Master of Arts Program Requirements

Emphasis Options

Every student in the Master of Arts Degree Program must complete one of the following four emphasis options:

• Addiction Counseling
• Community Mental Health Counseling
• Rehabilitation Counseling
• School Counseling

Depending on which emphasis option a student completes, the required curriculum is between 48 and 51 credits. Completion of any emphasis satisfies the academic requirements to become a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in North Dakota.

The Addiction Counseling curriculum is designed for students who want to become a Licensed Addiction Counselor (LAC) in North Dakota. 

The Rehabilitation and Services program is recognized by the council on rehabilitation education (CORE) as an approved undergraduate program. Students pursuing state licensure as addiction counselors must also complete a 15-hour cognate in addiction-related fields (Psychology, Pharmacy, Sociology) and a 9-month clinical practicum at an approved treatment facility. 

The Distance School Counseling Program is recognized as an Advanced Program within UND’s Teacher Education Unit, which is accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). Students pursuing certification as school counselors in North Dakota do not need to hold or be eligible for teacher certification in North Dakota. Courses will be taken in the sequence that is outlined below to complete the school counseling program in 2 1/2 years. Please go to Distance Degree Program.

Academic Advisement

Upon admission, students are assigned an academic advisor, who is responsible for program advising and direction of the Independent Study. Beginning students should contact their advisors for information about general course requirements and recommended course sequences. Working with their advisor, students will plan and file a Program of Study, usually before the end of their second semester. Students should discuss all licensure and certification requirement and other aspects of their emphasis with their advisors. Other cognates or minor areas (minimum of nine credits) also may be added to the Program of Study by students who need or prefer course work in other departments.

Coursework

Students may enroll in the Counseling Practicum (COUN 580/1) after they have satisfactorily completed at least ten credits in the program including COUN 510: Counseling Methods, COUN 530: Counseling, Personality and Development, and either COUN 501: Ethics or COUN 506: Rehabilitation Counseling, Foundations and Ethics, and should be taken prior to or concurrent with enrollment in Practicum (COUN 580/1). After successfully completing practicum, students will enroll in COUN 584/7/8/9: Internship in Counseling, which is a two-semester, supervised counseling experience at an external site. Students spend 15-40 hours per week at internship, depending on program emphasis. Students apply for internships based on their career goals and guided by procedures and deadlines determined by program faculty and internship site staff.

Students enrolling in the School Counseling Distance program will be eligible to enroll in Practicum in their fourth semester upon successful completion of course work. After successfully completing Practicum, students will enroll in counseling 589 (Internship in School Counseling). Internship in Counseling, which is a two-semester, supervised counseling experience at an external site. Students spend 15-20 hours per week at a school internship site. Students apply for internships based on their career goals and guided by procedures and deadlines determined by program faculty and internship site staff.

In addition to this practitioner course sequence, students are required to complete a series of research training experiences, culminating in the completion of the Independent Study (COUN 997) or Thesis (COUN 998), which is an independent research project, conducted under the direction of the student’s advisor.

After completing the majority of coursework for the degree, and filing both the Program of Study and the Topic Proposal for Independent Study Form with the Graduate School, students are eligible to take the Counselor Preparation Comprehensive Examination (CPCE), a nationally-administered exam, which is offered in the fall and spring semesters. The examination costs $40.00 and must be successfully passed prior to graduation. In statistics gathered nationally the Spring 2005 semester, UND students scored above the mean in all eight categories of the exam. This is consistent with UND student performance across the past several years. We are delighted with these results and proud of the students who have accomplished them.

ADDICTION EMPHASIS (49 credits)
COUN 501	Ethics	3
COUN 502	Professional Issues	1
COUN 510	Methods of Counseling	3
COUN 515	Research Methods	3
COUN 516	Research Lab	1
COUN 517	Assessment in Counseling	3
COUN 518	Group Theory and Process	3
COUN 519	Career	3
COUN 529	Addiction	3
COUN 530	Theory	3
COUN 531	Gender	3
COUN 532	Multicultural	3
COUN 533	Couples and Family	3
COUN 580	Practicum	4
COUN 587	Internship in Addictions Counseling	8-12
COUN 997/998	Independent Study/Thesis	2/4
(PPT) 410	Pharmacology, Physiology and Therapeutics	2
To become a Licensed Addiction Counselor (LAC) in North Dakota, students must complete the following courses (or equivalents):
T&L 350	Dev and Education of the  Adolescent	3
	or
COUN 565	Child and Adolescent Development	3
PSY 451	Advanced Developmental Psychology	3
	or
COUN 565	Mid and Older Adult Development	3
REHABILITATION EMPHASIS (51 credits)
COUN 506	Rehab:  Foundations and Ethics	3
COUN 510	Methods of Counseling	3
COUN 514	Rehab:  Assess and Eval.	3
COUN 515	Research  Methods	3
COUN 516	Research Lab	1
COUN 518	Group Theory and Process	3
COUN 519	Career	3
COUN 530	Theories of Counseling, Personali and Development	3
COUN 531	Gender	3
COUN 532	Multicultural Counseling	3
COUN 533	Couples and Family	3
COUN 580	Practicum	4
COUN 588	Internship in Rehabilitationi Counseling	8
COUN 997/998	Independent Study	2/4
RHS 309	Med and Psy Disability I	3
RHS 310	Med and Psy Disability II	3
COMMUNITY MENTAL HEALTH EMPHASIS (48 credits)
COUN 501	Ethics	3
COUN 502	Professional Issues	1
COUN 510	Mathods of Counseling	3
COUN 515	Research Methods	3
COUN 516	Research Lab	1
COUN 517	Assessment in Counseling	3
COUN 518	Group Theory and Process	3
COUN 519	Career	3
COUN 530	Theory	3
COUN 531	Gender	3
COUN 532	Multicultural Counseling	3
COUN 533	Couples and Family	4
COUN 580	Practicum
COUN 584	Internship in Community Agency Counseling	8
COUN 997/998	Independent Study/Thesis	2/4
Plus 2 credits of electives from the following:
COUN 529	Addiction	2
COUN 565	Child and Adolescent Development	3
COUN 565	Middle and Older Adult	3
COUN 565	Special Topics	1/2
COUN 585	Research Practicum	1
*Using these 3-credit courses to fulfill the program requirements will result in a 49-credit curriculum rather than the minimum of 48 credits.
SCHOOL EMPHASIS (49 - 50 credits)
Distance Degree Program Curriculum
In order to complete the degree, it is required to travel to University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, ND to complete the lab component of courses. If you are unable to participate in the on-campus labs you will not receive a passing grade and will not graduate.