Ph.D. in School Psychology Program FAQs

A Ph.D. in School Psychology from Indiana University opens several professional options. First, one is eligible for licensure to work in public schools as a school psychologist. Second, typically in combination with completing post-doc hours and passing an exam (each state has unique criteria and different countries have different rules as well), a doctorate from an APA-approved program such as Indiana leads to eligibility to be licensed as a psychologist, which opens the door to working in a variety of applied mental health settings (e.g., hospitals, community mental health centers, private practice). Finally for most colleges and universities a doctoral degree is required to become a faculty member.

Very strong! There is a shortage of school psychologists both in the state of Indiana and nationwise. 100% of our students go straight from graduation to employment in school psychology.

This varies a bit by year. Typically, we aim for a new cohort of approximately 4-6 Ph.D. students each year.

Classes are largely in-person, particularly during the first year. During the summers and second year, there are typically a mix of in-person and online classes. If you are applying to this program, it is important that you are available to come to in-person classes on a regular basis.

If your courses were taken during the past five years and overlap with our curriculum, it is very possible that some of your classes can be transferred. This is a very much a case-by-case situation as course content varies widely by university. If you think you have some overlapping courses, please reach out to the program director directly for more information.

The Ph.D. program is a minimum of 94 credits. Although not a guarantee, Ph.D. students typically apply for and ultimately are offered assistantships (which cover all or much of the tuition, cover health insurance, and provide a stipend in exchange for working 20 hours week). The university provides a cost calculator that helps you figure out how much you’ll pay to go to IU.

Absolutely! You can read student testimonials here, and you can also fill out this form to reach out to one of our student ambassadors for more information about their experience in the program.