Counseling
CHAIR: Kevin Fall, Ph.D. OFFICE: 210 Mercy Hall
PROFESSOR: Justin E. Levitov
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR: Kevin Fall
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR: LeAnne Steen
WEB PAGE: cas.loyno.edu/education/graduate/
cas.loyno.edu/education/counseling/
The Department of Counseling offers advanced courses leading to the master of science degree in counseling. Courses are available for state certification in school counseling as well as counselor licensure.
Accreditation
The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), a specialized accrediting body recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), has granted accreditation to the Department of Counseling’s Community Counseling (M.S. degree) program.
Admission to the Graduate Program
Admission to the degree program requires a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university. Acceptance is based on a combination of criteria: 1) GPA accumulated during the last 60 hours of undergraduate work; 2) standardized test results (the Miller Analogy Test or Graduate Record Examination); 3) written recommendations; 4) admission interview; and 5) writing sample.
Degree Requirements
All candidates are required to complete at least 48 credit hours of graduate work to receive the degree. A course in which the student has earned a grade of D or F cannot be counted toward the completion of graduation requirements, but is used in determining the grade point average.
A degree candidate whose cumulative grade point average falls below 3.0 will automatically be placed on probation, and his or her status will be reviewed by the Graduate Committee of the Department of Counseling.
A comprehensive written examination covering the student’s major area and graduate core courses must be passed upon completion of coursework. The examinations are scheduled in November, April, and July. Within the first four weeks of the semester in which the degree candidate is to graduate, he or she must file an application to take the comprehensive examination. (This is usually the last semester in which he or she is enrolled in courses.) If performance on the comprehensive examination is not satisfactory, the candidate will be required to reschedule an examination no sooner than the time regularly scheduled for the next comprehensive examination. The Graduate Committee of the Department of Counseling may elect to require an oral examination in addition to or in lieu of a second written examination.
Transfer of Academic Credit
Students who have earned academic credit at another accredited college or university may be allowed to transfer a maximum of six credit hours, with the approval of the departmental chair and/or dean of the college. Transfer of credits earned more than five years prior to enrollment will ordinarily not be considered.
Students are not normally allowed to transfer core courses or required courses into their programs of study. The Counseling Department will not accept transfer credit for Practicum or Internship courses. Students wishing to obtain graduate transfer credit for any other classes taken at another university must petition the Graduate Committee of the Counseling Department.
Transfer students will be informed of the amount of credit which will transfer prior to their enrollment, if possible, but at the latest, prior to the end of the first academic term in which they are enrolled.
COURSE PROGRAM
The student’s course of study is planned in collaboration with the major area adviser.
All students must take the following graduate core courses in the beginning of their programs:
- EDGR A702 Methods of Educational Research
- EDGR A703 Statistics in Education
- EDGR A706 Philosophy and Counseling (for counseling majors)
All courses, including those taken in the Department of Counseling of Loyola University, must have been completed within seven years. Students wanting to take independent study courses must petition the department faculty at least one month before registration. Please consult program adviser for details.
COUNSELING PROGRAM PHILOSOPHY AND MISSION STATEMENT
Loyola’s Counseling Program offers eligible counseling graduate students a carefully designed curriculum that will prepare them personally, academically, and professionally to become skilled mental health counselors. One of the program’s core beliefs is that effective professional counselor preparation requires a continuous blend of three types of learning: academic learning, experiential learning, and learning about self. Thus this program, consistent with the Jesuit philosophy of educating the whole person, is designed to help students gain knowledge, understanding, and skills in a planned sequence that builds toward more advanced concepts and more sophisticated clinical interventions, all the while emphasizing ethical, social, and cultural concerns.
ACADEMIC LEARNING
Completion of prerequisite coursework ensures that beginning students have fundamental knowledge of the range of normal and abnormal human growth and development and possess basic computer utilization skills. The professional education core extends knowledge to include an understanding of the range of exceptionalities among young people and/or adults and a sensitive understanding of the nature of our pluralistic society. Within the professional education core, students also learn to conduct and evaluate research and become informed consumers of the research in their professional field. In the counseling core, students are introduced to the counseling profession in EDGR 830—Counseling Theories, EDGR 835—Counseling Practice, and EDGR 864—Ethics in Counseling. Subsequent core coursework will provide students with specialized knowledge, skills, and understanding about career development and counseling, diagnosis, appraisal and assessment techniques, group process in counseling, counseling theory, and legal, ethical, and professional issues in counseling.
EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
Laboratory or experiential learning is provided early in the student’s program, and opportunities to advance and refine counseling skills continue throughout the program. EDGR 830—Counseling Theories, the introductory counseling core course, systematically teaches theory and basic clinical applications. EDGR 835—Counseling Practice builds upon this foundation and presents an opportunity for basic counseling skills and provides students an opportunity to assess their comfort with the role of counselor. EDGR 840—Group Counseling, also taught by laboratory method, enables students to learn group leadership and facilitation skills. Other courses in the counseling core and elective courses contain experiential components to ensure the continuous blend of the three types of learning. The laboratory learning sequence culminates in the Practicum and Internship. The entire sequence provides opportunities for students to observe counseling activities, develop counseling skills, and interact with clients. Students can expect constant feedback and supervision as they develop a unique and effective personal counseling style.
LEARNING ABOUT SELF
The faculty believes that counselors are more effective when they are able to examine their own values, personal characteristics, motivations, and relationships with others. Students are therefore expected to extend their personal philosophies and become sensitive to their outlooks and ways of dealing with others. Opportunities are provided throughout the program for students to maximize their self-awareness and self-understanding. The faculty believe that self-understanding contributes to personal and professional maturity as well as to the capacity for good judgment.
Finally, the faculty believe that personal and professional development are enhanced when close, cooperative relationships exist among students, between student and professor, and among professors. A close working relationship must exist between student and adviser to facilitate the selection of a sequence of studies that provides optimal preparation to meet the student’s specific career goals. Class size and program size are limited to the number of students that can be adequately served to meet the goals of maintaining close relationships, providing quality clinical or lab training, and enhancing self-understanding.
PROGRAM OBJECTIVES
In accordance with the program’s mission to incorporate academic, experiential, and intrapersonal learning, Loyola University New Orleans offers a carefully chosen curriculum that blends these three components of learning. The overarching goal of the counseling program is to educate and train students to be ethical, competent, effective, and thoughtful mental health practitioners. The program’s objectives include the following:
- To educate students to be clinically and theoretically competent in the practice of
counseling. - To insure that all counseling students are exposed to and that they understand the
ethical principles that govern counseling. - To insure that all students practice in an effective and ethical way.
- To provide a diverse and enriched collection of training experiences during the
course of the student’s academic preparation. - To integrate course offerings so that students realize how each area of specialization is integrated into practice.
- To encourage students to pursue additional training and advanced certification
throughout their professional careers. - To pursue creative training methods that enhance student learning while honoring
ethical concerns.
The Department of Counseling offers a 48-hour master of science degree in counseling. Students pursuing this master’s degree may select degree plans leading to Louisiana Elementary or Secondary School Counselor Certification and licensure as a licensed professional counselor (L.P.C.) in Louisiana. Graduates of the program who qualify for school counselor certification work in public, private, and parochial schools. Graduates obtain the L.P.C. only after successfully completing 3,000 hours of supervised post-master’s clinical experience and passing the state licensing examination. These counseling professionals work in a variety of settings, including community mental health centers, hospitals, substance abuse centers, and private practice.
Applicants and students can obtain more detailed information from the Student Handbook available in the education department office, Mercy Hall Room 210. The counseling curriculum which follows contains required and elective courses offered in the counseling program. Students should consult with their adviser regarding course selection and requirements.
Required Core Courses (9 Hrs.)
| Course Cr. | Hrs. | ||
| EDGR | A702 | Methods of Educational Research | 3 |
| EDGR | A703 | Statistics in Education | 3 |
| EDGR | A706 | Philosophy and Counseling | 3 |
Required Counseling Courses (33 Hrs.)
| Course Cr. | Hrs. | ||
| EDGR | A725 | Developmental Psychology | 3 |
| EDGR | A776 | Measurement and Assessment | 3 |
| EDGR | A830 | Counseling Theories | 3 |
| EDGR | A835 | Counseling Practice | 3 |
| EDGR | A840 | Group Counseling | 3 |
| EDGR | A841 | Vocational Counseling | 3 |
| EDGR | A846 | Ethics and Counseling | 3 |
| EDGR | A855 | Diagnosis and Treatment | 3 |
| EDGR | A865 | Practicum | 3 |
| EDGR | A866 | Internship I | 3 |
| EDGR | A866 | Internship II | 3 |
Elective Courses (6 Hrs.)
| Course | Cr. Hrs. | ||
| EDGR A837 | Counseling Children | 3 | |
| EDGR A842 | Multicultural Counseling | 3 | |
| EDGR A845 | Substance Abuse (recommended for L.P.C.) | 3 | |
| EDGR A850 | Introduction to Family Counseling (recommended for L.P.C.) | 3 | |
| EDGR A894 | Experimental Courses(with adviser’s approval) | 3 |