Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology

This program is designed for students with career interests in masters-level clinical practice or those who plan to obtain a Ph.D. or Psy.D.

The Master of Arts (M.A.) in Clinical Psychology program strives to develop competent healthcare providers who are critical thinkers, intelligent consumers of research, and skilled providers of psychological services in a variety of healthcare settings. Most graduates become employed as therapists, counselors, psychometricians, or other mental health-related positions.

All courses integrate science and practice, with an emphasis on ethics and the roles culture, race, and gender play in assessment and therapy. This program manages to infuse scientific rigor into a masters-level training program. While the state of Wisconsin offers dozens of masters-level counseling programs that prepare students to practice as LPCs, our degree program is the only master’s level clinical psychology program that is license eligible. Ours is a practice-based degree program in contrast to research-based Ph.D. programs: our students graduate with 600 hours of internship fieldwork, leaving the program as experienced, mature practitioners acclimated to real-world practice.

Psychology applies analytical techniques to a humanistic subject matter. The philosophy of the profession is that if you are trained first and foremost as a scientist, you will be able to train yourself as necessary to adapt to unanticipated circumstances. It is a tremendous strength to possess the skills to research these situations, find techniques that have been validated to work and train yourself to use them. Stritch takes pride in keeping this philosophy at the forefront of its curriculum. We encourage you to contact us to learn more about the program’s layout, outcomes, and success stories.

Degree Requirements

The M.A. in Clinical Psychology is a 48-credit (graduation dates up to 8/2018) or 60-credit (all graduates after 8/2018) program offered in a semester-based format, allowing students to progress at their own pace. In order to meet the needs of working adults, classes are generally held in the evenings and meet one to two afternoons/nights per week, which enables students to pursue a master's degree while continuing their careers. Class sizes consist of approximately 10-20 students, a setting designed to promote shared learning and teamwork while maintaining a small instructor-to-student ratio.

Students progress through a sequence of coursework, consisting of both foundational and advanced courses which prepare students for the required capstone experiences: Thesis and Practicum. The capstone experiences of the Clinical Psychology program are a 2-3 semester 600-hour internship at an approved agency, which will include time spent in an internship seminar and completion of a supervised research project.

• Program Credits: 48
• Required Courses
  • PSY 533 Advanced Statistics and Research Methods 3 cr.
  • PSY 536 Ethics, Professional Standards, and Legal Issues 3 cr.
  • PSY 538 Advanced Personality Theory (elective) 3 cr.
  • PSY 541 Psychopathology 3 cr.
  • PSY 543 Systems of Psychology 3 cr.
  • PSY 545 Assessment I 3 cr.
  • PSY 547 Theories and Techniques of Individual Psychotherapy and Counseling 3 cr.
  • PSY 549 Assessment II 3 cr.
  • PSY 550 Substance-Related Disorders (elective) 3 cr.
  • PSY 551 Multicultural Issues in Clinical Psychology 3 cr.
  • PSY 552 Internship Seminar I 1.5 cr.
  • PSY 553 Internship I 4 cr.
  • PSY 555 Theories and Techniques of Group Psychotherapy and Counseling 3 cr.
  • PSY 556 Internship Seminar II 1.5 cr.
  • PSY 557 Biological Bases of Behavior 3 cr.
  • PSY 559 Internship II 4 cr.
  • PSY 570 Career Development Theory and Practice 3 cr.
  • PSY 590 Independent Study (elective) 1-3 cr.
  • PSY 595 Supervised Research 1 cr.
  • PSY 599 Thesis II: Independent Work (elective) 3 cr.
• Required Auxiliary Courses: None

Additional Information

To qualify for graduation from this program, a student must:

• Complete master's coursework with a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 with no individual course grades below a "C" and no more than a one-course grade below a "B-."
• Satisfactory completion of an oral defense of an evidence-based master's thesis or a supervised research paper.
• Satisfactory completion of clinical field practicum/internship experiences totaling 600 hours including a time spent in practicum seminar.
• Obtain a recommendation for graduation from the program chair.
• Satisfactory completion of all program requirements within seven consecutive academic years.

Cardinal Stritch University was founded by the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi in 1937 and was chartered by the State of Wisconsin as a fully-accredited, degree granting institution. Today, Stritch is one of the largest Franciscan institutions of higher education in North America. We offer more than 60 exceptional undergraduate and graduate degree programs that help students develop new skills, gain career-related experience and build professional networks. These academic programs prepare students of all ages, faiths, races and socio-economic backgrounds to succeed in the communities where they live, work, serve and lead.

Stritch is known as an excellent choice for studying business, education, liberal arts, leadership, nursing and the sciences. Students with diverse faith and cultural backgrounds embrace and live our core Franciscan values of creating a caring community, showing compassion, reverencing creation and making peace.