National University

What you'll study

The curriculum emphasizes psychological theory, research methods, and dissertation research with opportunities to pursue one of ten specializations: Counseling Psychology, General Psychology, Gerontology, Health Psychology, Industrial/Organizational Psychology, Psychology of Gender and Sexual Fluidity, Social Policy and Behavioral Health Administration, Sport and Performance Psychology, Substance-Related and Addictive Disorders, and Trauma and Disaster Relief.

• Doctoral preparation course covering academic communities, professional standards, critical thinking, scholarly reading and writing, and initial research topic development.
• Scholarly and academic writing course focused on APA style, literature search and synthesis, critical review of research, and ethical scholarly communication.
• Research methods course addressing quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods approaches, research ethics, proposal development, and preparation for dissertation work.
• Introductory statistics course covering descriptive and inferential statistics to provide a working knowledge of statistical concepts used in psychology.
• Advanced measurement/testing course options covering test and scale construction, measurement error, reliability and validity, and applications to students’ research interests; an alternative I/O-focused course covers common cognitive and personality assessments.
• Specialization and elective courses to tailor study to chosen emphasis; research, internship, and dissertation sequences conducted in 12-week courses.

Entry requirements

Applicants must have a conferred master’s degree from an accredited institution. The university requires official transcripts for admission and for any transfer credits. Up to 12 semester credit hours of graduate coursework completed at an accredited institution while enrolled in a doctoral program may be accepted for transfer if earned with a grade of B or better. Degree conferral requires a minimum 3.0 GPA (letter grade B) and at least 48 credit hours completed through National University.

Career prospects

The program prepares students for academic and research roles by developing dissertation-level research skills and potential publishable research. Graduates who complete the dissertation and defend successfully meet the university’s doctoral degree requirements that support careers in higher education, research settings, applied psychology leadership, and specialized practice areas aligned with the chosen specialization.

Scholarships & funding angle (general)

The course material does not list specific scholarships or funding, but doctoral students should explore institutional aid, transfer credit reduction (up to 12 semester hours), employer tuition assistance, and external fellowships or research grants to offset costs. Students must meet all financial obligations before diploma issuance.