Passing the study plan

The State Doctoral Exam and the Doctoral Thesis Defence are required for graduating. The State Doctoral Exam tests the candidates’ ability to consider issues in the discipline taken both in the discipline-specific and interdisciplinary context. The Committee sets the candidate two or three topics in psychology. The candidate is to conduct a comprehensive review of the research literature on these topics. At the exam, the candidate answers questions pertaining a) to the methodological and research context of the topic, i.e. the candidate critically evaluates how certain issues are studied, discusses approaches to the scientific understanding of the phenomenon in a historical perspective, b) to the newest theories connected to the topic and their relationship to previous thinking, c) to controversies in approaching the topic, which the candidate is to critically evaluate.

As for the compulsory activities of candidates, they must take all compulsory courses that are connected to their Doctoral Thesis and to gain 240 EC. Furthermore, among compulsory activities, there is a long-term study stay abroad, conference attendances, working on scientific papers (three as minimum) and participating in teaching and research at the Department of Psychology.

Patients with medically unexplained symptoms.
Monitoring of patients change in the course of/after psychotherapy.
Negative effects of psychotherapy.
Cognitive and personality aspects of responding to assessment measure items in clinical settings: Response process as a part of validity argument.
Using the Personalized dynamic network modeling in psychotherapy and their effectivity.