PSYCHOLOGY
The Ed.S. in School Psychology
THE CITADEL
PSYCHOLOGYThe Ed.S. in School PsychologyTHE CITADEL |
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The mission of the Specialist in Education (Ed.S) program in School Psychology
is to prepare students to become data-based problem solvers in school and other
applied settings. Students are trained to provide a range of psychology assessment,
consultation, intervention, prevention, program development and evaluation services
with the goal of maximizing student learning and development. Students are sensitive
to the diversity around them and are expected to promote the betterment of school
environments for students, teachers, administrator. staff, families, and communities.
The program is approved by the South Carolina Department of Education. Graduates
are eligible for certification at the School Psychology II level in South Carolina.
The program is also accredited by the National Association of School Psychologists
(NASP, 1999), the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education
and Certification (NASDTEC, 1993) and the National Council for Accreditation
of Teacher Education (NCATE, 1999).
Admission to the School Psychology Program is based on a competitive review of application materials. All applicants must have a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university. Minimum requirements for consideration for admission include an overall undergraduate or graduate GPA of 3.0 and a combined score (verbal and quantitative) of 1000 on the Graduate Record Examination (minimum of 400 on each section) or a Millers Analogies Test (MAT) score of 410 or higher (score of 50 if taken prior to Oct. 2004) and current within 5 years of application.
Application materials can be requested from The Citadel Graduate College, The Citadel, Charleston, South Carolina: (843) 953-5089. If you have Acrobat Reader, you can click here to obtain a Graduate Admissions Application. All applications must be completed and materials submitted to The Citadel Graduate College by March 15th to be considered for summer and fall admission.
The program at The Citadel encourages students to apply a multi-faceted approach to understanding, evaluating, and intervening in problem areas at the individual, group, or systems level. Training follows the guidelines for NASP-accredited programs and endorses the ethical stance of both NASP and APA relative to the practice of psychology, and school psychology, in particular. With these goals in mind, we have developed a program at The Citadel with four interacting components as follows:
1. Core knowledge areas providing an initial focus on psychological foundations as a basis for more specialized training and with an emphasis on the role, functions, and scope of the profession of school psychology. Courses that support this foundations area include, but are not limited to, the following:
a. PSYC 500: Human Growth and Development
b. PSYC 501: Cognitive and Behavioral Change
c. PSYC 507: General Psychopathology: Assessment & Differential Diagnosis
d. PSYC 508: Counseling and Personality Theories
e. PSYC 512: Ethics, Roles, & Law
f. PSYC 523: Statistics and Research Design
g. PSYC 525: Basic Counseling Techniques
h. PSYC 549: Applied Measurement Techniques
i. PSYC 553: Introduction to Family Dynamics
j. PSYC 561: Social-multicultural Perspectives
2. Acquisition of advanced knowledge and skills builds on the foundation area and emphasizes the knowledge and skills more specific to educational settings. Courses that support acquisition of advanced knowledge and skills include, but are not limited to, the following:
a. PSYC 502: Psychological & Educational Exceptionalities: Child/Adolescent
b. PSYC 602: Social & Biological Basis of Child & Adolescent Behavior
c. EDUC 528: School Administration
d. EDUC 590: Literacy Education and Instruction
e. EDUC 591: Practicum in Literacy Education
3. Acquisition of knowledge and skills critical to functioning as a data-based
problem-solver in educational settings. This cluster of courses provides supervised,
hands-on training in assessment and intervention skills within school settings,
developmental evaluation clinics, and other appropriate settings. Courses which
facilitate this process
include, but are not limited to, the following:
a. PSYC 503: Objective Assessment
b. PSYC 504: Special Techniques in Assessment
c. PSYC 505: Practicum I: Personality & Social Assessment
d. PSYC 605: Systems Theory & Consultation: Prevention and Intervention
e. PSYC 606: Behavioral, Instructional, and Educational Interventionsf. PSYC 615/616: Practicum in School Psychology I & II
g. PSYC 617/618: Consultation & Intervention Practicum I & II
h. PSYC 621/622: Internship in School Psychology I & II
4. A realistic experience as a scientist-practitioner in gathering and analyzing data relative to a topic of concern to the student and associated with issues relevant to children, professionals, and/or schools. This experience builds on PSYC 549 and PSYC 523 and culminates in a defended thesis. The culmination course is:
a. PSYC 599: Thesis (must be completed prior to award of the M.A.)
This model is consistent with the scientist-practitioner model and with the
concept of the school psychologist as a data-based problem solver working with
children, groups, families, and educational personnel within a multi-system
transactional environment that is ever-changing and multiculturally diverse.
School Psychology students must complete all course work including PSYC 599 (Thesis) before placement in an internship setting. The 1200 clock hours can be divided between a public school setting and a non-school setting (e.g., child agency, child development facility, special school setting, etc.) as long as a minimum of 600 hours are in the public school setting under the supervision of an appropriately certified or licensed school psychologist and the non-school based portion is supervised by a certified or licensed psychologist.
Students pursuing graduate degrees in the Department of Psychology must complete
all course requirements within a 5 year period from the date of initial enrollment.
Internship requirements must then be completed within 2 years of the completion
of course work, or 7 years from date of initial enrollment. Appropriate degrees
will be conferred on students who have successfully completed the requirements
of the program with a minimum GPA of 3.25 for the Ed.S. degree. For the required
thesis, a written presentation as well as oral defense of the student's research
before a faculty committee is required. Thesis research must also be submitted
for presentation and/or publication.
Students can apply for the award of the Master of Arts in Psychology degree
after completing 39 semester hours (including PSYC 599: Thesis). This,
however, is not a terminal degree and students are not eligible for certification
by the S.C. Dept. Of Education in School Psychology with the M.A. degree.
Students are required to become members of appropriate professional organizations, many of which have reduced fees for students. Suggested professional organizations for students are as follows:
National Association for School Psychologists (NASP) (www.naspweb.org)
American Psychological Association (APA), particularly Division 16 (www.apa.org)
Southeastern Psychological Association (SEPA) (www.sepaonline.com)
South Carolina Association for School Psychologists (SCASP) (www.scaspweb.org)
Low-Country Association for School Psychologists (LCASP)
South Carolina Psychological Association (SCPA) (www.midnet.sc.edu/scpa)
For more information about graduate study at The Citadel and to receive a graduate catalog and admissions packet, e-mail cgps@citadel.edu or call 1-843-953-5089. If you have questions not answered by this Web page or the graduate catalog, contact the Director of the School Psychology Program, Dr. Kerry Lassiter, at kerry.lassiter@citadel.edu.