School Psychology

Types of Degrees School Psychology Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many school psychology graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	2,441
Graduate Certificate	860
Doctor’s Degree	345

What School Psychology Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, school psychology majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for School Psychology Majors

School Psychology majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
• Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

Skills for School Psychology Majors

A major in school psychology prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Abilities for School Psychology Majors

A major in school psychology will prepare for your careers in which the following abilities are important:

• 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.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

What Can You Do With a School Psychology Major?

People with a school psychology degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Compliance Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Counseling Psychologists	14.2%	$76,990
Psychology Professors	15.1%	$76,710
Regulatory Affairs Managers	8.0%	$107,480
School Psychologists	14.2%	$76,990

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in School Psychology?

The major attracts more women than men. About 88% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of school psychology majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	114
Black or African American	137
Hispanic or Latino	609
White	1,343
International Students	25
Other Races/Ethnicities	213

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in School Psychology, too. About 1.0% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to School Psychology

Some careers associated with school psychology require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to school psychology have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	1.7%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	1.3%
Some College Courses	0.2%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	1.8%
Bachelor’s Degree	29.1%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	0.0%
Master’s Degree	21.1%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	8.5%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	2.3%
Doctoral Degree	18.0%
Post-Doctoral Training	14.8%

Online School Psychology Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	1	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	1	0
Bachelor’s Degree	13	1
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	171	11
Post-Master’s	94	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	58	1
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	13	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	1	0

Majors Related to School Psychology

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to school psychology.

Major	Number of Grads
Counseling Psychology	11,005
Applied Behavior Analysis	6,810
Clinical Psychology	5,823
Industrial & Organizational Psychology	2,785
Forensic Psychology	2,601
Applied Psychology	2,536
Educational Psychology	2,114
Other Psychology & Counseling	638
Community Psychology	544
Health/Medical Psychology	396
Performance and Sport Psychology	210
Clinical Child Psychology	126
Family Psychology	56
Transpersonal/Spiritual Psychology	28
Environmental Psychology	8
Geropsychology	0

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.