The doctoral program is recognized as one of the nation’s premier graduate training programs.
What makes the doctoral program unique? Students can be admitted into the doctoral program with either an undergraduate degree or master’s degree. Students admitted to the doctoral program in sport and exercise psychology are also admitted to the master’s degree program in counseling. Thus, upon completion of the doctoral program, students are also awarded a master’s degree in counseling and can sit for the licensure examination as a professional counselor. While we do not have a separate master’s degree track in sport psychology, students admitted to the doctoral program also earn the master’s degree with an emphasis in sport and exercise psychology prior to completing the doctoral program.

The program employs six full-time faculty members, two of whom are psychologists with expertise in athlete counseling and performance enhancement interventions. In fact, one licensed psychologist is a former Olympic gold medalist in shooting and is also the psychologist for the WVU Department of Intercollegiate Athletics. Four of the faculty members are AASP Certified. The Sport Psychology Graduate Student Club promotes close professional and personal relationships among students enrolled in the program. The graduate program in sport psychology has very close ties with the departments of Counseling, Counseling Psychology, and Rehabilitation Psychology, with several faculty members holding adjunct appointments between departments. There is a strong commitment to interdisciplinary graduate education. The program prides itself on having an excellent balance between research training and opportunities for developing applied skills. The PhD program was recently recognized (2009) by the WVU Board of Governor’s as a "Program of Excellence." For complete details about the program, visit our extensive website at http://cpass.wvu.edu/academic_programs/doctorate/sep/sep