Overview
Alliant International University Offers Two Doctorates in Its Center for Forensic Studies in Five California Cities
Founded in 2001, Alliant International University is a nonprofit university that prepares students for professional careers in psychology, education, business, and forensics. Its Center for Forensic Studies (CFS) has mentored field experiences and individual coaching that enable students to develop hands-on professional skills and practical experience, while an exceptionally diverse faculty and an international student body teach them to work productively with people from varied backgrounds.
College guides consistently rank Alliant number one in international diversity among national doctoral universities. "Diverse" magazine reports that Alliant awards more doctorate degrees to minority students than any other U.S. university. Headquartered in San Francisco and San Diego, Alliant has Center for Forensic Studies programs on the Fresno, Irvine, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and San Diego campuses. Alliant also hosts various other accredited programs in Mexico City, Hong Kong and Tokyo.
Alliant's Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) Degree in Forensic Psychology Emphasizes Theory, Practice, and Field Activities
The Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) in Forensic Psychology is offered at Fresno, Irvine, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and San Diego. Emphasizing the application of forensic psychological theory and practice, this degree prepares students for a career in one of the fastest growing fields in the country with a ever evolving curriculum including police stress, neuropsychology, addiction, sex offending, domestic violence, serial and mass murder, juvenile delinquency, and stalking.
Coursework also focuses on rules of evidence and discovery, examination and cross-examination, expert witness testimony, and the expert's role in various judicial proceedings. Beyond the state-of-the-art, rigorous academic training, students acquire practical experience in treatment and assessment through field training in a variety of settings. For full-time students, the Psy.D. program can be completed in four years.
Alliant's Fresno Campus Offers a Ph.D. in Forensic Psychology for Career as Professor, Researcher, and Forensics Expert
The Ph.D. in Forensic Psychology is offered only in Fresno. It focuses on research and theory, preparing CFS students for a wide range of positions ranging from university professor, consultant, and professional researcher to practicing forensic psychologist.
In the clinical track, students are trained as forensic clinicians with an emphasis on obtaining clinical licensure. Coursework focuses on the integration between and among forensic clinical psychology, forensic research, criminology, and law. In the policy and justice track the emphasis on psycho-legal research is supported by courses on the legal and justice system, organizational dynamics and development, expert witness testimony, human trafficking, torture, war crimes, genocide, civil rights, federal administration, global law and policing, international treaties, and forensic psychology. For full-time students, this Ph.D. program can be completed in five years.
Internships, Work-Study, Part-Time Jobs Combine with Financial Aid Options to Make Alliant Doctorates Affordable for All
Alliant offers financial aid to qualified CFS students in the form of loans, scholarships, and grants, funded by the federal government, state government, Alliant, and a number of different private sources. Federal and state financial aid funds are only available to students who are United States citizens or permanent residents of the United States.
Although predominantly in the form of loans, student financial aid packages may also include scholarships and student employment. In fact, Alliant has an excellent group of programs offering work-study and employment in which students can earn varying amounts through paid on-campus positions in admissions and field placement, part-time jobs in the community, and teaching and research assistantships.
Most students interested in school-based financial aid pursue some form of college work-study, part-time job, or research/teaching assistant stipend. While there are just a limited number of teaching and research assistantships available, students can also work on campus in a number of departments. With a mix of funding opportunities that can be combined in a number of different ways, the tuition, books, and fees can be offset so that all qualified, hardworking graduate students can work toward a doctorate in an exciting, meaningful, and fulfilling field of study.
Center of Forensic Studies Graduates Work in Private Practice, for the Judicial System, as Researchers, and as Teachers
Center for Forensic Studies graduates have work in such significant positions as staff psychologist/condemned coordinator for death row inmates at San Quentin State Prison. Others work in critical positions at various levels in the judicial system, as expert staff for district attorneys, public defenders, and law enforcement agencies. Still other graduates are critical incident specialists or psychologists with local police departments.
As the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDC) is among the largest employers of forensic psychologists in the state, numerous CFS graduates work for the CDC, while others go into private practice as researchers, consultants, and expert witnesses. In addition, many become lecturers, instructors, and professors teaching at the undergraduate and graduate levels in both public and private institutions.
California Cities Hosting Alliant Forensic Studies Programs Offer a Diverse Array of Resources and Recreation Options
While the Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) in Forensic Psychology is offered in Fresno, Irvine, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and San Diego, the Ph.D. in Forensic Psychology is offered only in Fresno. Each city has personality of its own, offering CFS students a range of styles and environments from which to choose.
Sacramento is the state capital, located in California's central valley. Once called a "cow town," Sacramento is a modern city with an NBA franchise, first-rate art galleries, scholastic centers, and recreational pastimes that often involve the Delta - fishing, boating and other water sports. Fresno, located at the southern end of the central valley, is roughly halfway to Los Angeles from Sacramento. It is an agricultural center of long standing, and just east of the city are the foothills that lead to Yosemite National Park in the Sierras.
Los Angeles is the media center of the world, with film, television, radio, and publishing among its biggest industries. From the beaches and the coastal mountains to the Angeles National Forest, everything in the way of recreation and outdoor fun is available, pretty much year-round, from art and music to theme parks and surfing. Irvine is a thoughtfully managed community in Orange County, south of Los Angeles. A center of research, education, and high technology, Irvine has clean parks and innovative businesses dotting a landscape that runs from the inland foothills to the sands of Huntington Beach.
San Diego is the southern "jewel" of the California coast. Home to a number of universities with extensive libraries and research centers, it is an educational hub that doubles as a top vacation destination, with a wealth of cultural, artistic, dining, and entertainment options.
