Last updated: May 28, 2026

Best Clinical Psychology Doctoral Programs by State, Ranked (2026)

Find the top APA-accredited doctoral psychology programs in your state. Each guide breaks down PsyD and PhD options in Clinical, Counseling, and School psychology, state-specific licensure requirements, the EPPP and state jurisprudence exams, salary data, and PSYPACT compact privileges for telepsychology across state lines.

Taylor Rupe

Founder & Editor

B.A. in Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle

Key Takeaways

  • There are more than 400 APA-accredited doctoral psychology programs across all 50 states, covering Clinical Psychology (PhD and PsyD), Counseling Psychology, School Psychology, and Combined programs. APA accreditation is required (or strongly preferred) for licensure in virtually every state.
  • The licensure title is the same nationwide: Licensed Psychologist (with state-specific variations like Licensed Clinical Psychologist (LCP) in Illinois). Required supervised hours range from 1,500 to 4,000 hours total depending on the state, structured as a pre-doctoral internship plus a post-doctoral year (or post-doctoral hours embedded in some newer state pathways).
  • Every state requires the EPPP (Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology). Most states also require a state-specific jurisprudence exam (CPLEE in California, FL Laws and Rules in Florida, TX Jurisprudence in Texas, OK Jurisprudence Exam in Oklahoma, and so on). Illinois, New York, and a handful of others require only the EPPP.
  • The Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact (PSYPACT) is operational in 40+ states. PSYPACT-licensed psychologists with an APIT credential can practice telepsychology across all member states without separate state licensure. Major holdouts as of 2026 include California, New York, Oregon, Hawaii, Massachusetts, and Louisiana.
  • Nine states have no income tax (Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Wyoming), meaningfully increasing take-home pay for licensed psychologists compared to equivalent gross wages in high-tax states like California, New York, and Massachusetts.
  • Most states offer loan repayment or scholarship programs for psychologists serving in mental health shortage areas. The most generous include California (HCAI MBH-SLRP up to $240,000), Florida (FRAME up to $150,000), Texas (THECB MHPLRP up to $80,000), and Illinois (CBHC LRP up to $40,000). The federal NHSC LRP layers on top in any state (up to $55,000 for 2 years at HPSA sites).

Every state has different psychology programs, supervised-experience requirements, exams, and continuing-education rules. Our state-by-state guides go beyond program lists to cover what actually matters before you commit five to seven years of your life and substantial debt to a doctorate: APA accreditation history for every program, the exact licensure requirements where you plan to practice, salary data by metro, PSYPACT status, and loan repayment programs that can offset hundreds of thousands of dollars in tuition.

Click on your state below to see every APA-accredited doctoral program, your state's licensing board details, salary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and honest advice on how to choose the right program for your goals, budget, and post-graduate plans.

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Frequently Asked Questions

There are more than 400 APA-accredited doctoral psychology programs across all 50 states, covering Clinical Psychology (PhD and PsyD), Counseling Psychology, School Psychology, and Combined programs. APA accreditation through the APA Commission on Accreditation is required or strongly preferred for state licensure in virtually every state. A handful of states (notably California) accept non-APA doctoral programs that meet substantial equivalency criteria.
The PhD in Clinical, Counseling, or School Psychology emphasizes research and the scientist-practitioner or clinical-science training model. PhDs typically include a dissertation, run 5 to 7 years, and are more likely to be fully funded with tuition waivers and stipends. The PsyD emphasizes practitioner-scholar training, focuses on clinical practice over original research, typically runs 4 to 6 years, and is less commonly funded (most PsyD students pay tuition). Both prepare graduates for the same state licensure as Licensed Psychologists; both require an APA-accredited internship and the EPPP. The choice depends on whether you want research training and faculty career options (PhD) or a more practice-focused, shorter doctoral path (PsyD).
Clinical Psychology trains for assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of mental illness across the lifespan, including severe psychopathology. Counseling Psychology trains for assessment and treatment with a developmental, strengths-based, multicultural emphasis, historically focused on adjustment issues, life transitions, and wellness. School Psychology trains specifically for K-12 school settings (assessment, intervention, consultation) and is APA-accredited at the doctoral level (PsyD or PhD); the master's/specialist-level school psychology credential is also widely available and NASP-approved. The scope of practice for licensed psychologists is essentially the same regardless of which doctoral track you complete, but the training emphases differ.
In most states, yes. APA accreditation is the gold standard for psychology doctoral training, and most state licensure boards either require APA accreditation outright or fast-track APA-accredited graduates through education review. California is one of the few exceptions, allowing non-APA doctoral programs that meet substantial equivalency criteria (which is why so many freestanding professional schools are based in California). Some elite research PhDs (UCLA, UC Berkeley, Stony Brook, UT Austin) have moved to PCSAS (Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System) alongside or instead of APA. Most state licensure boards accept PCSAS-accredited graduates, but a few still require APA specifically. Verify with your target state's licensing board before enrolling in a non-APA program.
The EPPP (Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology) is the national licensure exam administered by the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards (ASPPB) and delivered at Pearson VUE testing centers. EPPP Part 1 (Knowledge) is required by every US state for psychology licensure. ASPPB is adding EPPP Part 2 (Skills) in 2026, which some states will require and others may not. Base registration is $687.50 plus a Pearson VUE administration fee around $87.50. Passing score is typically a scaled score of 500 (national standard).
The Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact (PSYPACT) is an interstate compact that allows licensed psychologists in member states to practice telepsychology across state lines using the Authority to Practice Interjurisdictional Telepsychology (APIT) credential. The Interjurisdictional Practice Certificate (IPC) adds the option of up to 30 days per calendar year of temporary in-person practice in other PSYPACT states. As of 2026, more than 40 states are PSYPACT members. Major holdout states include California, New York, Oregon, Hawaii, Massachusetts, and Louisiana. If you plan to build a multi-state telehealth practice, base licensure in a PSYPACT state with low licensure friction (Illinois, Florida, Texas) is significantly more efficient than building individual licenses in each state.
Total timeline runs 7 to 9 years from start of doctoral program to full licensure in most states. You'll spend 5 to 7 years earning the doctorate (including a 1-year APA-accredited pre-doctoral internship), then 1 to 2 years of post-doctoral supervised experience (1,500 to 2,000 hours in most states), then exam scheduling and application processing (3 to 6 months). A few states (Washington, Utah, Arizona, Oregon) have eliminated the post-doctoral requirement, shortening the timeline to roughly 6 to 7 years. PsyDs are typically slightly shorter than PhDs (4 to 5 years in residence vs 5 to 6 for PhDs).
Most APA-accredited Clinical PhDs at research universities are fully funded with tuition waivers and stipends for 4 to 5 years, typically through teaching or research assistantships at $25,000 to $38,000+ per year. Counseling Psychology PhDs are also frequently funded but with smaller stipends. School Psychology PhDs vary widely. PsyDs are usually NOT funded; most PsyD students pay tuition ($30,000 to $67,000 per year at private freestanding professional schools, less at public universities). A handful of PsyDs are fully funded (Baylor PsyD in Texas, UT Southwestern Clinical PhD, and the various R1 Clinical PhDs that admit PsyD-track students). State and federal loan repayment programs (HCAI MBH-SLRP, FRAME, NHSC LRP, PSLF) can substantially offset PsyD tuition for psychologists committing to public service post-graduation.