Predictors of program performance on the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP).

Abstract

Passing the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP) is a prerequisite to professional licensure throughout the United States and much of Canada. As such, the EPPP helps serve a gatekeeping function for the many subspecialties of professional psychology. After first reviewing the history, validation process, known associations with other variables, and criticisms of the EPPP, we summarize the most recent program-level data according to degree type and specialty. To assess the predictors of EPPP performance, these data (i.e., % correct and recently released EPPP pass rates) were combined with other sources of graduate program information. We hypothesized that EPPP performance would be associated with program prestige, program selectivity (e.g., admission rates), and student factors predating graduate training (e.g., intelligence, motivation, and standardized test-taking ability as approximated by GRE scores and GPA). As predicted, and in every case, the EPPP was signiflcantly correlated with these three sets of variables. Speciflcally, the strongest associations were found with higher GRE seores, lower admission rates, better US News and World Report scores, and greater research emphasis. We also explored the influence of minority stams, and found a negative correlation between EPPP performance and the percentage of minority students in programs. To determine the strongest predictors of EPPP performance, a series of simultaneous multiple regressions was conducted. The three consistent predictors across regressions were GRE scores, percentage of minorities in programs, and internship match rates. Suggestions for clarifying these findings as well as recommendations to assess the EPPP's validity further are provided.

The science of training I: Admissions, curriculum, and research training.

“…In those studies, both quantitative (Yu et al, 1997) and verbal (Callahan, Ruggero, & Parent, 2013) GRE scores obtained prior to doctoral training have been found to be predictive of subsequent EPPP scores. Sharpless and Barber (2013) also reported that GRE scores, including the advanced psychology test, were predictive of EPPP scores. However, they also found a significant inverse correlation between EPPP scores within programs and the prevalence of diverse students in those same programs.…”

Pass rates on the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP) according to demographic variables: A partial replication.

“…Despite the small effect size, this difference in pass rate appears to be practically meaningful for graduates of professional psychology programs. Previous studies demonstrated significant correlations between EPPP scores, performance on other standardized tests (e.g., the GRE as in Sharpless & Barber, 2013), and other indications of program competitiveness (e.g., acceptance rates; internship match rates). Interestingly, the programs that ostensibly have the strongest focus on the practice of professional psychology (i.e., PsyDs) appear to perform significantly worse on the EPPP than the more research-oriented PhD programs.…”

“…Thus, it could be a very promising—and perhaps unique—adjunct to the current licensure process. However, unless the EPPP Part 2 displays real-world evidence of validity and rests upon a firm psychometric footing, it remains vulnerable to the same criticisms levied at the original EPPP (e.g., see Ryan & Chan, 1999; Sharpless & Barber, 2009, 2013).…”

“…Data on the potential impact of ethnicity on EPPP performance are sparser. Using graduate program-level data, Sharpless and Barber (2013) found that greater student diversity in doctoral programs (i.e., a higher percentage of minority students) was negatively correlated with EPPP scores and pass rates. They regressed this along with other significant, program-level correlations (i.e., admission rates, PhD vs. non-PhD degree, internship match rates, practice-research emphasis, percentage of cognitive behavioral (CBT) faculty, Graduate Record Examination (GRE) total scores, and grade point average) onto EPPP pass rate.…”

Resilient Skills: Survivor Skills That the Class of COVID-19 Should Pursue

“…The clinical programs are primarily housed within departments of psychology, whereas counseling programs are located mostly in colleges of education and less often in departments of psychology (Blustein et al, 2005). Clinical PhD recipients score significantly higher on the EPPP licensure exam than counseling psychology PhDs, but only higher than those who graduate from programs housed within departments of education (Graham & Kim, 2011;Sharpless & Barber, 2013).…”