permitted to waive 6 non-clinical credit hours but that does not reduce the total credit requirements in the program or shorten the course of study. Students who have completed a relevant master’s thesis may seek to have the thesis requirement waived. Waiver of any non-clinical course or master’s thesis is subject to review and not guaranteed. ()
Yes, applicants from related disciplines are welcome to apply. However, psychology has its own scientific basis and knowledge of these principles is expected to facilitate graduate degree completion. Approximately 24-30 undergraduate credit hours in psychology is recommended. Coursework in psychological statistics as well as research methods is required. Experience in research and clinical work (practicum, volunteer, or paid opportunities) are also expected for successful admission. ()
No, the GRE General Test is optional. Those applying without GRE scores are given full consideration. We have long adhered to the principle of holistic assessment of applicants; if you believe you might have a weaker area, you may elect to submit GRE scores to potentially offset that weaker area. We will thus evaluate your application all materials submitted for consideration as a whole but not penalize any applicant who does not submit a GRE score.
The Â鶹¹ú²úAV PhD program in Clinical Psychology follows similar priorities of other PhD programs.  We seek students who are academically well-prepared to undertake doctoral studies, have prior relevant research and clinically relevant experience, and come with strong letters of recommendation. Please see the Admissions page for additional information. For concrete suggestions of how to prepare for admission to Clinical Psychology PhD programs in general, check out the .
Yes, an interview is required for those who advance in our applicant pool. We update the Admissions tab of our website each year with our expected two interview dates. We expect to hold in person interviews as we have received strong feedback that applicants greatly appreciate the opportunity to visit. To prevent attendance at our interview from being a financial hardship, we cover travel costs and provide housing during the visit.
You can check online at to ascertain if your application is complete. Applicants who are shortlisted to interview will be invited in January by phone or email. Those who are not shortlisted will be notified by email.
We tend to invite 24-30 students to interview and expect to admit 4-6 students for the upcoming year.
Typically within 1-2 weeks of the final interview date, written admissions offers will be extended. Those who are alternates will be notified typically within two weeks of the final interview date.
Consistent with the Council of Graduate Schools policy, all admitted students have until April 15th to render a decision.
The most successful strategy is to consider your own ranking of programs prior to receiving offers. When you receive an offer, you could then indicate to those below that program that you are withdrawing. The Council of University Directors of Clinical Psychology policy also advises that applicants not hold more than one offer for more than one week unless you are waiting for specific information you have not yet received. Recognize that students on the alternate list cannot receive offers until you relinquish your offer.