The Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) program was born out of a partnership between Missouri State University and Burrell Behavioral Health, which was announced in early 2022.
Dr. Dana Paliliunas, associate professor in the School of Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences and PsyD program director, could not be more thrilled to finally have the first cohort on campus.
“We’ve been planning for years now, so having students on campus is so exciting; we get to see it all come to fruition rather than just planning what it’s going to be,” Paliliunas said.
About the PsyD faculty and staff
Leading the way is Dr. Paul Deal, school director and the psychology department head.
Paliliunas and several other core faculty members in the department of psychology have been building the program and brainstorming for about three years.
Other members of leadership include:
- Dr. Ann Rost, director of clinical training.
- Dr. Brad Powers, director of clinical training.
Current updates and goals
All energy is going toward creating a great experience for current students, building a strong sense of community and purpose within the cohort and checking in with students as they begin the journey to their five-year degree.
“Every year what we’ll do is figure out what we did this year that we can do better the next,” Paliliunas said.
The first PsyD graduate student committee is officially formed. This committee comprises student-elected representatives to work with program leadership and ensure students’ voices are heard.
“We’re doing everything with this cohort for the first time. There’s a lot of planning, preparing and organizing, but now also putting things into action,” said Paliliunas.
The current goal is to seek accreditation within the next few years.
Accreditation is a long process involving a lot of paperwork, transferring everything being done in the program to a package that is shared with the American Psychological Association — the accrediting body. The entire process will likely take at least a full year to complete.
Information for students
New cohorts for the program will be added in rotation every fall, with application deadlines for the next year due Dec. 15, 2023. The review and interview process will take place in the spring.