The School Psychology Student Association (SPSA) has two primary missions. First, SPSA is intended to facilitate the transition of new students into the UNL School Psychology Program. Each incoming student is provided with an advanced school psychology student as a mentor. This individual can provide assistance pertaining to departmental norms, courses, research projects, coping with "crises" and adapting to Lincoln and the surrounding community.
A survival handbook designed by members of SPSA is available to help students navigate their way through their graduate school experience at UNL. Second, SPSA provides a forum for school psychology students to engage in collaborative academic discourse. Moreover, the intent is to provide learning opportunities that will facilitate each individual's professional growth, both as students and as school psychologists, and to provide opportunities and experiences that extend beyond formal classroom activities. The SPSA is premised on the view that students bring both diverse and rich histories to bear on their academic and socialinteractions. Complementing these activities, SPSA also serves as a liaison between school psychology students and: (a) the UNL schoolpsychology faculty, and (b) the Nebraska School Psychology Association.
A Quality Student Experience
Complementing our faculty and program are the superior students whom we attract to work with us. Drawn from all over the nation and the state of Nebraska, students work closely with each other and faculty in an atmosphere that is highly collaborative and collegial.
In every aspect of our program, we strive to both promote and respect student diversity. Students of color and majority students who are particularly interested in diversity issues find our Ethnic Minority Affairs Committee (EMAC), functioning in our department for well over 20 years, to be a unique multicultural and multi-national support system.
Likewise, all school psychology students are invited to participate in the School Psychology Student Association (SPSA), providing mentorship, friendship, and a formal vehicle for student input into faculty decision making.
Students complete the UNL School Psychology Program, which is both rigorous and challenging, with the professional skills they need to succeed as psychologists and provide their clients with the highest possible quality of service.
They compete extremely well for positions, both locally and nationally. To date, 100% of our graduates who have sought employment as school psychologists have obtained jobs as school psychologists. Many of these have been significant leadership positions in both field-based and university settings.
