DIRECTOR, CLINICAL MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELING PROGRAM
Yumiko Ogawa, Ph.D.
(845) 575-3000, ext. 2048
yumiko.ogawa@marist.edu

Mission and Objectives

The mission of the Clinical Mental Health Counseling (CMHC) Program is to help students develop the practitioner-scholar expertise, professional identity and dispositions, clinical knowledge and skills, and the leadership skills required to become multiculturally-competent counselors who will provide a wide range of evidence-based counseling services and interventions to clients in the global communities of the 21st century.

The program’s mission is immeasurably enriched by students with diverse experiences. For faculty and students to be leaders within and beyond our counseling program, we must ensure that we consider the diversity and intersectionality of all who comprise our communities and foster a climate in which those diverse influences are respected and valued. Aspects of diversity include, but are not limited to, race, ethnicity, color, nationality, gender identity, gender expression, affectional orientation, social class, religion, age, dis/Ability, and veteran status. The faculty is dedicated to the recruitment, retention, and training of diverse professionals.

The faculty seeks to fulfill this mission by creating a student-centered educational experience guided by five values that are integrated into each student’s development:

• Clinical Excellence
• Multicultural Counseling Competence, Social Justice Advocacy, and Creation of a Diverse Community
• Wellness and Resiliency Orientation
• Active Engagement in Professional Organizations
• Practitioner-Scholar Approach: Opportunities for Impactful Research

At the successful completion of the program, students will demonstrate competency with the following broad objectives:

1. Knowledge and skills of professional counseling orientation and ethical practice; human growth and development; career development; counseling and helping relationships; group counseling; assessment and testing; mental health diagnosis and treatment planning; psychopharmacology; addictions; family and couples counseling; crisis intervention; and clinical supervision;
2. Knowledge and skills of multicultural counseling and social justice advocacy; to actively recruit and retain diverse applicants, students, faculty;
3. A wellness and resiliency orientation as demonstrated by personal and professional growth in sound interpersonal and self-awareness (intrapersonal) skills within their interactions with clients, colleagues, trainees, and supervisors;
4. Engagement in professional identity and dispositions development and career advancement through activities such as membership and participation in professional counseling organizations;
5. Knowledge and skills with research methods in counseling that emphasize a practitioner-scientist approach and engagement in opportunities for impactful research.

The Director and Core Counseling Faculty have primary responsibility for the CMHC program, counseling curriculum, and preparation of students in the program. The CMHC Program is housed within the psychology department in the School of Social & Behavioral Sciences.

Accreditations

Marist College is regionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, which is recognized by the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). With regards to state recognition of the program, the Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program was one of the first programs approved by the NY State Education Department (NYSED) as meeting the education requirements for its graduates to become New York Licensed Mental Health Counselors (LMHCs). These education requirements are rigorous given that New York was one of the last of the 50 states to pass a law creating the LMHC credential, and the education may qualify individuals for licensure in other states. Further, the CMHC Program aspires to high standards of preparation in the training of behavioral health care professionals and is planning to apply for accreditation from the premier accreditor of counseling programs, the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).

NOTE: Marist’s MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling program is designed to prepare candidates for licensure in NY State. Students interested in licensure of other states are responsible for being aware of those requirements and the degree to which the M.A. Clinical Mental Health Counseling program meets those requirements.

Coursework Requirements

The 60-credit Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program is classroom-based and emphasizes courses that align with the standards of both the NYSED-required, eleven core curriculum content areas and the CACREP-required, eight common core curriculum areas.

NYSED CORE CONTENT AREAS	CACREP COMMON CORE AREAS	MARIST CMHC CORE COURSES
Professional Orientation & Ethics	Professional Counseling Orientation & Ethical Practice	Foundations & Ethics of Professional Counseling
Foundations of Mental Health Counseling
Social & Cultural Foundations of Counseling	Social and Cultural Diversity	Multicultural Foundations of Counseling
Human Growth and Development	Human Growth and Development	Lifespan Development
Lifestyle and Career Development	Career Development	Career Development Counseling
Counseling Theory and Practice	Counseling and Helping Relationships	Counseling Theory & Practice
		Counseling Techniques
Group Dynamics	Group Counseling and Group Work	Group Counseling
Assessment and Appraisal	Assessment and Testing	Assessment in Counseling
Research and Program Evaluation	Research and Program Evaluation	Research in Counseling
Psychopathology		Diagnosis and Treatment Planning in CMHC
Clinical Instruction		Counseling Theory & Practice Counseling Techniques Group Counseling Assessment Counseling Diagnosis and Treatment Planning in CMHC Crisis & Trauma Intervention Family & Couples Counseling Substance Abuse Counseling

 

Further, the Marist Program exceeds the NY State field experience requirements by requiring a minimum of 700 supervised clinical training hours rather than the State’s required minimum of 600 hours. In short, counselors-in-training gain the knowledge and skills necessary to provide quality behavioral health care to help their clients function effectively in all aspects of their lives.

Counseling Clinical Experience Requirements

The Program’s required professional practice clinical experiences, called practicum and internship, are designed to meet NYSED and CACREP requirements. These experiences challenge students to integrate the theory, knowledge, and skills from the classroom with the experiential learning taking place through supervised counseling practice at mental health settings. The Counseling Practicum course is taken in a summer 12-week semester. Students engage in supervised professional counseling work about 10 hours per week and must complete a minimum total of 100 practicum experience hours, of which at least 40 hours must be direct client service hours. The Counseling Internship courses immediately follow during the fall and spring 15-week semesters. Students engage in supervised professional counseling work approximately 20 hours per week and must complete a minimum total of 600 internship experience hours, of which at least 240 hours must be direct client service hours.

To prepare for practicum and internship, the CMHC Program’s Clinical Experience Coordinator provides an orientation meeting for students and reviews the requirements and expectations that are contained in the Clinical Experience Handbook that is distributed to all students and site supervisors. The Clinical Experience Coordinator also maintains a list of placements providing professional mental health counseling services to a variety of client populations and providing supervision by licensed mental health professionals. This site list is also distributed to students. A training agreement between the student, the field placement’s supervisor, and the Clinical Experience Coordinator is signed, thus ensuring collaboration towards a solid educational and training experience. A Marist faculty member is assigned to monitor each student’s field experience and provide group supervision during the practicum and internship courses. Students are required to obtain student liability insurance prior to engaging in clinical experiences. Students may also be required to undergo health and criminal background checks and/or drug screenings to be eligible to engage in clinical training.

Degree Requirements

To qualify for the MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling a student must:

• complete all requirements not later than five years after matriculation;
• complete a total of 60 credit hours in courses and field experiences;
• maintain a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA in graduate courses;
• achieve a grade of “P” (Pass) for all internship experiences.
• achieve a passing grade on the Counselor Preparation Comprehensive Exam (CPCE).

Application and Prerequisite Requirements

Applications for the fall semester start in the MA Clinical Mental Health Counseling program are available through the Office of Graduate Admission or online, see https://www.marist.edu/social-behavioral-sciences/graduate/mental-health/admission. All application materials must be received by the deadline of May 1st. Applicants to the MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program must submit:

• The Graduate Admissions Application.
• A $50 application fee (non-refundable).
• Official undergraduate (and graduate) transcripts.
  • The undergraduate transcript should document an earned bachelor’s degree from an accredited college/university with a major in psychology or a closely related field. A minimum overall GPA of 3.0 (based on a system where a 4.0 equals an A grade) is preferred.
  • Non-psychology major applicants must demonstrate that they have taken undergraduate coursework in general psychology, statistics, and research methods in psychology. Coursework in undergraduate abnormal psychology is also preferred. A minimum grade of 3.0 is preferred in each of these courses.
• A current résumé.
• Three letters of reference from former faculty members or employment supervisors that attest to the applicant’s ability to be successful in graduate school and the field of clinical mental health counseling.
• A personal statement of a least 500 words, describing the applicant’s background, experiences, personal qualities, and academic and career goals related to clinical mental health counseling.
• To an interview.

Notes:

• Submission of Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores for verbal, quantitative, and writing areas is optional.
• All applicants admitted to the program are expected to utilize the American Psychological Association (APA) writing style in their written assignments. Applicants are strongly advised to acquire a copy of the latest edition of the Publication Manual of the APA.
• Also, students may be required to undergo health and criminal background checks and/or drug screenings to be eligible to engage in clinical training.

Matriculated Status

A matriculated student has officially met all admissions requirements and has been accepted and enrolled in a specific program of study. The catalog in effect at the time of enrollment governs the degree requirements for matriculated students. Only matriculated students are eligible for financial aid.

Transfer Credit

Applicants may request the transfer of up to six transfer credits (two graduate courses). Credits/courses must be from a CACREP accredited graduate program. A minimum grade of 3.0 is required in transferred courses which must also be sufficiently comparable to Marist courses. Requests for transfer of credits and copies of the original college/university catalog description for each course should accompany the application. Approval of transfer credits will be determined by the program director.

Review of Student Performance: Retention, Remediation, Dismissal

Students must maintain “Good Standing” in the Program with regard to both academic performance and professional behavior/dispositions. Thus, the progress of all students is consistently reviewed each semester. An understanding of professional behavior may be derived from the counseling literature in such articles as:

• Crawford, M. & Gilroy, P. (2013). Professional impairment and gatekeeping: A survey of master’s level training programs. Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision, 4, 28-37. http://dx.doi.org/10.7729/51.0030
• Duba, J.D., Paez, S.B., & Kindsvatter, A. (2010). Criteria of nonacademic characteristics used to evaluate and retain community counseling students. Journal of Counseling & Development, 88, 154-162.https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6678.2010.tb00004.x
• Dugger, S.M. & Francis, P.C. (2014). Surviving a lawsuit against a counseling program: Lessons learned from Ward v. Wilbanks. Journal of Counseling and Development, 92, 135-141. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6676.2014.00139.x
• Homrich, A. (2009). Gatekeeping for personal and professional competence in graduate counseling programs. Counseling and Human Development, 41, 1-24.
• Homrich, A. & Henderson, K.L, (Eds.). (2018). Gatekeeping in the mental health professions. Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.
• McAdams III, C.R., Foster, V.A., & Ward, T.J. (2007). Remediation and dismissal policies in counselor education: Lessons learned from a challenge in federal court. Counselor Education and Supervision, 46, 212-229. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6978.2007.tb00026.x
• Salpietro, L., Clark, M., Kress, V., Laux, J., & Walker, T. (2021). Remedial interventions to address receptivity to feedback in master’s‐level counseling students. Counselor Education and Supervision, 60(4), 274-290. https://doi.org/10.1002/ceas.12216

With regard to academic performance, a minimum GPA of 3.0 in graduate courses is a requirement for graduation from all graduate programs. If at the end of any semester, a student’s GPA falls below 3.0, the student will be sent a letter notifying them of academic review. Academic review will result in assignment of probationary status or dismissal. After being placed on probation, a student is allowed a remediation period of the subsequent 9 credit-hours of graduate work to raise their GPA to, or above 3.0. If the student takes more than 9 credits in the subsequent remediation semester(s), the 9 credits that have the lowest grades will be used to calculate the GPA. If, while in the process of completing a portion of the subsequent 9 remediation credit hours, grade calculations indicate that it is not possible to attain a GPA of 3.0 or higher, even if all 9 credit hours were to be completed, the student will be dismissed at that point in time. If, after attempting 9 credit hours, the GPA has not been raised to 3.0, the student will be dismissed from the program.

Probation/dismissal can also occur for non-academic reasons. The MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling program educates and trains behavioral health care practitioners for state licensure, and in this regard, has a responsibility to safeguard the welfare of the public and the profession. Many graduates of this program will take positions as professional counselors in the community, necessitating the highest level of ethical functioning, professional behavior, dispositions, and personal adjustment. Regarding personal adjustment, wellness, and resiliency, the counseling faculty encourages students to engage in personal counseling for their personal and professional growth and well-being. The faculty, as well as the Marist Office of Counseling Service, may provide information to students in the program about personal counseling services provided by professionals other than counselor education program faculty and students. In order to help ensure the well-being of the community, the faculty and supervisors will regularly review students’ performance related to professional ethics, behavior, and personal stability. Faculty are responsible for alerting students about potentially problematic behavior as soon as it is observed. The Program Director and counseling faculty have the responsibility of: placing on probation those students who have demonstrated problematic behavior, dispositions, and/or personal adjustment; remediation planning; reviewing of the remediation outcome; and deciding the outcome which may include dismissal from the program.

The decision to dismiss a student for academic or non-academic (i.e., professional dispositions) reasons cannot be appealed, except in cases where the student feels that appropriate procedures have not been followed. Further details and procedures concerning probation and dismissal can be found in the latest version of the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program Handbook.

Schedule

The MA Clinical Mental Health Counseling program is offered in two schedule tracks. Courses are provided through a classroom-based format. These program schedules are not designed for individuals who wish to maintain full-time employment.

• The Two-Year Accelerated, Full-time Program. The accelerated two-year, fulltime program schedules students to take four courses (12 credits total) during each of the fall and spring semesters, and two courses (6 credits total) during each of the two summer semesters.
• The Three-Year Program. Students desiring the flexibility of a less-intense schedule may choose the three-year program which includes two summer

semesters. Students take a full-time courseload of three courses (9 credits total) during each of the fall and spring semesters of the first two years, and a part-time courseload of two courses (6 credits total) during each of the two summer semesters and during the fall and spring semesters of the third and final year.

NOTE: The practicum and internship courses are very time-intensive: practicum requires students to train in the practice of professional counseling under the supervision of a licensed professional for 10 hours per week, and internship requires students to train for 20 hours per week.