School Psychologist Education Specialist Program (Ed.S) Home Page

The school psychology certification program is housed in the Psychology and Counseling Department of the College of Education and Human Development at Marywood University. The Director of the school psychology program has the ultimate responsibility for the program and cooperates with the chairperson of the Department.  

1. The School Psychology Program is an interdisciplinary program designed to prepare students to meet the challenges of a rapidly evolving educational milieu. Although housed in the Department of Psychology and Counseling, the program takes great pride in training students to address the academic concerns of children as well as those concerns that are more psychological in nature. 
2. The School Psychology Program is a competency-based program. As such, it is understood that school psychologists regularly engage in decision-making processes that may have a profound impact upon children and their families. Therefore the development of competencies in assessment, counseling, treatment development, consultation, and child development are necessary. Such decisions should only be made by those individuals who have developed the appropriate competencies through class instruction and supervised participation in a variety of settings. 
3. Following the philosophy of the scientist-practitioner model, student competencies are developed through participation in classroom, practicum, and research experiences. Students are encouraged to stay abreast of the research literature regarding the practice of school psychology and are expected to integrate the findings of empirical endeavors into their coursework, practica, and internship experiences. It is assumed that students will always strive toward the utilization of Best Practices when carrying out their school psychology duties. Furthermore, students are encouraged to collaborate with faculty members and/or to develop their own research efforts. Students develop expertise and are encouraged to become critical consumers of the literature.
4.  Small class size and a rich diversity of student experience provide a unique learning opportunity, which, in turn prepares students to be highly competitive in the job market.