Coursework covers health promotion and disease prevention, epidemiology, behavioral medicine, pain management research, management of chronic illness, and applied psychophysiology and biofeedback.
Research is immediately applicable to contemporary health issues such as health risks modifications.
Field training is ongoing and begins with clerkships in the first year followed by practica in the second. In the fifth year, students are in full-time internships. All clinical training is supervised by licensed psychologists and takes place in San Diego county hospitals and clinics including Sharp Hospital and Scripps Clinic. A doctoral respecialization certificate is offered in health psychology. The program trains students in biofeedback and other psychophysiological techniques to assist individuals in whom stress and other psychological phenomena are manifested in physical symptoms, such as tension headaches and hypertension.