School Psychology EdS

Degree Awarded: EdS Education Specialist (EdS)
Minimum Required Credits: 64 
Co-op Option(s): None
Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code: 42.2805 
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code: 19-3031

About the Program

The Drexel University School Psychology Educational Specialist (EdS) Program embraces a scientist-practitioner model of training. The program develops school psychologists who use scientific inquiry, problem-solving processes, and a parsimonious data analysis and interpretation model which informs their assessment, intervention, and consultation practices. The program adopts an ecological/behavioral orientation in psychology, focusing on the identification of behavioral and ecological variables that facilitate or impede academic success and behavioral health functioning. The program places a strong emphasis on providing educational support and enhancing behavioral health through hands-on work with children and their families as they function within family, school, and community systems. A primary goal of the program is to train school psychologists who are agents of positive growth and change in children’s lives. The development of evidenced-based assessment and intervention practices, consultation knowledge and skills, and use of behavior analytic technology are central to the program's mission and are informed by behavioral and developmental psychological theories.

The program follows a full-time, hybrid cohort model, which makes it accessible to working professionals. With the cohort model, all students are expected to reside in Pennsylvania or a bordering state and be within commuting distance of Philadelphia. Many core school psychology courses are face-to-face, maximizing hands-on clinical work and supervision. The remaining coursework is online utilizing both synchronous and asynchronous learning modalities. A highlight of the program is the practice-based learning in schools that is infused throughout the program. Students begin practicum in the first year through our partnerships with local schools under the supervision of program faculty, and practicum continues into the second year of the program. In the third year of the program, students complete a 1200-hour internship under the supervision of a certified school psychologist, where they apply the skills learned through coursework and practicum.

The training program is approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE), and the program requirements enable students to become Pennsylvania certified school psychologists following graduation. Once obtaining certification, graduates are prepared to work in schools and educational settings, including public and charter schools, alternative programs, and specialized instructional environments.

Admission Requirements

Same as Drexel admissions requirements. 

Degree Requirements

Program Learning Outcomes