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School Psychology Program
Admissions Process
Prerequisite Coursework for Admission
- An undergraduate (or graduate) course in Statistics
- An undergraduate (or graduate) course in Tests and Measurements (including issues such as reliability, validity, standard error of measurement, etc.)
- An undergraduate (or graduate) course in Research Methods or Experimental Design with a lab component.
Required Admissions Materials
All admissions materials should be submitted directly to our program. A complete application includes the following:
- A completed Application to Graduate Studies. You can obtain this application either by calling (813) 974-4614 and requesting a School Psychology information packet or by clicking here to access the application on-line.
- The application fee ($30)—Payable by check or money order (or by credit card if you apply on-line)
- GRE scores (Note: Verbal, Quantitative, and Analytical Writing scores are required; scores should not be more than 5 years old).
- Two official transcripts from undergraduate institution where degree was (or will be) conferred and 2 official transcripts from graduate institution.
- A current resume or vita.
- A statement of your professional goals—In a 2-3 page statement, please tell us why you are interested in becoming a school psychologist, why you have applied to the program at USF, and anything else about yourself that you think would help us to understand you better.
- Three letters of recommendation. It is best if those writing a letter for you are familiar with your academic skills (e.g., writing, critical thinking). If you can get letters from individuals who have taught you at the college or graduate level, that is preferred. However, letters from individuals who are familiar with your professional work skills (e.g., an employer) will be accepted as well. All letters of recommendation should be sealed and signed across the seal by the individual making the recommendation.
- A writing sample. If you have a research paper or literature review that is written in APA style, please provide us with a copy. If not, please send us a representative piece of your writing (e.g., a paper written in college) that demonstrates your skills in conceptualizing ideas and communicating those ideas in written form.
Please Note the Following Recent Changes to the Graduate Admissions Process at USF:
- All applicants are required to submit an application fee of $30 for EACH graduate program. That means that if you applied to the School Psychology Program and another graduate program (e.g., Clinical Psychology, Social Work, Counselor Education), you must submit $30 for each program to which you applied.
- Students who attended USF as a former degree-seeking student (FSR) or as a non-degree seeking student, MUST SUBMIT the application fee.
- To apply to more than one graduate program, the applicant must submit another application, application fee, an additional transcript, and any departmental requirements (recommendation letters, statement of purpose, etc).
Where to Send Your Admissions Materials
Because our program is a direct receipt program (which means that all application materials come directly to our program rather than going to Graduate Admissions first), all applications materials should be sent to:
Linda Raffaele Mendez, Coordinator of Admissions
School Psychology Program
University of South Florida
4202 E. Fowler Avenue, EDU 162
Tampa, FL 33620
If you apply on-line, please submit the application and fee electronically and send all remaining materials to the address shown above.
All application materials are due by January 1, 2008 for Fall 2008 admission to the Program. We admit students only in the fall semester. In a typical year, we admit 8-12 students to the Ph.D. and Ed.S. programs together.
How Applications Are Evaluated
The faculty in the School Psychology Program reviews all applications. The primary assumption underlying admission to either the Ed.S. or the Ph.D. program is that every student who is accepted is capable of (a) successfully completing his or her respective program and (b) performing competently in the field as a school psychologist. For this reason, the selection and admissions procedure is quite rigorous. Applicants are selected based on their potential to benefit from the training program and their potential to contribute both to the Program and the field of School Psychology. Importantly, we seek students whose professional interests and career goals are consistent with the philosophy and mission of our Program.
Within the admissions process, a culturally diverse student body is actively recruited. The admissions process is highly selective, but flexible--all pertinent data submitted for consideration will be evaluated as an entire package. Those students admitted to the Program for Fall 2007 had GRE scores averaging about 1150. The average undergraduate GPA was 3.8.
The School Psychology faculty will review all applications in January 2008. Following the review of all applications, selected applicants will be invited for interviews, which usually take place in January and February. You will be contacted by phone in January if you are selected for an interview.
Need More Information?
We hope that the information we have provided to you on this page will assist you in deciding whether our program is consistent with your desired training goals as a future school psychologist. After you read this information, if you have further questions about our program, please feel free to contact our program assistant at (813) 974-4614 or via email at augustin@tempest.coedu.usf.edu.
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