Counseling and Personnel Services (PhD)

Doctor of Philosophy in Counseling and Personnel Services (CPSPHD)
Unit: College of Education and Human Development (GE)
Department: Counseling and Human Development
Program Website
Academic Plan Code(s): See Specialization Requirements tab.

Program Information

This program offers a combination of coursework, with mostly in person courses. In person courses are offered on campus or in local schools.

The Doctor of Philosophy in Counseling and Personnel Services encompasses two specialization areas:

The doctoral degree is granted in recognition of scholarly proficiency and distinctive achievement in a specific field/discipline. All candidates for a doctoral degree in the College of Education and Human Development must successfully complete qualifying exams and a dissertation/professional portfolio that clearly indicates the candidate has mastered and can exhibit/articulate the content knowledge, skills, and dispositions specific to their discipline, and can utilize appropriate research methodologies to contribute to the body of knowledge in their field.

Distinctive Characteristics of Doctoral Programs in the College of Education and Human Development

Social Justice and Equity
Doctoral students in our program build experience and expertise in the issues of social justice and equity which aligns with our metropolitan mission and focus on student achievement.
Leadership
Our doctoral students gain expertise in supervising and leading others to achieve organizational goals and missions, managing complex systems, addressing administrative issues and procedures, conducting research to enhance leadership and teaching others about the art of organizational leadership.
Practical Experience
The doctoral program contains practicums, internships, or embedded field experience that aligns with program and career goals. These mentored experiences may include teaching, research, administration or other appropriate areas.
Scholarship/Research
An emphasis on scholarship includes experience and mentorship in ethics, publications, presentation, grantsmanship, and other forms of creative activity. The research component is characterized by the development of vertical research teams: senior faculty, junior faculty, doctoral students, master's students, and in some programs, undergraduate students, working together on research projects and research areas. These may be bolstered by partnerships with local school districts, businesses, or community agencies.

Admission Requirements

Application requirements:

Completed application submitted at https://apply.graduate.louisville.edu/apply/
Official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate coursework completed. Only institutionally accredited bachelor’s degrees will be considered. To be considered official, transcripts must be sent by the issuing institution to the UofL Graduate School directly. Transcripts issued to the student are considered unofficial.
International transcripts must be evaluated per the grad school requirements: https://graduate.louisville.edu/admission/international/evaluation
Personal statement (Applicants should submit a personal statement of approximately 500-1,000 words outlining their professional goals and how their research and professional interests might align with those of faculty in the department.)
Current resume
Three recommendations (can be academic or professional, personal recommendations not acceptable)
The GRE is not required and will not be considered.

International Applicants:

International applicants must submit additional application items and meet additional admission requirements. Information on the internation application and admission requirements can be found here: https://graduate.louisville.edu/admission/international
The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL/IELTS/Duolingo) is required of all students who completed a degree outside the United States from countries in which English is not the native language.  Students holding a baccalaureate or advanced degree from an accredited institution in the United States are exempt from this requirement.

Prerequisite requirements (Counseling and Personnel Services (PhD), Concentration Counseling Psychology):

* There are no prerequisite course requirements for admission to this program. We welcome applicants from a wide range of academic and professional backgrounds at both the bachelor’s and graduate levels.

Admission Requirements:

Completed application (including all checklist items) to be holistically reviewed
Applicants who receive the highest evaluations from the doctoral admissions committee will be invited to participate in a virtual interview. An interview is required to be considered.
Undergraduate grade point average greater than 3.0 or a graduate grade point average greater than 3.5.
Conferred bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution required for unconditional admission. Applicants in their final year of their bachelor’s degree with final courses being completed before the graduate program start, can be reviewed for probationary admission pending a final transcript showing degree conferral by the end of the first semester.

Admission is competitive. Meeting the GPA minimum and all other admission requirements does not guarantee that prospective students will be accepted into the program. 

An applicant who does not meet one of the above criteria and wishes to be considered for admission should include, in their application package, a written rationale for why the doctoral admissions committee should consider the application.

Program admission dates:

Application Deadline (Fall): December 1

Program Requirements

The Doctor of Philosophy in Counseling and Personnel Services encompasses four specialization areas. For specific coursework, see Specialization Requirements section.

Counseling Psychology
Educational Psychology, Measurement, and Evaluation

All ECPY doctoral programs require courses in the following areas:

Specialty -- Specialty courses are designed to prepare the student for work within their selected professional field.

Research Methodology -- The research component prepares students to examine research within the professional area as well as contribute to the existing research.

Electives -- Elective courses are selected in concert with advisor and program committee with consideration to the student's background, interests, and professional goals.

Each doctoral program will have additional requirements related to their program of study.

All candidates for a doctoral degree must successfully complete qualifying exams and a dissertation/professional portfolio that clearly indicates the candidate has mastered and can exhibit/articulate the content knowledge, skills and dispositions specific to their discipline, and can utilize appropriate research methodologies to contribute to the body of knowledge in their field.

Specialization Requirements

Specialization in Counseling Psychology

Academic Plan Code(s): CPS_PHDCPS

NOTE: Professional Licensure/Certification is available for this specialization.

The Student and Committee must develop courses, programs and experiences that clearly identify and address the specific themes of Leadership, Scholarship, Social Justice and Equity. These areas of emphasis must have descriptive competencies that the student should attain and the Committee can assess.

Course List
Code	Title	Hours
Specialty Components		54
Assessment Core (6 credit hours)
Foundations (21 credit hours)
Counseling Theory and Practice Core (27 credit hours)
Research Methodology (24 credit hours)		24
Practicum and Pre-Internship Field Experience (27 credit hours)		27
Minimum Total Hours		105

¹: Students will work faculty advisor to select specific courses within each component.

Specialization in Educational Psychology, Measurement, and Evaluation

Academic Plan Code(s): CPS_PHDPME

The Educational Psychology, Measurement, and Evaluation specialization requires a minimum of 90 graduate credit hours distributed in the following areas of study: specialty components , research methodology, and electives. Equivalent courses taken in a master's program may be substituted for required courses with advisor and program committee approval.

At least 45 of the 90 credit hours must be earned at UofL. These 45 credit hours include 18 credit hours fulfilling residency and twelve (12) credit hours required for dissertation research.

Course List
Code	Title	Hours
Specialty Components		15
EPME Core (all required)
ECPY 605	Human Development
ECPY 701	Doctoral Professional Seminar in Educational Psychology, Measurement, and Evaluation
ECPY 710	Social Ecology & Social Behavior
ECPY 712	Advanced Issues in Human Development
ECPY 775	Biological Bases of Behavior
Research Methodology		36-42
Selected with Program Committee Approval (36 credit hours minimum, 42 credit hours maximum)
LEAD 701	Intermediate Applied Statistics
LEAD 702	Applied Multiple Regression
LEAD 703	Multivariate Educational Statistics
LEAD 704	Qualitative Field Research Methods
ECPY 740	Psychometrics and Affective Instrument Development
ECPY 745	Systematic Reviewing and Meta-Analysis
ECPY 746	Secondary Data Analysis
LEAD 764	Structural Equation Modeling
LEAD 765	Hierarchical Linear Modeling
LEAD 789	Advanced Research Design
LEAD 795	Doctoral Research
Electives		39
Selected with Program Committee Approval
CSE 630	Advanced Databases
CSE 632	Data Mining
ECPY 540	Evaluation and Measurement in Education
ECPY 611	Learning Systems: Theory and Practice
ECPY 631	Adolescence
EDSP 669	Single Case Research Methods and Designs
ECPY 793	Doctoral Seminar in Educational and Counseling Psychology ¹
ECPY 797	Internship in Educational Psychology, Measurement, and Evaluation ²
LEAD 602	Survey Research and Attitude Measurement
LEAD 606	Program Evaluation
LEAD 705	Qualitative Data Analysis and Representation
LEAD 750	Doctoral Seminar in Educational Evaluation
LEAD 790	Problems in Urban Education and Society
PHST 620	Introduction to Statistical Computing
PHST 683	Survival Analysis
PHST 710	Advanced Statistical Computing I
PSYC 621	Cognitive Processes
PSYC 636	Human Memory
SOC 710	Statistics II
Minimum Total Hours		90

¹: May be taken up to three times for a maximum of nine (9) credit hours.
²: May be taken for a maximum of three (3) credit hours.

The Doctorate in Counseling and Personnel Services - Specialization in Counseling Psychology program prepares students to meet the requirements for certification and/or licensure. If you plan to pursue professional licensure or certification, you should first determine your state’s criteria for examination and licensure to see how/if our program meets those requirements prior to enrollment. We recommend that you also contact your state’s licensing board directly to verify that the requirements have not changed recently and to answer any questions especially those regarding additional requirements beyond the degree.

More information about certification or licensure is available at the following website: https://louisville.edu/about/departments/academic-planning-accountability/disclosures/professional-licensure.

For programs with an online option, more information about certification or licensure is available here: https://louisville.edu/online/About-Us (please scroll down near the bottom of the page and click on the licensing disclosures tab).