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As with any other degree program, psychology degree programs need to come from schools that have received their accreditation. Schools that have not received their accreditation are likely to just be diploma mills and not worth your time or money. When enrolling in psychology degree programs, there are two kinds of accreditation: institutional and specialized. Understanding these can help you make the decision of which schools are best for you, as well as give you a means of comparison between different schools.
Institutional accreditation means that the school has met the minimum standards of quality as are determined by the accreditation agency. There are seven legitimate regional accrediting organizations that are recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. When researching psychology degree programs, you will want to look for schools that have received accreditation from one of these.A second step in the accreditation process is membership in the American Psychological Association (APA). To gain membership, your doctoral degree must be from an accredited institution. Many licensing boards have a similar requirement as well. To gain membership, you often need to have done your internship with at an approved APA site, so you will also want to look into this when considering psychology degree programs. Specialized accreditation is only considered when you are working with professional psychology degree programs. This accreditation considers each individual program and ensures that it meets the minimum standards of quality as is determined by that profession. For psychology degree programs, specialized accreditation is determined by the APA Committee on Accreditation. It applies to doctoral programs, internships, and postdoctoral residency programs. If you have any questions or concerns regarding an individual school’s accreditation, you can contact the United States Department of Labor for their current status. If you are considering taking courses online, you can also look at the school’s web address. Those of accredited schools will have .edu as part of the designation, so it will be easier to spot diploma mills. Be wary of schools that are either not accredited or are accredited by associations not recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor, as they may be operating under fraudulent pretenses. Should you receive a diploma from one of these schools, you will most likely find that the requirements do not meet state and federal licensing requirements, and you will have wasted your time and money on nothing. Once you have verified a school’s accreditation, you can then look at the other factors influencing your decision on which programs to pursue. |
