Graduate Programs in School Psychology

What is a School Psychologist?

School psychology is the application of psychology to children’s academic and social-emotional development. School psychologists draw from the knowledge bases of psychology, education, law, and professional school psychology.

School psychology is a general practice and health service provider specialty of professional psychology concerned with the science and practice of psychology with children, youth, families; learners of all ages; and the schooling process. The basic education and training of school psychologists prepares them to provide a range of psychological assessment, intervention, prevention, health promotion, and program development and evaluation services with a special focus on the developmental processes of children and youth within the context of schools, families, and other systems.

School psychologists are prepared to intervene at the individual and system-level and develop, implement, and evaluate preventive programs. In these efforts, they conduct ecologically valid assessments and intervene to promote positive learning environments within which children and youth from diverse backgrounds have equal access to effective educational and psychological services to promote healthy development.

School psychologists may counsel a child whose parents recently divorced, collaborate with a teacher to help a child who is deaf to read, assess a child for learning disabilities, develop a drop-out prevention program, teach parents skills to work with their child more effectively, show a class of third graders how to solve problems without violence, or collaborate with other school personnel to design a special educational program for a child with autism.

Although most school psychologists work in elementary and secondary schools, many-especially those with doctoral degrees-are employed in universities, clinics, hospitals, mental health centers, state departments of education, or in independent practice. Many go on to administration such as special education administrator or coordinator of school psychological services, building principal, or director of community-or-hospital based mental health services. The best estimate of the number of persons trained as school psychologists and employed today in some capacity is approximately 30,000.

Why Choose Illinois State?

The doctoral and specialist degree programs in School Psychology have received both national and state level accreditation and program approval, including the American Psychological Association (APA), National Council of Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), and the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).

Graduation from the School Psychology Programs leads to automatic certification as a school psychologist from the ISBE allowing the graduate to work as a school psychologist in Illinois public schools. Graduation from the program also allows the graduate to sit for the exam leading to the credential of Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP). Graduation from the APA-accredited doctoral program allows students, with appropriate post-doctoral experience, to sit for the exam leading to the state credential of Licensed Clinical Psychologists, which is the credential for an independent practice in psychology.

Illinois State University has one of the largest school psychology faculties in the nation with seven full-time school psychology faculty leading to much individualized attention due to a low student-faculty ratio. In the program, there is a low student-to-faculty ratio. Students have access to 40 psychology faculty members with expertise in developmental, clinical/counseling, experimental, social/industrial organizational, and quantitative psychology—the largest psychology faculty of any Illinois public or private university/college outside of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The School Psychology Programs encourages the expansion of the role of school psychologists through diverse interests and career goals. Specialist students receive training in psychoeducational assessment, psychotherapeutic and academic interventions, consultation, and research. Doctoral students receive this core training and, depending on their career goals, have the opportunity to specialize in one of five skill sequences (assessment, counseling/psychotherapeutic interventions, consultation/program evaluation, or supervision/administration). There is also the option in the doctoral program to choose an “open skill sequence,” such as infancy and early childhood assessment or developmental psychopathology.