Financial Support
The department offers a financial package that funds the five years that a student is in the graduate program. This support package combines Research Assistant positions and Graduate Student Instructor (GSI) positions for a total of 5 years of support with health insurance. As a Research Assistant, students engage in their own research and research in collaboration with their faculty mentor in Psychology. The financial offer is equivalent for all students that are admitted into any of the six areas of psychology with a few differences for the students in Clinical Psychology. The graduate program is composed of two phases: 1) the first two years when a student is taking courses and acquiring specific intellectual and research skills necessary to become a candidate for the Ph.D.; and 2) years 3-5 when a student is conducting dissertation research and strengthening other skills. Similarly, the support package is in two phases. During the first two years in the graduate program, a student is supported as a Research Assistant for two academic terms, as well as over the summers, and as a GSI for two terms, usually in the second year. Students are also eligible for a stipend during a third summer. Support for subsequent years in the program is contingent on having achieved candidacy. The Clinical Psychology Program requires that students complete an internship appointment at either: a) the University of Michigan Internship Consortium, or b) at an externship outside of the Consortium. The fulltime internship placement takes place during years 4 or 5. Students are expected to teach during Years 2-5 for a total teaching load of 5 or 6 terms, and should consult their advisor and the Student Academic Affairs Office in order to successfully coordinate the teaching and internship terms. Students who choose to apply for a clinical externship in the National Match may be required to GSI six terms due to the extended time to complete the degree. The department will provide students with two terms of support as Research Fellows during the candidacy years. When those terms occur will depend on each student’s teaching and internship arrangements.
External Fellowship Support
While support is guaranteed as described for 5 years, all eligible students are asked to apply for funding from NSF during their first year of graduate school or other sources of funding throughout their graduate career. If a student receives funding from an external foundation or institute (NSF, NIMH, etc.) the department can combine funds in a way that will enhance the overall support package and reduce the teaching requirement. An undergraduate who is seriously contemplating study at the doctoral level is well advised to explore the many sources of individual fellowship support available to outstanding students. No later than the end of their junior year, students should consult counselors at their undergraduate colleges or universities regarding fellowships available from both federal and private sources. Students who receive an individual fellowship may use it at any university to which they have been admitted. Many of these fellowships provide several years of support.
Several local clinical agencies are joined in a "Captive U-M Internship Consortium" which offers a number of internships to Clinical Program students. These are the University Center for the Child and Family, the Psychological Clinic, University Counseling and Psychological Services, the St. Joseph Mercy Hospital Outpatient Behavioral Services- all settings with a commitment to the training of University of Michigan clinical students. Remuneration for scholarships, internships, and assistantships is comparable at any given level of the graduate program. In addition to the array of special awards and fellowships potentially available to all department graduate students, there currently are three primarily or exclusively available to Clinical Program students: (1) The Edward S. Bordin Graduate Research Award, to support student research in psychotherapy processes and evaluations of therapeutic interventions (2) The Naomi E. Lohr Fellowship, an annual award supporting a student’s internship year within the University of Michigan Internship Consortium (3) The Eric Bermann Research Award, to facilitate a student’s doctoral dissertation research on family processes, broadly conceived.
We would like to encourage all prospective graduate students to become familiar with the Clinical faculty and their research interests. Please refer to the clinical psychology website under faculty, click on their name and you will see a short description of their research interests and representative publications. If you would like to know more about the work of a particular faculty member, feel free to email them directly. Copies of the articles listed are available from each individual, although you should be able to find most of them in your library.
