Counseling Psychology

The Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology is dedicated to the cutting edge preparation of counseling psychologists. There are four pillars that create the foundation of the counseling psychology program. These four pillars are Counseling Psychology, Counseling, The Family Institute and Northwestern University. The program is influenced by the theoretical and intellectual traditions of both the Counseling Psychology field and the Counseling field. Additionally, the program has a unique training context as it is housed within the Family Institute at Northwestern University.

The theoretical coursework from the counseling psychology tradition embraces a psychodynamic influence in its emphasis on the centrality of the therapeutic relationship as well as the emphasis on the importance of self reflection and the person of the therapist. Students are encouraged to become practitioner-scholars by engaging a wide variety of research and scholarly projects and professional presentations. A counseling approach is infused throughout the coursework by reflecting issues of culture, ethics, and counselor identity. Counselors-in-training are intensely supervised as they work with clients at every step of their training process.

The Family Institute represents specialized training and research opportunities in family and social systems and a life course development orientation. The faculty has a wide range of interests and diverse scholarly backgrounds, but all subscribe to the program's theoretical framework. It is a particularly notable strength of the program that every faculty member has extensive scholarly and clinical experience as well as expertise in the specific area of his or her teaching.

Taken together, the Masters of Arts in Counseling Psychology is a unique blend of training designed to create a highly self-reflective and clinically skilled master’s level practitioner. The program, jointly administered by The Graduate School at Northwestern University and The Family Institute, is strongly committed to ensuring that every student achieves the highest standards of excellence as a clinically skilled and theoretically sophisticated practitioner. As such, extensive programmatic resources are dedicated to this objective.

Rigorous, intensive supervised clinical training and the ongoing integration of theoretical knowledge and applied practice are hallmarks of the program. To optimize and personalize the clinical experience, each student is carefully matched with a quality field training setting and clinical supervisor every year, and the training process is closely monitored throughout the student’s academic tenure In addition, a distinctive feature of the program is the Preceptor Model of Clinical Training, a unique approach to clinical training developed in this program over 30 years ago, and greatly responsible for the clinical excellence and high marketability of graduates of the program. The model embodies the program’s strong belief in the importance of individualizing and personalizing the clinical training process: every Supervised Practicum student is assigned to a Backhome Preceptor, an experienced clinical practitioner who serves as a coach and mentor to facilitate the emergence of basic skills and professional identity development during the early phases of the training process specifically in concordance with the student’s own personal attributes and characteristics.

Students are admitted to one of two separate but overlapping curricula. The Standard Curriculum, consisting of 24 courses or academic units (each course is equivalent to one academic unit), is appropriate for students entering the program with some academic and applied clinical experience in psychology or a related field and is completed in two academic years. The unique Two-Plus Curriculum, consisting of 27 courses or academic units, welcomes students with minimal or no background in psychology who are shifting to Counseling from other careers or academic majors, and is completed in three academic years.

Students in both curricula choose to specialize in one of two tracks: General Psychological Counseling (individual, group and family), or Child Assessment and Intervention. Specializations are distinguished by specific courses and clinical training experiences; students select the specialization at the time of matriculation.

The program prepares students for clinical positions in mental health, human services and academic/educational settings, including but not limited to community mental health centers, specialized social service agencies, college/university career and psychological counseling services, hospitals, employee assistance and government agencies. Graduates are also competitive for quality Counseling or Clinical Psychology Ph.D. or Psy.D and/or Counselor Education Ph.D. programs. Independent practice is permissible with the Master’s degree and appropriate licensure as defined by the Counselor licensing statute of the respective state in which the practice is located. Both the Standard Curriculum and the Two-Plus Curriculum satisfy the requirements for licensure as a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and with 3,380 hours of post-master’s clinical experience, a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC) in Illinois, and every effort is made to enable students to satisfy Counselor licensure requirements in other states.

Twenty–five students typically enter the program each year, including some who qualify for the Standard Curriculum and others from an array of different academic and professional backgrounds who qualify for the Two-Plus curriculum. The curricula are designed for full-time study only (a minimum of three courses per quarter) beginning with Fall Quarter matriculation except for the 3^rd year of the Two-Plus curriculum where a minimum of two courses are required per quarter, Two-Plus students retain their full-time status in their 3^rd year. Students are not expected to register for courses during Summer Quarter but some clinical opportunities may require Summer Quarter enrollment. Students are encouraged to enroll in the Pre-Program Clinical Experience (PPCE) in the summer prior to their first year of coursework to begin their clinical experiences as soon as possible. To earn the degree, students must satisfactorily complete the Master’s Comprehensive Examination in the Spring Quarter of the externship year in the program.

Counseling Psychology students are strongly encouraged to become members of appropriate professional organizations such as the American Counseling Association, the American Psychological Association, the Illinois Counseling Association and the Illinois Psychological Association, and to submit and present scholarly papers at regional and national conferences sponsored by these professional organizations.

The program endorses and abides by ethical standards of service delivery and research established by the American Counseling Association, the American Psychological Association and Northwestern University, and rules of ethical conduct and practice prescribed by the State of Illinois. In accordance with these ethical standards, students are not permitted to engage in the independent practice of counseling prior to earning the Master’s degree and counselor licensure. Information on professional ethics is distributed to and reviewed with each incoming class, and reiterated in the program’s courses and seminars.

For more detailed information regarding the degree program or program-specific requirements for admission please visit the program website at http://www.family-institute.org/education/counselingpsychology.