Program Objectives

As prospective professional counselors, graduates of the program are prepared to: counsel clients, both individually and in groups, on educational, career, life planning, social, emotional, physical, spiritual, and organizational concerns; provide information to clients for educational, social, career, and/or life planning; consult with other professionals concerning client needs; and conduct needs assessments, evaluations, and other activities for program design.

Admission Requirements

In addition to the general requirements for admission to the Graduate School, the criteria for admission to the M.A. in Counseling program include an applicant’s potential success in forming effective interpersonal relationships in individual and small-group contexts; aptitude for graduate-level study; career goals and objectives; openness to self-examination; and potential for personal and professional self-development.  Students are not required to have an undergraduate major in any particular field to enter the counseling program.  Admission decisions are based on applicants’ individual profiles and made by a committee of program faculty.  Applicants with the highest profile rankings are invited to campus for an interview process; the number invited is determined by the number of anticipated openings in the program.  Students are admitted to the program in the Spring of each year, and they are expected to begin their studies the following Summer or Fall semester.  The application deadline for each year’s admissions process is December 1.

Degree Requirements

The M.A. in Counseling program requires a total of 60 credit hours, including core courses for all students and specialization courses for students in School Counseling, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, or Addiction.  In addition, the programs offers an additional secondary Play Therapy concentration.  Each concentration includes a series of required courses, clinical experience courses, and elective courses.

Total = 60 Credit Hours

Advising

All students should plan their program of study by December of their first year of study with their advisors.

Licensure

Students who graduate from the School Counseling concentration are eligible, upon passing the exam required by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (DPI), to be recommended for school counseling licensure from the North Carolina DPI. All graduates are eligible to apply for the credential of Licensed Professional Counselor Associate (LPCA) through the NCBLPC upon completion of the application and required exam.