Challenging Convention, Championing Change
At the Graduate School of Professional Psychology, our goal is to transform the way we think about and approach mental health and wellness. We do so through groundbreaking academic programs and experiential training that aims to ensure we can better meet the needs of the communities we serve.
We are dedicated to developing exceptional practitioners and scholars by offering a well-rounded approach to education. Every single one of our programs blends valuable academic offerings, intensive field-based training, cutting-edge applied research, and constructive community engagement.
Academic Excellence
Our academic programs are rooted in our history of service and have developed over time to meet the growing needs of society. In 1976, the University of Denver Graduate School of Professional Psychology (GSPP) became one of the first schools in the country to offer a Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) in Clinical Psychology. Since 1979, our inaugural degree has maintained accreditation by the American Psychological Association and has become one of the most competitive and comprehensive programs in the field of professional psychology.
As our school has grown, and continues to grow, we believe it is vital to adapt to the demand for mental health and wellness professionals, as well as psychological expertise in other fields to improve the overall human experience. That is what led to the creation of our master's level training programs in four unique areas: Forensic Psychology, International Disaster Psychology: Trauma & Global Mental Health, Sport and Performance Psychology and Sport Coaching (online). In addition to our core programs, we offer specialized coursework and training so students can tailor their education to align with their professional goals.
7 on-site training clinics
200K+ service hours in GSPP clinics
350+ people served annually in our clinics
Experiential Training
We're committed to serving the public good as an essential community resource while training our students to help communities in need. In addition to our on-site clinics where supervised students hold more than 16,000 appointments a year, we partner with leading organizations in the mental health field. This guarantees that our students get hands-on experience as mental health providers before graduation.
Cutting-Edge Research
In addition to training programs, our students take advantage of research opportunities made available by our campus resources, from our exceptional faculty and through our external partnerships. GSPP’s students and faculty are currently working on research projects in topics ranging from traumatic brain injury studies to competency restoration and identity-based violence.
Community Engagement
All of the work that we do is meant to better our communities locally, nationally and globally. That is why we find it crucial to stay engaged and aware of how our practice affects those communities. We do this by interacting with policies that affect our field and by providing our students with opportunities to advocate on behalf of the communities we serve. Through community engagement, we can ensure that our coursework, training and resources are relevant to the needs of society.
An essential part of our commitment to the public good is maintaining, encouraging and increasing diversity within the psychological profession. All of our students work within culturally diverse communities as part of their practicum. By foregrounding diversity, we're able to help our students recognize the vast array of psychological needs and approaches required by different communities. The knowledge developed through this work allows us to continue improving our academic and research offerings.
Learn more about our clinics
We offer a wide variety of specialties and services through our training clinics and serve populations ranging from Service-members and Veterans to expecting parents and little ones.
