Distinguished by its innovative cross-disciplinary approach to clinical science, the Graduate Department of Psychological Clinical Science emphasizes innovation through novel research programs that push traditional boundaries in psychological clinical research and practice.
| Mission | Innovators in clinical science to advance research, training and practice. |
| Goal | To generate clinical scientists, who can be employed in all professional settings, including research, applied or administrative settings. |
| Values | Equity, Collegiality, Accountability and Transparency, and Diversity and Inclusivity. |
Learn more about Clinical Psychology at UTSC
Clinical Psychology at the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC) adheres to a Clinical Science model of training (see McFall, 1991). Housed within the Graduate Department of Psychological Clinical Science, the primary and overriding objective of graduate training in Clinical Psychology at UTSC is to produce exceptional clinical scientists according to the highest standards of research and clinical practice.
Graduate training in Clinical Psychology at UTSC has primary research strengths in the areas of clinical neuropsychology and neurosciences, personality and psychological assessment, and mindfulness- and acceptance-based psychotherapies. Distinguished by its innovative cross-disciplinary approach to psychological clinical science, Clinical Psychology at UTSC emphasizes scientific innovation through novel research collaborations that push traditional boundaries in clinical science and practice. This theoretical knowledge is integrated into our clinical training which supports the delivery of evidence-based assessment and psychological interventions.
A unifying theme of faculty research in Clinical Psychology at UTSC is to advance the assessment and treatment of mental disorders, especially depressive and bipolar disorders, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia-spectrum disorders, borderline personality disorder, and neurocognitive disorders, such as traumatic brain injury and dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease. Faculty boast world-class expertise in brain imaging, web-based delivery of assessment and intervention, and intensive methods of naturalistic assessment.
To learn more about our faculty and research, please visit the Clinical Psychology - Faculty webpage.
Both our MA and PhD graduate programs have a dual focus on research and professional training. Students enrolled in the program will complete coursework, an original piece of research (both at the MA and PhD level), clinical practicum placements, and a 1-year, full-time clinical internship.
Please visit the MA/ PhD Program Overview page for complete details on our program requirements and course descriptions.
The Graduate Department of Psychological Clinical Science offers a full-time, 2-year Master of Arts and 4-year Doctor of Philosophy degree program designed for applicants interested in a career as a clinical psychologist based on the Clinical Science model of training, as well as research careers as psychological clinical scientists in university and academic medical settings.
If you are interested in applying to the Clinical Psychology graduate program at UTSC, please visit the Future Students webpage.
Statement on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
In the Graduate Department of Psychological Clinical Science at the University of Toronto Scarborough, we are committed to promoting an equitable, diverse, and inclusive community. We endeavour to reflect upon and value the unique experiences of our students, faculty, and staff in a way that is incorporated in all aspects of our work.
As a program, we recognize the fundamental importance of promoting and practicing mutual respect, understanding, and fairness in all settings as reflected in our policies, procedures, and expectations of all members of our department. We prioritize recognizing and acknowledging the value of all social identities including – but not limited to – age, disability, ethnicity, gender, Indigeneity, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, and social class. We continue to underscore the existing disparities and inequities in the field of mental health at all levels and aim to challenge such barriers through active communication and departmental initiatives.
We seek to integrate sociocultural considerations into our research training, wherein students develop skills through a culturally-informed lens to design, conduct, evaluate, and present psychological research. We also strive to integrate cultural competency and humility in our clinical training practices to better understand how to serve the needs of diverse and underrepresented clients from all walks of life. Finally, a portion of each course offered within our graduate program is devoted to understanding relevant cultural issues – broadly defined – such that our students are informed about relevant contextual factors for topics related to our discipline. We strive to instill in our students a continued appreciation of and commitment toward lifelong learning about diversity in the context of scholarship and clinical care.
EDI Initatives
The Graduate Department of Psychological Clinical Science (GD-PCS) is committed to making ongoing efforts in support of EDI initiatives. We are pleased to outline some of our recent initiatives below.
GD-PCS Inclusivity Committee
The GD-PCS Inclusivity Committee is composed of faculty, students, and staff. Below is a listing of our current and past members.
| GD-PCS Inclusivity Committee Members | |
| Current Members |
Jessica Dere, Faculty Shreya Jagtap, Student Jennifer Ng, Staff Anthony Ruocco, Faculty Aqsa Zahid, Student |
|
Past Members
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Michael Best, Faculty Ivy Cho, Student Andrew Cooper, Faculty Hanan Domloge, Staff Minnie Kim, Staff Alina Patel, Student Brittany Tierney, Staff |
Recent EDI Initiatives
| Annual Invited Diversity Speaker Series | |
| Year | Speaker Series Information |
| 2017 |
Speaker: Joseph P. Gone, PhD Title: An Alternative Vision for Aboriginal Mental Health Services: Centering Indigenous Perspectives Description: This presentation reviewed the implicit logics that structure mental health service delivery as well as key ethno-psychological commitments of many Aboriginal communities in an effort to re-imagine counseling services in a manner that truly centers indigenous perspectives. |
| 2018 |
Speaker: Doris F. Chang, PhD Title: Negotiating the Therapeutic Alliance with Racially and Culturally Different Clients Description: This experiential workshop, a) explored research findings regarding the effects of client-therapist racial mismatches on therapy process and outcome from diverse theoretical perspectives, b) reflected on personal biases, values, and assumptions that shape our interactions with diverse clients, and c) explored relational and mindfulness-based strategies for bridging experiential distance due to race or cultural difference. |
| 2019 |
Speaker: Roberto Lewis-Fernandez, MD Title: The DSM-5 Cultural Formulation Interview Description: This workshop discussed the need for person-centered cultural assessment and focused on implementation of the CFI in routine clinical practice across a diversity of service sectors and patient groups. |
| 2020 |
Speaker: Monnica Williams, PhD, C. Psych Title: Microaggressions in Clinical Care Description: This talk covered topics such as diversity and cultural competence, racism and health, defining, categories and examples of microaggressions, and reducing microaggressions in healthcare. |
| 2021 |
Speaker: Trevor A. Hart, PhD, C. Psych Title: CBT with Sexual and Gender Minority Individuals Description: This talk presented foundational information on the use of evidence-based psychotherapies with sexual and gender minority (SGM) individuals, with a focus on cognitive-behavioural therapies. |
| 2022 |
Speaker: Yessenia Castro, PhD Title: Determinants of Smoking Among Latino Populations Description: This talk discussed Dr. Castro’s program of research aimed at addressing three major knowledge gaps resulting from a lack of research on commercial tobacco use among Latino populations: 1) testing the generalizability of known determinants of substance use and cessation to Latino smokers; 2) identifying culturally relevant variables that influence substance use and cessation among Latino smokers, and; 3) ensuring the cultural and linguistic appropriateness of assessment tools. |
| 2023 |
Speaker: Rania Awaad, M.D. Title: Introduction to Improving Clinical Competencies in Providing Whole-Person Care for Muslim Patients Training Description: This talk focused on an Introduction to Muslim Mental Mental Health, Understanding Mental Illness Through An Islamic Context, American Muslim Youth and Dual Identity Formation, and Adressing Spiritual Problems. |
Admissions Initiatives
The GD-PCS welcomes and encourages applications from individuals whose work and life experiences, community service, and unique pathways to graduate school, can contribute to the EDI goals of our department. Below are recent initiatives related to Admissions:
- Overall, our admissions procedures emphasize a holistic evaluation of admissions applications, including valuing of diverse perspectives across varied and intersecting identity dimensions and lived experiences.
- Applicants have the option to dedicate one section of their Personal Statement to communicate how their lived experience could bring a valuable and unique perspective to our program. For example, this might include a discussion of one’s identity (cultural or otherwise) or non-traditional trajectory to graduate school.
- Interviews are held virtually to increase equity and access for applicants.
- The admissions procedure includes a standardized interview with the Graduate Chair/Director of Clinical Training and Program Coordinator to increase consistency in information gathering.
- To increase the diversity of our student population, admissions are open to international students on a biannual basis.
- To enhance fairness and reduce financial costs, the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is no longer a component of the graduate application.
- We have created a series of videos for applicants to the program to feature the perspectives of our students and to increase access to information about our program, including ways to enhance the competitiveness of one’s application.
- Offering an Application Fee Waiver Lottery Program to diversify the students in our program by encouraging applications from individuals from historically underrepresented groups in Clinical Psychology.
Our program is intended to meet the registration requirements of the College of Psychologists of Ontario (CPO) at the doctoral level. For information about CPO’s registration requirements, please contact the college directly: cpo.on.ca/contact-us/
The Clinical Psychology field of the Counselling and Clinical Psychology degree program at the University of Toronto is accredited by the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA). The Field was first accredited by the CPA in 2019 for a 4-year term.
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CPA Head Office |
| Registrar, Accreditation Panel accreditation@cpa.ca Tel: 613-237-2144 ext.333 |
| Administrative Assistant, Accreditation & Operations Tel: 613-237-2144 ext.328 accreditationoffice@cpa.ca |
CPA Public Disclosure Tables
Please see the Public Disclosure Tables that were submitted to the CPA in September 2022.
Learn more about our faculty and student's accomplishments by reading our annual program report: