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Educating Parapsychologists
Journal of Parapsychology, The, Sept, 1999 by Matthew D. Smith
When I presented this paper at the 42nd Annual Convention of the Parapsychological Association in August 1999, I conducted an informal survey of attendees in an attempt to identify the percentage of those attending who had received some kind of formal education in parapsychology. Although the vast majority of attendees were, or had been, active researchers in the field, less than 20% had received any formal education in parapsychology. This small percentage reflects that there has traditionally been a lack of educational opportunities. Moreover, more than half of those who had received some formal education had received at least part of their training through just one institution--the Rhine Research Center (RRC) in Durham, North Carolina. This demonstrates the important role of the RRC in providing training in the research methods, findings, and implications of parapsychological research. Indeed, the RRC continues to be at the forefront of providing educational opportunities in parapsychology. Their 8-week S ummer Study Program (SSP) is still probably the best known and most comprehensive course for individuals wishing to gain a thorough grounding in all areas of parapsychology from experimental research to spontaneous case investigations and case studies. Moreover, as the course is delivered by active researchers (whether they be guest lecturers or those based at the Center itself), students get the chance to interact with many of the major contributors to the field. In short, as an SSP alumnus myself, I would recommend the SSP to any serious student of parapsychology.
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The prevalence of the RRC in the educational experiences of a high proportion of researchers (or at least a high proportion of those who have received some formal education in parapsychology) might also be taken to highlight the lack of alternative sources for such training. However this situation appears to be changing.
Those of us who do not live in North Carolina may be pleased to learn that there are also a handful of educational opportunities available elsewhere. For example, no matter where you may be located in the world, it is now possible to take an on-line academic course in parapsychology at the University of Utrecht over the internet thanks to the efforts of Professor Dick Bierman. The course runs between March and June each year, during which one key article per week is made available on the internet for students to read, critique, and answer specific questions by email. The emails are re-distributed to all participants along with comments by the instructor, Prof. Bierman himself. There are also "meet-the-expert" chat sessions where students can ask questions in real-time to authors of some of the selected articles. Students who are based at a Dutch university can take the course for academic credit and there are plans for similar arrangements for students based at a US university.
In addition, it is also occasionally possible to take courses in parapsychology as part of a regular undergraduate degree program. For example, at Franklin Pierce College in New Hampshire, psychology students are able to take several courses in parapsychology as part of their degree.
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