Immaculata University

[Jon4PsyD]

I see they have an APA-approved Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology with what seems to be a decent amount of emphasis on Humanistic Psychology.

Unfortunately, the website does not give as much information as I would've hoped. Does anyone have any information or opinions on this program (in terms of admissions selectivity, information on quality of faculty, and overally quality of program)?

Thanks!
Jon

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[nononora]

From the Insider's Guide 2006/2007 edition:

Faculty Orientation:
Psychodynamic/Psychoanalytic - 75%
Applied behavioral analysis/Radical behavioral - 0%
Family systems/Systems - 0%
Existential/Phenomenological/Humanistic - 25%
Cognitive/Cognitive-behavioral - 0%

Percentage of internship-applying students accepted into APPIC-member internships:
Data not available

What courses are required for incoming students to have completed prior to enrolling?
Need M.A. in clinical field or allied field, preferably

GRE mean
Verbal - 600, Quantitative - 600

GPA mean
Overall GPA - 3.5

Applications/admissions offers/incoming students in 2003
67 applied/31 admission offers/23 incoming

% of students receiving funding:
0%

Approximate percentage of incoming students who entered with a:
B.A./B.S. only :26%
Master's: 74%

Approximate percentage of students who are:
Women: 77%
Ethnic Minority: 9%
International: Data not available

Average years to complete the doctoral program (including internship):
6 years

Personal interview:
No preference given

Research Areas/# of faculty
child, adolescent/2
development/3
existential-humanistic/2
gender/3
psychotherapy process/1
parenting/2
resilience and hopefulness/2
Rorschach/22
school psychology/2
sexism/2

Clinical Opportunities
-

From Graduate Study in Psychology 2006 (APA):

Applications/admissions offers/incoming for 2004-2005:
49/18/14 full-time and 13 part-time (not a typo on my part)

Internships/Practica:
Students work with either the master's field site coordinator or doctoral field site and pre-doctoral internship coordinator to identify prospective field placements for their different programs of study. The Graduate Psychology Department places counseling psychology, school psychology, and clinical psychology students at sites throughout the Chester and Montgomery County areas and with supervisors with qualifications specific to student and program requirements. Clinical doctoral students complete diagnostic and therapy placements prior to internship. Elective field placements are available and encouraged for clinical psychology doctoral students. Students entering the PsyD program with BA or equivalent are required to complete a field placement early in their program of study as one of their electives. School doctoral students complete a practicum prior to internship.

Housing and Day Care:
On-campus housing is available. No on-campus day care facilities are available.

 

[Ollie123]

Looks pretty reasonable and not terribly diploma-mill ish. High acceptance rate, but not as high as some of the true diploma mills. 3.5/1200 average stats means they do have some standards for who gets in. No funding would be a concern for me, not sure if it is for you. I'd also do some digging and see if you can find their match rate....some schools have decent match rates and just choose not to disclose them for whatever reason so them not reporting it isn't necessarily an indicator of weakness.

I'd be gloriously uncomfortable at a school where the bulk of the faculty are psychodynamic, but if that's okay by you, this seems at least a reasonable choice.

 

[Jon4PsyD]

Nononora, thanks so much for posting! I really need that book! But lots of good information and apparently it seems like a respectable program. I was a little scared by the 6 year average completion of the program number, but this school seems to have a LOT of part timers so that may have some impact on that 6 year figure.

So um, anybody know WHERE Immaculata, PA is? Middle of nowhere, or nearby to SOME type of civilization? LOL🙂

Jon

 

[psychplease]

.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

I was a little scared by the 6 year average completion of the program number, but this school seems to have a LOT of part timers so that may have some impact on that 6 year figure.

It is best to talk to current student about this, especially about the % of people who complete in 5, 6, 7 years.

-t

 

[nononora]

It's in Chester County, PA, more specifically, the borough of Malvern. Doesn't look terribly exciting but at least costs will be low. Wiki blurbs linked below..

Malvern

Chester County

 

[Ollie123]

That includes the internship so that really isn't bad. 5 is the "ideal" for a PhD program - I've never seen less than that. Not sure what it is for PsyDs but I'd assume about the same. If you want to see really bad look at some of the PhDs...there's a few (not many) that have averages of over 10 years! Then again with no funding that makes the extra year a much bigger problem.

Edit: Oops, just realized they strongly encourage people to come in with a master's in hand. To me it would make sense for the program that encourages that to be SHORTER not longer, but if there's people who do part-time degrees there that would explain it. I'd talk to students/professors/etc. to get a more realistic view of how long it takes people to graduate.

 

[Franklphile]

Does anyone have any more information on Immaculata's Clinical PsyD program? I was accepted going into it with a BA in psychology, 3.6ish cumulative GPA, GRE 640 Verbal 670 Math. The school seemed nice when I visited for my interview, everyone very friendly, interviewer seemed very involved and interested in providing a good education. Financing shouldn't be too much of an issue as they are not hugely expensive, so that seems do-able.

I've seen people talk on here about making sure the school you choose, especially for a Psy.D. program, isn't a diploma-mill or it might not be worth getting the degree there. I don't get this vibe from Immaculata, but it isn't hugely competitive in terms of admission rates (but it doesn't seem non-competitive either). Also, the 2010-11 Insider's Guide has their orientation percentages much more spread out now as opposed to what someone posted earlier. (I must admit I have only looked at the guide so far through an online Google Books preview, but I think I've been able to see most of the Immaculata info they have on it.)

Some other info from Insider's Guide:

In 2009, 120 applied/57 offers/34 incoming
Incoming students w/ BA: 38%, Masters: 62%
Avg time to completion (including internship): 6yrs (they do have a lot of part-time students also)
Attrition Rate past 7 years: 11%
Percentage of students applying last year accepted into APPIC or APA internships: 25% APA: 75% on APPIC for 08-09 ---- I am a little confused by the way this statistic is written for this school. This is exactly how it appears - not sure if the APA rate is 25% or 75% .. anyone understand it more clearly?

Any input anyone can provide is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[futureapppsy2]

Hi,

Immaculata has a captive APPIC (but not APA) internship, so their students are guaranteed an APPIC internship but not an APA-accredited one. The 25% that go to APA-accredited internships must choose to apply for APA internships instead of just applying to the Immaculata's captive one.

The main thing I'd be worried about is the cost--tuition and fees alone will run over $90k, and there's little/no funding available. I looked at the school seriously (they have a faculty member who does work that is a really good fit for me) but ruled it out, mainly due the cost.

 

[Franklphile]

Thanks for the response and info futureapppsy2. So your main concern with this program was the cost? Definitely a factor, as they do not provide any scholarships - but I think with the financial aid I should be okay, especially compared to a few other schools' prices that I've been accepted to.

Do you know anything about reputation or how it is viewed by others in the field, regarding future opportunities and such? Is a Clinical Psy.D. from there looked at positively and viewed as reputable (as opposed to things I've heard about some other programs)?

That captive APPIC internship sounds pretty positive -- even though it does not guarantee an APA approved internship, this doesn't mean APA internships are near impossible to obtain, does it? I know, of course, it will be challenging.

Thanks again for your help - anyone feel free to join in and provide your input.

 

[phillydave]

Nononora, thanks so much for posting! I really need that book! But lots of good information and apparently it seems like a respectable program. I was a little scared by the 6 year average completion of the program number, but this school seems to have a LOT of part timers so that may have some impact on that 6 year figure.

So um, anybody know WHERE Immaculata, PA is? Middle of nowhere, or nearby to SOME type of civilization? LOL🙂

Jon

I'd be cautious of any program that claims that students generally finish in less than 6 years. That's about par for most programs.

I am beginning a different PsyD program in the area, although I did not apply to Immaculata, I've heard good things. They are also one of only two programs in the Philly area that are psychodynamic. (I'm at the other one)


Edit:

I didn't realize I was responding to a 3 year old inquiry. Ah well. The wisdom I offered still stands! 😛

 

[Franklphile]

I'd be cautious of any program that claims that students generally finish in less than 6 years. That's about par for most programs.

I am beginning a different PsyD program in the area, although I did not apply to Immaculata, I've heard good things. They are also one of only two programs in the Philly area that are psychodynamic. (I'm at the other one)


Edit:

I didn't realize I was responding to a 3 year old inquiry. Ah well. The wisdom I offered still stands! 😛

Well I'm still grateful for the wisdom! I've been accepted into their PsyD program and am trying to decide if I should go there. What types of good things have you heard? I get a good feeling from the school, from the contact I've had with them, my interview, and walking around the campus. Not much to be found online about their reputation though, so I'm wondering what else you might know about them. Also, from browsing this forum, I see that it is really important for a PsyD program that it be respected by those in the field and have a good reputation, so that your opportunities are not limited during your studies and after graduation. Any thoughts on this?

Anyone feel free to chime in. Thanks!

 

[phillydave]

Well I'm still grateful for the wisdom! I've been accepted into their PsyD program and am trying to decide if I should go there. What types of good things have you heard? I get a good feeling from the school, from the contact I've had with them, my interview, and walking around the campus. Not much to be found online about their reputation though, so I'm wondering what else you might know about them. Also, from browsing this forum, I see that it is really important for a PsyD program that it be respected by those in the field and have a good reputation, so that your opportunities are not limited during your studies and after graduation. Any thoughts on this?

Anyone feel free to chime in. Thanks!

I've worked with a couple of people that graduated from the master's program, and while I can't remember exactly what they said, I do remember positive reviews of the faculty and general praise for the school. While it's true that not all schools are built equally when applying for internships and such, once you've graduated and become licensed it's not the biggest deal. Clearly, going to a more prestigious school can provide more prestigious post graduation opportunity, but you can do what you want, no matter what school you attend. Once your diploma and license are on the wall, they're won't be very many clients asking to see what school you went to.

 

[Franklphile]

Glad to see that what you've heard matches up with the positives I've heard from a student in their PsyD program. I haven't heard anything negative, which is a good sign. Thank you for your input, and good point you make about the license/diploma. I just don't want my options to be limited if I decide to go a non-private practice route, as I have a number of interests.

 

[Franklphile]

I've continued to hear mostly positives about this program. Anyone else have input on this? I've been accepted into the Alliant CSPP San Diego Psy.D. as well, but I have heard much more positive things about Immaculata. Also, the fact that Immaculata's PsyD is university based is a plus.

 

[futureapppsy2]

^
I'd defiantly go for Immaculata over Alliant--smaller, university-based, better rep, captive APPIC internship (though APA will keep more doors open professionally), lower COL living area, etc.

 

[Franklphile]

All good points. Also, I've been told by staff that there are some opportunities, though limited, for scholarships and assistantships after the first year. A few assistantships even pay full tuition.

Futureapppsy2, I like the sound of that captive APPIC internship, and what I was told about it seems positive. I believe it is still possible to obtain an APA internship, as you mentioned in a previous post, but you are guaranteed APPIC through their consortium. Is this how you understand it as well?

 

[futureapppsy2]

All good points. Also, I've been told by staff that there are some opportunities, though limited, for scholarships and assistantships after the first year. A few assistantships even pay full tuition.

Futureapppsy2, I like the sound of that captive APPIC internship, and what I was told about it seems positive. I believe it is still possible to obtain an APA internship, as you mentioned in a previous post, but you are guaranteed APPIC through their consortium. Is this how you understand it as well?

Yes, that's how I understand it, too, but you may want to check with the school regarding if there are any rules on how you have to rank the captive internship on your rank order list for the match.

 

[Franklphile]

Yes, that's how I understand it, too, but you may want to check with the school regarding if there are any rules on how you have to rank the captive internship on your rank order list for the match.

Thanks for the good advice.

 

[kitkat492]

1 year late sorry! Immaculata does have grad assistantships about 8 per year and they also offer scholarships.

Students also get APA internships.

I have an assistantship and just placed into an APA internship for Neuropsych.