How to become School Psychologist in 2024

School Psychologist Diagnose and implement individual or schoolwide interventions or strategies to address educational, behavioral, or developmental issues that adversely impact educational functioning in a school. May address student learning and behavioral problems and counsel students or families. May design and implement performance plans, and evaluate performance. May consult with other school-based personnel.

School Psychologist is Also Know as

In different settings, School Psychologist is titled as

  • Autism Consultant
  • Bilingual School Psychologist
  • Challenging Behavior Consultant
  • Consulting Psychologist
  • Early Intervention School Psychologist
  • Educational Diagnostician
  • Learning Consultant
  • Psychologist
  • School Psychologist
  • School Psychometrist

Education and Training of School Psychologist

School Psychologist is categorized in Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed

Experience Required for School Psychologist

Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.

Education Required for School Psychologist

Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).

Degrees Related to School Psychologist

Training Required for School Psychologist

Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.

Related Ocuupations

Some Ocuupations related to School Psychologist in different industries are

What Do School Psychologist do?

  • Compile and interpret students' test results, along with information from teachers and parents, to diagnose conditions and to help assess eligibility for special services.
  • Report any pertinent information to the proper authorities in cases of child endangerment, neglect, or abuse.
  • Assess an individual child's needs, limitations, and potential, using observation, review of school records, and consultation with parents and school personnel.
  • Select, administer, and score psychological tests.
  • Provide consultation to parents, teachers, administrators, and others on topics such as learning styles and behavior modification techniques.
  • Promote an understanding of child development and its relationship to learning and behavior.
  • Collaborate with other educational professionals to develop teaching strategies and school programs.
  • Counsel children and families to help solve conflicts and problems in learning and adjustment.
  • Develop individualized educational plans in collaboration with teachers and other staff members.
  • Maintain student records, including special education reports, confidential records, records of services provided, and behavioral data.
  • Serve as a resource to help families and schools deal with crises, such as separation and loss.
  • Attend workshops, seminars, or professional meetings to remain informed of new developments in school psychology.
  • Design classes and programs to meet the needs of special students.
  • Refer students and their families to appropriate community agencies for medical, vocational, or social services.
  • Initiate and direct efforts to foster tolerance, understanding, and appreciation of diversity in school communities.
  • Collect and analyze data to evaluate the effectiveness of academic programs and other services, such as behavioral management systems.
  • Provide educational programs on topics such as classroom management, teaching strategies, or parenting skills.
  • Conduct research to generate new knowledge that can be used to address learning and behavior issues.
  • Interpret test results and prepare psychological reports for teachers, administrators, and parents.

Qualities of Good School Psychologist

  • Oral Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Oral Comprehension: The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Written Comprehension: The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Deductive Reasoning: The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
  • Speech Clarity: The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Inductive Reasoning: The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
  • Problem Sensitivity: The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
  • Written Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
  • Speech Recognition: The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
  • Near Vision: The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • Information Ordering: The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
  • Category Flexibility: The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
  • Fluency of Ideas: The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
  • Originality: The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
  • Selective Attention: The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
  • Flexibility of Closure: The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
  • Perceptual Speed: The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
  • Mathematical Reasoning: The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
  • Time Sharing: The ability to shift back and forth between two or more activities or sources of information (such as speech, sounds, touch, or other sources).
  • Number Facility: The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
  • Far Vision: The ability to see details at a distance.
  • Memorization: The ability to remember information such as words, numbers, pictures, and procedures.
  • Visualization: The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
  • Speed of Closure: The ability to quickly make sense of, combine, and organize information into meaningful patterns.
  • Finger Dexterity: The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
  • Auditory Attention: The ability to focus on a single source of sound in the presence of other distracting sounds.
  • Hearing Sensitivity: The ability to detect or tell the differences between sounds that vary in pitch and loudness.
  • Trunk Strength: The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing.
  • Visual Color Discrimination: The ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.
  • Wrist-Finger Speed: The ability to make fast, simple, repeated movements of the fingers, hands, and wrists.
  • Spatial Orientation: The ability to know your location in relation to the environment or to know where other objects are in relation to you.
  • Rate Control: The ability to time your movements or the movement of a piece of equipment in anticipation of changes in the speed and/or direction of a moving object or scene.
  • Arm-Hand Steadiness: The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
  • Manual Dexterity: The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
  • Sound Localization: The ability to tell the direction from which a sound originated.
  • Control Precision: The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
  • Multilimb Coordination: The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
  • Glare Sensitivity: The ability to see objects in the presence of a glare or bright lighting.
  • Depth Perception: The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
  • Peripheral Vision: The ability to see objects or movement of objects to one's side when the eyes are looking ahead.
  • Night Vision: The ability to see under low-light conditions.
  • Response Orientation: The ability to choose quickly between two or more movements in response to two or more different signals (lights, sounds, pictures). It includes the speed with which the correct response is started with the hand, foot, or other body part.
  • Static Strength: The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.
  • Reaction Time: The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.
  • Gross Body Equilibrium: The ability to keep or regain your body balance or stay upright when in an unstable position.
  • Gross Body Coordination: The ability to coordinate the movement of your arms, legs, and torso together when the whole body is in motion.
  • Dynamic Flexibility: The ability to quickly and repeatedly bend, stretch, twist, or reach out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
  • Extent Flexibility: The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
  • Stamina: The ability to exert yourself physically over long periods of time without getting winded or out of breath.
  • Speed of Limb Movement: The ability to quickly move the arms and legs.
  • Dynamic Strength: The ability to exert muscle force repeatedly or continuously over time. This involves muscular endurance and resistance to muscle fatigue.
  • Explosive Strength: The ability to use short bursts of muscle force to propel oneself (as in jumping or sprinting), or to throw an object.

Tools Used by School Psychologist

  • Computer scanners
  • Desktop computers
  • Laptop computers
  • Multi-line telephone systems
  • Overhead projectors
  • Personal computers
  • Personal digital assistants PDA
  • Tablet computers

Technology Skills required for School Psychologist

  • Centris Group IEP Direct
  • Centris Group RTIm Direct
  • Chalkware Education Solutions IEPPro
  • Email software
  • Ewing Solutions QuickWriter
  • Global Education Technologies EXCENT
  • Google Meet
  • Instructional software
  • MediaNet Solutions e-IEP PRO
  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft Office software
  • Microsoft PowerPoint
  • Microsoft Word
  • Oasys structural design and analysis software
  • PowerSchool Group PowerSchool SIS
  • Presentation software
  • Psychsoft !Observe
  • Smart Solutions IEP Anywhere
  • Spectrum K12 School Solutions Encore
  • SpED Forms
  • Spreadsheet software
  • SunGard Pentamation IEPplus
  • Technical Perspectives CLASS IEP Program
  • Test scoring software
  • Testing software
  • Vision Management Consulting IEP PlaNET
  • Web browser software
  • Word processing software
  • Xperts iep.online