The department traced its roots to the 1950s when the clinical psychology program shared teaching responsibilities with the psychology department in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. With the college’s creation of the Department of Clinical Psychology in 1962, the department established its place in the university’s Health Science Center. This unique location makes it possible for our students to be in direct contact with patients in the health care environment beginning in their first year and to be immersed in the settings in which they will later work.
The department has always been a leader in the integration of clinical and research techniques. In the 1960s and 1970s, faculty members were on the leading edge of research in neuropsychology, pediatric psychology, vision and cognition, and community mental health. The department hosted a national conference on scientist-practitioner education in the 1990s that set standards for education and training that still define the field. Today, we continue that tradition of groundbreaking work in health, pediatric, and neuro-psychology.
DEPARTMENT MILESTONES
| YEAR | MILESTONE |
|---|---|
| 1953 | Doctoral program receives its first accreditation from the American Psychological Association |
| 1962 | Louis Cohen appointed chair |
| 1963 | Internship program is first of its kind in Florida to receive accreditation |
| 1976 | Administrative transfer of the joint clinical psychology Ph.D. from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences to the College of Health Related Professions |
| 1988 | Department hosts the first national conference in pediatric psychology research |
| 1994 | Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention established |
| 2001 | American Psychological Association of Graduate Students names the UF department of clinical and health psychology the 2001 Department of the Year |
| 2012 | Department receives Award to Advance Interdisciplinary Education and Training in Psychology from the American Psychological Association Board of Educational Affairs |
| 2015 | Dr. Glenn Smith named department chair |