Competency Requirements
Department of Psychology

Competency Requirement 

The competency requirement is designed to ensure that all students seeking the M.A. degree demonstrate, early in their graduate careers, their capacity for graduate level work.  The competency requirement must be satisfied within the student’s first 18 semester hours of graduate credit. Failure to do so may result in termination from the program. The competency requirement must be satisfied before the student enrolls in any 600-level course.

There are three ways in which a student may satisfy the competency requirement:

Option 1: Grade Point Average

In the Clinical Psychology Program:  Students must demonstrate, at least, a 3.3 grade point average in the following courses:  PSYC 407 (Intermediate Statistics), PSYC 505 (Clinical and Counseling Psychology), and PSYC 530 (Advanced Research Methods).

In the Clinical Professional Psychology Program: Students must demonstrate, at least, a 3.3 grade point average in the following courses:  PSYC 505 (Clinical and Counseling Psychology), PSYC 516 (Psychopathology), and PSYC 530 (Advanced Research Methods).

All courses that count toward the competency requirement must be taken at Roosevelt University.  If a student has already taken a course or courses equivalent to the competency courses, alternative choice may be approved by the Director of Clinical Psychology MA Programs.

Option 2: Grade Point Average + GRE
This is the same as option l except for the following: Students must maintain a grade point average of at least 3.0 in the courses listed above and earn a score at, at least, the 50th percentile on the Psychology Subject Test of the Graduate Record Examination. 

Option 3: GRE
Students must earn a score at, at least, the 70th percentile on the Psychology Subject Test of the Graduate Record Examination.

Termination from the School

The competency requirement must be met within the 18 semester limit or the student will be dropped from the program. However, the Graduate Adviser may recommend that a student consider dropping from the program if it becomes clear that successful completion of the competency requirement is unlikely. If a student is terminated from the program for failure to satisfy the competency requirement, the student must petition the faculty for reinstatement in order to continue in the program.

College of Arts and Sciences