The Curriculum
The Mental Health Counseling Program is an approved professional counseling program through the Deprtment of Regulation and Licensing in Wisconsin. The Mental Health Counseling program prepares students for Wisconsin state licensure standards, which include the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) test (National Counselor Examination). In addition, the program prepares students to obtain the Certification for Clinical Mental Health Counselors (CCMHC), which can only be obtained by individuals graduating from a 60-credit counseling program. Counseling professionals who hold the CCMHC credential have been recognized by numerous insurance carriers as authorized providers of mental health services.
The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counseling concentration of the 60-credit program option has been approved as a pre-certification education program for the Substance Abuse Counselor and Clinical Substance Abuse Counselor certifications by the Department of Regulations and Licensing. Graduates with the AODA Counseling concentration are allowed 2,000 hours of supervised work experience toward obtaining the Substance Abuse Counselor credential and 4,000 hours of supervised work experience toward the Clinical Substance Abuse Counselor credential. The AODA Concentration will also provide the necessary preparation for the Master Addiction Counselor (MAC) credential offered through NBCC.
The curriculum for the Mental Health Counseling program includes the Professional Core requirements, internship, and electives.
Professional Core Requirements
The core requirements for the Mental Health Counseling program and all concentrations provide students with proficiency in utilizing basic and advanced counseling skills; understanding counseling theories; group counseling processes; psychological testing and assessment; ethics in counseling; professional orientation and identity; counseling with diverse populations; diagnosis, assessment, and treatment for psychopathological conditions; treatment approaches for substance abuse issues; human development theories; system theories in marriage and family counseling; career counseling theories and issues; assessment instruments in mental health counseling; cognitive-behavioral therapy; and research skills.
Internship
The Mental Health Counseling Program requires internship experience for students in both program options. Three related courses are required prior to internship. Counseling Process Laboratory provides initial development in core counseling skills, reflective listening, and establishing counseling relationships. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy provides training in advanced intervention methods. Group Dynamics offers instruction and training in group counseling skill development. Internship placements for students in the Mental Health Counseling program are provided in various agencies. Specific placements depend somewhat on the previous background, experience, maturity, and capability of the student at the time of placement, as well as chosen concentration or interest area. No particular kind of placement can be guaranteed in advance of the student's entry into the program. Brochures listing and describing a variety of potential internship sites are provided to students prior to internship placement.
A total of 900 hours of on-site internship experience is required for the Mental Health Counseling program. This means students will be expected to spend the equivalent of about 20 hours per week in the internship setting during one 16-week semester for each 300 hours of experience. Supervision for all internships will be provided by professional counselors in the setting and by faculty from the university. Periodic seminars and individual supervision sessions are required as part of the internship experience.
Core Courses
| COUN-788 | Counseling Process Laboratory | 3 | |
| COUN-750 | Counseling Theories | 3 | |
| COUN-752 | Group Dynamics | 3 | |
| SPSY-753 | Psychometric Theories and Application | 2 | |
| COUN-715 | Orientation to Mental Health Counseling | 2 | |
| COUN-725 | Social and Cultural Issues in Counseling | 3 | |
| COUN-723 | Psychopathology: Assessment and Tx Planning | 3 | |
| COUN-721 | Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment Programs | 3 | |
| HDFS-742 | Lifespan Family and Human Development | 3 | |
| MFT-751 | Contemporary Couples | 3 | |
| SCOUN-733 | Career Development Theory, Issues and Information | 3 | |
| COUN-754 | Assessment Instruments in Mental Health Counseling | 1 | |
| COUN-789 | Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy | 3 | |
| MFT-765 | Research in Psychotherapy | 3 | |
| 38 | |||
Concentrations:
- Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Counseling
- Career Counseling
- Child and Adolescent Counseling
- Eating Disorders
- Gerontological Counseling
- Health Psychology Counseling
Program Requirements
Meeting the Professional Core Requirements, doing 900 hours of Mental Health Counseling Internship experience, and taking enough electives to add up to 60 credits allows the student to meet the curricular requirements for the program. Electives may be chosen from graduate course work throughout the university (generally within the College of Human Development) that strengthens the students' program. The major purpose of the electives is to allow students to select additional courses which, based upon their previous professional and educational experience, would add to their personal and professional development.
If they so chose, students can use their elective credits to develop a concentration area. However, choosing a concentration is not required, and students can use the elective credits to develop their own program. All electives need to be approved by the program director.
| Courses | ||
| Professional Core Courses | 38 | |
| COUN-794 | Mental Health Counseling Internship | 9 |
| Electives | 13 | |
| 60 | ||
Mental Health Counseling Program Concentrations
Students will need 13 credit hours of electives to complete their program. Students will be able to choose electives to supplement their individualized programs. In addition, six different concentrations are available. The concentrations are designed to allow students to use their electives to develop increased expertise in specialized interest areas, thus allowing them to receive training as generalists in the mental health counseling field, as well as specialists in their chosen area. Each concentration provides course work related to issues and problem areas for that particular population, counseling interventions and strategies, and applied experience. Students' internship experience will be done at settings where they can receive increased exposure to clientele and issues related to their chosen concentration.
| Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counseling Courses | ||
| COUN-722 | Advanced Topic in Compulsive Behavior Disorders | 3 |
| COUN-720 | Psychopharmacology | 2 |
| MFT-666 | Alcoholism and Family Systems Intervention | 2 |
| REHAB-533 | Adolescent Substance Use and Abuse | 2 |
| Electives | 4 | |
| Career Counseling Courses | ||
| CTE-502 | Principles of Career and Technical Education | 2 |
| REHAB-683 | Vocational Counseling Issues | 2 |
| EDUC-726 | Administration | 3 |
| Electives | 6 | |
| Child and Adolescent Counseling Courses | ||
| HDFS-703 | Child and Adolescent Development | 3 |
| COUN-761 | Counseling Children and Adolescents | 3 |
| SCOUN-647 | Emotional and Behavioral Problems of Children and Adolescents | 3 |
| SCOUN-705 COUN-647 REHAB-533 |
Play Therapy or Assessment and Treatment of Eating Disorders or Juvenile Use/Abuse of Alcohol and Other Drugs |
2 |
| Electives | 2 | |
| Eating Disorders Courses | ||
| COUN-647 | Assessment and Treatment of Eating Disorders | 2 |
| COUN-722 | Advanced Topics in Compulsive Behavior Disorders | 3 |
| COUN-745 | Treating Personality Disorders | 1 |
| MFT-745 | Treating Drug Abuse, Intimate Violence and Self-Harm | 3 |
| Electives | 4 | |
| Gerontological Counseling Courses | ||
| HDFS-540 | Human Development: Late Adulthood | 3 |
| COUN-694 | Counseling Older Persons | 3 |
| HDFS-642 | GEriatric Functional Assessment | 4 |
| Electives | 3 | |
| Health Psychology Counseling Courses | ||
| The Health Psychology Counseling Concentration is designed in conjunction with UW-Stout's Applied Psychology Program, which has a Health Psychology Emphasis. | ||
| PSYC-771 | Advanced Health Psychology | 3 |
| PSYC-871 | Applied Health Psychology | 4 |
| PSYC-708 | Psychosocial Interventions | 3 |
| Electives | 3 | |