Salary: $112,652.80 - $130,416.00 Annually
Location : County of San Diego, CA
Job Type: Regular - Full time
Job Number:
Department: Public Defender
Division: Primary Public Defender
Opening Date: 07/29/2026
Closing Date: 8/30/2026 12:00 AM Pacific

Job Summary
The County of San Diego Public Defender
is currently accepting applications for the position of

CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST
Interviews will take place beginning the week of September 21, 2026.

Job offers will take place beginning the week of September 28, 2026.
The Public Defender has an excellent opportunity for psychologists within its Holistic Services Unit (HSU) with clients experiencing mental health disorders, including those with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders. The psychologist will work collaboratively with attorneys, investigators, social workers, and substance use assessors to provide clinical evaluations, ongoing treatment recommendations, consultation, and attorney training.

As a psychologist you will be conducting forensic, psychological, and competency evaluations, developing treatment recommendations, participating in multidisciplinary case strategy meetings, and consulting on expert witness preparation, cross-examination strategy, and competency motions. You will also have the opportunity to conduct internal trainings on relevant behavioral health topics.
The ideal candidate will have experience working with justice involved culturally diverse individuals in a fast-paced, dynamic environment such as jails, juvenile detention facilities, acute psychiatric facilities, or residential treatment facilities. Ideal candidates should also have excellent report-writing and assessment skills and a willingness to work alongside lawyers and the judicial system.
Click to review the complete job description for a Clinical Psychologist.
***Effective September 9, 2022, this hard to recruit position qualifies for the Employee Referral Reward Program. If a current County of San Diego employee referred you to apply for this position, please indicate the employee's name on your job application in the space provided. ***

Interviews and Hiring Process:
Job offers for selected candidates will be made shortly after the interviews. Candidates should be prepared to immediately complete background paperwork, upon receipt of a job offer.

The timeline for this recruitment is outlined below. Please note that dates are approximate and are dependent upon the successful completion of each step of the process.

• Job Offer and Background Process begins: Shortly after the interviews.

• Pre-employment Medical Screening: Approximately 3 days following successful background investigation results.

• Anticipated Start Date: Start date will be based upon successful completion of medical screening or other mutually agreed upon date.

If you are not selected for this interview process, you may have the opportunity to compete for future vacancies.

Minimum Qualifications

1. Graduation from an accredited U.S. college or university, or a certified foreign studies equivalency with a Ph.D. or Psy.D. in clinical, forensic, community or educational psychology, AND two (2) years of full-time experience in a mental health setting; AND,
2. Candidates must be licensed or license eligible by the State of California as a Psychologist (California Administrative Code, Title 9, Section 624). Employees whose education and experience are sufficient to gain admission to the licensing examination shall have two (2.5) years from the date of employment in California to become licensed or employment shall be terminated. Such employees shall take the licensing examination at the earliest possible date after the date of his/her appointment.

Blind Applicant Screening

The Department of Human Resources removes personally identifiable information from all recruitments. This practice, called Blind Applicant Screening, hides a candidate's personal information that could influence or bias a hiring decision. Personal information includes name, phone number, address, gender, age and race. This process helps contribute to a fair and equitable selection process leading to a more diverse and inclusive workforce.

The most highly qualified candidates, based on the evaluation results, will be referred for an interview. Be sure to include your experience in meeting the minimum requirements in both the Work Experience section and the Supplemental Questionnaire section of the Application.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of the application Work History and/or supplemental questionnaire.
Evaluation Process:
Qualified applicants will be placed on a six (6) month employment list based on scores received during the evaluation of information contained in the supplemental questionnaire. Please ensure all information is complete and accurate as the responses you provide on the supplemental application form will be reviewed using an automated evaluation system. If you are successful in the initial screening process your application will be reviewed individually to confirm that the information you provided is accurate and qualifying.

Accommodation:
Note: Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable a qualified individual with a disability to perform the essential functions of a job, on a case-by-case basis.

Condition of Employment:
As part of the County of San Diego's pre-employment process, prospective candidates will undergo a background check (including fingerprinting) and a pre-employment medical screening prior to beginning County employment. Additional types of background investigations may be conducted based on the job-related activities of the position.

01

Please be sure to answer the following questions in a thorough and complete manner, as your responses may be used to determine your overall score. Note that if you are invited to a selection interview(s) by a department, your responses to the following questions may be subject to verification.

Be sure to include this information in the work experience section of your application.

Do you understand this information?

• Yes
• No

02

Are you currently licensed as a Psychologist by the State of California?

• Yes
• No

03

If you answered "Yes" to question #2, please provide your license number and expiration date in the space below. Please indicate "N/A" if not applicable.
04

If you answered "No" to question #2, do you possess the education and experience required to gain admission to the CA licensing examination?

• Yes
• No
• Does not apply; I am licensed in CA.

05

Do you possess a Ph.D. or Psy.D. in clinical, community, forensic, or educational psychology?

Note: In order for your education to be considered, you must submit a copy of your diploma, final transcripts, or foreign studies equivalency report.

• Yes
• No

06

Do you possess two (2) years of full-time experience in a mental health setting? Note: If you are using Internship experience as your two (2) years of full-time experience, please attach a copy of your transcript at the time of application.

• Yes
• No

07

Do you have clinical experience working with the populations listed below? Check all that apply.

• Adults and/or Older Adults
• None of the Above

08

Do you have clinical experience working in any of the following settings? Check all that apply.

• Clinic
• Hospital
• Probation or detention facility
• Other
• None of the above

09

Please describe your clinical experience as it pertains to questions #7 and #8 and include the following information:

A) Name of Employer
B) Job Title
C) Populations Served
D) Work settings
E) Brief description of duties performed

If you do not have this experience, please indicate "N/A".
10

Do you have experience working on multi-disciplinary professional teams?

• Yes
• No

11

If you answered "Yes" to question #10, please check the groups you have experience working with from the choices below. Check all that apply.

• Probation personnel
• Court system/Court personnel
• Medical Staff
• Child Welfare Services
• School personnel
• Legal
• Other
• None of the Above

12

Please describe your experience working on multi-disciplinary professional teams and include the following information:

A) Name of Employer
B) Job Title
C) Your role

If you do not have this experience, please indicate "N/A".
13

Please check the types of psychological evaluations you have performed from the choices below. Check all that apply.

• Psychological evaluations of youth or adults
• Mental Health Diversion Psychological Evaluations
• Mental Competency Screenings
• Restoration of Competency evaluations
• Substance Abuse Disorder / ASAM
• Other
• None of the above

14

Please describe your experience performing psychological evaluations as it pertains to question #13 and include the following information:

A) Name of Employer
B) Job Title
C) Brief description of evaluations performed

If you do not have this experience, please indicate "N/A".
15

Do you have experience testifying in court?

• Yes
• No

16

Where did you hear about this job opportunity?

• San Diego County website
• Governmentjobs.com
• Veteran Outreach / FFSC
• Mana de San Diego
• Family, Neighbors, Friends
• County Employee Resources Group
• College/University Career Site
• County Social Media
• CA Psychological Association
• SD Psychological Association
• American Psychological Association
• Voice and Viewpoint
• LinkedIn
• Indeed.com
• Other

17

If you selected "Other" in question #15, please tell us how you first heard about this job opportunity.

If you selected "College/University Career Site", please list the school name.

Please indicate "n/a" if not applicable.
18

Thank you for your interest in employment with the County of San Diego
19

Were you referred by a County employee to apply for this position? Note: effective September 9, 2022, County employees are eligible to earn cash awards for any candidates they refer to hard to recruit positions that are then hired.

• Yes
• No

20

If you responded "Yes" to the above, in the space provided please list the name of the County employee that referred you.
Required Question