CMHC Winter 2020

Students will engage with content, discussions, and assignments emphasizing the importance of research in the counseling profession, including analysis of published literature on evidenced-based practices. Students will become critical consumers of research by learning about qualitative and quantitative research assumptions, methods, and program design considerations. Steps of program evaluation are also featured. Students learn language, theory, and assumptions related to descriptive, correlational, and inferential statistics.

Students develop foundational lifestyle and counseling skills and engage in professional career counseling activities. Students examine the major models of career development and the ways clients’ interests, aptitudes, lifestyle, social interests, family responsibilities, and life transitions may impact lifestyle and career development process. Students also discuss legal and ethical issues associated with career counseling practice.

This is a series of four clinical internship courses during which students fulfill 700 total required contact hours in a mental health setting local to each student. Of the 700 total hours, students must complete 280 hours of direct client contact and a minimum of 44 hours of face-to-face contact with field supervisors. The internship provides students with specific clinical skills in interviewing, assessment, intervention, documentation, and consultation with individuals, couples, families, and groups. Grading for this course is P/NP. Students must be responsible to research and comply with the specific clinical experience requirements of their states. Online, weekly supervision with program faculty and live, weekly onsite supervision are requirements.

The clinical practicum is an online-directed, supervised field experience in a mental health counseling setting local to each student during which students engage specific clinical skills, including interviewing, assessment, intervention, documentation, and consultation. Students use fundamental communication and interviewing principles and perform intake, initial assessments, and verbal histories with individuals, couples, and/or families. This course requires 100 hours of clinical field experience, which must consist of no less than 40 hours of direct client contact, and no fewer than 11 hours of face-to-face contact with field supervisors. It is the student’s responsibility to research and comply with the specific clinical experience requirements of their states.