Application Instructions
Please carefully follow the application procedures listed below and those outlined by the Graduate School. You are responsible for ensuring that your application is complete and all materials are received by the deadline (December 1st) by both the Graduate School and the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences.
Applicants should first review the Graduate School application instructions and then complete the online application form.
Below are more details about the requirements for the application:
1. Graduate School Online Application Form
2. Application Fee: $65 - click here for more information on opportunities for fee waivers.
3. Transcript(s): Official transcripts from ALL institutions you have attended must be sent directly from the colleges to the Office of Graduate Admissions.
4. Three Recommendation Letters: Three letters of recommendation from academic sources are required by the Clinical Psychology program. Applicants will enter information for each for their letter writers in the online application form and the system will send each letter writer a link to submit your recommendation.
5. Mentor Rankings: Our program is a research-based, scientist practitioner focused program and students are admitted based on a mentorship model. The online application form will prompt you to indicate your preferences for up to 3 possible research mentors (ranked 1st, 2nd, and 3rd). Please only list the name(s) of faculty who will be reviewing applications in this cycle: https://louisville.edu/psychology/graduate/clinical/admissions
6. Current Curriculum Vitae: A current CV is a required part of the application. Your CV should be uploaded under “Upload Materials”, “Resume or Curriculum Vitae (CV).” At minimum, your CV should include the following sections (as relevant based on your experiences; exclude any sections in which you do not have experience): Education, Publications, Presentations, Honors/Awards/Scholarships/Grants, Research Experience, Clinical Experience, Teaching Experience, Service, Technical Skills.
7. Personal Statement: A Personal Statement should be uploaded with your application materials under “Upload Materials”, “Personal Statement”. This document is a Statement of Purpose and is expected to be 2-3 pages. The statement should describe the applicant's background, research experience and interests, and career goals. Within your Statement, please address the professional and research experiences that led you to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and how our program and mentorship fit with your goals.
8. Interest & Experience Essays: Four brief essays regarding your interests, research experiences, clinical experiences, and career goals are required. We know that the information in these essays may overlap with information you have provided in your personal statement, but we include these essays to ensure that faculty have the necessary information to evaluate whether your experience and goals align with our program and faculty labs. You may duplicate text from other application materials such as your Statement and CV. These essays will be submitted via the checklist after you submit your application. The questions can be seen here, including the word limit for each essay. We appreciate your taking the time to respond to each of these questions in the application.
9. Graduate Record Exam (GRE): The GRE is not requiredfor the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program.
10. TOEFL/English Proficiency: Official TOEFL scores must be submitted by those for whom English is not their native language. For more information about the English Proficiency/TOEFL requirements, click here.
11. International Students: Additional instructions for international students can be found here.
12. Education & Life Experiences Essays: The Graduate School requires responses to two of seven provided prompts in the areas of leadership, community engagement, resilience and adaptability, accountability and responsibility, self-motivation, capacity for self-improvement, and inclusive excellence. The full list of prompts can be seen here.
13. Confirmation of state of residence if enrolled in program: You will be asked on the application if you intend to live in Kentucky during your first term of enrollment in our program, regardless of the state in which you currently live. This question is asked given federal regulations (see more information below) to ensure that applicants are aware that requirements for state licensure vary by state. Our program is an on-campus, in-person program. Our students typically live in Kentucky throughout the on-campus portion of program (usually 4-5 years prior to completing their one-year predoctoral internship in or out of state, depending on where students match). Unless you are planning to live out of state and commute in for our on-campus program, most applicants should note their intention to live in Kentucky (select Yes) in the first term of enrollment in our program. If you do not plan to live in Kentucky in the first term of enrollment in the program, select No, and we will follow up with you to evaluate your plans and determine whether the program is available to you based on your location of study and/or your intended location of employment and licensure after completing the program.
Information about federal regulations:
Due to federal regulations, some programs designed to lead to professional licensure may not be available for offer to some applicants depending on the location of study during the first term of enrollment in the program.
For applicants to our on-campus programs who do not intend to live in Kentucky or in a state where the program meets educational requirements for licensure, it is strongly advised that prospective students review the list of states and U.S. territories where UofL programs meet educational requirements for professional licensure available at https://louisville.edu/oapa/licensure-information.
By submitting your completed application and paying the application fee, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to these terms.
14. Supplemental Materials: Please provide information regarding your quantitative/research and writing skills. You may upload supplemental materials such as a description of relevant courses/trainings, capstone or Honors projects, research presentations, publications or writing samples with your application materials. These materials will be submitted via the checklist after you submit your application. Your supplemental materials should be uploaded under “Upload Materials”, “Writing Sample” for any writing and “Other” for any other documents (though either is fine for any type of document). If necessary, combine documents into a single PDF for the file upload.
Fee Waivers
Graduate School Fee Waivers: Students who fall into the following categories may request a waiver by calling (502) 852-6495 to determine eligibility: applicants in active duty military, veterans and active Peace Corp/AmeriCorps; receiving government public assistance through programs such as Aid to Families with Dependent Care (AFDC), Medicaid, Food Stamps, or Supplemental Security Insurance (SSI); students who attend minority serving institutions (application fee waiver is reviewed on case-by-case request); students who participate in Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP), TRIO, McNair Scholars, Fulbright Scholars, and UofL Cardinal Covenant; and applicants who attend the UofL Graduate School sponsored visitation day, held in the spring, and students who attend regional and national recruiting events where they meet with UofL graduate school representatives. Fee waiver applications due December 1st.
Department Fee Waivers: Students who do not fall into the above categories can apply for a limited number of Department fee waivers. Click the following link for more information and the Department fee waiver application: https://redcap.link/18nrpc3v. See the fee waiver application for more details. Fee waiver applications due November 1st.
Typically, students will receive offers of admission before April 1. Assistantships and fellowships are also normally offered before April 1. Applicants are under no obligation to respond to offers of admission or financial support prior to the decision date of April 15. Additional admissions and financial offers may be made after the April 15th decision date if one or more slots become available.
Questions
Should you have any further questions regarding program-specific requirements, please contact:
Maggie Leahy
Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences
University of Louisville
maggie.leahy@louisville.edu