Counseling, MA

Program Mission Statement

The Master of Arts in Counseling program is designed to educate students about best practices in clinical mental health counseling and train students in the skills necessary to work with clients in a variety of settings, such as hospitals, social service agencies, residential treatment centers, community mental health centers, and other organizations. According to the CIP code for Clinical Mental Health Counseling, it is a program that prepares individuals to provide evaluations, referrals, and counseling services to help people prevent or remediate personal problems, conflicts, and emotional crises. Includes instruction in human development, psychopathology, individual and group counseling, personality theory, career assessment, patient screening and referral, observation and testing techniques, interviewing skills, professional standards and ethics, and applicable laws and regulations.

Students will gain the knowledge and skills necessary to create and maintain helping relationships, facilitate change on an individual or systemic level, and function professionally in human service organizations. Graduates will be prepared to enter the workforce in entry-level positions in clinical mental health counseling. Cooperative arrangements will be established with external agencies to provide practicum and internship placements for students to gain practical experience while enrolled in the program.

The MA in Counseling program has received accreditation from the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), the nationally recognized body for establishing standards for counselor education programs, in 2024. The program received an eight-year accreditation, which will expire in 2032. CACREP has established clear standards, and the program is designed according to the CACREP (2016) standards.  CACREP released new standards in 2024, and the program is already in compliance with the new standards.

Program Objectives

The program aims to educate students regarding best practices in the entry-level specialty area of clinical mental health counseling. Curriculum will focus on the eight core areas delineated by CACREP standards: professional counseling orientation and ethical practice, social and cultural diversity, human growth and development, career development, counseling and helping relationships, group counseling and group work, assessment and testing, research and program evaluation.

The objectives for the program are specifically:

1. To provide meaningful educational experiences to prepare graduates with foundational skills, critical thinking ability, and dedication to the counseling profession,

2. To prepare graduates for employment, licensure, and certification by meeting the standards set by the appropriate accrediting and licensing agencies,

3. To inspire graduates to become advocates for their clients and leaders in their profession,

4. To encourage patience, sensitivity, and understanding in the delivery of counseling services to diverse communities,

5. To prepare graduates for a commitment to ethical professional practice, and

6. To prepare students to use research as a guide for identifying effective counseling techniques. (Chwalisz, 2003)

Professional Objectives

National certification. Graduates of the program will be qualified to take the National Counselor Exam (NCE), which is administered by the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC). Passing the NCE exam qualifies graduates as a Nationally Certified Counselor (NCC). See the section on Accreditation below to verify the proposed program’s eligibility for CACREP accreditation.  

State licensure. Graduates who have passed the NCE will also be qualified to apply for licensure in the State of New Jersey as a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) after an additional 4,500 hours of supervised experience. This license allows them to work as counselors in non-profit organizations, for profit organizations, or in private practice in New Jersey.  

Prerequisite Requirements

• Baccalaureate from a regionally accredited institution of higher education

• Minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.0

• Incoming students must have prerequisite skills and knowledge in statistics and experimental psychology as well as at least one course in either child development or personality psychology. These prerequisite requirements can be met by courses taken at the undergraduate or graduate level with earned grades of B or better. 

Admissions Requirements

Visit the Master of Arts in Counseling website for specific admissions requirements regarding the application process. 

Degree Requirements

The program requires 60 credits for completion. Students will typically take a total of 20 three- credit courses to achieve that goal. 48 of the 60 credits will be taken in a required core that introduces the student to mental health counseling. The remaining credits will be earned in elective courses selected from a variety of offerings. The program requires students to take and pass a comprehensive exam prior to graduation. 

Students must complete all aspects of the program within six years of matriculation, not including time spent on school-approved leave of absence, or they will be dismissed from the program. Students who are preparing for the comprehensive exam but are not taking any classes must remain on Maintenance of Matriculation Status. 

Program Completion Timeline

Students must complete all aspects of the program within six years of matriculation, not including time spent on school-approved leave of absence. Please see the University Bulletin for details on the leave of absence policy.  Students who do not complete all of their graduate work over the six years of matriculation will be dismissed from the program.  Students who are preparing for the comprehensive exam but not taking any classes must remain on Maintenance of Matriculation Status.

Academic Honesty

Academic honesty is a very serious issue. Unless specifically designated otherwise, all work is expected to be the student’s own, independent effort. When in doubt about how to complete an assignment properly, students need to consult with the appropriate faculty member. For more information regarding charges of academic dishonesty, students should refer to the relevant section in the University Bulletin.

Research and Ethics

If faculty and/or student research or scholarship involves contact with human or animal subjects, the research project requires pre-approval from the University’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) before conducting the research.

Accreditation

The program was designed in accordance with the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) 2016 Standards. The program completed the application process for accreditation in December 2023 with the site visit.  Accreditation was granted in 2024 for an eight-year period ending in 2032.  The program will be assessed using the following methods: 

1. Graduates will demonstrate competence in the core areas related to the program objectives. Students will take the NCE exam during the spring of their final year, so the program will have access to data regarding students’ success on the exam.

2. The program faculty will evaluate the program objectives using (1) aggregate student assessment data that address student knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions; (2) demographic and other characteristics of applicants, students, and graduates; and (3) data from systematic follow-up studies of graduates, site supervisors, and employers of program graduates, including the percentage of graduates who take the NCE and the percentage who pass.

3. The program faculty will provide evidence of the use of program evaluation data to inform program modifications via its annual Program Director Report and Five-Year Program Review. 

4. The program faculty will disseminate an annual report that includes (1) a summary of the program evaluation results, (2) subsequent program modifications, and (3) any other substantial program changes. The report will be published on the program website and students currently in the program, program faculty, institutional administrators, and personnel in cooperating agencies (e.g., employers, site supervisors) will be notified that the report is available.

5. The faculty will annually post the number of graduates for the past academic year, pass rates on credentialing examinations, completion rates, and job placement rates (based on alumni surveys) on the program’s website.

6. The faculty will have written procedures for administering student evaluations of faculty (IDEAs). 

7. Students will have opportunities to evaluate program faculty through anonymous student evaluations of teaching (IDEA) at the end of each semester.

8. Students will have regular, systematic opportunities to formally evaluate practicum and internship supervisors. 

9. Students will be asked upon graduation to evaluate the knowledge, skills, and values they gained during the program and provide feedback for program improvement.

10. Supervisors of student practicums and internships will be asked to evaluate how well the program prepares students to function in their agency or organization.

Interested individuals may access the CACREP website for more information on CACREP and the accreditation process.