Prospective Students
Master of Arts in
Mental Health Counseling

Voice: (407) 646-1568
Fax: (407) 975-6430
Rebecca Cordray

Programs

MA in Mental Health Counseling
The Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling is a 60-semester-hour program designed to prepare individuals to enter the field of mental health counseling in the twenty-first century. The program includes all courses, practica, and internships required by the State of Florida for licensure as a Mental Health Counselor. The curricula include didactic courses, seminars, laboratory courses, and practical experiences necessary to pursue a counseling career in a wide array of community-based settings.

The Graduate Studies in Counseling program welcomes and values students from a wide range of cultural backgrounds, identities, and social locations. We believe that a program comprised of students, staff, and faculty bringing diverse identities, experiences, and perspectives enriches the quality, breadth, and depth of the counselor education process.

Participation in this program provides an opportunity to experience a well-rounded approach to graduate instruction. Mental health counseling students receive a thorough education in a variety of treatment modalities; legal, professional and ethical issues; family and relationship therapy; and other fields.

The optional Certificate Program in Family and Relationship Therapy is offered as a supplement to the counseling degree for students interested in gaining experience in relationship counseling. The Certificate Program also meets the curricular requirements for licensure as a Marriage and Family Therapist in Florida.

Accreditation
The Rollins graduate program in counseling is accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), which represents the highest standards of program objectives, curriculum, clinical instruction, faculty and staff, organization, and administration.

A recipient of the 1997 Outstanding Graduate Program Award, conferred by the national Association for Counselor Education and Supervision, a division of the American Counseling Association, the Department of Graduate Studies in Counseling continues to strive for excellence in the classroom.

Mission

The Graduate Studies in Counseling Program educates and trains students for socially responsible careers as professional counselors in the field of mental health counseling. As a professional degree-granting program, we provide a strong and distinctive graduate education. Our core guiding principles are academic excellence, transformative education, multicultural and diversity awareness, and ethical practice and leadership. We strive to build an inclusive community of learners who value personal and intellectual growth through collaborative relationships among students, faculty, and staff.

Personal Development of the Counselor

The Department of Graduate Studies in Counseling is committed to providing a program that includes a personal growth component with experiences that will extend students' competencies as persons and as professionals engaged in helping relationships. The program operates with the philosophy that effectiveness as a professional counselor depends on personal development and the ability to communicate effectively as well as commitment and academic preparation. The faculty believe that it is essential for students to examine their own values, motivations, personal characteristics, and relationships with others. Thus, students are required to participate actively in growth experiences within the program. Prominent examples include participation in a small group exprience in CPY 520; development of a family genogram in CPY 550; and various course requirements involving journal keeping, self-reflection papers, in-class role-play, practice demonstrations, and other activities that call for interpersonal exploration. Ultimately, students are required to develop an individually relevant philosophy and approach to the helping process based on an expanded awareness of their beliefs, values, and understanding of contemporary theory and methods.

Respect for Diversity

Students are expected to interact with others with sensitivity and understanding, to listen effectively to the words and ideas of others, to communicate orally with precision and appropriateness, to be able to examine personal issues that impact their counseling relationships, and to conduct themselves professionally in compliance with the ethical standards of the American Counseling Association. The department strives to provide a learning environment that cultivates an understanding and appreciation of the multicultural world in which we live and an understanding of the effects of oppression. We do not expect all graduates of our program to think the same way, but we do expect that they will be accepting of differences and strive to understand how other people's perspectives, behaviors, and world views are different from their own. Both faculty and students work to increase personal awareness regarding the full range of human experience and to eliminate oppressive practices and abuses of power within all areas of the program, within the counseling profession, and in the world at large.

- - - Information posted on the Rollins College Hamilton Holt School Web site is intended as general information only. It is subject to change and does not reflect a contract between students and the College. Contact the Hamilton Holt School office to confirm any information.