Program Overview

Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program

The Clinical Mental Health Counseling program is designed to prepare students for service as licensed professional counselors working in public or private human service agencies or in private counseling practice. Clinical mental health counselors are distinguished among the helping disciplines by their balanced focus on wellness and psychopathology.

Program Description

The CACREP-accredited M.Ed. in Counseling - Clinical Mental Health Counseling concentration provides students with a broad foundation in counseling theory and technique, an experienced and dedicated faculty, and substantial opportunity for supervised practice. The program prepares students for the challenging and vital role of clinical mental health counselors, who are often the first point of contact between troubled community members and the helping services they require.

Requirements

• The M.Ed. is the entry-level degree for professional counseling, and students from a variety of academic backgrounds are accepted.
• Previous counseling experience is not required.
• Full-time students typically complete the program in two academic years, while the online program can be completed part-time in as few as three years.
• Graduate students in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Concentration complete a total of 60 semester hours of classroom and clinical course work.
• The program is accredited by CACREP (the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs) and adheres to a rigorous set of standards for both classroom and clinical instruction.

Field Experiences

• Clinical instruction consists of a required one-semester practicum and a two-semester internship in which students work as clinical mental health counselors in field placements they select in consultation with faculty mentors.
• Under the supervision of experienced faculty, students select their field sites based on their individual interests in work as a professional counselor, ensuring that they receive clinical training and experience relevant to their future career goals.

Licensure

• Virginia licensure as a Professional Counselor requires a master's degree in counseling, 60 hours of graduate course work in counseling, a 3400-hour, post-master's clinical residency, and successful completion of the licensure examination.
• The curriculum fulfills all classroom and clinical instruction requirements for licensure as a Professional Counselor in Virginia and most other states, as well as certification by the National Board of Certified Counselors.