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Introduction
Master of Science Degree The Clinical Mental Health Counseling program provides students with the assessment, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment skills necessary for helping with behavioral and emotional difficulties of clients from diverse backgrounds. Training in mental health counseling services includes the provision of principles and theories of counseling and psychotherapy, group dynamics, family systems theories, human and career development, and psychological assessment, as well as understanding and remediation of the causes of mental illness and dysfunctional behavior. Mental health counselors work with individuals, groups, couples, and families for the purpose of treating psychopathological conditions and optimizing human growth and development.
The Mental Health Counseling program is designed to prepare students for the National Counselor Examination (NCE) and meets the state of Wisconsin’s requirements to become a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC). It also allows the opportunity for students to develop specialized areas of training through various concentrations. These concentrations include: Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counseling; Career Counseling; Child and Adolescent Counseling; Eating Disorders Counseling; and Gerontological Counseling.
Admission
To be admitted with full status to this program, the applicant must hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college and have an overall grade point average of at least 2.75. Applicants may be admitted on probationary status if their overall grade point average is at least 2.5, but less than 2.75. Both the Graduate School Application form (obtainable from the Graduate School office or online at http://www.uwstout.edu/grad/prospect/apply.cfm) and a Program Application form (obtainable from the program director or online at http://www.uwstout.edu/programs/msmhc/apply.cfm) must be submitted by each applicant and include the documents identified on each form. Applicants must have presented and filed all required admissions documents by February 1 for summer and fall terms, and October 1 for the spring term. After committee review and a group interview, notification of acceptance will be made by mid-March for summer and fall terms, and mid-November for the spring term. Students will be evaluated on the basis of academic performance, admissibility to the Graduate School, writing ability, level of experience in the human services field, applicability of educational experiences, letters of recommendation, the group interview process, and subsequent rankings of a screening committee.
Requirements
The degree requires a minimum of 60 credit hours. Transfer credits may not exceed 20. A passing grade is required on the comprehensive examination taken near the end of the program. Students must be approved for degree candidacy at the appropriate time and follow an approved program plan, developed in conjunction with the program director. A minimum 3.0 grade point average must be maintained on all courses in the plan.
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