Findings that low-income and BIPOC students face significant barriers and deterrents to enrollment in graduate programs come into conflict with Principle D: Justice of the APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (hereafter referred to as the APA Ethics Code) (APA, 2017). The student loan debt crisis disproportionately burdening students of color, especially Black students (Houle & Addo, 2019), and the expectation of experience in the field prior to graduate school, such as volunteer research and clinical positions, or costly extracurricular activities, may not be reasonable for financially self-reliant students (Roberts & Ostreko, 2018). Such factors may not only undermine the applications of BIPOC and lower SES students, but also discourage these prospective students from applying to graduate psychology programs in the first place. Principle D: Justice of the APA Ethics Code states that psychologists will provide equal access to the contributions of psychology and equal allocation of processes, procedures, and services enacted by psychologists (APA, 2017);however, prospective students need to weigh their ability to meet costly admission criteria, as well as the cost of the program, against their financial circumstances. Pruitt and Isaac (1985) suggested that programs offering BIPOC and lower SES students teaching or research assistantships, fellowships, or work-study financial aid may mitigate financial barriers to enrollment while providing such students with valuable experience in the field. Roberts and Ostreko (2018) suggested that training programs should consider skills acquired through less directly-related experiences. Additionally, a program that can demonstrate cultural humility through diverse faculty, classes, and clinical opportunities that are aligned with issues relevant to their experiences (i.e., human diversity, racism, culture) are more likely to attract and retain underrepresented populations (Muñoz-Dunbar & Stanton, 1999). In service of Principle D: Justice, psychology programs should adopt a holistic admissions process, during which the emphasis on pre-screeners such as test scores and relevant experience is reduced, all applicants are reviewed, and factors such as applicants’ skill sets and character are prioritized to identify prospective students who are most likely to succeed in a clinical psychology training program (Roberts & Ostreko, 2018).

Historically, applicants to clinical psychology training programs need to submit letters of recommendation, a curriculum vitae, a personal essay, and their Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) scores as part of their applications. While performance on the GRE has been used to determine admission to clinical psychology training programs, the research on the usefulness of the GRE for predicting graduate school success is mixed (Dollinger, 1989; Goldberg & Alliger, 1992; Hall et al., 2017; Kuncel et al., 2001; Pruitt & Isaac, 1985), and standardized tests such as the GRE have been found to be biased against students from underrepresented groups (Dollinger, 1989; Miller & Stassun, 2014).This suggests that heavy reliance on the GRE in admissions may be misguided. The use of the GRE as an assessment measure, given its potential bias and questionable predictive validity, appears to conflict with Standard 9.02: Use of Assessments of the APA Ethics Code (2017), which states:

1. Psychologists administer, adapt, score, interpret, or use assessment techniques, interviews, tests, or instruments in a manner and for purposes that are appropriate in light of the research on or evidence of the usefulness and proper application of the techniques.
2. Psychologists use assessment instruments whose validity and reliability have been established for use with members of the population tested. When such validity or reliability has not been established, psychologists describe the strengths and limitations of test results and interpretation.

Additionally, the use of an assessment measure that may be biased against specific populations and may not suit its intended purpose, predicting graduate school success, may also conflict with Standard 9.08: Obsolete Tests and Outdated Test Results of the APA Ethics Code (2017), which states:

Psychologists do not base their assessment or intervention decisions or recommendations on data or test results that are outdated for the current purpose.

Use of GRE scores as a pre-screener for admission to clinical psychology graduate training programs despite potential bias, as well as possibly limited predictive validity poses ethical concerns, as admissions decisions rooted in psychometrically questionable assessment data are likely to limit access to education and career opportunities of capable BIPOC and lower SES applicants.

The interview stage of the graduate admissions process can also be a source of disproportionate burden and deterrence to underrepresented populations. Applicants from lower income backgrounds may not be able to take time off work or afford travel costs and possibly childcare, among other financial barriers, to feasibly attend an interview in-person (Roberts & Ostreko, 2018). Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a dramatic shift in the field’s use of telecommunication resources. Carrying the accessibility benefits of online platforms forward through offering interviews in video formats could reduce admissions barriers. for students from lower SES backgrounds (Roberts & Ostreko, 2018).

The field of clinical psychology works to strike a balance between an emphasis on individual factors and the use of empirically supported measures, and all admissions policies and procedures need to exemplify this balance. An entirely scientific approach to admissions and enrollment procedures will continue to perpetuate systemic racism, classism, and oppression. An entirely humanistic, individualistic approach will likely be impractical and expensive. However, a balanced, holistic admissions model is consistent with the APA Ethics Code. In order to create more inclusion in psychology training programs, admissions committees need to consider application costs, skills acquired through less directly related experiences and overall skill sets, character, and personality characteristics.  Training programs may choose to offer a broader range of opportunities for financial support, greater diversity in clinical experiences, and faculty more representative of the student population they seek to attract. The OPA Ethics Committee may be helpful in helping a program consider these complicated ethical issues and move toward a more ethical, inclusive admissions process. We encourage readers to consult with the OPA Ethics Committee for support in considering these, and other, difficult ethical issues.