TPC Journal-Vol 10- Issue 3-FULL ISSUE

338 The Professional Counselor | Volume 10, Issue 3 Once applicants have been accepted into a counselor education program, if problematic dispositional issues arise the American Counseling Association (ACA) ethical codes require remediation (ACA, 2014), which is sometimes followed by suspension or dismissal. Therefore, gatekeeping , defined as the process of deterring program graduation of those lacking sufficient knowledge or skills (Koerin & Miller, 1995), begins at the point of program screening and admission (Kerl & Eichler, 2005). Bryant et al. (2013) emphasized that effective screening of applicants prior to formal admission into the academic program may greatly reduce the need to address problematic student behaviors after admission. In addition to conducting admissions screening as a form of gatekeeping, the courts are more likely to support universities in admissions-related legal disputes if screening policies, standards for admission, and admission procedures are clear and fair (Cole, 1991). Legal research also underscores the importance of programs communicating clearly with students about the expected dispositions and other criteria from admission through exit (McCaughan & Hill, 2015). Reliable admissions tools designed to assess dispositions represent one method of showing fidelity in implementing policies (Hutchens et al., 2013). Despite the research support for sound structures to scaffold the admissions process, assessments with published psychometric properties measuring dispositions in admissions interviews are scarce (Hern á ndez et al., 2010). Jonsson and Svingby (2007) noted that a number of forms of reliability and validity are important in establishing the psychometric properties of admissions tools, but when multiple raters are involved, such as in the admissions process, interrater reliability for rubrics is particularly essential. Specific training in the tool is critical to improving interrater reliability (Jonsson & Svingby, 2007). Video training protocols to increase interrater reliability are becoming more important in professional dispositional research (Kopenhaver Haidet et al., 2009; Rosen et al., 2008). The use of video technology to train raters to capture behavioral observations has two advantages: the opportunity for admissions personnel to practice admissions interview ratings prior to real-time observations, and the relative ease of using modern, sophisticated recording equipment (Kopenhaver Haidet et al., 2009). Admissions Processes and Criteria Overwhelmingly, admission criteria and procedures for counselor education programs have focused upon undergraduate grade point average (GPA); standardized test scores, such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Miller Analogies Test (MAT); a personal interview; and some form of personal statement (Bryant et al., 2013). Such procedures have been shown to be reasonably predictive of academic success, but less so for counselor development (Smaby et al., 2005). Some programs have utilized Carkhuff’s Rating Scale (Carkhuff, 1969) or Truax’s Relationship Questionnaire (Truax & Carkhuff, 1967) to measure applicants’ ability to communicate the conditions of empathy, genuineness, and respect effectively (Hern á ndez et al., 2010; Swank & Smith-Adcock, 2014). Carkhuff’s Rating Scale and Truax’s Relationship Questionnaire have been found to exhibit good interrater reliability and, when correlated with one another, have been found to exhibit considerable overlap (Engram & Vandergoot, 1978). Dispositional Assessment Following the gatekeeping dispute in Ward v. Wilbanks (2010), in which a graduate student in counselor education refused to work with a gay client, and the ensuing litigation upon that student’s dismissal from their program, the need for a reliable method for evaluating counseling student dispositions has become increasingly apparent. This high-profile legal case also highlighted the need to monitor and document student dispositions (Dugger & Francis, 2014; McAdams et al., 2007). Correspondingly, in 2009 the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) released standards that made monitoring student dispositions a mandatory aspect of program evaluation. In the