Prospective Graduate Students
For an overview of lab values and policies, please refer to the POIS lab manual.
I will be reviewing graduate student applications for fall 2026 admission.
Deadline: December 1, 2025
Read more about Clinical Psychological Science Ph.D. program at the University of Louisville on our website. Application instructions can be found in our program brochure. For more information about our doctoral programs, consider attending the virtual Information Session on Oct 8th from 5:30 to 6:30pm EDT organized by Drs. Sara Bufferd and Marci DeCaro. Please note that application fee waivers are available from the university.
If you need resources for preparing your application (or deciding if you should apply in the first place), see Dr. Mitch Prinstein's Uncensored Advice for Applying to Graduate School in Clinical Psychology and PsychResearchList. The Psychology Ph.D. Wiki lists Ph.D. programs that are accepting students this cycle. For resources for your personal/research statement, check out the Application Statement Feedback Program and examples of personal statements compiled by Drs. Craig Rodriguez-Seijas and Jessica Schleider.
FAQs
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I suggest reading our lab manual to see if my mentorship style and expectations align with what you would like to get out of graduate school. If you have specific questions that are not answered here or in the lab manual, please email me. You don’t have to email to say that you’re applying to the lab—it won’t affect your chances in any way.
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Because I cannot meet with every applicant, out of fairness, I will not meet with any applicant. You are welcome to email me to express interest, but it will have zero impact on your application. Most of your questions about the lab will likely be answered in our lab manual.
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I receive (too) many emails and don’t have the bandwidth to reply to every single one. I usually prioritize emails, so I’m more likely to reply to those that require an urgent response (e.g., clinical issues) or that contain specific questions. My non-response is not a sign of disinterest; it’s a sign that I have too many emails and not enough time. Even if you don’t receive a response, if you are interested in working with me, please apply to our Ph.D. program.
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For information on program sequence, course requirements, funding, etc., refer to the program brochure. In short, the Ph.D. program is designed to take 6 years, with 5 years on campus and a 1-year predoctoral internship. Students are guaranteed funding for the 5 years through Graduate Teaching Assistantships, Graduate Research Assistantships, Graduate Fellowships and Diversity Scholarships, and Agency Placements (stipends are $26,000 over 12 months).
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In terms of research interests, broadly speaking, someone who wants to do intervention research focused on processes of change and/or minoritized and underserved groups would be a good fit. If you have specific interest in OCD, perfectionism, ACT, or PBT, we will also likely find some overlap. Because this is a research-oriented lab, if you are primarily interested in clinical work (or even 50/50), you would not be a good fit for the lab. In addition, someone who shares similar values to the ones listed in the lab manual will probably find the work we do meaningful.
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I use a scoring rubric to evaluate applicants. Criteria I consider include fit with respect to research interests and mentorship style, critical thinking skills, and interpersonal skills. Ultimately, fit is probably the most important factor I weigh, especially in the first round of review, so strong applicants whose interests do not align with mine will likely not be invited for interviews.
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These questions are answered in detail in the Expectations section of the lab manual.