McKay School of Education > CPSE > School Psychology Ed.S. > Program Requirements

EdS Program: Requirements

Courses

The program is a full-time, day school experience beginning fall semester and continuing three years across fall and winter semesters and spring terms, accumulating 70 semester hours, 65 hours of which are required core classes. This includes 6 hours of internship and 6 hours of thesis credits. The first year of course work provides a knowledge base for in-school practicum placements during the second year. To facilitate scheduling these practicum experiences, a few evening courses are offered.

Field Experience

Field experiences are essential in the professional preparation of school psychologists. They provide opportunities for supervised practice in applying candidates' newly gained knowledge and skills in preventing and intervening with individual, group and system-level problems. Practica and internships promote mastery of specific skills in assessment for intervention, consultation, counseling, group work, behavior management, and other interventions in preparation for entering the professional practice of school psychology.

Practicum

During the second fall and winter semesters and spring term, practica provide initial experiences in school psychology functions in K–12 educational settings. The practicum courses consist of classroom instruction, directed readings, field experience, and individual and group supervision. Practicum students spend 10 hours per week in elementary and secondary settings where they become familiar with various professional roles, develop and improve professional competencies, and apply their knowledge of legal, ethical, and practical implications of functioning as school psychologists.

Internship

The culminating experience in the training program is the 1,200-hour internship during the 3rd year of training, after students have completed the pre-internship requirements of  64 graduate course hours (minimum), 300 clock hours of supervised practicum, and a thesis. This internship is designed to be a closely supervised, comprehensive experience requiring the intern to integrate acquired knowledge, applied skills, and problem solving abilities to promote a positive educational environment at both individual and systems levels. Interns provide a broad range of school psychological services for diverse populations with a wide range of presenting problems, consult and cooperate with various human service programs, and utilize varied research-based intervention methodologies. The intern typically receives a stipend from the school district during this year of service.

Field Work Supervision

All practica and internships are supervised by professionals who hold a school psychology credential. Each week practicum students receive one hour of face-to-face individual supervision from their site supervisor and one and one half hours of group supervision from a university supervisor  Weekly, the interns receive two hours of face-to-face planned supervision from a licensed school psychologist with a minimum of 3 years of experience, as well as one and one half hours of group supervision from a university supervisor who is a licensed mental health professional with training and experience in counseling and school psychology.