Counselor Education

Chairperson: Addy Wissel, Ph.D

Degrees:

• Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
• Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Counseling
• Master of Arts in School Counseling
• Master of Counselling—Site Based (Canada Only)

Mission Statement for the Department of Counselor Education

Following the Jesuit tradition with ever-increasing awareness of human nature, diversity, social issues and the power relationship, we model and promote theory and reflection informed transformational leaders who are intentional, ethical counselors of growth and learning in families, schools, and communities.

Department Theme Statement

We are kind practitioners who are intentional in the development of relationships that honor personal strengths of all individuals and the promotion of transformational growth.

Admissions

1. Students applying to Gonzaga University must submit Gonzaga’s Graduate Application, which can be accessed online at https://www.gonzaga.edu/gradapply
2. Along with the application for graduate study, each program at Gonzaga has distinct admission requirements. Please refer to the table below to view that detailed information.

Credit Transfer Information

The School of Education may accept up to one-fifth of the total number of credits required for a degree from another accredited college or university, six credits for most master’s programs. Courses must be clearly graduate level as defined by the granting institution. The subject matter of courses transferred must be relevant to the degree in question, which is determined by the academic advisor. The date of each course considered needs to be within five years of the beginning semester at Gonzaga. No course for which a grade less than “B” has been awarded may be accepted. Classes graded on a Pass/Fail scale will not be considered unless Pass is equivalent to “B”. Transfer credits are used in the calculation of the graduate grade point average. The School of Education Dean gives final approval for transfer credits. Forms are available from the academic advisor.

Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Clinical Mental Health Counseling Mission

The mission of the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program at Gonzaga University is to provide a reflective state-of-the-art education and training within a cohort model that builds and supports relationships conducive to intentional transformation. As such, graduates are prepared to live as kind, creative, productive, morally grounded, socially just, service-oriented, reflective, and intentional counselors ready to lead the profession to the next level.

This program offers preparation for professional counselors within community agencies, hospitals, college settings, private practice, and clinics. All counselor candidates attain a core of competencies with individualization taking place through supervised internship settings. Emphasis is placed on translating theory and research from coursework into services for clients. A major focus of the program is the development and operationalization of the student’s personal approach to counseling.

Program Description

The Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling is designed to train professional counselors for a variety of employment settings, including family counseling, social service and mental health agencies, college counseling centers, and private practice. Qualified candidates are screened, using standard graduate school admissions and comprehensive interviews. Candidates are introduced to theoretical and practical academic teachings, which are woven together throughout the program to ensure a rich educational experience. Upon completion of the program,  Students engage their community as qualified counselors who will enhance their community through service and leadership.

A major focus of the program is in developing and operationalizing the student's personal approach to counseling. Emphasis is placed on translating theory and research from course work to services for clients. Counselor training utilizes personal as well as multi-media instruction, carefully balanced to include didactic and experiential teaching. Diverse internships are available in community agency settings with 100 hours of practicum (40 hours of direct service) and 600 hours (240 hours of direct service) of internship required. Approximately 200 hours of supervision are provided by onsite and University supervisors. Core competencies are individualized to each internship setting.

Another major focus of the program is personal growth and development. It is the belief of the faculty that students must possess insight and awareness and must be clear about the boundaries between personal issues and those of the client. To that end, students are presented with a number of opportunities for self-discovery and process and are referred outside the program for counseling when necessary. Solid mental health is the foundation to providing professional counseling services.

A primary goal of Gonzaga’s counseling program is to identify and select students who present the highest potential for success as counselors. Indicators of counselor success are demonstrations of skills, emotional intelligence, conflict resolution, consistent interpersonal behaviors, recognition of strengths and weaknesses, a clear grasp of goals, and increasing knowledge of one’s impact on others.

The following skills are essential for successful counseling:

• Counselor-Client Communication
  Counselors must be able to demonstrate paraphrasing, reflection of feelings, clarification, silence, attending, minimal verbal response, and identification of affect. The counselor must recognize the congruence of the client’s communication as demonstrated by verbal, non-verbal, and extra-verbal cues.
• Recognition of Impact
  Counselors must be aware of how their actions may affect the client. This not only includes communication, but also confidentiality and professional standards. The counselor must take professional responsibility for providing the best possible counseling environment to assist a client’s progress.
• Personal Growth
  Counselors should take responsibility for their own personal growth and must be able to deal with personal issues in healthy ways.
• Conflict Resolution
  Counselors should be able to use productive methods for resolving conflicts with and between others.
• Approach
  Client issues may be accessed cognitively, affectively, spiritually, and/or behaviorally. Counselors should be aware of traditional and innovative counseling methods.
• Cultural Differences
  Counselors should be sensitive to the needs of multicultural populations in providing counseling intervention.
• Consultation and Referral
  Counselors must be able to identify their areas of expertise and know when and how to consult and refer clients to specialized resources.

Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Counseling

Marriage and Family Mission

The Marriage and Family Counseling Program models ethical, moral, and professional leadership as counselor educators to promote development of a solid knowledge base, a sound skill set, and an experienced understanding of the process of personal transformation. Marriage and Family Counseling students are prepared to live as creative, productive, morally grounded, socially just, service-oriented leaders in the profession.

This program offers preparation for professional counselors within community agencies, hospitals, college settings, private practice, and clinics. All counselor candidates attain a core of competencies with individualization taking place through supervised internship settings. Emphasis is placed on translating theory and research from coursework into services for clients. A major focus of the program is the development and operationalization of the student's personal approach of counseling.

Program Description

The Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Counseling is designed to train professional counselors to specialize in providing marital, couple, and family counseling for a variety of settings, including family counseling, social service and mental health agencies, college counseling centers, and private practice. Qualified candidates are screened, using standard graduate school admissions and comprehensive interviews. Candidates are introduced to theoretical and practical academic teachings, which are woven together throughout the program to ensure a rich educational experience. Upon completion of the program, students engage their community as qualified counselors who will enhance their community through service and leadership.

A major focus of the program is developing and operationalizing the student's personal approach to counseling. Emphasis is placed on translating theory and research from course work to services for clients. Counselor training utilizes personal as well as multi-media instruction, carefully balanced to include didactic and experiential teaching. Diverse internships are available in community agency settings with 100 hours of practicum (40 hours of direct service) and 600 hours (240 hours of direct service) of internship are required. Approximately 200 hours of supervision are provided by onsite and University supervisors. Core competencies are individualized to each internship setting.

Another major focus of the program is personal growth and development. It is the belief of the faculty that students must possess insight and awareness and must be clear about the boundaries between personal issues and those of the client. To that end, students are presented with a number of opportunities for self-discovery and process and are referred outside the program for counseling when necessary. Solid mental health is the foundation to providing professional counseling services.

A primary goal of Gonzaga's counseling program is to identify and select students who present the highest potential for success as counselors. Indicators of counselor success are demonstrations of skills, emotional intelligence, conflict resolution, consistent interpersonal behaviors, recognition of strengths and weaknesses, a clear grasp of goals, and increasing knowledge of one's impact on others.

The following skills are essential for successful counseling:

• Counselor-Client Communication
  Counselors must be able to demonstrate paraphrasing, reflection of feelings, clarification, silence, attending, minimal verbal response, and identification of affect. The counselor must recognize the congruence of the client's communication as demonstrated by verbal, nonverbal, and extra-verbal cues.
• Recognition of Impact
  Counselors must be aware of how their actions may affect the client. This not only includes communication, but also confidentiality and professional standards. The counselor must take professional responsibility for providing the best possible counseling environment to assist a client's progress.
• Personal Growth
  Counselors should take responsibility for their own personal growth and must be able to deal with personal issues in healthy ways.
• Conflict Resolution
  Counselors should be able to use productive methods for resolving conflicts with and between others.
• Approach
  Client issues may be accessed cognitively, affectively, spiritually, and/or behaviorally. Counselors should be aware of traditional and innovative counseling methods.
• Cultural Differences
  Counselors should be sensitive to the needs of multicultural populations in providing counseling intervention.
• Consultation and Referral
  Counselors must be able to identify their areas of expertise and know when and how to consult and refer clients to specialized resources.

Master of Arts in School Counseling

School Counseling Mission

The mission of the School Counseling Program is to facilitate the development of counselor excellence in professional competence and personal growth. School counseling graduates actively support the unique and complex needs of students and families with compassion, competence, and care. Graduates are intentionally prepared for distinguished service in the areas of leadership, advocacy, social justice, and diversity as they develop academic, college/career readiness, and personal/social skills of all students.

This program offers preparation for professional counselors who will serve in the K-12 school setting. School counselor candidates are competent in core knowledge, skills, and practice based on Washington State and the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) standards. They participate in a supervised practicum (100 hours) and internship (600 hours) in the schools. The uniqueness of the program is embodied in its cohort model, the development and application of the student’s personal approach of counseling, a transformational personal and professional growth process, and the teaching of comprehensive, state of the art school counseling best practices.

Program Description

The Master of Arts in School Counseling is designed to train professional counselors to work with students, staff, parents, and the community to support student achievement in the areas of personal, social, academic, and career development in K-12 schools. The successful school counseling graduate receives Washington State Residency Certification as an Educational Staff Associate (ESA).

Qualified candidates are screened using standard graduate school admissions and comprehensive interviews. Candidates are introduced to theoretical and practical academic teachings which are woven together throughout the program to ensure a rich educational experience. Upon completion of the program,  students engage their community as qualified counselors who will enhance the educational community through service and leadership.

A major focus of the program is developing and operationalizing the student’s personal approach to counseling. Emphasis is placed on translating theory and research from course work to services for school students. Counselor training utilizes personal as well as multi-media instruction, carefully balanced to include didactic and experiential teaching. Internships are available in school settings with 100 hours of practicum (40 hours of direct service) and 600 hours (240 hours of direct service) of internship are required. Approximately 200 hours of supervision are provided by onsite and University supervisors. Core competencies are individualized to each internship setting.

Another major focus of the program is personal growth and development. It is the belief of the faculty that graduate students must possess insight and awareness and must be clear about the boundaries between personal issues and those of the school student. To that end, students are presented with a number of opportunities for self-discovery and process. Solid mental health is the foundation to providing professional counseling services in schools.

A primary goal of Gonzaga’s counseling program is to identify and select graduate students who present the highest potential for success as counselors. Indicators of counselor success are demonstration of skills in emotional intelligence, conflict resolution, leadership, consistent interpersonal behaviors, recognition of strengths and weaknesses, a clear grasp of goals, and increasing knowledge of one’s impact on others.

The following skills are essential for successful counseling:

• Counselor-Student Communication
  Counselors must be able to demonstrate paraphrasing, reflection of feelings, clarification, silence, attending, minimal verbal response, and identification of affect. The counselor must recognize the congruence of the student’s communication as demonstrated by verbal, nonverbal, and extra-verbal cues.
• Recognition of Impact
  Counselors must be aware of how their actions may affect the student. This not only includes communication, but also confidentiality and professional standards. The counselor must take professional responsibility for providing the best possible counseling environment to assist a student’s progress and support academic achievement.
• Personal Growth
  Counselors should take responsibility for their own personal growth and must be able to deal with personal issues in healthy ways.
• Conflict Resolution
  Counselors should be able to use productive methods for resolving conflicts with and between others.
• Approach
  School student issues may be accessed cognitively, affectively, and/or behaviorally. Counselors should be aware of traditional and innovative counseling methods.
• Cultural Differences
  Counselors should be sensitive to the needs of multicultural populations in providing counseling intervention.
• Consultation and Referral
  Counselors must be able to identify their areas of expertise and know when and how to consult and refer students for specialized resources.

 

Master of Counselling (Site Based)

Master of Counselling, Site-Based Program Mission Statement

The Master of Counselling program provides counsellor education for students, reflecting ethical and cultural aspects of Canadian life with focus on province-related needs and trends. The program promotes the development of a solid knowledge base and strong clinical skills, while fostering personal growth and transformation. Students are prepared to be ethical, competent, service-oriented counsellor practitioners.

This program offers preparation for professional counsellors within community agencies, schools, and clinics in Canada. Candidates attain a core of competencies, with individualization taking place through supervised internship settings. Emphasis is placed on translating theory and research from course work to services for clients. A major focus of the program is the development and operationalization of the student's personal approach to counselling. This degree is a two-year program for students and is provided in a cohort model.

Notice for Students and Public (site-based Alberta):

This program is offered pursuant to the written approval of the Minister of Advanced Education effective September 1, 2009, having undergone a quality assessment process and been found to meet the criteria established by the Minister. Nevertheless, prospective students are responsible for satisfying themselves that the program and the degree will be appropriate to their needs (for example, acceptable to potential employers, professional licensing bodies, or other educational institutions).

Notice for Students and Public (site-based British Columbia):

This program is offered under the written consent of the Minister of Advanced Education, Skills & Training effective July 28, 2017, having undergone a quality assessment process and been found to meet the criteria established by the minister. Nevertheless, prospective students are responsible for satisfying themselves that the program and the degree will be appropriate to their needs (for example, acceptable to potential employers, professional licensing bodies, or other educational institutions).