Notes on Preparing for Graduate-Level Training in Professional Psychology (Karazsia & Smith, 2016) (copy)

Boulder Conference (1949)

Emphasized integration of research and clinical training in psychology.

Vail Conference (1973)

Introduced the scholar-practitioner model focusing more on clinical skills than research.

Clinical Psychology

Field that produces more graduates focused on cognitive-behavioral theoretical orientations.

Counseling Psychology

Evolved from vocational/educational guidance to diagnosing and treating mental disorders, with more emphasis on diversity training.

Goodness-of-fit model

Governs admissions based on alignment between applicant experiences and program/lab needs.

Competency domains

Fifteen areas of training rated by faculty, including scientific methods, diversity, and psychopathology.

Minimum vs. Ideal Training

Ideal training is generally higher than minimum expectations across various domains.

Psychopathology

The study of mental disorders, rated among important domains in psychology training.

7-point scale

Used to rate both minimum and ideal levels of experience in competency domains.

Cross-sectional survey

Research design used to assess faculty training expectations across clinical and counseling psychology programs.

Interpersonal skills

Top criterion valued by graduate programs alongside GPA and research fit.

Diversity training

Training emphasized more in counseling programs as compared to clinical programs.

PhD vs. PsyD Programs

PhD programs emphasize research-oriented competencies while PsyD programs focus on applied clinical skills.

Statistical trend

Observed in minimum ratings for scientific methods, indicating a possible difference that did not reach significance.

Empirical evidence

Data demonstrating that undergraduate preparation involves coursework and substantial experiential learning.

Holistic admissions view

An approach that includes various competencies beyond GPA and GRE scores in the admissions process.