The 45th state admitted to the union is also the a large and rather sparsely populated territory, raking 13th in area, and 31st in total population, according to the latest U.S. census data. Not surprisingly, it doesn’t have a large population of students pursing psychology degrees either. However, it does have some well rated programs in psychology, both for undergraduates and graduate students.
- With 1,390 practicing clinical, counseling, and school psychologists as of May 2015 Occupational Employment Statistics data, Utah was among the second highest grouping of states in terms of total employment in the field, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- The average annual salary for those psychologists was $64,560, below the national average of $76,040. In addition, the Provo/Orem metropolitan area ranked fifth in the country for the highest concentration of jobs for clinical, counseling, and school psychologists, with 490 jobs and a slightly higher mean annual salary of $69,330.
- Utah ranks 28th among the states in total number of students who received undergraduate degrees in psychology in the 2011-2012 academic year, with a total of 1,287, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Utah also ranked 28th for the number of master’s degrees in psychology, with 186.
Region | Career | Total Employment | MeanAnnualWage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salt Lake City, UT | Psychologists, All Other | 60 | $95,990 |
| Provo-Orem, UT | Marriage and Family Therapists | 170 | $71,900 |
| Ogden-Clearfield, UT | Marriage and Family Therapists | N/A | $68,770 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | Marriage and Family Therapists | 210 | $70,480 |
| Provo-Orem, UT | Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychologists | 250 | $86,670 |
| Ogden-Clearfield, UT | Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychologists | 250 | $0 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychologists | 460 | $73,020 |
2019 Occupational Employment Statistics and 2018-28 Employment Projections, Bureau of Labor Statistics, BLS.gov.
The American Psychological Association currently lists three schools with six individual doctoral degree programs that are fully accredited in the state of Utah. Similarly, the National Register of Health Service Psychologists has approved psychology graduate degree programs at three universities in Utah. And the National Association of School Psychologists also recognized three graduate programs in school psychology at Utah schools and colleges that meet its standards.
Utah Psychology Licensing Requirements
In Utah, the Division of Occupational & Professional Licensing oversees the licensure of all professional psychologists. And licensure is required in order to practice professionally. The specific requirements for licensure as a psychologist in Utah are as follows:
- Earn a doctoral degree in psychology from an accredited school or program
- Complete 4,000 hours, or two full years, of work training in psychology with the supervision of a licensed psychologist
- Earn a passing score on the Examination for the Professional Practice of Psychology
- Earn a passing score on the Utah Psychology Law Examination
Once licensed, psychologists who practice professional in the state of Utah must renew their licenses by October 1 of each even-numbered year. The Utah Division of Occupational & Professional Licensing requires every licensed psychologist to complete 48 hours of continuing education in the two-year period preceding relicensure.
Featured psychology schools in Utah
There are three psychology schools and colleges in Arkansas that qualified for the latest national rankings of psychology graduate programs by U.S. News & World Report. They are the same programs that have accreditation and approval from the APA, the NRHSP, and the NASP.
University of Utah
The flagship institution in the in the Utah state system is located in Salt Lake City and often referred to either as just Utah or “the U.” It is home to the S.J. Quinney College of Law and to one of the state’s only medical colleges. The Department of Psychology offers an undergraduate major and minor, as well as an option for a 20-credit-hour human factors certificate. At the graduate level, Utah awards doctoral degrees in four specific areas of research and training: clinical psychology; cognition and neural science; developmental psychology; and social psychology. There is also a counseling psychology doctoral program located within the College of Education at the University of Utah. The school’s Department of Educational Psychology has additional master’s and doctoral programs in school psychology, school counseling, and learning and cognition.
- Department: University of Utah Department of Psychology and College of Education
- Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
- Online options: Utah’s UOnline program allows students to earn a bachelor’s degree in psychology, but does not offer graduate degrees in that area of study
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young, or BYU, is one of the largest private universities in the country, and the largest with religious affiliations. As part of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it attracts a large percentage of students who identify as Mormon, but that is not a requirement. BYU’s Department of Psychology offers a psychology major and minor to undergraduates, as well as a minor in teaching psychology. For graduate students, BYU’s psychology department supports training and research in four areas of psychology: applied social psychology; cognitive and behavioral neuroscience; developmental psychology; and clinical psychology, with the option of specializing in health psychology. The McKay School of Education at BYU has a separate program in counseling psychology for Ph.D. students, and it awards education specialist in school psychology.
- Department: Brigham Young University Department of Psychology and School of Education
- Location: Provo, Utah
- Online options: BYU has an active online learning program, but it does not include degrees in psycholog
Utah State University
Located in a largely agricultural region of Utah, in the small city of Logan, Utah State University is a public research institution with a strong reputation for science and technological training and study. The Department of Psychology at Utah State is housed within the Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services, and it offers master’s and specialist degrees in school counseling and school psychology, as well as Ph.D.s in professional-scientific psychology and experimental and applied psychological science. The College of Education and Human Services also has several psychology-related interdisciplinary degree programs for doctoral students, including applied behavior analysis with individuals with disabilities; audiology; disability studies; speech-language pathology; and rehabilitation counseling.
- Department: Utah State University Department of Psychology and College of Education and Human Services
- Location: Logan, Utah
- Online options: Utah State offers a range of undergraduate and graduate degrees online, including a bachelor of science in psychology