Philosophy and Objectives

The master's program provides training within the context of the scientist-practitioner model. This is accomplished through prescribed course work and practicum experience. The model focuses on application of the basic principles of psychology and psychotherapy to:

• provide instruction in the range of scientific and practice activities within counseling psychology;
• aid in the resolution of psychological and social problems of essentially normal individuals;
• serve as psychotherapeutic agents for persons with severe problems in personal adjustment; and
• train counseling psychologists in basic research skills.

The master's program in counseling psychology emphasizes acquisition of counseling skills through exposure to educational and practical experiences.

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Admission Requirements

In addition to Psychology Department master's program requirements, students must meet the admission requirements of the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies.

Admission to the counseling psychology program is not determined by any single criterion or quantitative measure of achievement. Motivation, aptitude, self-awareness and interpersonal poise are highly valued, as are skills in communication, research methods and professional/scientific writing.

Applicants must submit a resume and a statement of goals. The statement of goals is an essay in which applicants describe their interest in seeking a master's degree in counseling psychology. In the statement, applicants can include descriptions of the ways they can enrich diversity of the program, department, college, and UNT; foreign language fluencies they may possess; unique life experiences they have had in/with other cultures; past experiences working with diverse populations; commitment to working with diverse populations; career plans that might involve working with diverse populations; reasons for applying to a counseling program and to UNT; academic goals; research interests; applied practice goals; etc. The overall purpose of the self-statement is to give the applicant an opportunity to convey to the admissions committee a fuller picture of the applicant's own self beyond the impression that can be formed from review of past academic records, test scores, and reference letters.

The master's program regards admission as a serious commitment on the part of both the applicant and the faculty. The counseling admission committee's goal is to make an optimal match between the applicant's qualifications and goals and the training program's resources and objectives. Detailed departmental admission requirements and an application may be obtained from the graduate coordinator or via the web at http://www.psyc.unt.edu.

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Degree Requirements

Students may choose the M.A. or M.S. degree option. Reading knowledge of a foreign language is a requirement for the M.A. degree, but all other course work is the same for both degrees.

The master's degree in counseling psychology requires a minimum of 61 semester hours beyond the bachelor's degree. Full-time students typically can complete the program in two and a half years.

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Counseling Core

The counseling core consists of 30 hours of course work designed to integrate content and practice. The core consists of course work in the following areas: introductory counseling theory, assessment, occupational information, psychopathology, life span development, quantitative methods and ethics. The goal is to introduce students to the fundamental, theoretical approach taken by counseling psychology in the treatment of human psychological problems. An emphasis is placed on developmental and intervention issues as they relate to normal and deviant behavior.

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Elective Cluster

Master's counseling students select one of two 15-semester-hour elective clusters: 1) marriage and family, or 2) mental health and aging.

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Counseling Practicum

The practicum component includes 4 hours of prepracticum in the first year. After prepracticum, most of the practicum course work (9 hours in the thesis option or 12 hours in the non-thesis option) is completed in agencies off campus. Non-thesis option students begin 12 semester hours of their practicum training in the summer term of the first year. By the fall term of the second year, students are involved in practicum training. On-site professionals in applied settings participate in the supervision of the off-campus practicum.

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Thesis or Non-Thesis Option

Thesis-option students must enroll in 6 hours of thesis and are required to complete 9 hours of off-campus practicum. The thesis involves students as active participants in research under the supervision of a faculty mentor. Thesis research provides students with the opportunity to become familiar with techniques and skills for systematic examination of problem areas.

Defense of the completed thesis substitutes for the final comprehensive oral exam over the student's completed degree work.

Students have the option of completing the master's degree without a thesis. Students in the non-thesis option must complete a final comprehensive oral exam over their completed degree work. Students in the non-thesis option are required to complete 12 hours of off-campus practicum.

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Foreign Language Requirement

Reading knowledge of a foreign language is a requirement for the M.A. degree. Students have the option of obtaining an M.S. degree, which does not require reading knowledge of a foreign language.

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Evaluation of Knowledge and Skills

Throughout training, the counseling program faculty assesses each student's progress. Evaluation focuses on development of general knowledge in the field of psychology and the specialty area of counseling psychology, competence in the delivery of applied services, skill in scientific investigation, and appropriate interpersonal and ethical functioning. Students who do not demonstrate satisfactory and continuous progress in these areas may be terminated from the counseling psychology program.

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Student Body

The rate of attrition from the master's program in counseling psychology is very small. At this time, the program has a larger percentage of women than men. Its students are diverse in age, backgrounds, and interests. Most facilities on campus, including the Department of Psychology, are accessible to students with disabilities. The master's program has about 16 students and admits approximately 8 students annually. About seven students graduate each year.

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Facilities

The recently renovated Psychology Clinic is used for prepracticum training and assessment classes. The Clinic includes psychotherapy and assessment rooms and rooms with one-way mirrors for live observation of individual and group sessions. Extensive videotaping capabilities are available for supervision in training. The counseling psychology program also uses training resources at the University Counseling Center. The bulk of applied practicum training occurs at off-campus sites.

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