Psychology Department

Department Chairperson: Randal P. Quevillon, Ph.D.
Director of the Clinical Psychology Program: Elizabeth Boyd, Ph.D.
Director of the Human Factors Program: Jan Berkhout, Ph.D.
Director of the Disaster Mental Health Institute: Gerard Jacobs, Ph.D.
Director of the Psychological Services Center: Stephanie Fuller, Ph.D.

Department of Psychology
South Dakota Union, Room 205
414 East Clark Street
Vermillion, SD 57069
Phone: 605-677-5351 (Psychology)
Phone: 605-677-5353 (Clinical Psychology)
Phone: 605-677-5351 (Human Factors Psychology)
psychology@usd.edu
www.usd.edu/arts-and-sciences/psychology

FACULTY

Professor Emerita:

Barbara Arneson Yutrzenka, Ph.D., University of North Dakota. Specialization: Professional Ethics, Integrated Health Care, Administration, Diversity in Training.

Professors:

Jan Berkhout, Director of the Human Factors Program, Ph.D., University of Chicago. Specialization: Ergonomics.
Elizabeth Boyd, Director of the Clinical Psychology Program, Ph.D., University of Houston. Specialization: Family Systems, Native American Mental Health.
Gerard Jacobs, Director of the Disaster Mental Health Institute, Ph.D., University of South Florida. Specialization: Disaster Psychology.
Randal P. Quevillon, Department Chairperson, Ph.D., University of Montana. Specialization: Rural Mental Health, Disaster Psychology.
Francis Schieber, Ph.D., University of Notre Dame. Specialization: Aging and Human Performance, Vision, and Transportation.
Jeffrey S. Simons, Ph.D., Syracuse University. Specialization: Substance Use and Emotional Regulation.
Cynthia J. Struckman-Johnson, Ph.D., University of Kentucky. Specialization: Social Psychology, Sexual Coercion, Transportation Safety.
Barbara Arneson Yutrzenka, Ph.D., University of North Dakota. Specialization: Professional Ethics, Integrated Health Care, Administration, Diversity in Training.
Xiao Tian Wang, Ph.D., New Mexico State University. Specialization: Physiological and Cognitive Psychology, Decision Making.

 Associate Professors:

S. Jean Caraway, Ph.D., University of North Dakota. Specialization: Traumatic Victimization and Cross-cultural Psychology.
Michael Granaas, Ph.D., University of Kansas. Specialization: Research Design and Quantitative Methods.
Douglas Peterson, Ph.D., Kansas State University. Specialization: Aviation Psychology, Training and Use of Complex Knowledge Structures.
Raluca Simons, Ph.D., University of South Dakota. Specialization: PTSD and Substance Use.
Holly Straub, Ph.D., Texas Tech University. Specialization: Cognitive Psychology.

 Assistant Professors:

Sara Lowmaster, Ph.D., Texas A&M University. Specialization: Assessment, Psychometerics, and Personality.
Jae Puckett, Ph.D., University of Massachussetts at Boston. Specialization: Minority Stress and Health in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Populations.

Lecturer:

Stephanie Fuller, Director of the Psychological Services Center, Ph.D., University of North Dakota.
Gemma D. Skillman, Ph.D., Syracuse University. Specialization: Health Disparities; Developmental and Cultural Factors in Adjustment.

DEGREE

Master of Arts (non-terminal), Plan A only  
Doctor of Philosophy 

SPECIALIZATION

Clinical Psychology 
       Specialization within Clinical Psychology: Clinical Disaster Psychology

Human Factors Psychology

CERTIFICATE

Disaster Mental Health 

Program Description

The Department of Psychology offers the state’s most complete and fully implemented Psychology program with degrees through the Doctoral level. In 1961, the Department of Psychology began training students at the Master’s level. Soon to follow, in 1964, the Department of Psychology was authorized to offer the Ph.D. degree. The specialty areas within the Department’s graduate programs are Clinical Psychology and Human Factors Psychology. The Clinical Disaster Psychology Specialty within the Clinical Psychology Program and the Graduate Certificate Program in Disaster Mental Health were both approved in January of 1999. Also in 1999, the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students (APAGS) named USD’s Psychology Department the Department of the Year.

The Clinical Psychology Program offers graduate training leading to the M.A. (non-terminal*) and Ph.D. degrees. The program adheres to the scientist-practitioner model of training. The American Psychological Association (APA) has continuously accredited the program since 1971. In 1994, the Clinical Psychology Program received the Outstanding Training Program award by the National Alliance of the Mentally Ill, and in 2002, the Program received the John R. Williams award for its significant contributions in service to Native American students at USD.

The Disaster Mental Health Institute (DMHI) is affiliated with the Department of Psychology and the Clinical Psychology Program. The Institute is committed to the emerging field of Disaster Psychology, which involves applying psychological knowledge to assist persons affected by natural and technological disasters, terrorist attacks, public health emergencies, and other large-scale traumatic events. The DMHI offers a Graduate Certificate in Disaster Mental Health, which is available through online courses. The University of South Dakota is the first university in the nation to offer a full curriculum in Clinical Disaster Psychology and the first to offer this approved Doctoral specialty.

The Human Factors Psychology Program offers graduate training leading to the M.A. (non-terminal*) and Ph.D. degree, with specialization in the broad area of Human Factors Psychology. Human Factors involves the discovery of information regarding human behavior, abilities and limitations, and applies these characteristics to the design of systems, tasks, machines, tools, and environments to enhance efficiency, safety, and productivity in their use.

 *Note. The M.A. in Psychology is not offered as a terminal degree. It is earned in the process of completing the Ph.D. degree requirements in the two specialty areas. The exception to this is the M.A. earned as part of the joint JD/MA Program-see Law (J.D.) 

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS (Clinical Psychology and Human Factors)

1. Completed Graduate Application form found at: https://usd-web.usd.edu/apps/grad-app/login.cfm and a non-refundable application fee of $35.
2. One official transcript verifying receipt of an undergraduate degree and previous graduate credit (in English or with translation) must accompany an application. Official transcript of all academic work at the undergraduate and graduate levels are required for all students. The USD Graduate School and/or academic departments retain the right to require an Educational Credential Evaluators/World Education Services (ECE/WES) evaluation for a student if such an evaluation is deemed necessary.
3. Baccalaureate degree must be from an institution with full regional accreditation for that degree. A minimum undergraduate cumulative GPA of 3.0 on conferred degree and/or graduate cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better, based on a 4.0 scale, on all graduate coursework is required for full admission. Each graduate program may admit students on provisional status per university policy.
4. Applicants with degrees from countries other than the United States who have obtained an undergraduate or graduate degree from a regionally accredited American college or university are not required to submit an approved English proficiency exam score. For all other applicants, a minimum score of 79 on the Internet-Based TOEFL (iBT) or 550 on the Paper-Based TOEFL (PBT), a minimum IELTS score of 6.0, or a minimum PTE score of 53 is required for graduate admission. Applicants from or who have obtained an undergraduate or graduate degree from these English-speaking countries (UK, Australia, Canada [except Quebec], Ireland, or New Zealand) are not required to submit an approved English proficiency exam score if their academic records indicate that English was the classroom language for the majority of their schoolwork.
5. Applicants are required to submit a statement of purpose.

Additional Program Admission Requirements:

6. The GRE General test is required. There is no minimum score required; the scores are considered along with the other application materials. Applicants generally score at or above the 50th percentile on the GRE general subtests.
7. Two letters of recommendations are required
8. Applicants should have a minimum of 18 credit hours of undergraduate psychology coursework, with a distribution among standard course work in general psychology.
9. For students who are entering the Human Factors program, a prerequisite class in calculus is strongly recommended.
10. Applicants for the Clinical Psychology program must complete the supplemental application located at: http://www.usd.edu/arts-and-sciences/clinical-psychology/guidelines. For more information on the application review and interview selection process in Clinical Psychology, please visit: http://www.usd.edu/arts-and-sciences/clinical-psychology/application.

Admission decisions are made separately by the Clinical and Human Factors graduate programs. It is strongly recommended that prospective students contact the program director for specific program requirements and recommendations. Students admitted to the Clinical Psychology Program may choose to pursue the specialization in Clinical Disaster Psychology.

Application Deadlines

• December 15 is the deadline for the Clinical Psychology Program.
• February 15 is the deadline for the Human Factors Psychology Program.
• Newly admitted students for both programs begin in the fall semester.

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS (Disaster Mental Health Graduate Certificate)

1. Completed Graduate Application form found at: https://usd-web.usd.edu/apps/grad-app/login.cfm and a non-refundable application fee of $35.
2. One official transcript verifying receipt of an undergraduate degree and previous graduate credit (in English or with translation) must accompany an application. Official transcript of all academic work at the undergraduate and graduate levels are required for international students. The USD Graduate School and/or academic departments retain the right to require an Educational Credential Evaluators/World Education Services (ECE/WES) evaluation for a student if such an evaluation is deemed necessary.
3. A minimum undergraduate cumulative GPA of 3.0 on conferred degree and/or graduate cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better, based on a 4.0 scale, on all graduate coursework is required for full admission. Each graduate program may admit students on provisional status per university policy.
4. Applicants with degrees from countries other than the United States who have obtained an undergraduate or graduate degree from a regionally accredited American college or university are not required to submit an approved English proficiency exam score. For all other applicants, a minimum score of 79 on the Internet-Based TOEFL (iBT) or 550 on the Paper-Based TOEFL (PBT), a minimum IELTS score of 6.0, or a minimum PTE score of 53 is required for graduate admission. Applicants from or who have obtained an undergraduate or graduate degree from these English-speaking countries (UK, Australia, Canada [except Quebec], Ireland, or New Zealand) are not required to submit an approved English proficiency exam score if their academic records indicate that English was the classroom language for the majority of their schoolwork.
5. Applicants are required to submit a statement of purpose or goal statement.

Additional Program Admission Requirements:

6. Three (3) professional letters of recommendation are required.

Subject to faculty approval, those who do not meet all of the criteria above may be admitted on a provisional basis.