Twin Cities campus

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Twin Cities Campus

Child Psychology Ph.D.

Institute of Child Development
College of Education and Human Development
Link to a list of faculty for this program.
Contact Information
Institute of Child Development, 154 Child Development Building, 51 East River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55455 (612-624-0526; fax: 612-624-6373).
Email: icdapply@umn.edu
Website: http://www.cehd.umn.edu/icd/programs/CPSY/Graduate/
  • Program Type: Doctorate
  • Requirements for this program are current for Fall 2018
  • Length of program in credits: 68 to 70
  • This program does not require summer semesters for timely completion.
  • Degree: Doctor of Philosophy
Along with the program-specific requirements listed below, please read the General Information section of this website for requirements that apply to all major fields.
The PhD in child psychology focuses primarily on training for research in normal human development. The goal of the program is to train all students for careers in research and college teaching in child psychology, and to prepare students in the collaborative program options for careers in applied areas of child psychology, as well. Students are admitted to either the general track or the developmental psychopathology and clinical studies track. General track students may choose to specialize in an area such as cognitive neuroscience, language, learning, personality, memory, perception, psychobiology, or social development. Students interested in clinical research may specialize in developmental psychopathology and clinical science through participation in the developmental psychopathology and clinical science (DPCS) training program. DPCS training is a cooperative effort between the Institute of Child Development and the Department of Psychology to instruct leaders in research and teaching. DPCS training draws on the unique strengths of each program. Students in this track complete a required clinical internship, which adds an additional year to program completion.
Program Delivery
  • via classroom (the majority of instruction is face-to-face)
Prerequisites for Admission
The preferred undergraduate GPA for admittance to the program is 3.00.
Most students admitted have a substantial background in psychology, courses in mathematics and the natural sciences, and undergraduate research experience.
Special Application Requirements:
For full application instructions, please see: http://www.cehd.umn.edu/icd/programs/CPSY/Graduate/apply.html Applications are accepted for fall semester entry only and due by December 1 of the previous year. Late applications are not accepted.
Applicants must submit their test score(s) from the following:
  • GRE
International applicants must submit score(s) from one of the following tests:
  • TOEFL
    • Internet Based - Total Score: 79
    • Internet Based - Writing Score: 21
    • Internet Based - Reading Score: 19
    • Internet Based - Speaking Score: 27
  • IELTS
    • Total Score: 6.5
The preferred English language test is Test of English as Foreign Language.
Key to test abbreviations (GRE, TOEFL, IELTS).
For an online application or for more information about graduate education admissions, see the General Information section of this website.
Program Requirements
44 to 46 credits are required in the major.
24 thesis credits are required.
This program may be completed with a minor.
Use of 4xxx courses towards program requirements is not permitted.
A minimum GPA of 3.00 is required for students to remain in good standing.
At least 4 semesters must be completed before filing a Degree Program Form.
The PhD degree usually requires five years of graduate work. Major program components include coursework, research activities, and teaching experience. Coursework requirements are specialization specific, but all students are required to take 45 credits in the major and 24 thesis credits. Each student specializes in an area such as social and personality development, learning, cognitive development, cognitive neuroscience, language development, psychobiology, or perceptual development.
Major Program Coursework
CPSY 8301 - Developmental Psychology: Cognitive Processes (4.0 cr)
CPSY 8302 - Developmental Psychology: Social and Emotional Processes (4.0 cr)
CPSY 8304 - Developmental Research Methods (3.0 cr)
CPSY 8307 - Prelim Seminar (1.0 cr)
CPSY 8321 - Seminar in Teaching Developmental Psychology (1.0 cr)
CPSY 8322 - Apprenticeship in Teaching Developmental Psychology (1.0-3.0 cr)
Special Topics and Advanced Seminars (5 credits minimum)
5 credits of CPSY 8360/CPSY 86xx, of which one course must be at least 3 credits.
Take 2 or more course(s) totaling 5 or more credit(s) from the following:
· CPSY 8360 - Special Topics in Developmental Psychology (1.0-3.0 cr)
· CPSY 8606 - Advanced Developmental Psychopathology (3.0 cr)
· CPSY 8607 - Developmental Neurobiology of Stress and Emotion (3.0 cr)
· CPSY 8608 - Clinical Interventions Across the Lifespan (3.0 cr)
· CPSY 8660 - Advanced Developmental Psychology (1.0-4.0 cr)
Statistical Analysis
EPSY 8251 - Statistical Methods in Education I (3.0 cr)
EPSY 8252 - Statistical Methods in Education II (3.0 cr)
Research Credits (14 credits minimum)
Take 14 or more credit(s) from the following:
· CPSY 8994 - Research Problems in Child Psychology (1.0-6.0 cr)
5 elective credits of CPSY or outside coursework
5 credits of CPSY or outside elective coursework, planned in consultation with adviser.
Thesis Credits
Take exactly 24 credit(s) from the following:
· CPSY 8888 - Thesis Credit: Doctoral (1.0-24.0 cr)
 
More program views..
View college catalog(s):
· College of Education and Human Development

View future requirement(s):
· Fall 2019
· Spring 2019

View sample plan(s):
· Child Psychology PhD Sample Plan
View PDF Version:
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CPSY 8301 - Developmental Psychology: Cognitive Processes
Credits: 4.0 [max 4.0]
Typically offered: Every Fall
Perceptual, motor, cognitive, and language development, and biological bases of each. Conceptual framework of research issues. prereq: Doctoral student, instr consent
CPSY 8302 - Developmental Psychology: Social and Emotional Processes
Credits: 4.0 [max 4.0]
Typically offered: Every Spring
Normative issues and individual differences in social development from infancy through adolescence. Emphasizes developmental psychopathology, life span considerations. prereq: Doctoral student, instr consent
CPSY 8304 - Developmental Research Methods
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Typically offered: Every Spring
Review of research strategies and designs for conducting research in developmental psychology, as well as strengths and weaknesses of each. Students will learn to (a) communicate about empirical research, (b) critically review methods used in empirical studies, and (c) design research to maximize knowledge gained, while recognizing its limitations.
CPSY 8307 - Prelim Seminar
Credits: 1.0 [max 1.0]
Grading Basis: S-N only
Typically offered: Every Spring
Prepare for written preliminary examination during summer of second year of doctoral study. Critically discuss issues/ themes in field using key readings suggested by faculty/past readings from core child development doctoral courses. prereq: Developmental Psychology PhD student in second year of study
CPSY 8321 - Seminar in Teaching Developmental Psychology
Credits: 1.0 [max 1.0]
Typically offered: Every Fall
Apprentices attend weekly seminar meetings covering all aspects of university teaching. Planning course coverage, teaching techniques, developing learning activities and examinations. Preparation for CPSY 8322. prereq: Developmental psychology doctoral student or instr consent
CPSY 8322 - Apprenticeship in Teaching Developmental Psychology
Credits: 1.0 -3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: S-N only
Typically offered: Every Spring
Co-instruct a section of a CPSY undergraduate course. Plan syllabus, prepare/deliver lectures, devise active learning activities, prepare exams/assignments, and grade. Meet with apprenticeship supervisor to discuss teaching progress/issues. prereq: Developmental psychology doctoral student, CPSY 8321
CPSY 8360 - Special Topics in Developmental Psychology
Credits: 1.0 -3.0 [max 12.0]
Typically offered: Periodic Fall & Spring
Intensive study in specialized areas of developmental psychology. Topics/credits vary. prereq: Doctoral student
CPSY 8606 - Advanced Developmental Psychopathology
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Typically offered: Every Fall
Alternative formulation of childhood disorders, emphasizing competency training rather than medical nosology. prereq: Doctoral student or instr consent
CPSY 8607 - Developmental Neurobiology of Stress and Emotion
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Typically offered: Periodic Fall
Maladaptive responses to stress are components of both the etiology and expression of many psychiatric disorders. In addition, individuals differ in their stress vulnerability, with some seeming to thrive despite the odds, and others succumbing to even relatively mild adversity. These individual differences are likely the interactions of genes and experiences; early experiences may be particularly noteworthy.
CPSY 8608 - Clinical Interventions Across the Lifespan
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F only
Typically offered: Spring Even Year
This course is designed to provide an overview of the historical foundations and contemporary applications of clinical interventions and psychotherapy; the design, conduct, and evaluation of clinical intervention research; fundamental elements of psychotherapy and the therapeutic process; the distal/proximal contexts in which clinical intervention research and psychotherapy practice is conducted; and common practical and ethical issues in clinical intervention research and psychotherapy practice. Although students who complete this course become familiar with major theoretical and applied approaches to clinical interventions and psychotherapy practice, the focus is not on gaining mastery in any particular psychotherapy approach. Instead, this course focuses on developing an understanding of fundamental principles of clinical interventions, therapeutic techniques, and psychotherapy practice, including the nature and underlying mechanisms of therapeutic change, research methods for evaluating the efficacy and effectiveness of clinical interventions and psychotherapy at the group and individual levels, a critical evaluation of contemporary psychotherapy approaches, and limitations in the current evidence base. In addition to readings and in-class discussions, students participate in in-person, group applications of basic clinical skills, including activities to help prepare them for beginning psychotherapy practice. This course thus provides a framework for understanding and applying the theories, principles, and methods of effective clinical interventions for students who will subsequently train in intervention-focused, in-person psychotherapy practica.
CPSY 8660 - Advanced Developmental Psychology
Credits: 1.0 -4.0 [max 21.0]
Typically offered: Periodic Fall & Spring
Intensive study in advanced areas of developmental psychology. Topics/credits vary. prereq: Doctoral student
EPSY 8251 - Statistical Methods in Education I
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Course Equivalencies: EPsy 8251/EPsy 8261
Prerequisites: [EPSY 5261 or equiv] or undergrad statistics course
Typically offered: Every Fall, Spring & Summer
Statistical Methods in Education I is the first course in an entry-level, doctoral sequence for students in education. This course covers estimation and hypothesis testing with a particular focus on ANOVA and an introduction to multiple linear regression. Prepares students for EPSY 8252/8262. prereq: [EPSY 5261 or equiv] or undergrad statistics course
EPSY 8252 - Statistical Methods in Education II
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Course Equivalencies: EPsy 8252/EPsy 8262
Prerequisites: [8251, 8261 or equiv]
Typically offered: Every Fall & Spring
Statistical Methods in Education II is the second course in an entry-level, doctoral sequence for students in education. This course focuses on multiple linear regression and provides an introduction to linear mixed models. prereq: [8251, 8261 or equiv]
CPSY 8994 - Research Problems in Child Psychology
Credits: 1.0 -6.0 [max 24.0]
Typically offered: Every Fall & Spring
Individual empirical investigation. prereq: Doctoral student or instr consent
CPSY 8888 - Thesis Credit: Doctoral
Credits: 1.0 -24.0 [max 100.0]
Grading Basis: No Grade
Typically offered: Every Fall & Spring
24 total credits required, preferably 12 cr/semester in the student's fourth of fifth year. Students should enroll in their advisor(s) section(s).