School Information and Requirements

School Counseling and Mental Health Counseling

The Division of Counseling and School Psychology offers graduate programs to prepare candidates to become mental health professionals working in schools, community agencies, and higher education. Programs in MSED and Certificate of Advanced Study (MSED/CAS) in Counseling: School Counseling & Mental Health Counseling.

The Division of Counseling and School Psychology is well known for the continuing contributions of its faculty to the scholarly literature in psychology, school psychology, educational psychology, counseling, and special education.

Faculty members in the Division work cooperatively with Master’s and Doctoral students, and with faculty members in other divisions and other universities. They conduct research in their areas of specialization, supervise dissertation research, direct sponsored projects, serve on the editorial boards of journals, and collaborate with 60 schools and agencies to provide training and conduct applied research and program evaluation projects.

Doctoral students in School Psychology participate in a scholarly apprenticeship throughout their program of study under the direction of their advisor or other mentor. The apprenticeship is designed to introduce students to the process of scholarship and to supplement coursework in research methodology. The Division has a number of resources for the support of graduate student research.

The Lea R. Powell Institute for Children and Families is an umbrella organization for the service, training, and research activities undertaken by the Division. It includes the Child and Family Services Center (CFSC) and the Powell Development Program. The Child and Family Services Center (CFSC) at the Powell Institute is a spacious mental health facility that provides community-based educational and counseling services to children, families, and adults. The CFSC is equipped with state-of-the-art audio-visual observation system that allows graduate students to receive live, in-themoment supervision in addition to weekly individual and group supervision activities. A variety of educational and therapeutic services are provided by graduate students under the direct supervision of a licensed psychologist or mental health counselor. Services include psychoeducational assessments for children and college-aged individuals, individual and family therapy, play therapy, group therapy, and school consultation. The CFSC also provides a setting for faculty and student applied research projects.

The Institute’s Powell Development Program is designed to provide training and support research activities of faculty and students in the Division. Training activities and resources offered through the Powell Development Program include fellowships in school psychology, honors awards for outstanding school psychology performance, continuing professional development opportunities for school and mental health agency personnel, annual Powell Distinguished Lecture Series, and the availability of therapeutic resources in the Melinda Welter Library. The Powell Development Program supports the research activities of faculty and students through facilitating collaborative research proposals, coordinating ongoing research activities, funding dissertation research projects of students, and providing start-up support for faculty research programs.

Through the sponsorship of the Powell Institute for Children and Families, the Division of Counseling and School Psychology has been awarded numerous governmental- and privately-funded training and research grants totaling over nine and half million dollars. These projects have supported the advanced training of school psychology students in the delivery of specialized psychological services to children and families, multi-tiered system of educational service delivery and school improvement, as well as preparation to become faculty members in higher education. Research programs have focused on provision of mental health services in rural communities, rural justice, and school crisis prevention and response.

Division of Education

The faculty members in the teacher education programs are active researchers dedicated to excellence in training and practice. With expertise in inclusive education, disabilities, literacy learning, development of critical thinking skills, and teaching with technology, education faculty are active in professional associations and scholarship. 61 Successfully funded external grants have centered on inclusive education and case study teaching approaches.

School Psychology

Undergraduate Preparation for the M.A./C.A.S., and Psy.D. Programs

The student must present evidence of competence in the following subject areas:

1. Introduction to psychology
2. Statistical and/or experimental methods
3. At least one of the following:
   • Developmental psychology (e.g., child and adolescent psychology)
   • Personality
   • Abnormal psychology

Students who have not taken these courses, but who are acceptable candidates otherwise, may make arrangements upon approval of the School Psychology Committee to satisfy these requirements via coursework or independent study in the summer preceding admission. Other courses, such as tests and measurements, learning or educational psychology are looked upon favorably. Practical experiences in psychology or education as well as any other relevant experiences are seen as valuable preparation.

Once a student has been accepted into the program, due consideration will be given to graduate work done at other accredited institutions and some transfer of credits may be permitted. No more than six semester credit hours of graduate work, or 20% of coursework, whichever is greater, can be transferred. Such credits must be in courses which were clearly at the graduate level with grade B or better, and which duplicate coursework in Alfred University's School Psychology Program. Students who enter the doctoral program with prior graduate training relevant to the field of school psychology (including a prior master’s degree in school psychology) must complete ½ of their credits for doctoral coursework at Alfred University. This means that no more than 45 of the 90 credits of coursework can be transferred towards the doctoral degree.

Admission

Students applying to the School Psychology Program must submit the following documents directly to the Graduate Admissions Office:

• a completed application form
• three (3) letters of recommendation
• official transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate coursework
• Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test is optional for admission
• a personal statement of objectives
• a statement of research interest (Psy.D. only)

Admission to the M.A./C.A.S. School Psychology Program is limited to 18 students each year, and six students for the Psy.D. program. The deadline for applications to the Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) program in School Psychology is January 15. Review of applications for the M.A./C.A.S. program in School Psychology will begin on February 1. Late applications will be considered if places in the class still exist for qualified applicants. Early application is strongly encouraged.

Interview

An on-campus interview is expected of each applicant for admission to the program, but warranted exceptions may be made. Correspondence about the program should be addressed to: Brad Daly, Division of School Psychology 1 Saxon Drive, Alfred, NY 14802 Telephone: 607-871-2212.

Curriculum

The program is structured to allow separate groups of no more than 25 students to enter each program. Each group remains together through the entire program, attending classes year-round for two years (Counseling) or 15 months (Public Administration), including summers. First year classes are prerequisites for all other classes in the program. Counseling and public administration programs adhere to fall start dates. The literacy and certificate of advanced study programs admit cohorts in the fall and spring.

All matriculated students in AUNY programs are regular Alfred University students. As such, they have access to the University's online resources and to their academic records through AU BannerWeb. Details regarding these privileges are outlined in the program handbook that students receive at orientation.

Campus Residency Requirement

All AUNY extension program students are required to attend courses on the Alfred University campus in western New York State during one summer semester of their program. During the campus residency, the number of courses varies based on the length of the program. Campus housing is available to students. Alfred University and CITE assist students in making arrangements. Costs associated with these visits are not included in the cost of tuition. Information about transportation and housing is distributed to accepted students ahead of the summer residency.