APAC Accreditation Assessment Summary Report

Transcription

1 APAC Accreditation Assessment Summary Report Higher Education Provider Australian National University, Research School of Psychology Date of Determination 8 October 2012 s Version June 2010 ver 10 Programs of Study Assessed for Accreditation Bachelor of Science (Psychology) Bachelor of Science Bachelor of Arts Graduate Diploma of Psychological Studies Bachelor of Science (Honours Psychology) Bachelor of Science (Honours) Bachelor of Arts (Honours Psychology) Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) Bachelor of Philosophy (Honours) Master of Clinical Psychology Doctor of Psychology (Clinical) Doctor of Philosophy (Clinical Psychology) This is a summary of the outcomes of an APAC accreditation assessment of the Research School of Psychology at the Australian National University and its programs of study. This summary highlights selected key features of the assessment. Comprehensive analysis of the assessment is contained in the full APAC Assessment Team Report. The Research School of Psychology in the Australian National University (ANU) is located in the College of Medicine, Biology and Environment. It should be noted that its status within the University has just been elevated to that of Research School which means that the School has much more autonomy than previously, and this status recognises the research productivity of the School. The School meets all Academic Staffing s. The School occupies its own building situated in the Science Precinct of the ANU campus. The building houses staff and postgraduate student offices, specialized research laboratory space, two small lecture theatres, three general tutorial rooms (two largely devoted to honours and clinical students), three large undergraduate laboratories (one with wet lab facilities), a dedicated computer laboratory, and good workshop facilities. An on-campus psychology clinic is also housed within the building with reception, consulting, teaching and office space. A very comprehensive test library is kept within the School. Multiple copies of major cognitive, intellectual and personality tests are held, together with single copies of many more clinical and special purpose tests. Access to general library facilities is excellent.

2 The physical resources available to the School are of very high quality. All relevant s are met. However careful management of space is required and there is a need for further space if the School is to grow to its full potential. There are appropriate program of study outlines which are regularly updated, and all undergraduate courses contain laboratory training. There is adequate access to staff, and generally assessed work is marked and returned in a timely manner although some students were concerned about the delay in receiving feedback from some assignments. Appropriate student evaluations are obtained. The School meets the relevant Teaching Materials and Methods s. The undergraduate3-year sequence Bachelor s degrees, the Graduate Diploma of Psychological Studies and the first three years of the Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) and Bachelor of Philosophy offer excellent training in the scientific study of psychology, and clearly meet the s on course content including covering the graduate attributes, and with appropriate practical work. The assessors inspected marked samples of students work and were able to verify that there were appropriate procedures for maintenance of s. The School offers three fourth year programs (Bachelor of Science (Honours Psychology), Bachelor of Science (Honours), Bachelor of Arts (Honours Psychology)). The objective of providing an integrated and comprehensive education in the discipline of psychology is met by the School s fourth year programs. Their content covers the key empirical and applied aspects of the discipline. The fourth year is 100% psychology. The coursework component, accounting for 50% of the year s work and assessment, comprises three substantive units: Research Methods, Evidence Based Assessment and Intervention and an elective chosen from the three alternatives: Special Topics in Cognitive and Biological Psychology, Special Topics in Social Psychology, and Special Topics in Abnormal and Developmental Psychology. While there is no placement component, the School has argued that the elective units are structured to draw attention to the link between the science of psychology, to ethical issues and to application in the community.students complete an individually supervised research project based upon independent research resulting in a report of 12,000 words. Students undertaking the fourth year spoke highly of their experience, both with their coursework and with their research. They described a participatory style of learning which worked well for them. The learning was student-focussed with an emphasis upon the scientific nature of the discipline and critical skills. The School offers two four year sequences in psychology, the Bachelor of Psychology (Honours), and the Bachelor of Philosophy (Honours).The four year direct entry Bachelor of Psychology program is for elite students (ATAR s > 95) and guarantees entry to the honours year for students maintaining a grade average of 75 or better. For students who do not make the grade average there is the exit option of a BSc (Psychology). The program structure is identical to the BSc (Psychology), but students are encouraged to complete special topics units whenever possible. The ANU offers an individually mentored and advanced program of study for very elite students (ATAR s of 99.5 or better) leading to the degree of Bachelor of Philosophy. This is again a direct entry, four year program leading to an honours degree in psychology. Students must achieve a grade average above 80 in all units, and first class honours must finally be achieved, or an exit degree (in this case, the BSc (Psychology) or the BSc (Psychology Honours) depending on years of study) is awarded. Once more, the core 3 year sequence is identical to that of the BSc (Psychology) but six electives (two in first year, two in second year, and two in third year) must consist of Advanced Studies units in psychology. The fourth year component of this degree and the Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) is common to all fourth year degrees.

3 The Research School of Psychology offers the Master of Clinical Psychology and Doctor of Philosophy (Clinical Psychology) which consist of a 5 th and 6 th year of professional education in clinical psychology. The Master of Clinical Psychology degree is primarily designed as the basic professional qualification in clinical psychology. The PhD (Clinical Psychology) is a four-year full-time program of study. The PhD (Clinical Psychology) degree is designed for those who have a particular interest in the academic and research aspects of clinical psychology. The first two years of the three programs of study (Masters in Clinical Psychology, PhD (Clinical Psychology) and the Doctor of Clinical Psychology are identical (i.e., coursework, placements and research), with the Doctor of Psychology (Clinical) students going on to a third year of additional coursework, placement and a larger research project. The final year of the Doctor of Psychology (Clinical) integrates research and placement where students undertake advanced professional training, coursework and undertake an applied research project. This highly innovative approach to integrating research and practice in the final year ensures that students have the opportunity to engage explicitly in the scientist-practitioner model of training. The rooms and teaching equipment provided by the University appear adequate to the teaching needs of the clinical program. Plans have been approved to refurbish the clinic space at the end of 2012 which will increase the capacity by two additional clinical interview rooms and provide contemporary audio visual digital recording facilities. This will enable more students to be seeing clients in the clinic and all students will undertake an initial placement in the psychology clinic. The site team noted that the School has documented clearly how the assessment of the core capabilities will be made, and are in the process of updating the log books, and designing templates for recording supervised practice etc. A range of assessments are utilised including written case reports, essays, oral presentations, and exams. The research project for the Masters degree involves a project is presented as a written report totalling 12,000 words which includes a literature review and empirical study presented as a journal manuscript. The PhD project and dissertation for the combined Masters and Clinical PhD (Doctor of Philosophy (Clinical Psychology) is equivalent to a standard PhD dissertation and involved 67% research component. The site team were able to inspect some of the coursework of the clinical students and reviewed program of study outlines and the clinical program handbook. The coursework generally links research and practical application. It was apparent that over the last couple of years standards in the training of the students had slipped, and accurate records of student hour, client hours and performance in placements had not been maintained at the high standard expected in postgraduate clinical training is therefore not met. With recent staff changes, including a newly appointed Clinic Manager, and two excellent clinical supervisors resident (0.5 each) in the clinic, appropriate policies, processes and procedures for ensuring that s are met are currently being developed, and should enhance the training. The accreditation outcomes are summarised in the attached Accreditation Summary Checklist.

4 APAC Accreditation Summary Checklist for use with APAC s June 2010 Version 10 Name of Higher Education Provider: Research School of Psychology, Australian National University Date of Site Visit: 4-6 July 2012 Accreditation of the AOU Rules Rule Section 5 Accreditation Status General Accreditation s The Psychology AOU Multi-Campus Institutions Degree Nomenclature Academic Staffing Resources Teaching and Materials: Managing the Learning Process Special Arrangements for Offshore Teaching Undergraduate 3-Year Sequence Program of Study Length Program of Study Structure Program of Study Content Assessment Awarding of Credit or Advance Standing Undergraduate Fourth Year Program of Study Entry Requirements Length Program of Study Structure Program of Study Content Research Methods and Professional and Research Ethics Research Project Assessment Awarding of Credit or Advance Standing

5 Four Year Sequence Program of Study Program of Study Structure /4.1.3 Program of Study Content (Years 1-4) / Research Methods and Professional and Research Ethics Research Project Assessment / Assessment of 4 th Year Research Project Awarding of Credit or Advance Standing Fifth and Sixth Year Masters Program of Study (Clinical) Staffing Advisory/Liaison and Quality Review Committee Resources Credit for Previous Study Core Capabilities and Attributes Knowledge of the (a) Discipline Core Capabilities and Attributes Ethical, Legal and (b) Professional Matters Core Capabilities and Attributes Psychological (c) Assessment & Measurement Core Capabilities and Attributes Intervention Strategies (d) Core Capabilities and Attributes Research and (e) Evaluation Core Capabilities and Attributes Communication and (f) Interpersonal Relationships Core Capabilities Assessment Log Book Assessment Entry Requirements Length Program of Study Structure Coursework Research Practical Placements

6 Professional Doctorate Programs of Study Staffing Advisory/Liaison and Quality Review Committee Resources Credit for Previous Study Core Capabilities and Attributes Knowledge of the (a) Discipline Core Capabilities and Attributes Ethical, Legal and (b) Professional Matters Core Capabilities and Attributes Psychological (c) Assessment & Measurement Core Capabilities and Attributes Intervention Strategies (d) Core Capabilities and Attributes Research and (e) Evaluation Core Capabilities and Attributes Communication and (f) Interpersonal Relationships Core Capabilities Assessment Log Book Assessment Entry Requirements Length Program of Study Structure Coursework Research Practical Placements Authorised: Professor Trevor Waring AM FAPS Chair, Australian Psychology Accreditation Council Date: 8 October