The minimum level of education necessary to qualify for licensure as a psychologist in most jurisdictions is the doctorate degree. The APA began accrediting clinical psychology doctorate programs in 1948, counseling psychology doctoral programs in 1953, and internships in 1956 followed by school psychology doctorate programs in 1971 and postdoctoral residencies in 1997. During this time, the Committee on Accreditation was formed in 1991 and modified to become the Commission on Accreditation (CoA) in 2008. The APA CoA is now working towards accrediting master’s degree programs in health service psychology (HSP), comprised of clinical, counseling, and school psychology programs and combinations of these areas.
As the only psychology accreditor recognized by both the United States Department of Education (USDE) and Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), the APA’s CoA tends to be at the forefront of accreditation trends in psychology and the creation of quality accreditation standards. Accordingly, the CoA started the groundwork needed to accredit master’s programs in psychology. The CoA’s actions address changes in the field of psychology accreditation and the increasing demand from the public for psychological services. As summarized by Ellen Koch, the chair of the CoA’s Master’s Accreditation Work Group, "Projections indicate that relying only on doctoral-level providers does not fully address current requirements for mental health services. There are significant difficulties accessing mental health treatment, particularly for individuals in rural or urban areas including many underrepresented minorities.” Cindy Juntunen, the CoA’s chair, notes that, “By ensuring high-quality training for master’s level providers, [the CoA] can increase access to communities throughout the U.S., including those that are currently under-served by doctoral psychologists. Given that more and more people, across the lifespan, appear willing to seek out mental health services, it is critical that psychology contribute a greater workforce to meet that need.”
Composed of current commissioners, the CoA’s Master’s Workgroup was formed in 2019 and started meeting to discuss accreditation of master’s programs. One of the first steps taken by the Master’s Workgroup has been the development of standards for accreditation. Such standards need to consider a range of issues, including how education and training occurs in master’s degree programs in HSP, how such training is similar to and unique from the education and training provided in doctoral HSP programs, and what outcomes/student achievement are appropriate for master’s degree programs in HSP.
The preparation of standards is a process that incorporates public comment and the first presentation of a draft of master’s accreditation standards is expected soon. Once the public has been able to register comments, the Master’s Work Group and the full CoA will continue the iterative process of revision and presentation for further comment so that there will be a set of standards for eventual accreditation of master’s psychology programs by the APA’s CoA.
Please look forward to additional information on how to comment on accreditation standards for master’s degree programs in HSP, which will be made publicly available in the near future.