IntroductionThe Department of Clinical Psychology is the only one of its kind in Bangladesh offering postgraduate studies and training in clinical psychology of international standards & principles and producing professional Clinical Psychologists for the country. This post graduate professional training programme was initiated as a new stream at the Department of Psychology in 1996 (session 1993-94) under a link project between London University and Dhaka University. The Department of Clinical Psychology was established in 1997 as a new discipline under the Faculty of Biological sciences. Professor Anisur Rahman was the founder chairman of the Department. Aims
To contribute to the psychological health of the nation.
To contribute to the development & efficiency of psychiatric, psychological, rehabilitative, illness, preventive and health promotive services
To produce a generation of Clinical Psychologists for Bangladesh who will be capable of facilitating the growth of other applied psychologies.
To train those who will become supervisors of clinical psychology practices and trainers of clinical psychology courses.
To train those who will be mental health researchers from bio-psychosocial perspectives.
To be the trainer and supervisor of counselors, psychotherapists, and mental health worker.
To be the manager and director of clinical psychology, psychotherapy and counseling services in clinics and hospitals or in both health and non-health community settings.
To produce creative-innovative expert researchers in clinical psychology, who will create new knowledge base rooted in Bangladesh and its people and culture, in both health and non-health sectors, which would be useful for researchers of multi-disciplinary teams, policy makers, a wide variety of practitioners and clients/consumers.
To produce supervisors of clinical research and the expert level specialist clinical practitioners through its Ph. D level programme.
Academic Programs The Department is providing a three and a half years integrated course (though two degrees – M.S. and M. Phil) as the qualifying degree in Clinical Psychology with each year comprising three components, namely academic, clinical and research work. The students will gradually assume greater clinical responsibilities with increasing experience. It should be noted that the time devoted to clinical work includes supervision time and private study time in support of patient contacts. The department has started its Ph. D program since 2015. Departmental orientation With a strong commitment to the training of clinical scientists as its foundation, the Clinical Psychology area places significant emphasis on the development of research skills and interests through the student’s enrollment in the department. Through a combination of coursework, hospital as well as community-based practices, it provides students with a strong background in the clinical research literature, variety of methodological and clinical skills, those are used to address clinically relevant research questions. In addition to required empirical pre-dissertation and dissertation projects, students are expected to be actively involved in and committed to research activity throughout the course of their graduate careers. Examples of these activities include ongoing participation in a faculty-directed research team, attendance at departmental seminars and meetings, attendance at research-oriented professional conferences, etc. Clinical Practicum Clinical training at the department emphasizes an evidence-based approach to clinical service delivery. At different placements (for instance- Psychiatry department of BSMMU, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Student Counseling and Guidance Center of TSC, DU, Dhaka Community Hospital, etc.) the trainee clinical psychologists provide assessment and psychotherapy services to a diverse client population with a wide range of problems and needs. For example- anxiety disorders, depression, somatoform disorders, mood disorders, suicide, sleep disorders, sexual disorders, personality disorders, adjustment disorders, schizophrenia, paranoid disorders, dementia, essential hypertension, asthma, recurrent headaches, disorders of eating and weight, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, chronic pain, drug and alcohol problems, disorders of childhood and adolescents, intellectual disabilities, problems of old age, marital conflicts etc. Along with the courses on the disorders, there are courses on psychological assessments (e.g., questionnaires, and psychometric tests) and intervention models using a range of psychological approaches (e.g., behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, systemic/family, personal construct, eclectic, etc.). Trainee clinical psychologists receive weekly group and individual supervision from members of the clinical psychologists’ community. Community placements are also available in different NGOs for advanced students who wish to pursue additional training or focus on other specialized populations. Job Opportunity for Clinical Psychology Graduates By the year 2007, the Department of Clinical Psychology at Dhaka University completed its first decade. Opportunity to find jobs by qualified graduate clinical psychologists is now very promising. There is high probability that hundreds of public and private jobs will be created for the qualified clinical psychologist within next decade, who will be earning an attractive salary and other benefits, compared to many other general university graduates. This is going to create a golden opportunity for young psychologists in Bangladesh to grow as truly qualified professional clinical psychologists, who will also get the opportunity to serve their own community and the nation. The department is also ready to accept foreign students and our students can also pursue their higher or specialist training and can acquire job experience in a foreign country. About Admission in the department, Many students are found interested to get enrolled in the Department of Clinical Psychology. Therefore, it is becoming more and more competitive to get admitted to the department. Still it is worth trying for admission if you are highly motivated to be a clinical psychologist, if you are a person having attitude of helping the distressed, if you are a responsible/mature person with high level of originality or creativity and have good academic records in psychology, along with satisfactory command on both Bengali and English language.
Time
Within February –March the announcement comes in leading daily papers of the country. Those who are really interested can contact the office anytime for early information and preparation for an admission test. Potential candidates are recommended to seek an appointment with any teacher of the Department through the office to get advice or in-depth information on the orientation and culture of the Department. Eligibility 4-year Honours Graduates of Psychology having a high Second Class from any recognized University. Students who have appeared in the Final 4-year Honours Examination in Psychology are also eligible to apply. Or M.Sc. in Psychology with three-year Honours degree holders having high Second Class from any recognized University. Application form The prospective candidates are advised to collect an application form from the Departmental office, Room no. 5017 Arts Building 4th floor Dhaka University after the announcement for a year. Admission Test Written Test: As Clinical Psychology department is a Post-graduate department, so students who seek admission to the department have to sit for a written test on their knowledge of Bachelor degree level psychology subjects, with special focus on basic psychological concepts, theories, psychometrics, research methods, and abnormal psychology. Students are also expected to demonstrate their good language comprehension both in English and Bengali, as well as their ability to think logically, to solve and analyze symbolic matters, free of any acquired knowledge obtained through any discipline. Viva Voce: Prospective students are not only assessed on their written tests results, but also on their viva voce, where clear understanding, verbal expression, and responsibility for being admitted as a trainee clinical psychologist of the department. For more information please contact the Department of Clinical Psychology Room no. 5017, Arts Building, 4th floor, Dhaka University, Dhaka-1000 Phone: +88-02-9661920-73, Ex7800 & 7801 E-mail: [email protected]