Dr. Emily Dowdell, PsyD

Ruah Woods Psychological Services

Emily Dowdell, Psy.D. earned her Doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology from the Institute for the Psychological Sciences (IPS) at Divine Mercy University, in Arlington, VA. She previously studied Theology and Philosophy while obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in Multimedia Communications from Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio.

Dr. Dowdell has had a diverse training experience, working in a variety of settings including outpatient clinics, residential substance use programs, and state and private psychiatric hospitals. She completed her pre-internship year at the Psychiatric Institute of Washington, DC and her internship and postdoctoral fellowship at Riverview Psychiatric Center in Augusta, Maine. She recently worked with the CatholicPsych Institute, as the Director of Assessments, where she provided individual and marital therapy, and psychological evaluations.

Dr. Dowdell is trained in adolescent, adult, marital, family, and group therapies as well as psychological testing, including evaluations for discerners of the priesthood or religious life. She is an active member of the Catholic Psychotherapy Association (CPA). Dr. Dowdell is currently working at Ruah Woods Psychological Services, providing traditional psychotherapy grounded in a Catholic-Christian anthropology and conducting evaluations with the team for seminary and religious discerners.

Dr. Dowdell is originally from Rhode Island, born and raised Catholic. She now lives in the Cincinnati, OH area with her husband and three boys.