Doctor of Philosophy in Clinical Psychology

This degree integrates the traditional Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) training in research through the preparation of a thesis, with coursework and internship training in theory and techniques in clinical psychology. You will receive the training needed to pursue a specialist career in clinical research settings, including in universities, hospitals, specialist research foundations and government bodies.

The program has been designed to meet the requirements for eligibility for full registration with the Psychology Board of Australia and entry to the Registrar program for the area of practice endorsement in clinical psychology. Completion of the degree also meets the requirements for associate membership of the Australian Psychological Society's College of Clinical Psychologists.

Provisional Registration as a Psychologist with the Psychology Board of Australia

It is a requirement that students enrolled in this program have and maintain either provisional or full registration as a Psychologist with the Psychology Board of Australia via the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) for the duration of the program.

The higher degree research programs in Clinical Psychology are highly competitive and there are many more applicants than places available. Therefore, at Griffith there is a highly structured application process. Admission to all Clinical Psychology programs is restricted to students who are registered Psychologists or who are eligible for provisional registration with the Psychology Board of Australia. The application process involves three stages.

Stage 1: The application

All applicants are required to demonstrate their capability for training in Clinical Psychology as follows:

• Academic Achievement/Intellectual Ability: Applicants must have completed an Honours degree in Psychology (which involves an individual research project) at the level of First Class or Second Class (Division A) Honours and accredited by the Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC). Candidates will also be considered if they have completed a Masters degree in Psychology if the Masters training program was APAC accredited and included a significant research component. Applicants who have completed comparable training and degrees outside Australia will be considered for admission but are advised to submit an academic transcript to the Australian Psychological Society (APS) which will assess whether their training is equivalent to an Honours degree from an Australian university. It is also highly recommended that students will have completed courses or units that are relevant to clinical psychology (for example, Abnormal Psychology, Counselling Psychology or Health Psychology). The Grade Point Average in the undergraduate degree, fourth year and relevant courses will be taken into account.
• Interpersonal and Counselling Capability: Given the interpersonal sensitivity and awareness required for effective clinical practice, successful applicants will be expected to demonstrate a high level of interpersonal skills. This may be demonstrated by evidence of previous counselling training and relevant volunteer or work experience.
• Personal Statement: For assistance with this statement, see the Position description for a Clinical Psychology trainee and the Self-assessment / Colleague-assessment checklists.
• Provide three referee reports - two from academics who know your work well and a third from a professional referee who can attest to your interpersonal and counselling capabilities. See below for the Australian Psychology Postgraduate Program Reference Request System process.

Stage 2: The interview

Please note that, given the competitive nature of this program, only those applicants who have been evaluated by a panel of the clinical team as having demonstrated their suitability for training in clinical psychology (according to the above criteria and ranked sufficiently high enough relative to others) will be shortlisted for an interview. Applicants who are not shortlisted for an interview for the PhD in Clinical Psychology may still be considered for a PhD (research only) in Psychology.

The interview itself consists of a multi-station assessment process. Applicants are required to attend a face-to-face session that takes around half a day to complete. Applicants will be required to demonstrate sound interpersonal and emotion management skills as they respond to the various tasks at each station. Tasks include, for example, responding to an ethical dilemma, roleplaying an interview, roleplaying a supervision session, discussing research, responding to questions relating to their own reasons for applying for training in clinical psychology and a written task.

Applicants are assessed by a panel of clinical program staff in the multi-station interview process for selection into the clinical component of the program. Applicants will be ranked according to their performance at each station. For those ranked highly enough, a recommendation will be made to the Dean, Griffith Graduate Research School for admission to the PhD in Clinical Psychology program.

Stage 3: The selection

First round selection into the clinical component of the program will be made by mid-November to applicants who are ranked at a sufficiently high level. A waitlist of applicants will be retained as second and third round offers may be made as late as January. Unsuccessful applicants will be advised as soon as is practically possible.

Offers of admission to the PhD Clinical Psychology Program (or the PhD research only program) will be issued by the Griffith Graduate Research School.

Successful applicants are admitted on a conditional basis with continuation in the training program being dependent upon satisfactory performance and progress.

Students should refer to the HDR Convenor prior to enrolling to confirm their study program.

The following University policy will apply to Higher Degree Research (HDR) programs:

• Higher Degree by Research Admission Procedure

Inherent requirements

There are some essential skills and abilities you'll need to perform to meet the core learning outcomes of your program and courses. They're not something you need to gain admission into the program, but they'll be assessed throughout your program, and they'll be required for you to succeed in your career when you graduate.

Discover more about the inherent requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy in Clinical Psychology.

English language requirements apply to International applicants and other applicants whose previous study was undertaken in a country other than Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Republic of Ireland, United Kingdom, the United States of America or South Africa or undertaken in a language other than English. The minimum English language requirements for such applicants for admission to this program are as follows:

• A minimum overall band score of 7.0 on IELTS (Academic) with a minimum of 7.0 in each sub-score;
• OR the (OET) with a minimum score of B in each of the four components (listening, reading, writing and speaking);
• OR an internet-based (iBT) TOEFL score of 94 (minimum score of 24 for listening and reading, 27 for writing and 23 for speaking);
• OR a minimum overall score of 65 in the Pearson Test of English (Academic) with no score less than 65;
• OR successful completion of at least two years of secondary education and your entire tertiary studies in psychology taught and assessed solely in English from a recognised country*; completed within the last 5 years;
• OR successful completion of at least six years (full time equivalent) continuous education, including your tertiary qualifications in psychology, that were taught and assessed solely in English from a recognised country* completed within the last 5 years.

Applicants who have not completed Grade 12 in Australia or have not completed six years of continuous education in a related field and recognised country must meet the Ahpra English language requirements. Please visit the Psychology Board of Australia website for further English language requirements information.

You will have a high level of competence in assessment, treatment and research, and be able to use these skills with individuals who are experiencing psychological distress and disorders. As a professional Psychologist, you will be prepared for entry into a career in academia, administration, research institutes, private practice, departments of health and mental health, child protection agencies and consultative enterprises.