Required Courses

The following is a list of required courses that make up the Applied Community Psychology Specialization.  Please note the majority of courses are offered only once a year on Wednesday evenings, and have prerequisite courses, so you must plan accordingly. 

PSY 545E   Program Development and Evaluation
[3 units, Winter]
Pre-requisite:   PSY 545C  Psychology in the Community
The central goal of the course is to introduce students to the basic principles of program development and evaluation as practiced in mental health and community service settings addressing social problems. Emphasis is on practical considerations of what can and cannot be accomplished in real-world community settings with respect to design and implementation of evaluations and the use of evaluation findings in program development.   Topics Include:  Performing a Needs Assessment, Developing Program Goals, Developing Program Objectives, Identifying Resources, Identifying Funding Sources, Assigning Leadership Tasks, Implementation, Evaluation, Revision.

PSY 545F   Prevention and Promotion 
[3 units, Spring]
Pre-requisite:   PSY 545C  Psychology in the Community
The central goal of this course is to introduce students to strategies, models, and methodologies used in the prevention of mental health and psychosocial problems and promotion of competence in individuals, families, and communities.  The course will emphasize the importance of problem definition in the development of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention strategies and how the definition of problems guides the focus of prevention programming.  Prevention strategies discussed will include consultation, psychoeducational, and empowerment.  Attention will be given to issues such as community violence, delinquency, adolescent pregnancy, substance abuse, and HIV/AIDS.   Special attention will be given to the needs of historically underserved and oppressed populations.  Topics to be covered in the course include the following:  Defining social problems targeted for prevention; origins, rationale, and need for prevention; fundamental concepts and models of prevention; the social context of prevention; prevention strategies and exemplary programs across the lifespan.

PSY 575E Psychoeducational Groups and In-Service Training Development
[3 units, Summer]
Pre-requisite:   PSY 545C  Psychology in the Community
This course will introduce students to the fundamental elements of designing and implementing psychoeducational programs for the general public and allied professionals (educators, social service agency personnel, etc.). The course will emphasize a hands-on approach, as each student will develop a psychoeducational program or in-service training on a topic of his her choice. Topics will include: the fundamentals of group training, audience assessment, how to develop topics, how to generate effective handouts and audio-visual aids, presentation skills, and evaluation and assessment.

PSY 545D   Community Consultation and Collaboration 
[3 units, Fall]
Pre-requisite:   PSY 545C  Psychology in the Community
The central goal of this course is to introduce students to the role of professional psychologists as consultants and collaborators with individuals, groups, organizations, and agencies providing services to a variety of communities and constituencies (social service agencies, nonprofit organizations, mental health service providers, schools, etc.).  The course will introduce students to the role of consultants and their relationship to the consultee.  The course will emphasize consultation skills with attention to all phases of the consultation process:   entry, assessment, diagnosis, development, intervention, and termination.  The course will focus on community-based consultation efforts, with particular attention to issues of diversity, community and school settings.

PSY 512B  Field Study in Applied Community Psychology
[May be taken any quarter, 2 units]
Pre-requisite, One of the following: 
     PSY 545D Community Consultation and Collaboration   
     PSY 545E Program Development and Evaluation
     PSY 575E Psychoeducational Groups and In-Service Training Development                 
This course will provide students with the opportunity to work directly with a community agency on a project involving program development, evaluation, consultation, collaboration, psychoeducational group and/or in-service training development.  Prerequisite(s) for the field study is the corresponding core course (e.g., students engaged in field study involving program development and evaluation must successfully complete PSY 545E prior to enrolling in field study).  Please note: two units is equivalent to 66 hours of work (including reading, writing, planning, meetings, time at the community site, consultation, etc.)

Electives:  3 units 
In addition to the courses described above, students must complete an additional
3 units of elective course work.  Below you will find an Approved Electives List
which will automatically satisfy the elective requirement.  Students my discuss
Approval of coursework not listed below with Sylvie Taylor.

Approved Electives

MA Psychology Program
PSY 512C  Advanced Field Study in Applied Community Psychology [1-4 units]
PSY 568A  Child Advocacy and Social Policy [3 units]

Any workshop designated as <ACP> in the quarterly course schedule will also satisfy the elective requirement.  Typically, workshops are 1 or 2 units.  A list of sample workshops that have been offered is listed on the following page.

MAOM (Organizational Management) Program
MGT 552  Leadership, Motivation, and Power [4 units]
MGT 548  Negotiation and Conflict Resolution [4 Units]
MGT 553  Team Building and Process Dynamics [4 units]
MGT 571   Non-Profit Management [4 Units]
MGT 572  Strategic Planning for Non Profit Organizations [4 Units]

Sample ACP Workshops

A Natural Partnership:  Mental Health Consultants and Religious Organizations

From NIMBYism (Not in My Back Yard) to Neighborhood Empowerment

Psychosocial Aspects of Oppression

Preventing School Violence

Seeing the Glass Half Full:  Asset-Based Community Development

Powerlessness, Power, and Empowerment

Urban Provocations