History of GSAPP

In 1974, the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology (GSAPP) at Rutgers University-New Brunswick became the first professional school located within a major research university to offer the doctor of psychology degree. The GSAPP faculty participated in the pivotal 1978 Virginia Beach Conference on the training of professional psychologists, which enunciated the principle that professional training is best accomplished in a university setting. Instruction began with two specialties: clinical and school psychology and organizational psychology was added in 1988. As a unit of Rutgers, GSAPP is accredited by the Middle States Association of Schools and Colleges, and its school and clinical psychology programs are fully accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA).

GSAPP was described in 1993 as "the very best school for the Psy.D. degree" and "the standard of quality against which other Psy.D. programs should be measured" in a report prepared by nationally prominent professional and academic senior psychologists from around the country. The report was prepared as part of an external review of GSAPP, which the university requires all units to undertake. These observations were reaffirmed in 1999 when GSAPP was honored with the Outstanding Training Program Award bestowed by the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy.

In 2018 the school began offering its first master of applied psychology (M.A.P.) program, followed shortly thereafter by degree offerings in applied behavioral analysis and in multi-tiered systems of support.

The GSAPP faculty recognizes the impact of evolving health care delivery systems and other social and professional changes in the practice of professional psychology and continuously reviews its training goals and curricula. The combination of full-time core faculty and part-time faculty, who are professionals working in the community, enables GSAPP to offer both rigorous theoretical courses based on current research and practice-oriented courses that build upon this scholarly foundation.

Students have access to relevant full-time faculty from all of these units for individual study, dissertation and capstone project committees, and other training activities. A large number of mental health providers, listed in this catalog, serve as practicum placement supervisors and supervisors for GSAPP's onsite psychological clinic. Regional alumni play an active role in annual mentoring activities designed to ease the journey from academics to professional practice. Our alumni are currently practicing throughout the United States and across the globe.