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School Psychology EdS Program

Brigham Young University’s School Psychology program is pleased to be approved by the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) through 2012.

Program Emphasis

This approval assures that the program meets national training standards. Goals and objectives have been identified in 11 domains and implemented in an integrated and sequential course of study. Clinical instruction, including 300 hours of supervised practica and 1,200 hours of internship, is an essential part of student training. School-based experiences provide opportunities for students’ professional and personal competencies (knowledge, skills, and dispositions) to be developed and assessed during their 3-year program. With a focus on applied skills of consultation, counseling, and assessment for intervention, graduates become educators who promote academic and personal/social success among children and youth served in school settings.

Courses

The program offers courses and experiences at developmental, preventive, and intervention levels in content areas considered essential for effective practice in school psychology. The knowledge and competency areas include assessment for interventions focusing on educational, personal/social, and mental health needs; preventative and responsive services sensitive to underlying issues of diversity; consultation with parents, teachers, administrators, and other professionals; child and adolescent development, including psychopathology; learning theory; promotion of healthy social, emotional, and academic growth and development; counseling services (individual and group); professional roles and expectations; ethics; family and institutional systems; and research and program evaluation.

Field Experiences

Throughout the program students practice skills they are systematically acquiring as they implement and monitor appropriate interventions. In addition to formal course work, the program offers field experiences. During fall, winter, and spring semesters of their second year, students participate in school-based practica. During their third year, students complete a 1,200-hour internship. School-based experiences are carefully sequenced and are supervised by both an “on-site” school psychologist and a university faculty member in a group supervision setting. This combination of individual and group supervision enhances student learning by expanding opportunities to learn personally as well as vicariously. Students benefit from supportive mentoring and individual feedback regarding their professional functioning and personal development. For more specific feedback regarding skill acquisition, including assessment, counseling, and consultation, students and supervisors also have the opportunity to utilize university facilities for videotaping assignments and experiences.