Before looking for a PTSD-specialized program, keep in mind that the emphasis usually falls under a different name. PTSD treatment is generally considered a kind of trauma psychology, so graduate students hoping to specialize in PTSD might look for schools that offer an emphasis in trauma or one of the methods used to treat PTSD. These include cognitive behavioral therapy, cognitive processing therapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, psychotherapy (often the first treatment used for PTSD) and emotional regulation
A master's degree is generally required for PTSD counseling and therapy before licencing, although many practitioners also pursue a doctorate in clinical psychology or counseling psychology. Others follow up their undergraduate or graduate degrees with a certificate program in the Psychology of Trauma, which lasts between a weekend and 18 months. Military psychologists also receive training in the treatment of PTSD.
There are about 70 schools in the U.S. that offer master's degrees or doctorates with emphasis and/or faculty expertise in trauma psychology. A complete list is maintained by the American Psychological Association. Several of these schools have faculty who specialize in PTSD psychology. Among these, the program with the largest number of expert faculty focusing on PTSD is Boston University, near Veteran's Hospital in Boston, a national center for PTSD treatment.
Among the six Boston University professors with PTSD expertise are Dr. Terence Keane, who focuses on assessment and cognitive-behavioral treatment with a focus on refugees and civilians exposed to war, Dr. Brett Litz, who looks at how soldiers and others process emotions and examines the self-management approach to treatment, Dr. Mark Miller, whose expertise lies in the emotional and psycho-physiological aspects of PTSD, and Dr. Patricia Resick, a specialist working on the cognitive behavioral treatment of PTSD.
Although Case Western Reserve University has only one professor specializing in PTSD, Dr. Norah Feeny, much of the work done in the school's laboratory is focused on evaluating PTSD treatments. The lab is currently looking at who benefits from which treatments and how to spot PTSD in children. Case's PhD program has been around since 1948 and generally ranks among the top 40 clinical psychology programs out of some 150 in the U.S. Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, has three PTSD specialists and the University of Nebraska in Lincoln has two. Argosy University, spread over six locations across the U.S., offers PhDs in trauma psychology and has two PTSD specialists on board, one in Washington D.C. and one in Hawaii. Currently, the remaining 12 schools have just one specialist each.