School Psychology Specialist Program Requirements
The Specialist program requires three years of full-time study. With special permission from the student's advisor and program coordinator, the equivalent of one year of coursework may be completed part-time. Upon completion of the first year of coursework (30 credits) and passing of a comprehensive exam, students are awarded a Master of Arts (M.A.) in School Psychology. All students are expected to continue their studies to earn the Educational Specialist Degree in School Psychology, which requires 30 additional credits including a 1,200-hour internship. It is only upon completion of the full 60-hour integrated program that a student is eligible for certification as a school psychologist in Delaware as well as most other states.
Coursework for Specialist Students
First Year (Master's Level)
During the first year, you complete the following coursework during the Fall, Spring, and Winter or Summer session. During the session in which you take your final course, you become eligible to take the comprehensive exam. Passing this exam qualifies you to receive your Master's degree.Fall Semester (12 credits)
- EDUC 618: Introduction to School Psychology
- EDUC 663: Counseling Skills Laboratory
- EDUC 817: Individual Intelligence Testing
- EDUC 744: Educational Measurement and Progress Monitoring
Winter Session (6 credits)
- EDUC 814: Psychological Assessment of Children
- EDUC 623: Applied Human Development
Spring Semester (12 Credits)
- EDUC 671: Practicum in School Psychology
- EDUC 679: Instructing Elementary/Middle Schoolers with Mild Disabilities
- EDUC 830: Consultation and Intervention: School Discipline
- EDUC 870: Child Neuropsychology
Second Year (Specialist level)
In the second year, students complete the following Specialist coursework, which includes the practica:
Fall Semester (12 credits)
- EDUC 831: Advanced Counseling Techniques
- EDUC 671: Practicum in School Psychology
- EDUC 691: Applied Statistics and Research Design
- EDUC 813: Child Psychopathology
Spring Semester (12 Credits)
- EDUC 671: Practicum in School Psychology
- EDUC 651: School-Based Family Issues and Interventions
- EDUC 841: Consultation and Intervention: Mental Health
- EDUC 842: Assessment of Special Populations
Third Year (Internship)
During the third and final year of the School Psychology Specialist Program, students complete the following requirements:
- Enroll in EDUC 688: Internship in School Psychology, for 3 credits or 6 credits per semester
- Pass the PRAXIS Exam in School Psychology
- Complete the portfolio and have it approved
- Complete the Application for Advanced Degree for conferral of the Specialist Degree
Note: Students who choose to enroll for 3 credits of internship may not be considered "full-time students" for the purpose of deferring student loans. Students are responsible for determining their loan status.
Minimum GPA of 3.5
Students must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.5 to be eligible for the Master's and Specialist degree. Students also must obtain a grade of B- or higher in each practica in order advance to the next level of the program. Additionally, a grade of B- or higher is required during each semester of the internship in order to complete the program and receive the Specialist degree. Note that proficiency in oral and written expression in English is among the requirements in practica and the internship.
Comprehensive Examination
The comprehensive examination is administered to first-year students, usually during the last week of the Spring semester. Alternate exam times are sometimes arranged for students who wish to participate in Winter or Summer graduation. The exam consists of several essay questions covering material from first-year courses. Successful completion of the exam and coursework results in the Master of Arts degree. The exam is graded by two or more members of the school psychology faculty. Student identities are masked for the purpose of exam grading. Students failing the exam are given the opportunity to take a second exam. At the discretion of the faculty, this second exam may cover all or part of the first year course material and may be written and/or oral. Students must pass the second administration in order to continue in the program.
Filing for a Master's or Specialist Degree.
To initiate the process for degree conferral, candidates must submit an "Application for Advanced Degree" form to the Administrator for Graduate Student Academic Affairs in the Office of Graduate Studies. Application forms are available online (http://www.udel.edu/gradoffice/applicants/) or may be obtained from the Director's office in the School of Education. The application deadline for May graduation is Feb. 15. The application must be signed by the candidate's advisor (or program coordinator) and the School's director. An application fee is $50.00, which must be submitted along with the application. When completing the application for the Master's Degree, be sure to also complete the necessary form to change your status from Master's degree to Specialist degree. This is important because otherwise the University will no longer consider you as a student, since you received your degree.
Residency Requirement
All students must complete a full-time residency. Minimally, at the Specialist level, students are required to spend one, continuous year (Fall semester, Spring semester) of full-time course work in the program. This does not include the internship. Full time work is defined as completing nine credit hours per semester. It is strongly recommended that both years of coursework be completed on a full-time basis.
Practica
Three carefully constructed practica (3 separate courses for a total of 9 credits) are a part of every student's program. The first practicum course orients students to the educational process and focuses on assessment skills. In addition to administering and interpreting a variety of assessment tools, students implement an academic intervention with an individual child and conduct a functional behavior assessment linked to intervention. In the second and third practica, students refine their assessment skills and develop expertise in direct and indirect interventions (e.g., individual and group counseling, teacher and family consultation, design and implementation of behavior management programs, social skills training). Practicum experiences also are embedded with more content-based courses. For example, during the first semester students shadow and interview a school psychologist and administer a variety of intelligence tests.
Practicum assignments are made by faculty to ensure that students gain experience with children of a variety of ages, cultures, and disabilities. Practica require 2 full days per week and are completed in regular school settings; however, one practicum may be completed in a more "specialized" setting, such as programs for children with physical and/or sensory impairments, alternative schools, schools for children with autism or other severe disabilities. Students interested in a particular area should discuss possible placements with the University practicum supervisor. Supervision is provided on-site by a certified school psychologist; students also attend weekly group supervision meetings with a University faculty member.
Internship
For students in the specialist program, an internship is completed in the third year of training. Doctoral students complete the internship during the fifth year in the program. The objective of the internship is to insure competency and integration of knowledge and skills in all domains of school psychology and to broaden such knowledge and skills.
The internship is a culminating experience during which students not only continue to develop a full range of compentencies across all domains of school psychology practice, but more importantly demonstrate the integration and application of such competencies. The internship requires full-time participation, five days per week for one academic year. Interns must log a minimum of 1,200 clock hours (1,500 for Ph.D.). Internship sites follow guidelines established by the National Association of School Psychologists, as outlined in the Internship Guidelines.
A plan of objectives and activities, which are consistent with goals of the program, are delineated and evaluated on the Field Experience Checklist and Evaluation Form. As described in the Internship Guidelines, a written contract between the University, internship site, and intern must be formalized prior to beginning an internship. This contract states the responsibilities of the training program, the internship site, and the intern. The internship is a collaboration between the training program and field site program. A written plan specifies the responsiblities of the training program and internship site in providing supervision, support, and both formative and summative performance-based evaluation of intern performance. Students typically handle a case load roughly half of that required for a certified school psychologist. They must participate in a minimum of 4 hours of weekly supervision from a certified school psychologist (or someone with other appropriate credentials for placements in non-school settings) and log at least 1,200 clock hours (1,500 for Ph.D.) that document a full range of experiences and services with a diverse population of students. During the internship, competencies in the domains of school psychology are assessed not only by field supervisors using the Field Experience Checklist Evaluation Form, but also by the University supervisors' evalution of a comprehensive portfolio that includes counseling and consultation tapes, a psychological report, a comprehensive case study (documenting positive outcomes), documentation of professional development activities, and a PowerPoint presentation (to school psychologists and students) on a system-wide intervention or evaluation project that they completed.
Finding an appropriate internship site is the joint responsibility of the university supervisor and the student. While every effort is made to arrange for a paid internship, paid internships are not guaranteed. However, over the past ten years all interns have been offered paid internships (averaging about $16,000). Students have completed their internships in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Virginia, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Florida, Iowa, Illinois, Texas, and Alaska.
Placements must be approved by the university supervisor. Although the supervisor attempts to place interns in locations that they most desire, the program's obligations to local school districts must be respected. As such, the University may require that an internship be completed in a local school district. Likewise, quality of the site is always considered to be more important than a high salary.
Doctoral interns may desire (but are not required) to participate in the APPIC process for securing an internship. Information may be obtained from the APPIC web site. Students should become thoroughly familiar with the Internship Guidelines (Appendix D) prior to beginning their internship search. Assistance with finding internship sites is provided during group supervision meetings in the third practicum.
