Counseling and
Educational Development
Program Overview
Professional Core and Specialized Courses
Master's and Dual Degree Program Areas
Core courses are the basic building blocks for the professional counselor, regardless of setting. All master's and dual degree students take courses in the following areas:
- the helping relationship and basic helping skills
- human growth and development
- counseling theories
- group theories, dynamics, and process
- lifestyle and career development
- multicultural counseling
- measurement and appraisal
- research and evaluation
- professional orientation
In addition, a sequence of specialized courses are offered within each program area (i.e., school counseling, Clinical mental health counseling, couple and family counseling, and college counseling/student development in higher education). Students also may take courses in substance abuse, sexual abuse, couple counseling, family counseling, human sexuality, grief and loss, and counseling children, adolescents, adults in midlife, and older adults, among others. Program requirements also allow students to take courses offered by other departments (e.g., parent-child relations, divorce and remarriage, education of exceptional individuals, the community college, etc.), which enable students to broaden their knowledge base in their area of interest. Corequisite practica experiences are offered in conjunction with most core and specialized counseling courses. In addition, students complete a 600-hour, two-semester counseling internship in an appropriate clinical setting.
Doctoral Program
The doctoral program is built on the master's degree program, so that is assumed that students already have a broad foundation and successful clinical experience, as described above. Professional core courses at the doctoral level involve advanced theory, practice, and research courses in the following areas:
- counseling theories
- career counseling
- assessment and appraisal
- consultation, advocacy, and leadership
- clinical supervision
- professional development and professional issues in counselor education
- pedagogy in counselor education
- clinical supervision
Doctoral students also take advanced coursework in their counseling program or specialty area, complete indepth study in a cognate area outside the School of Education, and complete an extensive sequence of coursework in research and program evaluation, as well as the dissertation.
Doctoral students complete a 600-hour, two-semester counseling internship in an appropriate clinical setting. They also may enroll in supervised supervision and college teaching experiences.
A complete listing of Departmental course offerings is available on the UNCG Graduate School Online Catalog