Health Psychology Graduate Certificate
About the Program
Provide health psychology coursework to a variety of students enrolled in graduate study. Health psychology is involved in many professions to include psychology, educational psychology, allied health professions, exercise science, sociology, social welfare, and many others. Today’s health care is an interprofessional approach to service and health psychology will be part of patient contact and research being conducted in all health areas. Researchers and providers that have education and training in health psychology are in high demand with the changes in health care emerging. Our certificate will supply broad and specific education in health psychology theory, research and clinical applications.
Who Would Benefit from a Health Psychology Certificate?
From the very beginning, Health Psychology has always been a “hybrid” discipline. Following from those interdisciplinary roots, the Health Psychology Certificate would welcome students from a broad range of programs who have a variety of educational goals.
Students in Health Service Delivery Programs:
Course offerings provide students the option of selecting classes that could be used to inform practice with patients with chronic or acute health problems. Practicum training is NOT offered, but didactic work can be used to inform training offered in other programs that prepare students to deliver mental or physical health related services (e.g., Counseling Psychology, Social Welfare, Physical Therapy, and Nursing).
Students interested in Health Promotion:
Course offerings provide students the option of selecting classes that could be used by students interested in careers related to health promotion or primary prevention, or careers that involve communication about health care (e.g., Health Sport and Exercise Science, Public Policy, Health Care Administration).
Students interested in Transdisciplinary Research:
Course offerings provide students the option of selecting classes with an applied focus in other domains of social science (e.g., Social Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Quantitative Psychology, Philosophy/Ethics).
Why choose the Certificate?
Our certificate program can serve a wide range of graduate students at the University of Kansas as well as outside graduate and non-degree seeking students. One of the major demands right now across disciplines is interprofessional training and development. We hope this program will bring together persons seeking graduate education across many disciplines who will learn and work interprofessionally in a variety of health care settings. Health care is moving to “health homes” where patients will receive integrated behavioral health care especially for chronic health conditions. This certificate program will support various graduate students in their pursuit of interprofessional education and training. Former students from a variety of graduate areas including clinical psychology take health psychology courses and indicate strong interest and desire to account for specialization in the area of health psychology.
Application Deadline:
Applications for the Health Psychology Graduate Certificate Program are accepted on a rolling basis.
Application Process and Required Materials:
Psychology department graduate students who wish to pursue a Health Psychology Graduate Certificate should consult with Dr. Hamilton. The Department will request that the College add the certificate to a graduate degree-seeking student’s plan. All other applicants must fill out an online application.
Current non-psychology department KU graduate students must include the following:
- Statement of one’s interest in Health Psychology
- Current Degree Progress Report (DPR) or Advising Report
- Letter of Support from student's home department
Non-KU graduate student applicants must include the following:
- One letter of recommendation from persons familiar with your academic work or potential for graduate school
- Transcripts from all institutions from which a degree was obtained, or any institutions attended post-bachelors. A GPA of 3.0 or higher in undergraduate work is required for admission. Copies of official transcripts that you have opened may be uploaded to the application online and used for admissions consideration. If you are admitted, sealed, or official electronic transcripts showing degree conferral, if applicable, must be provided by the end of your first semester at KU. Send official, sealed transcripts to:
KU Visitor Center
1502 Iowa St.
Lawrence, KS 66045
- Applicants who indicate English is not their native language: Proof of English proficiency, as required by the Office of Graduate Studies. Please send TOEFL and IELTS scores to KU instition code 6871.
