Kutztown University, Counseling & Human Services Department of Counseling & Human Services College of Graduate Studies KU Home

The Master of Education Degree in Student Affairs in Higher Education - College Counseling Licensure

Hours: 60
Thesis: None

The Master of Education degree program in Student Affairs (College Counseling) is designed to prepare students to deliver professional counseling services in student affairs in higher education. The program is structured to develop personal awareness of self as a counselor, knowledge of counseling and psychological concepts, and skills in counseling and mental health service delivery on college campuses. Emphasis is placed upon issues related to the student affairs profession and on issues of college student development. Students are given opportunities for experiences that are practical, specialized, and theoretically oriented. Students also develop the knowledge and skills necessary for understanding and conducting assessment and research related to the delivery of counseling services on college campuses.

This is a sixty (60) semester hour program, which requires a comprehensive examination for degree completion. Admission requires the Graduate Record Examination, an interview, and an autobiography. Applicants are notified of the date of the interview after other general admission requirements have been completed. All courses are three semester hours unless otherwise stated. All students accepted into this program must complete all requirements within seven (7) calendar years. Upon completion of the program, students will have met the academic eligibility requirements to sit for the Pennsylvania Licensed Professional Counselor Examination.

The following is the course of study for this program.

Area I (18 hours) Required Foundation Courses
COU 516 Introduction to Student Affairs
COU 517 Professional Orientation and Ethics in Student Affairs
COU 530 Fundamentals of Counseling
COU 548 Counseling Theories Seminar (PREREQUISITE: COU 530)
CPY 540 Group Counseling and Psychotherapy OR
        COU 546 Group Processes Seminar (PREREQUISITE: COU 530)
PSY 546 Psychopathology

Area II (21 hours) Required Core Courses
COU 570 The American College Student
COU 535 Career Counseling Issues Across the Life Span
COU 571 Theory and Application of Student Development Principles
COU 572 Seminar in Leadership in Student Affairs
COU 519 Intercultural Issues in Counseling OR
        EDU 528 Education and the Culturally Different Student OR
        SOC 545 Ethnic Minorities and Group Conflict
PSY 530 Life Span Development
One of the following:
COU 518 Professional Orientation & Ethics in the Agency Setting
COU 538 The Addicted Family
CPY 544 Professional Orientation & Ethics in Family Therapy
CPY 554 Psychology of Family Systems

Area III (6 hours) Research and Evaluation
COU 507 Tests and Assessment in Counseling AND
COU 508 Research Methods in Counseling (PREREQUISITE: COU 507)
        OR
CPY 511 Inferential Statistics and Research Design AND
PSY 512 Psychological Testing (PREREQUISITE: CPY511.)


Area IV (6 hours) Electives
COU 528 Seminar in Marital Therapy
COU 558 Structural and Strategic Family Therapy
CPY 560 Topics and Issues in Community Counseling
PSY 520 Advanced Social Psychology
PSY 529 Growth and Development through Adulthood and Aging
PSY 545 Theories of Personality
PSY 557 Organizational Behavior
PSY 565 Theories of Learning
POL 516 Administrative and Organizational Theory
POL 517 Public Personnel & Strategic Human Resource Management
POL 518 Budgeting and Decision Making
SOC 510 Deviant Behavior

Area V (9 hours) Practicum and Internship (9 hours scheduled during FINAL semesters)
CPY 580 Seminar in Advanced Counseling (PREREQUISITES: COU530,
        COU548, and COU546 or CPY540)
COU 594 Field Experience (PREREQUISITE: CPY580)

Description of Field Experience

COU 594 Field Experience - This field experience must take place in a college counseling environment (counseling center or other appropriate campus setting where counseling services are provided). The Field Experience is 6 semester hours: No more than 3 semester hours may be completed per semester; therefore, two consecutive semesters (Fall/Spring) of Field Experience must be taken. The internships should be scheduled during the final semesters. Students are expected to have completed ALL course work prior to taking COU594, Field Experience. (Exceptions to the MUST be cleared by the student's faculty advisor.) Internship requires a pre-registration and malpractice insurance. Please contact your advisor regarding the approval of the site. PREREQUISITE: CPY 580.

The faculty members of the Department of Counseling and Human Services reserves the right to terminate the training or supervision of any candidate who shows himself/herself incapable of achieving an acceptable standard of personal and/or professional behavior. This standard also applies to candidates for admission.

NOTE: Upon admission, all students are given a copy of the Department Student Evaluation Policy. A copy of this policy is also on file in the Department Office.