February 1, 2012 By
Patricia Zapf
pg” alt=”" width=”175″ height=”60″ />Stephen D. Hart, Kelly Watt, and Keith Dormond, internationally recognized threat assessment experts, will be hosting a 4-day advanced course on threat assessment and risk management at the Westin Bayshore in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada April 2 – 5, 2012.
About the Course
The course will provide an opportunity for people who have basic or intermediate-level skills in threat assessment and management to develop and demonstrate mastery. The course will cover high-level skills such as case formulation, report writing, and expert testimony. Successful completion will be recognized with a certificate of competency.
This training event is being co-sponsored by the Canadian Association of Threat Assessment Professionals (CATAP).
Why Attend?
- Take advantage of a rare educational opportunity
Many people have attended a workshop in threat assessment, but few have attended a high-level course that provides small-group instruction.
- Make sure your expertise is recognized
Your employer, your clients, and the courts all want to know that not only did you attend training, you learned something at it. Individualized evaluation of your work allows us to offer a certificate of competency.
- Strengthen your professional network
Meet others who specialize in threat assessment and learn from their experiences.
Who Should Attend?
This course is designed for professionals whose work involves threat assessment and management., including those working in criminal justice, security, health care, social service, education, and human resources settings. Attendees should have completed basic training (4 days or more) in threat assessment and management training, including the use of structured professional judgment guidelines (e.g. HCR-20, SARA, B-SAFER, SAM, SVR-20, RSVP).
Workshop Instructors
The workshop instructors are internationally recognized experts, prolific authors, and engaging presenters. They are passionate about providing evidence-based understanding, knowledge, and skills about violence risk assessment and management that professionals can apply in practice
Dr. Stephen Hart
Dr. Stephen Hart is a founding Director of ProActive ReSolutions, Inc., where he heads the Threat Assessment Stream. Dr. Hart is a Professor of Psychology and a member of the Mental Health, Law, and Policy Institute at Simon Fraser University in Canada and also a Visiting Professor at the University of Bergen in Norway. His work focuses on clinical-forensic assessment in criminal and civil settings, and especially on the assessment of violence risk and the assessment of psychopathic personality disorder.
Dr. Hart is the recipient of numerous awards for his work in this area and is the author of more than 450 articles, chapters, books, and presentations, and has conducted more than 300 workshops around the world.
Dr. Kelly Watt
Dr. Kelly Watt works as a Threat Assessment Specialist at ProActive ReSolutions Inc., and is a member of the Mental Health, Law, and Policy Institute at Simon Fraser University in Canada. Dr. Watt’s work focuses on conducting assessments, proving training, and developing strategies for workplaces related to preventing, assessing, and managing workplace violence. Dr. Watt is the author of over 70 articles, chapters, reports, and presentations and has conducted numerous workshops around the world related to violence risk assessment and management.
Keith Dormond
Keith Dormond works as a Threat Assessment Specialist at ProActive ReSolutions Inc. and is a past President and current Director of the Canadian Association of Threat Assessment Professionals. Keith has worked as a law enforcement officer for thirteen years and his work at Proactive focuses on conducting assessments, providing training, and developing strategies for workplaces related to preventing, assessing and managing workplace violence.
Workshop Overview
DAY 1 Advanced Principles of Violence Threat Assessment and Risk Management
- Discuss advanced threat assessment and risk management principles
- Review Case #1 and administer the HCR-20
DAY 2 Writing Short Reports
- Discuss core components of report writing
- Write short report based on Case #1
- Review Case #2 and administer the SAM
DAY 3 Writing Long Reports
- Write long report based on Case #2
DAY 4 Communicating Oral Reports and Conducting Expert Testimony
- Discuss core components of risk communication
- Practice oral report based on Case #2
- Discuss general principles for conducting expert testimony
- Practice expert testimony based on Case #2
Registration Details
Venue
The Westin Bayshore, Vancouver; 1601 Bayshore Drive, Vancouver, BC V6G 2V4; Tel# 604 682 3377, Fax# 604 687 3102
Cost
$1200 (CAD) + HST per participant (until March 1); $1400 (CAD) + HST per participant (after March 1); $1000 (CAD) + HST for CATAP Members. Groups who register four or more participants will receive free admission for every fourth person. Cost includes all materials (manuals and worksheets). Light refreshments provided
CE Credits
24 CE Credits (Note: Please click here for details on obtaining Continuing Education credits for this workshop)
January 20, 2012 By
Patricia Zapf
width=”259″ height=”195″ />After having reviewed the five fully online masters programs in forensic psychology, numerous requests were received for more information on the campus-based masters programs in forensic psychology that are available. Thus, this series of articles will review each of the masters programs in forensic psychology and provide information on each program in a similar format so as to assist in comparisons between the various options
The goal of this series of articles is simply to provide information in a consistent format to assist those individuals who are considering an education in forensic psychology and not to convince anyone to attend a particular program. Having been a professor in this field for the last 13 years I am familiar at some level with almost every forensic psychology program available in North America. Many undergraduate students are not familiar with all the possible options and so this series will lay them out in a consistent format for ease of comparison.
Masters Degree in Forensic Psychology –University of Denver
Program Description
From the website: Our mission is to provide comprehensive education and training relevant to the application of psychological theory, knowledge, skills, and competencies to the civil and criminal justice systems.
The Master of Arts in forensic psychology was first offered at the GSPP in 1999 in response to the growing interest in the rapidly developing field of forensic psychology. The degree supplements fundamental master’s level clinical psychology training with course work and practicum experiences in the area of psychology and law. The Masters Degree in forensic psychology concerns the application of psychological theory, knowledge, skills and competencies to the civil and criminal justice systems. It is designed to train students to become mental health professionals, able to work in a variety of clinical settings within the criminal and civil legal system, including but not limited to: adult, juvenile and child populations; victim assistance; police consultation; correctional institutions; domestic violence and child abuse programs; and trial consulting.
Specializations
The Masters in Forensic Psychology is a clinically-oriented degree and students are expected to engage in practical application of their learned skills through field placements in a variety of forensic settings. No specializations, per se, exist in this program and all students are expected to take the same general sequence of coursework.
Credits
The program website does not appear to specify how many credits are required for this Masters program. It states that the degree is completed over a 2-year period.
Thesis
It does not appear that completing a thesis is an option in this program. The program was designed to prepare masters-level clinicians for work in a variety of forensic settings.
Externship/Practicum
Students are required to complete field placements as part of their clinical training. At least two field placements appear to be required.
Admission Requirements
A Bachelor’s degree is required for admission to the Masters program. If the student did not major in psychology as an undergraduate, 4 psychology courses are required (these are recommended: abnormal psychology, child psychology, experimental psychology, personality theory) as is a statistics course. This requirement can also be met by obtaining a score of 660 or higher on the Psychology Subject GRE.
All applicants must submit GRE scores. “The school expects an undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.5 and a graduate GPA of 3.0. Higher scores may make an application more competitive.”
Tuition & Fees
The University of Denver has one of the most difficult websites to navigate and it is difficult to find straightforward answers to simple questions such as “How much is this degree going to cost me?” I was unable to find how many credit hours the Masters degree is comprised of but could ascertain that students were expected to attend the program for 2 full-time years, which appears to be 3 “quarters” a year. I was unable to find different rates for in-state and out-of-state residents so assume that the cost of a graduate education is the same for both (as it is at most other institutions).
In-State Residents
$12,312 per quarter (students attend three quarters in a calendar year) = $36, 936/year (the Masters degree is a 2-year program)
Out-of-State Residents
$12,312 per quarter (students attend three quarters in a calendar year) = $36, 936/year (the Masters degree is a 2-year program)
Coursework
Again, this was a difficult site to navigate and did not include a lot of specific information. The site includes a list of courses but does not contain any course numbers or credit hours. The courses are described and listed by year in the program.
Typical First-Year Courses
Professionalism and Practice I (First-Year Case Conference)
Introduction to Clinical Interviewing and Psychotherapy
Forensic Mental Health: The Basics (Forensic Psychology I)
Forensic Mental Health: The Front LinesLaw Enforcement and Correctional Psychology (Forensic Psychology II)
Forensic Mental Health: Risky Business (Forensic Psychology III)
Group Interventions
Statistics
Research Methods
Issues in Measurement
Adult Psychopathology and Diagnosis
Trauma and Crisis Intervention
Profiles in Crime: The Psychology of Criminal Behavior
Conflict Resolution in Forensic Practice and Real Life
Typical Second-Year Courses
Professionalism and Practice II (Second-Year Case Conference)
Ethical Issues in Forensic Psychology
Cognitive Assessment
Self Report Assessment
Projective Assessment
Sociocultural Issues in Forensic Psychology
Family Law
Mental Health Law
Evaluation and Treatment of the Juvenile Offender
Evaluation and Treatment of the Adult Offenders
Cognitive Behavioral Interventions
Substance Abuse: Theory and Treatment
Criminal Evaluations
Concluding Comments
The website for this program is perhaps one of the most difficult to navigate and therefore one of the least informative that I have seen. No specific answers to simple and important questions, such as “How much is this going to cost?” “How many courses am I required to take?” “What is the sequence of coursework?” or “How many credits do I need to earn?” were provided. Given that almost every other program in this area provides at least this information to prospective students, I wonder why this is not a priority for this particular program. If anyone from the University of Denver happens to read this post, please fill out the comments section below if you can provide me with some of the answers to these questions. If you are a student considering this program, I strongly advise you to contact the program director to find out the answers to these and other relevant questions.
What is clear is that this is a clinically oriented program that is intended to prepare students for work as masters-level clinicians and not necessarily for further study at the doctoral level. Students considering this program will want to inquire about whether the state in which they intend to reside licenses master’s level clinicians in psychology. Although the website indicates that 29% of their graduates go on to doctoral programs, I suspect that those individuals have sought out other opportunities for research while in the program. As the program is described, there does not appear to be a required research component.
