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Mental Health Counseling (PR)
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Credits:
60(7 terms)
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Degree:
Master of Education
Program Description
Mental Health Counseling provides graduate level professional training for mental health counseling licensure with a strong commitment to an evolving multicultural society. The School of Psychology and Counseling monitors the mental health licensing standards of both Massachusetts and Puerto Rico. The course work, field practicum and internship in Puerto Rico conform to Puerto Rico regulations and licensure requirements.
Learning Outcomes
Students learn and apply the principles and best practices of counseling including various psychotherapeutic techniques for work with individuals, couples, families and groups; group counseling, and consultation to organizations and communities. They study human development, dysfunctional behavior and mental illness. They learn to assess, diagnose and treat within the scope of the counselor’s practice, and become able to utilize community resources for referrals. They learn and apply strategies for prevention and treatment of substance abuse, domestic violence, the spectrum of mental illnesses; and learn to use psycho-educational techniques aimed at preventing such disorders. They study research design and methodology. They become familiar with state regulations applicable to mental health practice and licensure.
Licensure and Credentialing
This program provides the academic preparation for the Professional Counselor licensure exam in Puerto Rico, issued by the Puerto Rico Department of Health. See the licensure status for all states.
Curriculum
All classes in Puerto Rico are taught in Spanish.
Academic Requirements
Mental health core courses, practicum and field experience: 42 credits
Psychology & Counseling electives: 18 credits
CCP592/Exit Portfolio in Tevera: non-credit
Total: 60 credits
A maximum of 4 courses may be taken each term. Courses should be taken in sequence.
Term 1 (courses must be completed before Term 2 courses)
12
Credits
Ethics & Professional Issues for School Counselors & Mental Health Practitioners
CCP 622 • 3 credit(s)
This course explores several models of school counseling and mental health counseling and the relationship to relevant ethics, federal, state, municipal, state laws, and standards and regulations. The course emphasizes best practices and strategies for dealing with ethical and legal dilemmas, including the ability to apply and practice ethical and legal standards in school counseling. School counseling and systems models are examined along with consultation, harm prevention and reduction, and the evaluation and utilization of community resources. Focal areas include professional roles and functions, ethical standards including accountability, responsibility, client/student welfare, emotional health, laws and regulations, institutional policies including crisis/disaster preparedness and response, cross cultural, cross social class practices and their impact on mental health and school counseling. Includes the fundamental occupational tasks of assessment, case presentation, case collaboration, team membership and client interaction. This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standard for School Adjustment Counselor/School Social Worker: h: Federal and state laws and regulations addressing the legal rights of students and families. This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standard for School Guidance Counseling: i. Federal, state, municipal, and school laws and regulations.
Personality and Counseling Theory
CCP 540 • 3 credit(s)
This course explores personality and counseling theories from an eclectic standpoint, analyzing the strengths and weaknesses in each theory. Students are encouraged to identify an approach or approaches that are compatible with their history, current philosophy, clients, and counseling settings. Insight into modern notions of cultural and family identity enhances counseling skills and provides the ability to accommodate the needs of individuals in diverse settings.
Rogerian Person-Centered Therapy: Basic Counseling Skills
CCP 550 • 3 credit(s)
Successful completion required for mental health field experience I, CCP520. The basis of therapeutic relationships is seen in Carl Rogers’ theory of personality with its stress of self-actualization, development of the self, phenomenological field, validation, and conditions of worth is the basis for the techniques that are taught, practiced and modeled in this course. These techniques are empathic understanding, unconditional positive regard, and congruence. These techniques are central to any effective relationship from any theoretical perspective. The student will become practiced at these and related aspects of person-centered theory. Includes the fundamental occupational tasks of assessment, case presentation, case collaboration, team membership and client interaction.
This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standards for School Adjustment Counselor/School Social Worker: Standard a: Principles of therapeutic relationships.
Human Development Across the Lifespan
CCP 630 • 3 credit(s)
This course will address the psychological and biological aspects of human development from conception through childhood, adolescence, early adulthood, mid-life and aging. Familial, environmental and cultural factors will be explored as they impact the development of people across the continuum of life. Theory will combine with application related to physical, emotional, intellectual, learning, social, normal and abnormal development; plus cognitive, moral, and vocational adjustment. The processes of physical and psychological development including ethnic and gender differences will be studied. Includes the fundamental occupational tasks of assessment, case presentation, case collaboration, team membership and client interaction. This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standard for School Adjustment Counselor/School Social Worker: b: Theories of normal and abnormal intellectual, social, and emotional development. This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standards for School Guidance Counseling: c. psychology of learning, and e. theories of normal and abnormal, intellectual, social, and emotional development.
Term 2
12
Credits
Psychopathology
CCP 615 • 3 credit(s)
This course explores neurotic, abnormal, and psychotic behavior, emphasizing ego-defensive, adaptive, and socio-cultural aspects. Particular attention is given to ego-defensive, adaptive, and socio-cultural aspects of behavior and ways in which adaptive behavior becomes symptomatic. Students will delve into historical contexts, spanning early medical concepts to the current DSM-V TR diagnostic criteria, prevalent psychotherapies, and psychopharmacology.
Group Dynamics/Group Counseling & Human Systems
CCP 650 • 3 credit(s)
This course involves the study of the dynamics common to all small groups, through examining their structural and interactional properties and learning the bases for understanding groups as therapeutic, organizational, social, psychological, and collective phenomena. The class will be divided into two groups. All students will participate in an experiential, interactional group for one half of the term and observe another interactional group for one half of the term. Each experiential phase of a group will be followed by a didactic analysis of the process. The instructor will demonstrate various techniques as leader of all experiential sessions. Leadership styles will be examined as they influence group process. Students are required to write journal analyses of group sessions, complete assigned readings, and attend every session. Students are taught to develop self-awareness, sensitivity to others, and skills needed to relate to individuals and groups from diverse backgrounds. (No one will be admitted to the course in the event of failure to attend the first session.) Includes the fundamental occupational tasks of assessment, case presentation, case collaboration, team membership and client interaction.
This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standard for School Adjustment Counselor/School Social Worker: a: Principles of therapeutic relationships.
This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standard for School Guidance Counseling: l. group counseling and group leadership.
Research Design and Evaluation
CCP 518 • 3 credit(s)
This course provides students the foundation to navigate the essentials of research design, emphasizing approaches and methodologies relevant to mental health counseling. Emphasis is on both the theoretical aspects of research design and how to apply these concepts in real-world counseling scenarios, contributing to evidence-based practice.
Career Development
CCP 639 • 3 credit(s)
This course provides an experiential approach to career development for mental health, school and rehabilitation counselors to support clients with and without disabilities across the lifespan in both individual and group settings. Orientation to key assessment instruments, online resources, labor market information, transferable skills analysis, job placement strategies and work-related supports will be made to support the career guidance process and to develop comprehensive plans of action for clients.
This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standard for School Counseling: i. Career counseling.
Term 3
12-15
Credits
One SOPC elective or concentration course and the following:
(If unable to take CCP 520, students may take both CCP 522 Pre-Internship Clinical Skills and CCP 524 Pre-Internship Supervision Laboratory instead.)
Mental Health Counseling Jurisprudence Seminar
CCP 699
Registration in this course is a prerequisite to field experience. This 0-credit course triggers Tevera fee and student access.
Field Experience I
CCP 520 • 3 credit(s)
This initial field experience course must be taken concurrent with a field placement. Documentation of practicum requirements in accordance with 262 CMR 2.00 must be completed between the 8th week of class and the end of the semester and before any internship hours begin. Prerequisite: CCP550 Basic Counseling Skills: Rogerian Therapy. This course is a prerequisite for CCP792A School Adjustment/Mental Health Internship Seminar A.
Psychological Testing
CCP 636 • 3 credit(s)
This course provides an overview of psychological testing including a review of projective testing and techniques for individual and group administration for understanding personality development and pathology, basic administration, scoring and diagnostic skill development. This course reviews instruments including TAT, MMPI and Rorschach as well as language and alternative non-language-based intelligence tests, achievement tests including the WISC-IV, the Woodcock-Johnson III, tests of nonverbal intelligence, and other state-of-the-art diagnostic tools. Emphasis is on clinical integration of the testing materials, useful intervention strategies and recommendations for the counselor, treatment team and/or referral agent. Test reliability, validity, standard deviations, scaled scores, percentiles and interpretation of significant differences are taught. This course includes the fundamental occupational tasks of assessment, case presentation, case collaboration, team membership and client interaction.
This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standards for School Adjustment Counselor/School Social Worker: c. Learning disorders, including emotional issues affecting student achievement, and their treatment. This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standard for School Counseling: b. Understanding and interpretation of Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) and other academic test results to students, teachers, and peers.
Perspectives in Cross Cultural Counseling
CCP 754 • 3 credit(s)
This course focuses on the role of culture in the development of psychological health and in psychopathology. Variations among diverse cultures in defining mental health and deviant behavior are discussed. The importance of understanding the cultural context is emphasized, both in the prevention and in the resolution of psychological problems. Students become aware of their own cultural beliefs regarding mental health issues, and the impact of their perspective in working with culturally different people. Techniques for working with families and schools are also discussed. Includes the fundamental occupational tasks of assessment, case presentation, case collaboration, team membership and client interaction.
This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standards for School Adjustment Counselor/School Social Worker: Standard f: Techniques for communicating and working with families and school and community personnel. b: Theories of normal and abnormal intellectual, social, and emotional development.
This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standard for School Guidance Counseling: e: Theories of normal and abnormal intellectual, social, and emotional development.
Term 4
9-12
Credits
Two or three SOPC elective courses, plus:
Field Experience II
CCP 641 • 3 credit(s)
Enrollment limited to 10. This is the first in a sequence of distinctly defined, post-practicum, supervised co-curriculuar experience and runs concurrent with field placement. Continuous registration for this portion of the clinical training is required until completion of 100 hours per semester or 600 total hours. Documentation of internship requirements in accordance with 262 CMR 2.00 will continue.
Term 5
9-12
Credits
Two or three SOPC elective courses, plus:
Field Experience III
CCP 700 • 3 credit(s)
Enrollment limited to 10. This is the second in a sequence of distinctly defined, post-practicum, supervised co-curricular experience and runs concurrent with field placement. Continuous registration for this portion of the clinical training is required until completion of 200 hours per semester or 600 total hours. Documentation of internship requirements in accordance with 262 CMR 2.00 will continue.
Term 6
6
Credits
(CCP 701 may be substituted with one elective if an approved substitution has been granted by the program chair.)
One SOPC elective course, plus:
Field Experience IV
CCP 701 • 3 credit(s)
Enrollment limited to 10. This the third in a sequence of distinctly defined, post-practicum, supervised co-curriculuar experience and runs concurrent with field placement. Documentation of internship requirements in accordance with 262 CMR 2.00 will be completed until 600 total hours. An elective may be substituted for this course if all field experience requirements are met by the completion of CCP700.
Senior Instructor
Adjunct Instructor
Admissions
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Admission Test:
No standardized graduate school tests required for admission into non-licensure programs
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Admissions Office:
1-800-829-4723
- Application Form:
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Application Fee:
$50 ($100 for international students)
School Requirements
International Students
International students need to provide supplemental documentation:
- Official demonstration of English language proficiency
- Supplemental documentation for issuance of I-20
- International transcripts, evaluated by an accepted evaluation service
Transfer Credit
Please complete the transfer credit request form if you wish to have prior course work evaluated for transfer. Learn more about transferring credits.
Tuition
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Credits:
60
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Cost per credit hour:
$344
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Application Fee:
$50 ($100 for international students)
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Internship/Practicum Fee:
$400
Note: Rates are as of July, 2022, and are subject to change without notice. Rates apply to all students, unless otherwise noted.
Financial Aid
Cambridge College offers financial aid to students in our degree programs who are enrolled at least half time. Undergraduate students must be enrolled in at least 6 credits each term. Graduate and doctoral students must be enrolled in at least 4 credits each term. Learn more
Grants, Scholarships and Loans
Cambridge College welcomes the opportunity to support your efforts to pay for college. Federal, state and local resources in the form of grants, scholarships, loans and work-study, including Cambridge College Scholarships, are available to help defray the cost of tuition. Learn more
Getting Your Company to Help
Many companies have tuition assistance programs, designed to help their employees with their professional development. Learn more
Take the Next Step Toward Your Master's Degree
Take the Next Step Toward Your Master's Degree
Student
Success
Allaphia Richards
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