- This concentration meets educational standards for licensure as a professional counselor in Tennessee and most other states. All states also require additional testing and post-graduate supervised experience for licensure.
- This concentration meets requirements for PreK-12 licensure as a School Counselor in Tennessee and most other states. Some states may have additional experience and testing requirements.
Concentrations (Required) and Options Available
- Clinical Mental Health Counseling (Coursework Only with Comprehensive Exams)
- School Counseling (Coursework Only with Comprehensive Exams)
Campus Code
Admissions Standards/Procedures
Admissions are conducted once per year. Prospective students must submit an online application to the Office of Graduate Admissions. In addition to meeting Graduate Admissions requirements, applicants must submit professional references and program-specified materials populated within the application. Following initial review of materials, selected applicants are invited to campus to participate in a required face-to-face interview. Admissions decisions are made on a holistic basis with attention to relevance of career goals, aptitude for graduate-level study, and potential success in forming effective counseling relationships with diverse populations.
Academic Standards
Students are required to demonstrate academic foundations, clinical skills, and professional dispositions necessary for successful practice of professional counseling in their anticipated clinical mental health or school setting. The Program Handbook includes details regarding required knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions and the process for demonstrating attainment of these standards.
Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Coursework Only with Comprehensive Exams
The clinical mental health counseling concentration prepares professionals to use strong professional identity and relationship skills across diverse counseling settings including community agencies, nonprofits, and private practice. Throughout the program, we work to embrace our core values–Commitment, Humility, Openness, Respect, Integrity, and Self-Awareness–and to attend to culturally sensitive, developmentally appropriate, and ethical relationships. Our program is face-to-face and conducted in a cohort-like community. Most students enroll on full-time basis for six consecutive semesters; part-time options are available by advisement.
Program objectives are as follows:
- Graduates will have foundation knowledge necessary for success as professional counselors.
- Graduates will be able to develop therapeutic relationships that are deeply healing, culturally sensitive, developmentally appropriate, and ethical.
- Graduates will demonstrate professional dispositions including Commitment, Humility, Openness, Respect, Integrity, and Self-Awareness.
- Graduates will be culturally sensitive and ethical advocates for self, clients, and profession through counseling interventions, programming, and professional and community engagement.
- Graduates will be well-skilled in the full range of tasks needed for clinical mental health counseling including interventions for prevention and treatment of a broad range of mental health issues; roles of mental health counselors; and settings and service delivery models.
Credit Hours Required
60 graduate credit hours
Required Courses
- Requirements (48 credit hours)
- COUN 580 - Essential Skills for Professional Counseling
- COUN 535 - Orientation to Counseling and Ethics
- COUN 541 - Addictions Counseling
- COUN 551 - Counseling Theories
- COUN 554 - Group Counseling and Group Work
- COUN 555 - Practicum in Counseling
- COUN 525 - Assessment and Testing in Counseling
- COUN 545 - Lifespan Development and Wellness in Counseling
- COUN 552 - Career Development and Counseling
- COUN 559 - Internship in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (6 credit hours across an academic or calendar year)
- COUN 556 - Foundations in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
- COUN 563 - Crisis and Trauma Counseling
- COUN 570 - Social and Cultural Diversity in Counseling
- COUN 534 - Evidence-Based Practice and Accountability in Counseling
- COUN 590 - Diagnosis and Treatment Planning in Counseling
- Four electives (12 credit hours) selected in consultation with major professor.
Non-Course Requirements
- The program of study includes a minimum of 700 hours of supervised practicum and internship counseling experiences in clinical mental health counseling settings.
- A Portfolio-Style Comprehensive Exam is required with a grade of Pass.
School Counseling, Coursework Only With Comprehensive Exams
The school counseling concentration prepares professionals to become professional school counselors within preK-12 schools in Tennessee and most other states. Our students learn about their role as a leader within a data-driven comprehensive, developmental school counseling program as supported by the TN Model for School Counseling and the ASCA National Model®. Throughout the program, we work to embrace our core values–Commitment, Humility, Openness, Respect, Integrity, and Self-Awareness–and to attend to culturally sensitive, developmentally appropriate, and ethical relationships. Our program is face-to-face and conducted in a cohort-like community. Most students enroll on full-time basis for six consecutive semesters; part-time options are available by advisement.
Program objectives are as follows:
- Graduates will have foundation knowledge necessary for success as professional counselors.
- Graduates will be able to develop therapeutic relationships that are deeply healing, culturally sensitive, developmentally appropriate, and ethical.
- Graduates will demonstrate professional dispositions including Commitment, Humility, Openness, Respect, Integrity, and Self-Awareness.
- Graduates will be culturally sensitive and ethical advocates for self, clients, and profession through counseling interventions, programming, and professional and community engagement.
- Graduates will be well-skilled in the full range of tasks needed to deliver a comprehensive, developmental school counseling program that addresses the academic, career, and social-emotional development of preK-12 students.
Credit Hours Required
60 graduate credit hours
Required Courses
- Requirements (51 credit hours)
- COUN 580 - Essential Skills for Professional Counseling
- COUN 525 - Assessment and Testing in Counseling
- COUN 535 - Orientation to Counseling and Ethics
- COUN 541 - Addictions Counseling
- COUN 545 - Lifespan Development and Wellness in Counseling
- COUN 550 - Foundations in School Counseling
- COUN 551 - Counseling Theories
- COUN 552 - Career Development and Counseling
- COUN 554 - Group Counseling and Group Work
- COUN 555 - Practicum in Counseling
- COUN 558 - Internship in School Counseling (maximum of 6 credit hours may be applied towards meeting degree requirements)
- COUN 563 - Crisis and Trauma Counseling
- COUN 565 - Counseling Children and Adolescents
- COUN 570 - Social and Cultural Diversity in Counseling
- COUN 590 - Diagnosis and Treatment Planning in Counseling
- COUN 534 - Evidence-Based Practice and Accountability in Counseling
- Three electives (9 credit hours) selected in consultation with major professor
Non-Course Requirements
- The program of study includes a minimum of 700 hours of supervised practicum and internship counseling experiences in a school setting. Field experiences include one semester in practicum and two semesters in internship. Students choose at least two of the three settings (i.e., elementary school, middle school, high school) for the field experiences to meet state requirements for licensure as a school counselor in Tennessee.
- A Portfolio-Style Comprehensive Exam is required with a grade of Satisfactory/Pass.
