Blog

Doctoral Qualifying Examination Yolanda Rotzinger Ballesteros (U73997798) Summer 2026 Day 2 (School Psychology Specialization Area) Please read the following scenario and respond to each of the questions below it.  Marco is a 13-year-old seventh-grade student at Sunshine Middle School who was recently promoted to the starting lineup on his middle school soccer team. He is well-liked by many of his classmates, highly competitive, and deeply committed to sports. Soccer has become one of the most important parts of his identity, and he dreams of eventually playing at the high school varsity level. Marco was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 8. Although his parents and school nurse have managed most aspects of his care over the years, Marco has gradually been expected to take more responsibility for monitoring his blood glucose, recognizing symptoms of low blood sugar, carrying emergency supplies, and communicating his needs to adults. His parents and healthcare providers have encouraged him to advocate for himself, especially during sports and physical activity, where fluctuations in blood glucose can become dangerous. At school, Marco generally avoids talking about his diabetes. Only a few close friends know about his condition. Earlier in the year, several boys on another team joked about a player who had to “sit out because of medical stuff,” calling that player weak. Marco remembers teammates laughing, and and even more so doesn’t want to be seen as “different.” He worries that if others know about his diabetes, teammates may tease him and question his toughness. Marco is also concerned that his soccer coach may bench him if he learns about his condition. Because the coach was hired solely for the athletic program and is not a regular school employee, he is unaware of Marco’s potential medical needs. During practice, the coach often tells players to “push through” fatigue and discourages breaks. Marco admires the coach and fears disappointing him. Because of these concerns, Marco hasn’t informed the coach about his diabetes or explained that he may need breaks, snacks, water, or blood glucose monitoring during practice and games. One afternoon during an intense outdoor practice in hot weather, Marco begins to feel shaky, dizzy, and confused. He notices his hands trembling and has difficulty concentrating. However, he does not want to ask to take a break because he worries teammates will question him or the coach will think he cannot handle the demands of the sport. The coach mistakes his symptoms for dehydration and frustration, yelling at him to stay focused and keep moving. Eventually, Marco collapses on the sidelines. The coach and teammates panic because no one understands what is happening. Marco’s emergency glucose supplies are in his backpack, but nobody knows where they are or how to help him. The school nurse is called, and emergency medical services are contacted. Following the incident, you, the pediatric school psychologist serving that middle school, are asked to assist in addressing concerns raised about Marco’s limited health literacy and underdeveloped self-advocacy skills related to managing his chronic health condition. In addition, you are asked to help address broader contextual issues such as the social environment, team culture, and lack of adult awareness that may have contributed to this crisis situation.   —– Day #2 (School Psychology Specialization Area) —- In your role at Sunshine Middle School as a Pediatric School Psychologist, you have the opportunity to support Marco, school personnel, athletic staff, and his parents. Your response today should consider the affective, biological, cognitive, developmental, and social aspects of behavior relevant to conceptualizing Marco’s current behavior (hypotheses developed in Day 1), and ultimately supporting Marco directly through clinical services. Today, you need to decide how to treat Marco through comprehensive school-based psychotherapy. *Please cite empirical literature (author only, no date needed) to support your responses. What data would you collect in a clinical intake, using which methods? What is your preliminary case conceptualization? What treatment approach/approaches would you use with Marco? Why? What would you include in the treatment plan with regard to structure and content? Who besides Marco will you include in the treatment plan (e.g., parents, community, peer group, school personnel, athletic staff, physician) and in what ways? How would you interface with his physician? What ethical issues do you anticipate that would potentially arise in this case? How would you monitor response to intervention and treatment outcomes, including Marco’s quality of life?

Doctoral Qualifying Examination Yolanda Rotzinger Ballesteros (U73997798) Summer 2026 Day 1 (Cognate in Psychology) Please read the following scenario and respond to each of the questions below it.  Marco is a 13-year-old seventh-grade student at Sunshine Middle School who was recently promoted to the starting lineup on his middle school soccer team. He is well-liked by many of his classmates, highly competitive, and deeply committed to sports. Soccer has become one of the most important parts of his identity, and he dreams of eventually playing at the high school varsity level. Marco was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 8. Although his parents and school nurse have managed most aspects of his care over the years, Marco has gradually been expected to take more responsibility for monitoring his blood glucose, recognizing symptoms of low blood sugar, carrying emergency supplies, and communicating his needs to adults. His parents and healthcare providers have encouraged him to advocate for himself, especially during sports and physical activity, where fluctuations in blood glucose can become dangerous. At school, Marco generally avoids talking about his diabetes. Only a few close friends know about his condition. Earlier in the year, several boys on another team joked about a player who had to “sit out because of medical stuff,” calling that player weak. Marco remembers teammates laughing, and even more so doesn’t want to be seen as “different.” He worries that if others know about his diabetes, teammates may tease him and question his toughness. Marco is also concerned that his soccer coach may bench him if he learns about his condition. Because the coach was hired solely for the athletic program and is not a regular school employee, he is unaware of Marco’s potential medical needs. During practice, the coach often tells players to “push through” fatigue and discourages breaks. Marco admires the coach and fears disappointing him. Because of these concerns, Marco hasn’t informed the coach about his diabetes or explained that he may need breaks, snacks, water, or blood glucose monitoring during practice and games. One afternoon during an intense outdoor practice in hot weather, Marco begins to feel shaky, dizzy, and confused. He notices his hands trembling and has difficulty concentrating. However, he does not want to ask to take a break because he worries teammates will question him or the coach will think he cannot handle the demands of the sport. The coach mistakes his symptoms for dehydration and frustration, yelling at him to stay focused and keep moving. Eventually, Marco collapses on the sidelines. The coach and teammates panic because no one understands what is happening. Marco’s emergency glucose supplies are in his backpack, but nobody knows where they are or how to help him. The school nurse is called, and emergency medical services are contacted. Following the incident, you, the pediatric school psychologist serving that middle school, are asked to assist in addressing concerns raised about Marco’s limited health literacy and underdeveloped self-advocacy skills related to managing his chronic health condition. In addition, you are asked to help address broader contextual issues such as the social environment, team culture, and lack of adult awareness that may have contributed to this crisis situation.   —– Day #1 (Cognate in Psychology) —- In your role at Sunshine Middle School, you have the opportunity to support Marco, the educational and athletic staff, and his parents. Your responses today should demonstrate your understanding of the affective, biological, cognitive, developmental, and social aspects of behavior relevant to conceptualizing Marco’s current behavior, and ultimately supporting Marco indirectly through consultation with school personnel, athletic staff, and his parents. (A discussion of how to support Marco directly through clinical services is not expected in this Day 1 response, but rather will be addressed in Day 2 of qualifying exams). *Please cite empirical literature (author only, no date needed) to support your responses. Based on the case study presented and your knowledge of theories of affective aspects of behavior, describe emotional and behavioral factors that may contribute to Marco’s reluctance to disclose his chronic health condition and advocate for his health needs during athletic participation. Based on the case study presented and your knowledge of theories of biological aspects of behavior, describe neural, physiological, and/or genetic influences associated with Marco’s chronic health condition that may contribute to his current social-emotional and behavioral challenges; what risk factors are present based upon his diagnosis? Based on the case study presented and your knowledge of cognitive aspects of behavior, describe theories of learning, memory, thought processes and/or decision-making that may help explain Marco’s choices related to nondisclosure of his condition and limited self-advocacy. Based on the case study presented and your knowledge of developmental aspects of behavior, describe theories and concepts related to adolescence, transitions, autonomy, social-emotional growth, and development across an individual’s life that may help explain Marco’s current challenges. Based on the case study presented and your knowledge of social aspects of behavior, describe theories and concepts related to peer group dynamics, team culture, teasing/bullying, discrimination, and/or cultural attitudes toward health and athletic performance that may help to better understand Marco’s current social-emotional and behavioral challenges. Based on the case study, provide two examples of how Marco’s current social-emotional and behavioral challenges likely result from the interplay of multiple bases of behavior discussed in Questions 1-5 above (e.g., social concepts that are particularly salient to his developmental stage). Based on your responses to Questions 1-6 above, how would you consult with Marco’s teachers, athletic staff, school nurse, family members, and other stakeholders to support his health and development of self-advocacy skills?    

Doctoral Qualifying Examination Bria Ferera (U62782167) Summer 2026 Day 2 (School Psychology Specialization Area) Please read the following scenario and respond to each of the questions below it.  Sophia is a 5-year-old child who will soon transition to kindergarten at Sunshine Elementary School. She lives with her mother, a 32-year-old single parent who works full-time. Sophia’s father has not been consistently involved in her life since infancy. Sophia attended a small in-home preschool program for the past two years where the provider was familiar with her medical needs and maintained close communication with her mom. Since infancy, Sophia has been diagnosed with severe allergies to peanuts and tree nuts. Her allergist has described her condition as life-threatening due to a history of anaphylaxis. Sophia experienced her first severe allergic reaction at 11 months old after accidental exposure to peanut butter at a family gathering. Since then, she has had two additional emergency room visits related to accidental exposure, including one incident at age four when another child at preschool shared a snack that contained traces of nuts. Sophia carries an epinephrine auto-injector at all times. Sophia is described as bright, verbal, and academically ready for kindergarten. There is no history of behavioral problems at preschool. She enjoys books, drawing, and imaginative play. However, her mom reports that Sophia has become increasingly aware of her allergy and sometimes expresses fear around food and eating in public settings. At birthday parties or school events, Sophia often asks repeatedly whether foods are “safe” and becomes upset if adults cannot immediately reassure her. Sophia has also begun expressing worries about going to “big school,” including fears that “someone might make a mistake” or that she “could die from bad food.” During her kindergarten screening, Sophia appeared shy initially but warmed up after several minutes. She followed directions well and demonstrated age-appropriate early literacy and social communication skills. Staff observed that Sophia repeatedly asked whether snacks in the classroom were safe for her and seemed unusually vigilant about food-related materials. Sophia’s mom describes significant emotional stress related to managing her daughter’s allergy. She reports chronic anxiety and persistent fears about Sophia’s safety when she is not under her direct supervision. She also worries about whether school staff will recognize symptoms of an allergic reaction quickly enough and whether other children will understand the seriousness of Sophia’s allergy. She has already contacted the school multiple times regarding allergy procedures and has requested meetings with the principal, teacher, school nurse, and cafeteria staff before school begins. She has asked whether the classroom can be designated peanut-free and whether an aide can supervise Sophia during lunch. Although school personnel have reassured her that procedures are in place, Sophia’s mom continues to express concern that public school may not provide the same level of individualized monitoring that Sophia received in preschool. Sophia’s mom reports a family history of anxiety on her side of the family and acknowledges that Sophia may “pick up” on her stress. She wants Sophia to become more independent and confident but struggles with balancing safety concerns and allowing age-appropriate autonomy. —– Day #2 (School Psychology Specialization Area) —- In your role as a Pediatric School Psychologist at Sunshine Elementary School, you have the opportunity to assist with Sophia’s transition to kindergarten, address her social-emotional concerns, and support collaboration between home and school regarding Sophia’s medical and emotional needs. Your response today should consider the affective, biological, cognitive, developmental, and social aspects of behavior relevant to conceptualizing Sophia’s current behavior (hypotheses developed in Day 1) and ultimately supporting Sophia directly through clinical services. Today, you need to decide how to treat Sophia through comprehensive school-based psychotherapy. *Please cite empirical literature (author only, no date needed) to support your responses. What data would you collect in a clinical intake, using which methods? What is your preliminary case conceptualization? What treatment approach/approaches would you use with Sophia? Why? What would you include in the treatment plan with regard to structure and content? Who besides Sophia will you include in the treatment plan (e.g., parent, peers, teacher, school nurse, allergist) and in what ways? How would you interface with her allergist? What ethical issues do you anticipate that would potentially arise in this case? How would you monitor response to intervention and treatment outcomes, including Sophia’s quality of life?

Write the output of the following code snippet: clc; clear;word = ‘banana’;word(word == ‘n’) = [];fprintf(‘%d’, length(word));

Consider massive gliders that slide friction-free along a horizontal air track. Glider A has a mass of 1 kg, a speed of 1 m/s, and collides with glider B, which has a mass of 5 kg and is at rest. If they stick upon collision, their speed after collision will be

If an astronaut whose total mass is 100 kg ejects 0.1 kg of gas at a speed of 50 m/s from her propulsion pistol, her recoil speed is

Which of the following is an example of the type of force that acts at a distance?

Two ropes are attached to a 40-kg object. The first rope applies a force of 25 N and the second, 40 N. If the two ropes are perpendicular to each other, what is the resultant acceleration of the object?

THIS CONTENT IS PROTECTED AND MAY NOT BE SHARED, UPLOADED, SOLD, OR DISTRIBUTED High Electron Mobility Transistors (HEMT) rely on the use of a barrier semiconductor to prevent leakage current between an electrode and the “channel” which is the semiconductor where electron transport occurs. This leakage current is due to tunneling, which is a fundamental property of subatomic particles and cannot be neglected. Here, estimate the tunneling probability of an electron with an effective mass of 0.2 m0, where m0 = 9.11*10-31 kg is the mass of an electron, and kinetic energy of 0.1 eV in the presence of a rectangular potential barrier of height V0  = 0.3 eV and width 150 Å.  SELECT CORRECT FROM AVAILABLE ANSWERS

THIS CONTENT IS PROTECTED AND MAY NOT BE SHARED, UPLOADED, SOLD, OR DISTRIBUTED If [a] x 1017 cm-3 silicon atoms are added to GaAs as a substitutional impurity and are distributed uniformly throughout the semiconductor, determine the distance between silicon atoms in terms of the GaAs lattice constant. (Assume the silicon atoms are distributed in a rectangular or cubic array.) The lattice constant of GaAs is 5.65 Å. INSERT YOUR ANSWER with 1 decimal place in the box below