Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) with Psychological Services for Spanish Speaking Populations certificate (PSSSP)

The Psy.D. program at Our Lady of the Lake has from its inception focused on training practitioners who demonstrate a high level of competence in providing psychological services to diverse client populations. The Psychological Services for Spanish Speaking Populations (PSSSP) was implemented in 1997 as an optional specialization for students in the MS in Psychology and Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) programs or as a postgraduate certificate program. Courses added to the curriculum for the PSSSP program included a technical Spanish course taught by a faculty member from the Spanish Department (PSYC 5377G Professional/Technical Spanish), a course focused on service delivery in Spanish (PSYC 8331 Language and Psychosocial Variables in Interviews and Assessments with Latinos), and a culture and language immersion course (PSYC 8430 Sociocultural Foundations of Counseling Mexicans and Mexican Americans). Two courses that are required for all PsyD students (PSYC 8356 Normal Family Processes Across Cultures & PSYC 9356 Latino Psychology) are also required for M.S. and postgraduate students enrolled in the PSSSP certificate program. In addition, students must spend a minimum of 8 hours per week at a bilingual practicum site for four consecutive semesters, including one semester of supervised supervision of Spanish language service (PsyD students only). Optional practica in México or other Spanish speaking countries are available.