Students pursuing School Psychological Examiner Certification at Lindenwood University must complete one semester of Internship in Diagnostic Assessment (IPC 58600). During the Internship experience, the student will engage in the activities of a School Psychological Examiner under the supervision of a certified School Psychological Examiner or School Psychologist (must be certified minimally at the Master’s level with at least three years experience) and a Lindenwood University faculty member.

Internship in Diagnostic Assessment requires a minimum of 150 clock hours of field work that includes administration of formal and informal assessments, interpretation of formal and informal assessments, and verbal or written diagnostic summaries. The Internship experience is intended to develop the following competencies: methods and/or techniques of interpretation of tests; analysis and diagnosis of learning problems including special consideration of low incidence populations; interpretation of formal and informal diagnostic assessments and their application for prescriptive instruction; utilization of knowledge of classroom environments, psychological principles, and test data to plan for the management of children with special needs; diagnostic interviewing techniques; process of staffing with other professionals to develop instructional strategies; and administration and interpretation of the Wechsler and Binet (MO DESE).

All applications for internship must be completed and submitted through Foliotek. No experiences may begin until confirmation from the Office of Field and Clinical Experiences is received.

Placement Process

1. The Office of Field and Clinical Experiences staff will request placement for students through the school representative. This representative will send the request to the chosen school administration and subsequently to the requested educator (if designated). The request will either be accepted or denied. This information is submitted back to the school administration and then back to Lindenwood University. The Office of Field and Clinical Experiences staff will try his/her best to place students in the indicated location of choice; however, due to circumstances beyond his/her control, this is sometimes not possible. If the request is denied, the staff member will send a request out to the next choice of schools made by the student.
2. Once the placement has been arranged, the Office of Field and Clinical staff will send a confirmation email with the placement assignment to the student.
3. Upon receiving the placement assignment confirmation, for the course is then ready to begin accruing field placement hours. Students may NOT begin the Internship until notified by the Office of Field and Clinical Experiences. Students must be registered for the internship course. Please note: students are not allowed to begin accruing hours until the preceding term ends and there must be a pre-hours contract in place to begin accruing hours before the term begins.

Internship Request Documentation

The following is a list of the documentation that must be included in the Internship Request:

1. Request for Internship (Form)
2. Internship in Diagnostic Assessment Preparation Form
3. Acknowledgement of School Psychological Examiner Program Handbook
4. Family Care Safety Registry (background check results)*
5. Internship in Diagnostic Assessment Pre-Hours Contract (if appropriate)
6. Confidentiality Agreement
7. Travel Waiver
8. Fingerprint Background check (if the district requires it)
9. Liability Insurance (if the district requires it)

* Expires after one year and must be valid for the entire semester in which the internship will be completed.

Students will not be allowed to enroll in Internship in Diagnostic Assessment until the completed Internship Request has been submitted, approved, and placement secured.