School Counseling (Post-Master's) Graduate Certificate
Program Overview
This post-graduate certificate in School Counseling is designed for counselors with a Master's degree in another counseling specialty who wish to become professional school counselors. The program provides the academic foundation and pathway for counselors to pursue state school counseling certification. Students complete 15 credit hours of coursework, including core courses in school counseling foundations, classroom counseling, and field experience, as well as electives in specialized areas. Upon completion, students must pass the Missouri Content Assessment (MoCA) in School Counseling and apply to the state department of education for certification.
Program Outline
Degree Overview:
This graduate certificate is designed for students who want to become professional school counselors and have already earned a Master’s degree in another counseling specialty. The goals of the Post-Graduate Certificate in School Counseling are: (a) to provide an academic program to help counselors increase their competency to design, implement, and assess comprehensive school counseling programs in K-12 settings and (b) to provide an academic pathway for counselors to pursue state school counseling certification.
Outline:
Certificate Requirements Certificate students should have completed the following courses or their equivalencies from their previous counseling graduate program:
- Theories of Counseling
- Helping Relationship Skills
- Ethical and Professional Issues in Counseling
- Foundations for Multicultural Counseling
- Group Procedures in Counseling
- Career Information and Development
- Assessment and Testing
- Psychopathology or Diagnosis
- Lifespan Development
- Education Research Methods If any of these courses were not completed, the required course will need to be completed as part of the post-graduate certificate plan of study. The prerequisite courses do not have to be completed at UMSL. Fifteen semester credit hours of graduate course work are required for the graduate certificate. Twelve of these semester credit hours must consist of the core courses. A minimum of three additional hours are to be chosen from the list of electives. All 15 credits must be completed at UMSL. CORE CNS ED 6200 Foundations of School Counseling (3) CNS ED 6680 School Counseling in the Classroom (3) CNS ED 6280 School Counseling Field Experience 1 (3) SPEC ED 6412 Foundations of Inclusive Education (3) or ED PSY 6532 Psychoeducational Differences Electives Choose three hours from the list of courses: (3) CNS ED 6600 Theories and Techniques of Counseling Children and Adolescents CNS ED 6610 Introduction to Play Therapy CNS ED 6630 Career Development in K-12 Schools CNS ED 6730 Counseling for Loss, Crisis, and Trauma
Careers:
Beyond completion of graduate course requirements, students will need to pass the Missouri Content Assessment (MoCA) in School Counseling and apply to the state department of education before they can be recommended by the university for school counseling certification.
