School Psychology
Thank you for your interest in Texas A&M and in the School Psychology program offered by the Department of Educational Psychology. The doctoral School Psychology program is fully accredited by the American Psychological Association as offering training in school psychology with an emphasis in clinical child psychology. It is also approved by the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP). The program strives to train psychologists capable of contributing to the health care of children and adolescents experiencing mental, academic, emotional, and behavioral difficulties, especially as related to the educational process, at the individual and organizational levels. Since such individuals may be encountered in a variety of settings, the training program attempts to equip students to work in a variety of private and institutional settings in addition to public and private schools.
Our graduates are employed in diverse settings and roles: faculty in academic departments of School Psychology, psychologists employed by public schools, and psychologists in private practice, medical centers, residential treatment centers, and child guidance clinics.
We invite you to view our streaming video introduction to our School Psychology program below:
http://erel.tamu.edu/videospsy.htm
Who are the Graduate Students at TAMU?
How long does it take to complete the doctoral program?
What kinds of financial assistance are available?
Where do students do their internships?
How many students do not complete the program (attrition)?
How many graduates obtain licensure as a psychologist?
Where do our graduates end up?
If you need any additional information, please contact Kristie Stramaski, Academic Advisor, at (979) 845-1833, or contact me directly at (979) 862-4906 or email me at criccio@tamu.edu.
Sincerely,
Cynthia Riccio, Ph.D.
Training Director, School Psychology Program
Contact Information
|
Cynthia Riccio, Ph.D. |
|
Kristie Stramaski |
|---|---|---|
|
(979) 862-4906 |
|
(979) 845-1833 |
Who Are the Graduate Students Here? 
The second year cohort is comprised of 11 students - 10 of them are post-baccalaureate, 1 already has completed a master's degree. Of the 11 students, 3 are Asian, 2 are African American, and 1 is Hispanic. Students currently enrolled (all years) in the school psychology program speak a variety of languages including Spanish, Greek, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese.
Since 2000, the breakdown of students by gender and race:
|
|
Number |
Percent |
|
Females |
60 |
82.19 |
|
Males |
13 |
17.81 |
|
|
|
|
|
African American |
8 |
10.95 |
|
Asian |
3 |
4.11 |
|
Hispanic |
24 |
32.88 |
|
White, non-Hispanic |
36 |
49.32 |
|
Other |
2 |
2.74 |
Of the 56 currently enrolled students (as of 9/1/2009), 83.9.% are female and 16.07% are male; 57.1% are white non-hispanice, 10.7% are african american, 7.1% are asian and 26.79% are hispanic.
Students entering the School Psychology Doctoral program at TAMU, enter with a range of backgrounds and experiences. Time to completion varies as a result of background (bachelor level, unrelated or related graduate work), as well as individual factors. The program is designed and intended to be completed, from bachelor degree to doctorate in five years. Data for the past seven years of graduates (graduating December 2001 - August 2009) indicates:
For students entering with bachelor level training (36):
Mean number of years to program completion = 5.63 (SD= .99)
Median number of years to program completion = 5
22 or 61.1% completed in 5 years
7 or 19.4% completed in 6 years
6 or 16.7% completed in 7 years
1 or 2.8% took longer than 7 years
For students entering with graduate standing* (Master's degree) (28):
Mean number of years to program completion = 5.96 (SD=2.01)
Median number of years to program completion = 4
7 or 25% completed in less than 5 years
7 or 25% completed in 5 years
6 or 21.44% completed in 6 years
3 or 10.7% completed in 7 years
5 or 17.86% took longer than 7 years
*In several instances although students entered with graduate standing, it was in an unrelated field (e.g., business, engineering) and previously earned credits were not applicable.
Tuition : All graduate students are charged tuition on a per credit hour basis. Complete information on tuition and fees for TAMU can be found at http://finance.tamu.edu/sbs/tuition/cost_attendance.asp. This is updated each year based on changes made in the Spring.
For the 2008-2009 academic year tuition per credit hour follows below:
|
RESIDENT TUITION COST |
NON RESIDENT TUITION COST |
|
9 Credit hours - |
9 Credit hours- |
|
10 Credit hours - |
10 Credit hours - |
|
13 Credit hours - |
13 Credit hours - |
|
PER CREDIT HOUR |
PER CREDIT HOUR |
|
Student Fees : $492.15 |
Student Fees : $492.15 |
|
Additional Fees per credit: $103.15 |
Additional Fees per credit: $103.15 |
|
Instructional Enhancement/Lab Fees - vary by course; range from $75 to $225 |
Instructional Enhancement/Lab Fees - vary by course; range from $75 to $225 |
|
Estimated Total Cost (Tuition and Fees) for Fall 2008 with 13 credits (4 classes): |
Estimated Total Cost (Tuition and Fees) for Fall 2008 with 13 credits (4 classes): |
FEE SCHEDULE INFORMATION:
These are charged as a flat fee, regardless of the number of credits registered for:
|
Health Center Fee |
$71.25 |
|
Recreation Sports Center Fee |
$101.92 |
|
Student Center Complex Fee |
$100.00 |
|
International Education Fee |
$4.00 |
|
Transportation Fee |
$70.00 |
|
University Writing Center |
$8.00 |
|
ID Card Fee |
$3.00 |
|
Energy Fee |
$60.00 |
|
|
|
|
TOTAL FLAT FEES |
$418.17 |
|
|
|
|
Instructional Enhancement Fees - Variable |
$75.00 - 225.00/per class |
These are charged on a per-credit basis:
|
Software Licensing Fee |
$1.25 |
|
Student Services Fee |
$14.97 |
|
Advising Services Fee |
$9.10 |
|
Bursar Services Fee |
$0.55 |
|
Computer Access Fee |
$24.16 |
|
Library Access Fee |
$25.46 |
|
Enhancement Fee |
$30.00 |
|
|
|
|
TOTAL PER CREDIT FEES |
$105.49 |
Adjustments to Tuition (financial aid, grants, tuition remission, assistantships, and fellowships)
Texas A&M University and the department offer a variety of financial assistance for their admitted graduate students. This assistance includes in-state status for tuition charges for students holding assistantships or fellowships, tuition remission for students holding 20 hour assistantships, graduate assistantships funded by departmental monies, as well as grant monies, and fellowships that are awarded by the University.
Graduate Assistantships - Graduate students who are admitted to a graduate degree program full time and are awarded a departmental assistantship of at least 20 hours per week (50% time) are eligible to receive resident tuition status. Students may also be provided assistantships through other on campus departments or through grants or contracts, but the funding for these assistantships is at the discretion of the individual departments and grants. Assistantships also include benefits, primarily health insurance for the student. Additional insurance may be purchased for immediate family members if desired.
Tuition Remission - In conjunction with departmental assistantships and through the Office of Graduate Studies, tuition remission (reimbursement for tuition) can be obtained. Students who hold a university fellowship are not eligible for the tuition payment by OGS. Specific funds included in the fellowships are designated as tuition assistance.
Graduate Merit Fellowship - Students who are nominated for this fellowship must demonstrate academic excellence in their previous academic work and/or extracurricular activities, as well as academic potential for their graduate studies. Students are awarded a Graduate Merit Fellowship receive:
A one year fellowship at $20,000
Two years tuition and required fees at the resident rate at $8,000 per year
Student insurance reimbursement for the first year at a maximum of $1,000
(The total fellowship award is $37,000 over a two year period.)
Graduate Diversity Fellowship - Students who demonstrate that they embrace some aspect of diversity in their personal or professional work and who also demonstrate academic potential for graduate study are nominated for this fellowship. Students who are awarded this fellowship package receive:
Three year Fellowship at $13,000 per year
Resident tuition and fees at $8,000 for three years
Departmental assistantship at $7,000 a year for three years (This is the
department's commitment to the student; however the student may secure an alternate assistantship)
(The total fellowship award is $84,000 over a three year period.)
Regent's Fellowships - In the Department of Educational Psychology these funds are divided among the various academic programs. For the past several years, the School Psychology program has awarded one Regent Fellowship to one or more incoming full-time doctoral students. The awardee is also eligible to pay in-state tuition.
Heather Bradley Fellowship - Within the Department of Educational Psychology, each year one first year graduate student receives a one-time fellowship based on interest and experience in working with children with disabilities in urban settings. This fellowship is in the amount of $1000; SPSY graduate students have received this fellowship for 5 of the seven years it has been awarded thus far.
Doctoral Training Grant - For the past 20+ years, the SPSY program has had a Personnel Preparation/Development Grant through the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) to train bilingual (Spanish-speaking) school psychologists with an emphasis in working with Hispanic children with disabilities. Over the course of that time, more than 50 students have received fellowship support for up to four years of their program. Participation in the program is competitive, requires that the student be fluent in Spanish and have an interest in working with Hispanic children with disabilities and their families.
Loans and Financial Aid - Students are permitted to pursue various methods for paying for their graduate education. Students may apply for private or governmental loans as well as private or institutional scholarships and fellowships in an effort to fund their graduate education.
The School Psychology Program strongly encourages students to pursue APA-accredited or APPIC member internship placements. Data for the past seven years indicates that all of our students obtain paid internships, and the majority obtain internships at APA/APPIC sites. These figures include the 12 students currently on internship.
|
|
Number |
Percent |
|
Obtained Internships |
66 |
100 |
|
Obtained Paid Internships |
66 |
100 |
|
Obtained APPIC Member Internships |
62 |
93.94 |
|
Obtained APA/CPA *Accredited Internships |
61 |
92.42 |
|
Obtained Internships Conforming to CDSPP Guidelines |
66 |
100 |
|
Obtained two year half-time Internships |
0 |
0 |
*American Psychological Association Commision on Accreditation (CoA) 750 First Street, NE Washington, DC 20002-4242. (202) 336-5979
Including the current cohort of 9 students, a total of 87 students have matriculated in the program beginning in the Fall of 2002 or later. Of these students, 7 left the program prior to completion of the program for an attrition rate of 8.05%. Attrition information is often interpreted as "failure to complete the program", however in some instances, students who matriculated into the School Psychology Program chose to leave the program and obtain a degree in a related field (e.g., Educational Psychology) - 2 of these students opted to get a master's degree; 1 student left due to health/medical issues. At this time, of students who began in Fall 2002 or later, only 1 student has been ABD (all but dissertated) for more than 1 year, but continue to be enrolled and actively engaged in completing their dissertation.
|
Year of Enrollment |
# Enrolled |
#Graduated with Doctorate |
# Still Currently Enrolled |
# No Longer Enrolled |
|
2002 |
8 |
6 |
1 |
1c |
|
2003 |
9 |
8 |
|
1c |
|
2004 |
7 |
3 |
4 |
|
|
2005 |
13 |
1 |
11 |
2a,c |
|
2006 |
11 |
|
11 |
|
|
2007 |
8 |
|
8 |
|
|
2008 |
11 |
|
11 |
|
|
2009 |
9 |
|
9 |
|
a Student withdrew due to medical reasons; cstudents opted to get a Master's rather than to pursue the doctorate
As of January 1, 2008, programs are expected to report the number and percentage of program graduates who have become licensed psychologists within the preceding decade. Of those students who graduated between 1999 and 2009 (n=67), at least 33 (42.83%) have pursued and obtained licensure as a psychologist; with 5 in the process of compeleting post doc and obtaining licensure; however, data is not available for all graduates. In many instances, graduates indicate that they do not pursue licensure as a psychologist as it is not required for employment in public school settings; it is also not always required in academic settings.
Over the course of the program's history, graduates have gone into academic positions, medical or clinical settings including private practice, correctional settings, or school/educational settings. For the graduates over the past seven years (n=49) their current primary settings (some do a number of things!) are as follows:
|
Position |
Number |
Percent |
|
Academic Position |
7 |
14.29 |
|
School/Education Related Setting |
22 |
44.90 |
|
Medical/Clinical Setting |
12 |
24.49 |
|
Private Practice |
6 |
12.24 |
|
Homemaker/Not employed |
2 |
4.08 |
§ School Psychology Admission Information
§ Reasons to Consider School Psychology
§ SPSY Doctoral Program Course
Requirements
§ SPSY Course Sequence
§ Department of Educational Psychology Research Experience Expectations
§ Annual Evaluation of School Psychology Students
§ SPSY Requirements for Written Preliminary Examinations
§ Policies Regarding Dissertation
§ Practicum Documentation prior to TAMU
§ Practicum Documentation TAMU
§ Doctoral Training Grant - Hispanic Child with Disabilities
§ School Psychology Research Award Program
§ Essay Competition Annoucement & Form
§ Faculty Position opportunity
§ Faculty
§ Students
