Clinical Neuropsychology

Florida Tech’s Psy.D. program features an emphasis in Clinical Neuropsychology. Clinical neuropsychology is an applied specialty within professional clinical psychology dedicated to understanding the relationships between the brain and behavior, particularly as these relationships can be applied to the diagnosis of brain disorders, assessment of cognitive and behavioral functioning, and the design of effective interventions for certain neurological and psychiatric conditions. Students choosing the Clinical Neuropsychology emphasis develop skills in clinical assessment of higher cortical function and dysfunction, receive exposure to cognitively challenged patient populations, and participate in neurobehavioral research.

Training In Clinical Neuropsychology

Graduate training in clinical neuropsychology is accomplished via a combination of coursework and practicum experiences. Students initially learn the anatomic, functional, and cognitive substrates associated with human behavior and neurobehavioral disorders. Through coursework in Fundamentals of Clinical Neuropsychology, students are introduced to the guiding principles of brain-behavior relationships, integrating elements of psychology and neurobiology, including functional neuroanatomy and neuropathology. The Neuropsychological Assessment course sequence provides students with training in the administration, scoring, and interpretation of several common neuropsychological tests with persons who have known or suspected neurological dysfunction due to illness, disease, or acquired injury. A comprehensive neuropsychological assessment typically utilizes a standardized test battery evaluating multiple cognitive domains, including learning and memory, attention and processing speed, executive functioning, language, visual-spatial skills, and psychomotor skills. Students are guided in selecting and administering additional tests of intellectual functioning, academic achievement, performance and symptom validity, mood, and personality.

Through clinical practica, students expand and refine their neuropsychological test administration and interpretation skills in various medical and neurological patient populations. These settings provide additional opportunities to develop skills in consulting with family members and other healthcare providers and develop/implement appropriate interventions for patients. 

Florida Tech has an active chapter of the Association of Neuropsychology Students and Trainees (ANST) through the Society for Clinical Neuropsychology (SCN) of the American Psychological Association (APA, Division 40). The ANST Chapter hosts a didactic series with presentations by neuropsychologists, neurologists, and other professionals in related fields.

Upon program completion of the Clinical Neuropsychology emphasis, students are skilled in the clinical assessment and treatment of neurobehavioral disorders and can ask empirically testable research questions of relevance to brain function and dysfunction. Training prepares students for competitive internships and fellowships in clinical neuropsychology and sets them on course for pursuing board certification in clinical neuropsychology.

Opportunities in Clinical Neuropsychology

Florida Tech's experience in Clinical Neuropsychology provides extensive opportunities for training in geriatric neuropsychology with the Health First Memory Disorder Clinic. Students will learn to administer, score, and interpret a variety of neuropsychological tests in these capacities, and will also obtain experience with clinical report writing and responding to referral questions. Students receive direct clinical supervision from board-certified clinical neuropsychologists and additional mentoring from other neuropsychologists and medical psychologists, neurologists, geriatricians, psychiatrists, and sports-medicine professionals.

Additional advanced neuropsychology practica are available in external placements ranging from smaller private practices to larger medical centers and healthcare settings throughout Central Florida that offer opportunities for involvement with both adults and children, inpatient, outpatient, and specific neurorehabilitation settings. These experiences allow for exposure and training with an even broader patient population, including complex neurological conditions such as traumatic brain injury, cerebrovascular disorders, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, and brain tumors. Through these external placements, students may have opportunities to observe specialty procedures such as WADA testing and attend other interdisciplinary conferences such as brain tumor boards.

General Program And Clinical Neuropsychology Experience Requirements

In addition to the general requirements of the Psy.D. program in clinical psychology at Florida Tech, interested students also may complete a series of specialized coursework and clinical practica in clinical neuropsychology. These training experiences are quite rigorous and require additional time and effort to complete successfully. Consensus among the clinical neuropsychology specialty organizations for the training of clinical neuropsychologists resulted in the Houston Conference guidelines. Training in Clinical Neuropsychology at Florida Tech always aims to comply with the spirit and intent of these guidelines while preparing students with the foundational knowledge to be competitive applicants for internships and post-doctoral fellowships with a clinical neuropsychology focus. We ensure completion of the foundational groundwork for graduate students to be well-equipped to pursue board certification in clinical neuropsychology. We encourage applicants to review the tips and guidelines for Graduate Training in Clinical Neuropsychology provided by the Society for Clinical Neuropsychology.

Students interested in more information should contact Dr. Frank Webbe and/or student leaders in ANST (contact information available upon request).