Counseling, MA

The Lindenwood University Master of Arts in Counseling Program is accredited by the The Higher Learning Commission ([e-mail]) and the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE, http://dese.mo.gov/).

The programs leading to a MA in Counseling are designed to prepare master’s level counseling practitioners. The professional counseling and school counseling programs provide students with a broad base of psychological knowledge and theory integrated with extensive training and practice in the use of counseling skills. Graduates of professional and school counseling programs are qualified to work in a variety of school and/or mental health settings with individuals, groups, and families.

The professional counseling and school counseling programs are intensive and comprehensive, requiring a minimum of 48 credit hours of coursework and applied experience. Admission to the counseling program is selective, yet flexible. Please see an earlier section of the catalog for general LU-Belleville admissions requirements. Students who do not meet those requirements should contact the Counseling Department in order to discuss options.

The American Counseling Association Code of Ethics (2014) requires that institutions providing counselor education screen students for professional, personal, and academic fit within the profession of counseling. Completion and graduation from the MA in Counseling program requires successful completion of all graduate courses with appropriate academic success; development of appropriate interpersonal and counseling skills evidencing competency as a counselor; and being deemed fit for the counseling profession by program faculty as determined by development of counseling knowledge, skills, and counselor formation, interpersonal relations with others in the program, and openness to supervision and feedback.

Acceptance into the MA in Counseling program is required in order for potential counseling candidates to enroll in the preliminary courses, IPC 51000 Foundations of School Counseling (3) or IPC 51100 Foundations of Professional Counseling (3). These Foundations classes will be considered screening classes. Foundations instructors will evaluate all students using the Comprehensive Counselor Candidate Assessment (CCCA) introduced at the beginning of the Foundations class (see Program Handbooks at www.lindenwood.edu/counseling). Any student identified by Foundations instructors as lacking clinical or academic potential to develop a career as a professional or school counselor will be referred to the Counseling Review Board to determine whether or not the candidate will continue in the program or receive remedial actions (e.g., personal counseling or an action plan developed by the candidate and his or her advisor). This review board will be made up of the head of the department, a full-time faculty member, an adjunct faculty member, and an alumnus of the program. The review board will make recommendations to remediate the student. Efforts at remediation will be reviewed again the following semester. If sufficient progress has been made, the student will continue in the program. If the student demonstrates the same or additional deficits, as described above, the student may be removed from the program.

Students admitted to the MA in Counseling degree program must attain a 3.0 GPA for the first 12 hours of graduate course work with no grade less than a B nor a report from any instructor for deficits according to the CCCA. Failure to maintain such standards will result in the candidate being referred to the Counseling Review Board to determine if the student will continue in the program. It is the objective of the counseling program to, as early as possible, identify students who demonstrate difficulty achieving the standards for competent practice and to initiate appropriate intervention to assist them. Thus, the faculty of the counseling program reserves the right to review students at any stage of their coursework. A student earning any grade less than a B in IPC 51000 or IPC 51100, IPC 52400, IPC 55100 or IPC 55300, or IPC 62000 (professional internship) or IPC 62100, IPC 62200, IPC 62300, or IPC 62400 (school field placements) will be allowed to repeat the course one time and must earn a grade of B or better to continue in the program. Any instructor may submit a CCCA form to the Counseling Review Board to ensure appropriate clinical skills at any time during the program. The Counseling Review Board process, however initiated, may result in the termination of the student’s degree program or other required or recommended remedies to address deficiencies judged by the Counseling Review Board as related to the skills that are essential to the development of competent and ethical practices as a professional counselor.

After a candidate has successfully completed the first 12 hours of coursework, completion of the Counseling program is contingent on meeting the following criteria:

1. Maintaining a minimum GPA of 3.0 in Counseling coursework; and
2. Completing the required number of courses, based on the current curriculum; and
3. Completing an electronic portfolio (school) as a project of Field Placement 1 or 2; and
4. Satisfactory resolution of any Disposition documentation provided by candidate's instructors; and
5. Receiving satisfactory evaluations from site supervisors during internship or field placement experiences; and
6. Passing the Comprehensive Examination [Counselor Preparation Comprehensive Examination (CPCE) for professional counseling candidates or Missouri Educator Gateway Assessments (MEGA): Missouri Content Assessment, test MO056 MEGA Counselor, for school counseling candidates] as an exit requirement.

NOTE: Missouri’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has raised the criteria for certification as a school counselor.  State regulations can and do change and all counseling candidates must meet Missouri DESE requirements to complete this Missouri approved certification program. Current Missouri requirements can be found online at http://dese.mo.gov/eq/ and your Counseling advisor will help you understand what you are required to do to meet those standards. Currently, a minimum GPA of 3.0 is required for all school counseling coursework.

All students are periodically reviewed to assess their academic progress. Only those students who meet program standards will be allowed to continue.

Students completing the professional counseling track must obtain a minimum of 600 hours of supervised internship experience (700 hours are required for Illinois practitioners). Internship placements may be arranged with a variety of mental health agencies that provide counseling services to clients. Internship students receive individual supervision from qualified professionals at their field sites and will also participate in a group supervision course conducted by a faculty member of the Counseling Department. The Professional Counseling Handbook specifies the details for the internship experience.

Students completing the school counseling track must obtain a minimum of 450 hours of field placement experience in a school setting (700 hours are required for Illinois certification). Students completing their field placement experiences receive individual supervision from a certified school counselor at their site and will also participate in a group supervision course conducted by a faculty member of the Counseling Department. The School Counseling Handbook specifies the details for both field placement experiences.

Exit requirements vary by program. Brief descriptions of the exit requirements are provided in the following sections. Further information regarding exit requirements is provided in the Professional Counseling Handbook and the School Counseling Handbook.

Background Check

Some states will not provide a professional counseling license to those with a failed background check. If an applicant or student has questions regarding such, he or she should check with the state professional counseling licensure board, preferably prior to applying to the MA in Counseling program. A conviction, guilty plea, or nolo contendere plea involving a crime involving drugs, moral turpitude, or other criminal charges may prohibit licensure or employment as a school or professional counselor.

Students submitting applications for field placements in school counseling are required to complete a background check at their own expense. Also note that some professional internship sites require completion of a background check prior to commitment to the field experience. All background checks are at the expense of the student. See the Assistant Dean (Lindenwood-St. Charles) or Department Chair (Lindenwood-Belleville) for more information.

Citizenship/authorized alien/immigrant status is now a prerequisite for a professional license by an agency of a State or local government under Title 8 US Code Section 1621.