COE Divisions
Counseling and Family Therapy

Welcome

The Division of Counseling & Family Therapy offers coursework leading to the Master of Education (M.Ed.), Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees, to state certification in elementary and secondary guidance and counseling, to eligibility for licensing as a professional counselor (state), and to eligibility for board certification in counseling (national).

Areas of emphasis in the counseling degree program are Elementary School Counseling, Secondary School Counseling, and Community Counseling.

The Master of Education (M.Ed.) programs in Community Counseling, School Counseling, and Community Counseling with an emphasis in Career Counseling along with the Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Counselor Education and Supervision/Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Counseling are all fully accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).  We are one of only two programs in the State of Missouri and the only doctoral program in the entire state that is CACREP accredited, the only masters program in the Saint Louis metropolitan region and the University of Missouri system that is CACREP accredited, only one of nine programs in the entire United States that has been awarded CACREP accreditation in Career Counseling, and only one of 15 programs in the entire Midwest with a CACREP accredited doctoral program in counselor education and supervision.

The Counseling & Family Therapy faculty are nationally and internationally renown for their work.  They are committed to the full integration of practice, research, and advocacy including being certified and licensed in the education and mental health professions, making important research contributions to the field, and providing significant professional leadership in national and international organizations including the American Counseling Association (ACA), American School Counselor Association (ASCA), National Career Development Association (NCDA), and American Psychological Association (APA).

Faculty have recently received such prestigious awards as the NCDA Eminent Career Award (the highest and most prestigious award in career counseling), ACA Kitty Cole Human Rights Award, The Robert Swan Award for Lifetime Achievement in Career Development, University of Missouri - Saint Louis Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Service, University of Missouri - Saint Louis Gerald and Deanne Gitner Excellence in Teaching Award, and election as Fellows in the American Counseling Association, American Psychological Association, National Career Development Association, Society of Counseling Psychology (APA Division 17), Society for the Psychological Study of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Issues (APA Division 44), Society for the Psychological Study of Ethnic Minority Issues (APA Divison 45), and Clinical Members in the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.  Faculty have also been licensed and certified in a variety of mental health specializations including Certified School Counselors, Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Psychologists, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists, National Certified Counselors, Master Addiction Counselors, Master Career Counselors, National Certified Career Counselors, Approved Clinical Supervisors, and others.

A major emphasis in all aspects of graduate training offered in the Division of Counseling & Family Therapy is our commitment to multicultural training and issues of diversity.  The Counseling & Family Therapy faculty has unanimously endorsed the Multicultural Counseling Competencies and each faculty individually has also endorsed these competencies as the foundation for counselor preparation in the 21st century.

Vision:

The Division of Counseling and Family Therapy, as one of the preeminent counselor preparation programs in the United States, strives to develop the highest quality, culturally competent human service providers through superior teaching, scholarly activity, and service.

Division Mission Statement:

The Division of Counseling and Family Therapy prepares both master’s and doctoral level professional counselors and counselor educators, marriage and family therapists, and counseling psychologists to serve the mental health needs of culturally diverse individuals, groups, couples, and families in need.  The Division’s outreach extends to schools, colleges and universities, community based organizations, business and industry, as well as independent practice. The Division strives to develop a culturally diverse student population and to draw students from local, regional, national, and international locations.
 
 
School Counseling Program Mission Statement:
 
The School Counseling Program of the Division of Counseling and Family Therapy prepares professional school counselors to serve the academic, career, and personal/social needs of culturally diverse students in the elementary, middle, and secondary schools. The Division strives to develop a culturally diverse student population and to draw students from local, regional, national, and international locations.

Community Counseling Program Mission Statement:
 
The Community Counseling Program of the Division of Counseling and Family Therapy prepares professional counselors, including community, career, addictions, couples/family, and child and adolescent counselors, to serve the mental health needs of culturally diverse individuals, groups, couples, and families in need.  The Division’s outreach extends to schools, colleges and universities, community based organizations, business and industry, as well as independent practice. The Division strives to develop a culturally diverse student population and to draw students from local, regional, national, and international locations.
 
Doctoral Counselor Education and Supervision Program Mission Statement:
 
The Doctoral Program in Counselor Education and Supervision of the Division of Counseling and Family Therapy prepares doctoral level counselor educators and supervisors to train professional counselors who will provide services to meet the mental health needs of culturally diverse individuals, groups, couples, and families in need.  The Division’s goal is to train practitioner-scholar-advocates who can contribute to the professional counseling field in academic, research, and practice contexts. The Division’s outreach extends to individuals who practice counseling in schools, colleges and universities, community based organizations, business and industry, as well as independent practice. The Division strives to develop a culturally diverse student population and to draw students from local, regional, national, and international locations.

Values:

The Division of Counseling and Family Therapy is committed to the full integration of practice, research, and advocacy in the training of counselors for our society. Major emphases in all aspects of such training offered in the Division is the faculty’s commitment to social justice, multicultural training, issues of diversity, and the value of work in people’s lives. Counselors play a direct role in facilitating the development of active, productive, and healthy members of society, and counselors must be trained to be fair and non-discriminatory, while building on strengths and acknowledging areas for improvement in their clients. Training must be based on empirically and theoretically sound practice, not unfounded or prejudicial opinion. Counseling professionals are guided by the well-established ethical principles in the mental health professions: beneficence, non-maleficence, justice, autonomy, and fidelity. Beneficence, as a guiding principle, means that counselors act in the best interests of their clients. Non-maleficence means counselors avoid doing harm to clients. Justice means that counselors are fair and non-discriminatory. Autonomy means that counselors view clients as self-directing, as much as possible, and free to make decisions without undo influence. And finally, counselors are guided by the principle of fidelity, meaning they are loyal to their clients and maintain the confidentiality and privacy of the counseling relationship. These general principles guide counseling practice, and they are at the foundation of how the Division of Counseling and Family Therapy trains future counselors for work in our society.

Employment Outlook :

The US Department of Labor is predicting that the job outlook for professional counselors will increase from 600,700 jobs to 728,700 jobs in the next 10 years, a 21% increase. This is considered "faster than average growth. Increasing demand for vocational (career), rehabilitation, mental health, and substance abuse counseling services is expected to create jobs in these fields. Opportunities should be excellent for candidates who have master's degrees, as fast job growth and increased retirements should create numerous openings" (Occupational Outlook Quarterly, Spring 2006, p. 16).

In January 2009 in an article on Yahoo! Jobs, both "counselor" and "career counselor" were listed in the Top 10 Hot Jobs - http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/career-articles-10_hot_professions_for_2009-633