Doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.)
The doctoral program in school psychology, accredited by APA and approved by NASP/NCATE, is broadly conceived to prepare leaders in the field who will be able to apply the principles of educational psychology, psychology, and child psychology to the professional practice of school psychology within school and community settings.
A total of eight to ten students are accepted into the doctoral program each year. The majority of students who are admitted to the Ph.D. program major in educational psychology (Department of Educational Psychology).
All doctoral students within the school psychology program share core program requirements while also provided opportunities to develop their areas of specialization and interest by drawing on resources across departments. The Ph.D. program in school psychology, including coursework, field placement experiences, and research experience, is designed to develop leaders in program development, consultation, and research and evaluation.
The doctoral program, generally involving five years of graduate study including a full year of internship, accepts students with undergraduate training in psychology, child psychology, special education, education, other social sciences, and the biological sciences. Experiences in public school teaching or other educational specialty areas also are characteristic of some students' backgrounds. An attempt is made to select persons of promise for the field of school psychology, both for university training and research positions and for high level professional positions in the field, who are committed to facilitating the process of educational change within schools and other community settings and promoting the educational and developmental competence of children and youth.
The School Psychology program’s Student Admissions, Outcomes and Other Data are available to assist you in making an informed decision about entering the program.
Approximately 22% of Ph.D. applicants were admitted for the 2010-11 academic year with an average undergraduate grade point average of 3.68 (standard deviation = .25), and GRE scores of 590.9 (SD = 68.6) Verbal and 695.5 (SD = 63.0) Quantitative. Approximately 12% of the applicants for the specialist degree were admitted for the 2010-11 academic year with an average undergraduate grade point average of 3.58 (SD = .28) and mean GRE scores of 554.0 (SD = 89.9) Verbal and 672.0 (SD = 76.9) Quantitative.
The School Psychology Program offers a joint program with the institute of Child Development and the Psychology Department in the College of Liberal Arts. Up to one student is admitted each year in these two joint programs from which students complete the degree requirements of the home department (ICD or PSY) and complete School Psychology core courses. Graduates of a joint program will be eligible for certification as a school psychologist and potentially licensure as a professional psychologists.
Program Requirements and Student Competence
The doctoral program is designed as a five-year program that requires the completion of a minimum of 90 graduate semester credits (approximately three years of coursework and practical experience, one year of prelim exams and dissertation, and one year of internship). The first three years are devoted primarily to completion of coursework and must be full- time. (Two years must be at the University of Minnesota and one year must be full-time in residence.) Students complete the requirements for the Master's degree as the first part of their course of study.
Program areas
The program of study and field experiences includes the following areas:
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Upon completion of the program, graduates will demonstrate competency in:
- Data-based decision making.
- Consultation and collaboration with various school personnel and community agencies.
- Effective instruction and development of cognitive/academic skills.
- Socialization and development of student life skills.
- Knowledge of school and system organization, policy development, and climate.
- Prevention, crisis intervention and mental health promotion.
- Collaborative relationships between home, school, and community.
- Research and program evaluation.
- Ethical practice and knowledge of school psychology as a field.
- Using information technology to improve practice.
- Biological aspects of behavior
- Cognitive/affective aspects of behavior
- Social aspects of behavior
- History and systems of psychology
- Psychological measurement
- Research methodology
- Techniques of data analysis
- Individual differences in behavior
- Human development
- Professional standards and ethics
- Theories and methods of assessment and diagnosis
- Effective intervention
- Consultation
- Supervision
- Evaluating the efficacy of interventions
- Issues of cultural and individual diversity that are relevant to all of the above
- Attitudes essential for lifelong learning, scholarly inquiry, and professional problem-solving.
Urban Education Initiative
The College of Education and Human Development has initiated a focus on urban education issues, both in research and coursework opportunities. Students in the school psychology program have an opportunity to specialize in psychological service delivery in urban education settings.
The program has close ties with both the Minneapolis and St. Paul school districts, which are ethnically diverse. In fact, the student population for both districts is over 50% nonwhite. Between the districts, school psychology students have an opportunity for field experiences with individuals (students and staff) from African-American, Asian-American, Euro-American, Hispanic, and Native American backgrounds. The heterogeneity of the schools within the districts is illustrated by the fact that in 1995, St. Paul elementary schools' nonwhite population ranged from 34% to 68%.
In addition, field experiences with ethnic and cultural diversity are not restricted to the urban school districts. School districts in the metro area are becoming increasingly diverse, which provides additional opportunities for our students to develop their competence in working with diverse student populations.
Additionally, current research at the University of Minnesota provides much experience with students and parents from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Because of the close ties between the school psychology program and the St. Paul and Minneapolis school districts and the commitment of the College to urban education, applicants interested in cultural and ethnic diversity will find many exciting opportunities at the University of Minnesota.
School Psychology resources
Educational Psychology Student Handbook
2011-2012 School Psychology Handbook
Doctoral degree requirements for graduation
Registration, readmission and change of status You will find the thesis titles of previous graduates in the
School Psychology Student
Handbook [.pdf].
Resources available through the Graduate School
The degree program form can be downloaded from this page.
Ph.D. dissertation
samples
Graduate program support for students of culturally diverse backgrounds