Program Aims

The Psy.D. program at SUU is a full-time, in-residence (in person) scholarly course of study that prepares graduates to practice professional psychology with an emphasis on meeting the needs of rural and underserved communities. Based on the practitioner-scholar model, coursework and training prepares emerging psychologists for state licensure in the field of Health Services Psychology. The program trains students to become culturally and ethically competent generalists who engage in evidence-based practices (psychotherapy, psychological assessments, program evaluations, supervision, professional collaboration, consultation). The program emphasizes a commitment to diversity, inclusive practices, social justice, and evidence-based systemic improvements.

Specifically, the Psy.D. program at SUU has three primary Aims:

  1. Train ethical and culturally sensitive emerging psychologists who will pursue state licensure in Health Services Psychology.
  2. Train scientifically informed emerging psychologists who consume, incorporate, and disseminate psychological research and scholarly knowledge in all of their professional endeavors.
  3. Train competent, self-aware, and reflective emerging psychologists who are appreciative, respectful, professional, and who are committed to diversity, inclusive practices, social justice, and working with rural communities.

Program Philosophies

Program Philosophy -Consistent with the Practitioner-Scholar training model (Vail Model), the Doctorate of Psychology program at Southern Utah University trains professional, doctoral-level practitioner-scientists, who specialize in clinical practice. Located in rural southwestern Utah, the program is founded on principles of community and rural mental health. Extensive practical placements afford professional experience in a variety of settings, including schools, residential treatment centers, community mental health settings, substance abuse treatment programs, native health centers, homeless resource centers, crisis centers, community clinics, public hospitals, and government agencies (see Practicum Manual). The scientific foundations of psychology provide the philosophical grounding, and evidence-based practices are at the core of our clinical training. Through this program, students become informed consumers of scientific inquiry, educators, and skilled clinicians.

The program is a full-time day program offering a course of study leading to the Psy.D. degree. Coursework and practical training prepare students for licensure as psychologists, with an emphasis on educating emerging psychologists for the underserved areas of rural and frontier southern Utah, and adjoining regions. The program’s goals and objectives are based on the American Psychological Association’s profession-wide competencies of clinical education and training, required accreditation domains, and discipline-specific professional knowledge areas.

PSy.D. Community Agreement

The SUU Psy.D. Program aims to train students to become culturally and ethically competent generalists who engage in evidence-based practices in order to meet the needs of rural and underserved communities. The program emphasizes a commitment to diversity, inclusive practices, social justice, and evidence-based systemic improvements.

In pursuit of achieving these goals and fostering an enriching and inclusive learning environment, the program’s community agreements are:

  • Be respectful of the space, self, and others.
  • Strive to maintain an assets-based approach.
  • Be an engaged, active, nonjudgmental listener.
  • Be curious and listen to understand.
  • Take growth-promoting educational risks.
  • Amplify marginalized voices.
  • Actively work towards identifying and addressing personal biases.
  • Consider how our social and institutional positionality affect the impact of what we say and our awareness of what the potential impact may be.
  • Seek to expand and build upon existing ideas.
  • Embrace conflict as a way to generate new solutions.
  • Value the diverse strengths, perspectives, and experiences of those in the Psy.D. program and surrounding communities.
  • Actively seek to contribute to a cohesive, supportive community at the cohort- and community-level.
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