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Counselor Education


	Description

	Degrees Offered

	Admission

	Master of Arts in Counselor Education

		Mental Health Counseling Track

		School Counseling Track

	Master of Education in Counselor Education

		School Counseling Track

	Contact Info

Description

Counselor Education offers two degree programs: Mental Health Counseling and School Counseling.

The Mental Health Counseling program prepares students for licensure in mental health counseling and leads to a Master of Arts (M.A.) degree.

The School Counseling program features two tracks that lead either to a Master of Education (M.Ed.) or a Master of Arts (M.A.) degree. The M.Ed. was created for students who have a bachelor's degree and have completed course work for teaching certification and plan to seek certification in school counseling. The M.A. was designed for the student who has a bachelor's degree in a discipline other than education who plans to seek certification as a school counselor.

As part of the program's "real world" approach to counselor education (in addition to classroom studies) all students complete clinical experiences in the UCF Community Counseling Clinic and on-site in the community.

The Mental Health Counseling program prepares students to obtain licensure as a mental health counselor and practice in community agencies, hospitals, colleges, universities, and private practice. The School Counseling program prepares students to work as professional counselors in pre-K through postsecondary school settings.

Degrees Offered

Mental Health Counseling Track
School Counseling Track

School Counseling Track

Admission

For information on general UCF graduate admissions requirements that apply to all prospective students, please visit the Graduate Catalog. Applicants are encouraged to apply online. Please be sure to submit all requested material by the established deadline(s).

In addition to the general admission requirements, applicants to this program must provide:

Three letters of recommendation
A resume or statement of goals
Official scores on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), which must have been taken within the last five years
For applicants from countries where English is not the official language, or for an applicant whose bachelor’s degree is not from an accredited U.S. institution, an official score of at least 220 (computer-based test; or equivalent score on the paper-based test) on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is required.

Applicants are expected to have a minimum cumulative GRE score of about 1000 or an undergraduate GPA of about 3.0. However, the final admission criteria will normally be more stringent because of the competitiveness of the application process.

A formal interview is required and will be scheduled after the College of Education admission requirements are met. Interviews are conducted on the second Friday in March and the second Friday in October.

This program can accommodate only a limited number of students; therefore, there is a possibility of being denied admission even when all criteria are met.

The College of Education reserves the right to refuse student entrance or terminate a student after admission to the Counselor Education Program, if in the judgment of the faculty the student demonstrates unacceptable personal fitness to work in the counseling field with children, youth, and/or adults.

Application Due Dates

All students applying for fellowships or assistantships must apply by the Fall Priority deadline date.

U.S. Applicants

Program(s) Fall Priority Fall Spring Summer

Master of Arts in Counselor Education Feb 1 Mar 1 Oct 1

Mental Health Counseling Track Feb 1 Mar 1 Oct 1

School Counseling Track Feb 1 Mar 1 Oct 1

Master of Education in Counselor Education Feb 1 Mar 1 Oct 1

School Counseling Track Feb 1 Mar 1 Oct 1

International Applicants

Program(s)

Fall Priority

Fall

Spring

Summer

Master of Arts in Counselor Education

Feb 1

Jul 1

Mental Health Counseling Track

Feb 1

Jul 1

School Counseling Track

Feb 1

Jul 1

Master of Education in Counselor Education

Feb 1

Jul 1

School Counseling Track

Feb 1

Jul 1

Please note that all degrees have the following exit requirements:

Achieve at least a GPA of 3.0 in counseling specialization courses.
Achieve a “B” or better in MHS 6800 and MHS 6830.
Complete clinical experiences in the UCF Community Counseling Clinic and on-site in the community (a total of 1,100 clock hours are required for mental health counseling or 700 hours for school counseling).
Complete a portfolio and receive approval by Counselor Education faculty.
Pass comprehensive written examinations satisfactorily.
Complete a professional exit examination.

M.Ed. in Counselor Education

School Counseling

51 Minimum Credit Hours Required

Prerequisite: Eligible for teacher certification

Area A: Core—12 Credit Hours

EDF 6155 Lifespan Human Development and Learning (3 credit hours)
EDF 6481 Fundamentals of Graduate Research in Education (3 credit hours)
EGC 6971 Thesis or 2 electives (6 credit hours)

Area B: Specialization—30 Credit Hours

MHS 5005 Introduction to the Counseling Profession (3 credit hours)
MHS 6220 Individual Psychoeducational Testing I (3 credit hours)
MHS 6400 Theories of Counseling and Personality (3 credit hours)
MHS 6401 Techniques of Counseling (3 credit hours)
MHS 6420 Counseling Special Populations (3 credit hours)
MHS 6500 Group Procedures and Theories in Counseling (3 credit hours)
MHS 6XXX Ethical and Legal Issues (3 credit hours)
EDH 6044 Career Exploration in Higher Education (3 credit hours)
SDS 6411 Counseling with Children and Adolescents (3 credit hours)
SDS 6620 Organization and Administration of School Counseling and Guidance Programs (3 credit hours)

Area C: Professional Clinical Experience—9 Credit Hours

MHS 6XXX Practicum in Counselor Education (3 credit hours)
MHS 6830 Counseling Internship (3 credit hours)
MHS 6830 Counseling Internship (3 credit hours)

NOTE: Courses should be taken in the following sequence: MHS 5005, 6400, 6401, 6500, 6800, and 6830.

M.A. in Counselor Education

Mental Health Counseling

63 Minimum Credit Hours Required

This program prepares students for Florida licensure in mental health counseling.

Area A: Core—12 Credit Hours

EDF 6155 Lifespan Human Development and Learning (3 credit hours)
EDF 6481 Fundamentals of Graduate Research in Education (3 credit hours)
EGC 6971 Thesis or 2 approved electives (6 credit hours)

Area B: Specialization—39 Credit Hours

MHS 5005 Introduction to the Counseling Profession (3 credit hours)
MHS 6020 Mental Health Care Systems (3 credit hours)
MHS 6070 Diagnosis and Treatment in Counseling (3 credit hours)
MHS 6220 Individual Psychoeducational Testing I (3 credit hours)
MHS 6400 Theories of Counseling and Personality (3 credit hours)
MHS 6401 Techniques of Counseling (3 credit hours)
MHS 6420 Counseling Special Populations (3 credit hours)
MHS 6450 Counseling Substance Use and Abuse (3 credit hours)
MHS 6480 Human Sexuality and Relationships (3 credit hours)
MHS 6500 Group Procedures and Theories in Counseling (3 credit hours)
MHS 6XXX Ethical and Legal Issues (3 credit hours)
EDH 6044 Career Exploration in Higher Education (3 credit hours)
Elective approved by adviser (3 credit hours)

Area D: Professional Clinical Experiences—12 Credit Hours

MHS 6XXX Practicum in Counselor Education (3 credit hours)
MHS 6830 Counseling Internship (3 credit hours)
MHS 6830 Counseling Internship (3 credit hours)

Please note: Courses should be taken in the following sequence: MHS 5005, 6400, 6401, 6500, 6800, and 6830.

M.A. in Counselor Education—School Counseling Track

60 Minimum Credit Hours Required

Area A: Core—12 Credit Hours

EDF 6155 Lifespan Human Development and Learning (3 credit hours)
EDF 6481 Fundamentals of Graduate Research in Education (3 credit hours)
EGC 6971 Thesis or 2 approved electives (6 credit hours)

Area B: Specialization—30 Credit Hours

MHS 5005 Introduction to the Counseling Profession (3 credit hours)
MHS 6220 Individual Psychoeducational Testing I (3 credit hours)
MHS 6400 Theories of Counseling and Personality (3 credit hours)
MHS 6401 Techniques of Counseling (3 credit hours)
MHS 6420 Counseling Special Populations (3 credit hours)
MHS 6500 Group Procedures and Theories in Counseling (3 credit hours)
MHS 6XXX Ethical and Legal Issues (3 credit hours)
EDH 6044 Career Exploration in Higher Education (3 credit hours)
SDS 6411 Counseling with Children and Adolescents (3 credit hours)
SDS 6620 Organization and Administration of School Counseling and Guidance Programs (3 credit hours)

Area C: Professional Clinical Experience—9 Credit Hours

MHS 6800 Practicum in Counselor Education (3 credit hours)
MHS 6830 Counseling Internship (3 credit hours)
MHS 6830 Counseling Internship (3 credit hours)

Area D: Required DOE Certification—9 Credit Hours

Foundations: Select one of the following:

EDF 6517 Perspectives on Education (3 credit hours)
EDF 6608 Social Factors in American Education (3 credit hours)
EDF 6886 Multicultural Education (3 credit hours)
General Methods (Approved by adviser)—6 Credit Hours

Financial Support

Graduate students may receive financial assistance through fellowships, assistantships, tuition support, or loans. For more information, see Financing Grad School, which describes the types of financial assistance available at UCF and provides general guidance in planning your graduate finances. The Financial Information section of the Graduate Catalog is another key resource.

Key points about financial support:

If you’re interested in financial assistance, you’re strongly encouraged to apply for admission early. A complete application for admission, including all supporting documents, must be received by the priority date listed for your program under "Admissions."
You must be admitted to a graduate program before the university can consider awarding financial assistance to you.
If you want to be considered for loans and other need-based financial assistance, review the UCF Student Financial Assistance website at http://finaid.ucf.edu and complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) form, which is available online at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov. Apply early and allow up to six weeks for the FAFSA form to be processed.
UCF Graduate Studies awards university graduate fellowships, with most decisions based on nominations from the colleges and programs. All admitted graduate students are automatically considered in this nomination process. To be eligible for a fellowship, students must be accepted as a graduate student in a degree program and be enrolled full-time. To receive need-based fellowship awards, the student must have demonstrated need as determined by FAFSA. Merit fellowship awards are not affected by FAFSA determination of need.
Please note that select fellowships do require students to fill out a fellowship application (either a university fellowship application, an external fellowship application, or a college or school fellowship application).
For information on assistantships (including teaching, research, and general graduate assistantships) or tuition support, contact the graduate program coordinator of your major.