Graduate Program in Psychometrics Handbook - 2021-2022

R The Major Professor assists the student in planning course selections in coordination with theProgram Director and in selecting members of the student s Advisory Committee.. Psychometr

School of Graduate Studies

Policies and Procedures

Deadlines

The Student Handbook

Changes to the Handbook

Can a Major Professor be changed?

Can my Major Professor remove her/himself from my committee?Master’s Degree Requirements

Master s Advisory Committee

Establishing a Master’s Advisory Committee

Can an Advisory Committee member be changed?

Doctoral Degree Requirements

Doctoral Advisory Committee

Establishing the Doctoral Advisory Committee

Advisory Committee Meetings

Can an Advisory Committee member be changed?

Doctoral Program of Study

Full-Time and Part-Time Status

Articulated Research Interest

Qualifying Examination Timeline and Results

Qualifying Examination Evaluation and Vote

Annual Evaluation of Student Progress

Transfer of Credits from another Institution

Course Waiver Policy

Scholarly Community and Professional Decorum

Suggested Professional Memberships

Forms

DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY FACULTY AND STAFF

C a

JOCELYN TURNER MUSA PH D

Professor and Chair

( ) ingrid.tulloch morgan.edu

-KIMBERLY WARREN PH D

Associate ProfessorBSSC

( ) kimberly.warren morgan.edu

-KAREN WATKINS LEWIS PH D

Assistant ProfessorBSSC

( ) karen.watkins-lewis morgan.edu

-ANITA WELLS PH D

Associate ProfessorBSSC

( ) anita.wells morgan.edu

( ) roger.stokes morgan.edu

-OVERVIEW OF THE GRADUATE PROGRAM IN PSYCHOMETRICS M

The mission of the Psychometrics program at Morgan State University is to develop a cadre ofprofessionals trained to address the technical merits of psychological and educational

assessment and evaluation, especially where peoples of color are concerned

The goals of the Graduate Program in Psychometrics are to:

. Develop scholars who possess sophisticated statistical and analytical capabilities and thequantitative and methodological skills (e.g., measurement theory, statistical analysis,research design, evaluation, and qualitative tools) needed to design, develop, interpretand use valid, reliable and fair measurements and assessments of what and how

individuals learn

. Develop a new cadre of researchers and practitioners who have the analytical skills andcultural competence to effectively yield innovative interventions that address issueswithin the discipline itself, as well as inform policies that influence minority or specialpopulations (e.g African Americans) and those within urban environments

. Prepare individuals from traditionally underrepresented populations in higher educationfor leadership roles in education and other fields

Scientific research serves as the primary vehicle to advance theories that explain how peoplelearn, teach, and differ from one another Students will be prepared to conduct and applyresearch concerned with the development and validation of psychological measures and

principles with the potential to optimize human development and learning, and to improve themethodological techniques that are employed in this process

Students in Psychometrics will be instructed in a coordinated program of statistics, testing,educational assessment, program evaluation and other applied research techniques Students inthe program will be equipped to be culturally competent vis-à-vis the needs of those within theurban environment The program will afford students the opportunity to attain competency inquantitative and research skills relevant to disciplines within the behavioral and social sciencesand education as well as apply their knowledge to instruction, industry, business, and health

SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES

The School of Graduate Studies provides a number of resources for graduate students at MorganState University All Psychometrics students should become familiar with these resources,including key personnel

All Psychometrics students should make themselves familiar with the written policies of theSchool of Graduate Studies These policies can be found on the School’s website and in

publications such as the Sc f G ad a e S d e Ca a g, the Ha db a d S e G de f

D e a a d T e e , and the T e a d D e a ETD S de C ec In the event

of a conflict, the written policies of the School of Graduate Studies supersede the policies andprocedures outlined in this handbook

D a

Students are well-advised to keep track of all deadlines associated with their progress in theprogram All deadlines associated with the School of Graduate Studies can be found on the MSUwebsite Among them are deadlines for:

● Qualifying Examinations

● Application for Graduation

● Dissertation and Thesis Submission to the School of Graduate Studies

THE STUDENT HANDBOOK

The Student Handbook is designed to be a helpful tool and resource for students and faculty inthe Graduate Program in Psychometrics The policies and procedures contained in this handbookwill guide the student and faculty through the Master’s and/or Doctoral degree programs.Students will be expected to follow the policies and procedures outlined herein throughout theirmatriculation in the Program

This handbook is a living, breathing document and, at times, may be edited for clarity or whenpolicies and procedures change In the event of a change to this document, students may opt tofollow the Handbook edition under which they entered the program, or they may follow thenewer version of the Handbook Students who wish to follow the newer version will be required

to submit a petition to the Program Director to make the change

The only exemptions to this policy occur when Morgan State University or the Graduate Schoolrequires that all graduate students follow a new policy or procedure or when the Programimplements changes to policies that affect all students

GRADUATE ADVISEMENT

Once a student has been admitted to the Graduate Program in Psychometrics, the ProgramDirector keeps track of the status of the student and all matters involving the School of GraduateStudies It is imperative, therefore, that the Major Professor and the student submit information

to the Program Director at each step in the student s program, including the timely submission

of all associated forms

A

Upon acceptance to the Graduate Program in Psychometrics, the student is assigned to a MajorProfessor based on mutual research interests, faculty availability, and other factors The MajorProfessor then serves as the student’s advisor

R

The Major Professor assists the student in planning course selections in coordination with theProgram Director and in selecting members of the student s Advisory Committee The MajorProfessor also serves as a professional and research mentor for the student and encourages

the student toward a timely and meaningful completion of the program T a a g d

program prior to the dissertation proposal oral defense, the student may select another member

of the faculty to serve as Major Professor The student should discuss this need with the currentMajor Professor and the faculty member who may be willing to accept this responsibility There

is no penalty or repercussion incurred by the student for opting to work with another MajorProfessor

Once an agreement is formed, the student should seek final approval of this change by

completing theChange in Major Professor Formand gather signatures from the new MajorProfessor, the outgoing Major Professor and the Program Director

There may be a circumstance which requires the Major Professor to remove her/himself as thestudent’s mentor Possible reasons include:

● Retirement or sabbatical before the student can complete the project

● A student’s lack of progress on the research project

● A more suitable faculty member is available

If a faculty member removes her/himself, the following process is to be used:

. Faculty members will notify the student of the need to seek another chair or committeemember and discuss possible options

. A replacement faculty is identified and gives full approval to accept the student

. The student submits a completedChange in Major Professor Form

Psychometrics master’s students are guided by a Major Professor and an additional

Psychometrics faculty member who constitute the master’s Advisory Committee throughout thestudent’s graduate studies The purpose of the Advisory Committee is to give continuity ofdirection and counsel and to provide role models and intellectual stimulation to the student

from the beginning of the program to the completion of the degree T e a e de

The student, in collaboration with her/his Major Professor, must identify and recruit one

member of the Psychometrics faculty to join the Advisory Committee within the first year ofstudy The Advisory Committee must then be kept at its full complement throughout the

graduate career of the student In the event of a vacancy on the committee (e.g., resignation,faculty leave, or inability to serve), an appropriate replacement must be made prior to themaking of any committee decision (i.e., approval of the internship, the thesis proposal, thewritten thesis, and the oral examination)

The student s first step to establishing an Advisory Committee is to set up an appointment withthe Major Professor to discuss the process The student s interests, as well as relevant input fromthe Major Professor, are then used to generate a list of possible committee members Next,students should arrange to meet individually with potential committee members During theseindividual meetings, the student should be prepared to explain to the prospective committeemember what the member’s role would be in facilitating the student s professional and

academic development Once a faculty member has agreed to serve on the student s AdvisoryCommittee, the student should send a follow-up email formalizing the agreement, expressingappreciation, and informing the Major Professor of the agreement

When the second committee member has been confirmed, the student must complete theAdvisory Committee Appointment Formto make the Advisory Committee official Modifications

to committee membership can be made via the Change in Advisory Committee Form

The same policy exists for changing a committee member as for changing the Major Professor.Once full communication and agreement is reached with the out-going and replacement faculty,the student should seek final approval of this change from the Program Director through

submission of theChange in Advisory Committee Member Form.The student must obtain newsignatures, indicating the new committee member on the Advisory Committee AppointmentForm

The Master’s program of study is designed by the Major Professor and the student either before

or during the first term of study and includes projected dates for completion of the degree Theprogram requires a minimum of credits of graduate work: credits of coursework and credits of thesis seminar Students are encouraged to pay close attention toGraduate Schooldeadlines as they plan their program of study

According to the School of Graduate Studies, graduate students are considered full-time whenthey are registered for at least credit hours per semester The full-time sequence generallyrequires at least two years of coursework and thesis preparation The part-time sequencetypically increases the amount of time to complete the degree by over the full-time

sequence To be considered part-time, students must register for a minimum of credit hours ofcoursework per semester Like full-time students, part-time students must take courses in

sequential order This means that students cannot enroll in, or register for, higher level coursesuntil they have passed the appropriate lower level courses

PSYM : Principles and Methods of Research

And one of the following:

PSYM : The Biological Basis of Behavior

PSYM : Advanced Theories of Personality

PSYM : Learning and Cognition

PSYM : Human Development

PSYM : Social Psychology

Mea e e a d A e e c ed

PSYM : Principles and Foundations of Measurement

PSYM : Psychometric Theory

S a c c ed

PSYM : Principles and Foundations of Statistical Methods

PSYM : Applied Statistical Inference

PSYM : Multivariate Analysis

E ec e c ed

Two of the following:

PSYM : Test Construction

PSYM : Principles and Foundations of Item Response Theory

PSYM : Internship

T e Se a c ed

PSYM : Thesis Seminar

Upon completion of the required coursework, students may enroll in PSYM Pre-Master’sCandidacy if they are unprepared to begin work on their Master’s Thesis Students who areprepared to begin the Master’s Thesis should enroll in PSYM Thesis Seminar instead Oncestudents have completed PSYM , they must enroll in PSYM Thesis Guidance until theysuccessfully complete their Master’s Thesis Credits associated with PSYM and PSYM are not considered academic credit hours and therefore do not count toward the total number

of credits required for the Master’s Degree

The Master’s degree follows a prescribed course sequence, listed below

The following is the prescribed sequence of courses full-time Master’s students must complete.Any alterations to this sequence must be cleared by the student’s Major Professor and theProgram Coordinator In rare cases, the sequence may be changed due to programmatic needs

Sec d Yea Fa C e Sec d Yea S g C e

PSYM Multivariate Analysis

And two of the following:

PSYM Test Construction

PSYM Principles and Foundations of

Item Response Theory

PSYM Thesis Seminar

PSYM Internship

The following is a typical sequence of courses part-time Master’s students might complete Itshould be noted that the following is only an example of the part-time sequence It will likely berevised or altered in collaboration with the student’s Advisory Committee or because of

Statistical Methods

PSYM Multivariate Analysis PSYM Principles Methods of

ResearchCore Psychology Elective

defense If the study involves human subjects, the student and Major Professor must also obtainpermission from the MSU Institutional Review Board (IRB) The proposal for a master s thesisfollows the same format as the doctoral dissertation, but is briefer and addresses a narrowertopic than a dissertation For suggestions on writing the proposal and the thesis, students areencouraged tofollow the guidelines put forth by the School of Graduate Studiesand to workclosely with their Major Professor.

The thesis must be defended by the student at a final oral examination with the Advisory

Committee A ea ee bef e e f a e a a a c f e a e d be

b ed eac e be f e Ad C ee It is the student’s responsibility to

schedule the final examination meeting with Committee members The format of the thesisdefense shall be determined by the student and the Major Professor in consultation with theother committee member(s)

During work on their thesis, students should enroll in PSYM : Thesis Seminar followed byPSYM : Thesis Guidance

DOCTORAL DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

Psychometrics students are guided by a Major Professor and an Advisory Committee throughouttheir graduate studies The purpose of the Advisory Committee is to give continuity of directionand counsel and to provide role models and intellectual stimulation to the student from thebeginning of the program to the completion of the degree A student’s full Advisory Committeemust be convened, either in person or via video/phone conference, once per academic yearbeginning no later than the second academic year of study and each year thereafter

The Advisory Committee must have a minimum of three core members This core consists of theMajor Professor as chair, at least one other faculty member from the Graduate Program inPsychometrics, and at least one other member from a program outside of Psychometrics; theAdvisory Committee shall not exceed a total of five members All members of the AdvisoryCommittee must hold a Ph.D in a relevant discipline All decisions of the Advisory Committeeare by majority vote of its members

The doctoral Advisory Committee:

● Approves the program of study, second year paper, and internships;

● administers the written and oral Qualifying Examination; and

● approves the dissertation proposal, the written dissertation, and the final oral

ad e ed c e e ea e The Advisory Committee must then be kept at its full

complement throughout the graduate career of the student In the event of a vacancy on theCommittee (e.g., resignation, faculty leave, or inability to serve), an appropriate replacementmust be made prior to the making of any Committee decision (i.e., Qualifying Examination,portfolio, proposal, and internship approval, and the final dissertation examination)

The steps to establishing an Advisory Committee are as follows:

. The student’s first step is to set up an appointment with the Major Professor to discussthe process The student s interests as well as relevant input from the Major Professorare then used to generate a list of possible committee members

. Next, students should arrange to meet individually with potential committee members.During these individual meetings, the student should be prepared to explain to theprospective committee member what the member’s role would be in facilitating thestudent s professional and academic development

. Once a faculty member has agreed to serve on the student s Advisory Committee, thestudent should send a follow-up email formalizing the agreement, expressing

appreciation, and informing the Major Professor of the agreement Psychometricsstudents have been successful in securing Advisory Committee members from facultymembers of the Department of Psychology and departments within the School ofEducation and Urban Studies, as well as from other universities, research and

development firms, and the federal government

. When committee members are confirmed, the student must complete the AdvisoryCommittee Appointment Form to appoint someone to the Advisory Committee

Modifications to committee membership can be made via theChange in AdvisoryCommittee Form

After completing their first year of study, doctoral students are required to hold at least one fullAdvisory Committee meeting per academic year (September–April) in order to remain in goodstanding It is recommended that meetings are scheduled early in the semester to allow forchanges in the program to be corrected early Meetings must be held in person or via telephone

or video conference with all members present It is the student s responsibility to contact eachcommittee member and arrange a meeting time and place that is convenient to everyone Allmeetings should be documented on the student’s advising sheet

Students are expected to meet with their Major Professor at least once per semester to discussand plan their doctoral program, which includes proposed coursework and a timetable for thecompletion of the Research Apprenticeship, internship, Qualifying Examination, and

Dissertation Although the Major Professor will chair the Advisory Committee meeting, it is theresponsibility of the student to prepare and have available for each committee member theproposed sequence of coursework and other requirements The student should also keep anup-to-dateadvising sheet,which is used by program faculty to monitor student activities andprogress toward degree completion

Advisory Committee meetings shall not be held during the first two weeks or last two week ofthe fall and spring semesters, or during extended breaks in the academic calendar (i.e., WinterBreak, Spring Break, and Summer Break) These times are often extremely busy for facultymembers and students alike Additionally, the extended breaks in the academic calendar areoften filled with tasks that cannot be completed during the academic year such as ongoingresearch activities, personal and professional travel, and special events This restriction may belifted in rare and extenuating circumstances by agreement among the student, the MajorProfessor, and all Advisory Committee members

The same policy exists for changing a committee member as for changing the Major Professor.Once full communication and agreement is reached with the out-going and replacement faculty,the student should seek final approval of this change from the Program Director through

submission of the Change inAdvisory Committee Member Form The student must obtain newsignatures, indicating the new committee member on the Advisory Committee AppointmentForm

D a P a S

The doctoral program requires a minimum of credit hours beyond the requirements of theMaster’s Program (see Doctoral Coursework, below) and has both a full-time and part-timeoption Regardless of full-time or part-time status, the School of Graduate Studies requires allstudents pursuing a doctoral degree to satisfy all degree requirements within seven ( ) yearsfrom the date of admission to the School of Graduate Studies Students who exceed the

seven-year statute of limitations may be dismissed from the program Students who have notbeen enrolled in the program and the School of Graduate Studies for three consecutive

semesters and have not corresponded with the Program Director and the School of GraduateStudies during that period are no longer considered continuing students Such students may berequired by the Dean of the School of Graduate Studies to reapply for admission

According to the School of Graduate Studies, graduate students are considered full-time whenthey are registered for at least credit hours per semester The full-time sequence generallyrequires at least three years of coursework and at least one year of subsequent dissertationresearch The part-time sequence generally increases the amount of time to complete thedegree by at least over the full-time sequence To be considered part-time, students mustregister for a minimum of credit hours of coursework per semester Like full-time students,part-time students must take courses in sequential order This means that students cannot enroll

in, or register for, higher level courses until they have passed the appropriate lower level courses.The suggested course sequence for both full-time and part-time students can be found below

In addition to coursework, doctoral students are required to complete a number of additionaltraining opportunities including the development and maintenance of the student’s portfolio,the completion of an internship, a research apprenticeship with the Major Professor, the

Qualifying Examination, and the dissertation Each of these requirements is described in detailbelow

Year

● Completion of – hours of formal coursework

● Begin Research Apprenticeship with Major Professor

● Formal Advising Meeting with Major Professor once per semester

● Selection of Psychometrics members of Advisory Committee (by midterm of secondsemester)

● Annual meeting with Advisory Committee to discuss program goals and objectives

● CompleteCITI Ethics Certification b e d f f e e e

● Selection of full Advisory Committee ( d e e e

● Annual meeting with Advisory Committee to discuss program goals and objectives andapprove Internship

● Complete Research Apprenticeship with Major Professor

● Submit Portfolio updates Se e be

● Presentation at professional meetings and colloquia

Year

● Continued progress on completion of formal coursework, including an additional –hours of formal coursework

● Successful completion and oral defense of Qualifying Examination

● Annual meeting with Advisory Committee to discuss program goals and objectives

● Submit Portfolio updates (Se e be

● Presentation at professional meetings and colloquia

Year

● Enrollment in PSYM Dissertation Guidance until Dissertation is successfully defended

● Completion and defense of Dissertation Proposal

● Permission obtained from Institutional Review Board to conduct research

● Substantial progress on dissertation data collection

● Submit Portfolio updates Se e be

● Presentation at professional meetings and colloquia

Year

● Continued enrollment in PSYM Dissertation Guidance (other courses may be taken

as needed/required to complete degree or for personal interest)

● Completion and defense of Dissertation

● Submission of dissertation for publication in refereed journal(s)

The Doctoral program of study is designed by the Major Professor and the student either before

or during the first term of study and includes projected dates for completion of the degree The

program requires a minimum of credits beyond the coursework required for the Master’sDegree; these credits include credits of coursework, credits of internship, and credits ofdissertation seminar Students are encouraged to pay close attention to the School of GraduateStudies’ deadlines as they plan their program of study.

Students who are admitted to the doctoral program in Psychometrics must demonstrate

proficiency in the coursework listed under the Master’s degree requirements Because thecourses listed in the Master’s degree program are foundational to doctoral study in

Psychometrics, all students, regardless of classification, must demonstrate proficiency, whichmay be achieved in one of two ways:

1. The student earned a passing grade in an equivalent course as part of another graduatedegree program at an accredited university within the past seven years Under thisoption, the student must submit a completed Course Waiver Form to the ProgramDirector that includes verification of prior course content This form must be submitted

no later than the end of the student’s first semester of coursework, but preferablybefore

Once the content of the courses has been verified and the waiver approved, the studentwill be exempt from taking the appropriate courses (See the Course Waiver section formore information.)

Full-time students must complete any remaining courses associated with the Master’sDegree no later than the second year of study; part-time students must complete anyremaining courses associated with the Master’s Degree no later than the third year ofstudy

2. The student completes the required courses in the Graduate Program in Psychometricswith a passing grade as part of their program of study

The following is a list of courses that are required of all doctoral students The total number ofcredits listed in parentheses indicates the total number of credits associated with each category,assuming the student does not waive Master’s-level requirements Course waivers will affectthat total number of required credits

● F da a C e C e ( credit hours from the Master’s program)

*PSYM : Principles and Methods of Research

*And one of the following:

PSYM : The Biological Basis of Behavior

PSYM : Advanced Theories of Personality

PSYM : Learning and Cognition

PSYM : Human Development

PSYM : Social Psychology

● Mea e e a d A e e ( credit hours from the Master’s program plus additional credit hours)

*PSYM : Principles and Foundations of Measurement

*PSYM : Psychometric TheoryPSYM : Test Equating, Scaling and Linking

Choose one course from:

PSYM Advanced Topics in Rasch Measurement

PSYM Advanced Topics in Item Response Theory

Choose one course from :

PSYM : Special Topics in Assessment Design

PSYM : Factor Analysis, Multidimensional Scaling and Clustering

PSYM : Pro-Seminar in Selected Topics in Advanced Psychometrics

Additional Measurement and Assessment courses as they become available

● S a c ( credit hours from the Master’s program plus additional credit hours)

*PSYM : Principles and Foundations of Statistical Methods

*PSYM : Applied Statistical Inference

*PSYM : Multivariate AnalysisPSYM : Multivariate Analysis II

Choose two courses from:

PSYM : Categorical Data Analysis

PSYM : General Linear Models

PSYM : Multilevel Longitudinal Data Analysis

PSYM : Structural Equation Modeling

PSYM : Pro-Seminar in Selected Topics in Advanced Statistics

Additional Statistics courses as they become available

● E ec e ( credit hours from the Master’s program plus additional credit hours)

*PSYM : Test Construction

*PSYM : Principles and Foundations of Item Response TheoryPSYM : Principles and Methods of Program Evaluation

PSYM : Methods of Qualitative Research

PSYM : Pro-Seminar in Selected Topics in Measurement-Related Policy

Other courses that are not taken to fulfill a requirement under a different category

***PSYM Dissertation Seminar

*These courses are associated with the Master’s degree requirements and may be waivedaccording to the Course Waiver Policy; they must be completed or waived by the end of thesecond year of study

**PSYM does not count toward program requirements and should be taken once thestudent completes all other required coursework and needs to maintain full-time enrollmentbefore he/she begins the dissertation by enrolling in PSYM ; students typically enroll in thiscourse during the semester in which they complete the Qualifying Examination.

***The student should enroll in PSYM during the semester in which he/she intends to beginthe dissertation proposal

Upon completion of all required courses, including PSYM , students must enroll in PSYM Dissertation Guidance until they successfully complete their Dissertation Credits associatedwith PSYM are not considered academic credit hours and therefore do not count toward thetotal number of credits required for the Ph.D

The suggested course sequences for both full-time and part-time students can be found belowand assumes that a student has not waived any required courses Individual differences inwaived course requirements and other factors will affect both the full-time and part-timesequences

The following is a typical sequence of courses full-time doctoral students might complete Itshould be noted that the following is only an example of the full-time sequence It will likely berevised or altered in collaboration with the student’s Advisory Committee or because of

Statistical Methods

PSYM Applied Statistical InferenceCore Foundations in Psychology

PSYM Test Construction Doctoral Statistics Course

PSYM Item Response Theory Doctoral Measurement Course

PSYM Multivariate Analysis Elective

Doctoral Statistics Course Doctoral Statistics Course

Doctoral Measurement Course Doctoral Measurement Course