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Louisiana Psychology Doctorate Programs

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The ongoing and expanding mental health crisis in Louisiana and across the nation has revealed the stark need for trained professionals who can help others cope with trauma, day-to-day stress and serious mental illness.

Fortunately for prospective professionals in Louisiana, several psychology doctoral programs are operational in Louisiana, which can help provide the crucial foundation for licensure as a psychologist in the state.

What’s On This Page

  • Quick Facts
  • Louisiana PsyD Programs
  • Other Psychology Doctorates
  • Louisiana Psychologist Requirements
  • Louisiana Doctorate Salary Outlook

Quick Facts

  • Tulane University has the highest graduation rate, at 83 percent.
  • There are 13 schools in Louisiana that offer master’s degrees or higher in psychology.
  • Xavier University of New Orleans and Loyola University of New Orleans ranked in the Princeton Review for 2018, for great schools for psychology majors.
  • You can earn a stand-alone masters in psychology or combine it with a doctoral program.
  • Applying for a provisional license first is a requirement for practicing psychology in Louisiana.

List of PsyD Degree Programs in Louisiana

Both main types of psychology doctorates can be earned at higher learning institutions in Louisiana — Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). Let’s check out the vital statistics of these programs and their educational outcomes.

SEE ALSO: 5+ Online Accredited PsyD Programs

The Chicago School of Professional Psychology

With the only Psy.D. available in the state of Louisiana, The Chicago School’s program, based at Xavier University, has been granted preliminary accreditation by the APA. Students of the degree program can choose from a few specialization areas, including behavioral, health and multicultural. No graduates have completed the program so far.

  • Institution type: Private, not-for-profit
  • Campus: New Orleans (at Xavier University)
  • Annual tuition: $44,955
  • Degrees offered: PsyD in Clinical Psychology
  • Accreditation: APA (preliminary)
  • Visit school: Click here
  • PsyD Program Review: View Review

Other Psychology Doctorates in Louisiana

Louisiana State University

LSU’s College of Humanities & Social Sciences is home to a slate of Ph.D. degrees focusing on a range of areas within the field of psychology, including clinical, biological, school and industrial-organizational. The department’s Clinical Psychology Training Program has been accredited by the APA since 1956, and 83 students have completed their training in the past 10 years. Graduates have earned licensure at an 80% clip over that time.

  • Institution type: Public
  • Campus: Baton Rouge
  • Annual tuition: $12,541 in-state, $29,456; many enrollees receive free tuition and annual stipends
  • Degrees offered: PhD in Biological Psychology, PhD in Cognitive and Brain Sciences, PhD in Clinical Psychology, PhD in Industrial-Organizational Psychology, PhD in School Psychology
  • Accreditation: APA
  • Visit school: Click here

Tulane University

Tulane University is home to several Ph.D. programs in psychology, including one that’s been accredited by the APA since 1991, a Ph.D. in School Psychology. Other doctorates in psychology offered at Tulane include degrees in developmental, social and cognitive/behavioral. A total of 24 students have earned their degrees from the school psychology program since the 2008-09 school year, and 88% of them have earned professional licensure.

  • Institution type: Private, not-for-profit
  • Campus: New Orleans
  • Annual tuition: All admitted students receive free tuition
  • Degrees offered: PhD in School Psychology, PhD in Cognitive/Behavioral Neuroscience, PhD in Developmental Psychology, PhD in Social Psychology
  • Accreditation: APA
  • Visit school: Click here

Louisiana Tech University

Louisiana Tech’s College of Education offers an APA-accredited Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology, first honored by the APA in 2002. The university also offers a Ph.D. in Industrial-Organizational Psychology. More than 50 students have completed the counseling psychology Ph.D. program since the 2009-10 school year, and 90% have been granted professional licensure.

  • Institution type: Public
  • Campus: Ruston
  • Annual tuition: $12,954 in-state, $24,476 out-of-state
  • Degrees offered: PhD in Counseling Psychology, PhD in Industrial-Organizational Psychology
  • Accreditation: APA
  • Visit school: Click here

How to Become a Psychologist in Louisiana

Working as a licensed psychologist in the state of Louisiana is a multistep process that begins with a solid foundation of advanced education in psychology. Let’s take a closer look at what’s required here.

  1. Finish college, ideally with a psychology major. Some but not all psychology doctoral programs require a bachelor’s degree in psychology, but those that don’t will still require a student to have extensive undergraduate coursework in the field and/or another closely related one, such as biology. Absent either of those, students may need to get a master’s degree before they’ll be a sufficiently attractive doctoral candidate.
  2. Get your doctorate. While both a Psy.D. and Ph.D. are accepted in the state of Louisiana as proof of basic competence in psychology, students who graduate from schools that haven’t been accredited by the APA will face additional reviews of their academic credentials.
  3. Fulfill other state requirements. In addition to a doctoral degree, ideally from an APA-accredited school, candidates in Louisiana face several other prerequisites, including a pre-internship practicum of at least 300 hours, three professional references, documentation of completion of an internship and a criminal background check. Applicants must score at least 500 on the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology, and they must pass the written and oral portions of the state’s jurisprudence examination.
  4. Maintain valid licensure. Licensed psychologists must renew their credentials annually, and they must complete 40 hours of continuing education on a two-year schedule.

Louisiana Clinical Psychologist Salary and Job Outlook

Clinical, counseling and school psychologists in Louisiana have one of the highest average annual salary rates among their counterparts across the country, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The average annual wage for this role in Louisiana is $96,040, No. 5 nationally, and more than double the overall annual salary for all jobs in the state ($44,170).

SEE ALSO: Louisiana Clinical Psychologist Salary

In addition to high wages today, clinical psychologists in Louisiana can expect more job freedom over the next decade. That’s because these positions are projected to expand by 11.4%, compared to 5% for all jobs in the U.S.