Welcome to UCSF Health Psychology

Health Psychology is the scientific field that applies psychological theory and methods to the study of the promotion and maintenance of health and the prevention and treatment of illness.

The University of California, San Francisco initiated one of the first graduate programs in Health Psychology in 1977. Since that time, UCSF has had either a predoctoral or postdoctoral training program in Health Psychology. UCSF has a large number of faculty actively involved in Health Psychology research.

Postdoctoral Training in Health Psychology
UCSF has had a postdoctoral training program entitled, "Psychology and Medicine: Translational Research on Stress, Behavior and Disease" (formerly "Psychology and Medicine: An Integrative Research Approach") since 1983.

Application period
The application period for candidates starting in Fall 2022 is now closed. We will resume accepting applications sometime in December 2023 for candidates starting in Fall 2024. Please check back with us in late November or early December for specific dates for the start and end of the application period. Underrepresented minorities are encouraged to apply.

Research Opportunities
Health Psychology faculty members are actively involved in diverse areas of research.  We welcome qualified individuals at undergraduate and graduate level to work in our labs. Research assistants have the opportunity to gain valuable experience in research design, methodology, data collection, research participant interaction, data analysis, and the scholarly dissemination of research results.

Please note, we do not offer undergraduate or graduate degrees in Health Psychology.

If you are interested in participating as a research assistant to one or more of our faculty, please email [email protected], and your message will be forwarded to our project/lab managers who will contact you shortly thereafter.