The Department of Counseling and Human Services offers a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study in Professional Counseling. The Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study in Professional Counseling (CAGS) is a program designed to meet the legislated educational requirements of Pennsylvania Act 136 of 1998 - The Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors Act. The certificate allows students to obtain a minimum of 12 additional post-master’s degree graduate credits in professional counseling that can fulfill educational requirements for counselor licensure.
According to the provisions of Act 136, applicants for counselor licensure must have successfully completed the following educational requirements:
Has successfully completed a planned program of 60 semester hours of graduate course work in counseling or in a field determined by the board of regulation to be closely related to the practice of professional counseling, including a 48-semester hour master’s degree in counseling or in a field determined by the board of regulation to be closely related to the practice of professional counseling, from an accredited educational institution.
All students will go through the same application process regardless of specialty area, but will be advised/mentored by the Program Director in the specialty area of counseling congruent with their Master’s Degree (e.g., Rehabilitation Program Director for students with an MS in Rehabilitation Counseling and School Counseling Program Director for students with a MS in School Counseling).
Admissions Criteria
All applicants for the CAGS program must apply for formal admission to the program. Applicants must possess:
1. A master’s degree in counseling from a counseling program accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP); or
2. A master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from a program formally accredited by the Council on Rehabilitation Education (CORE); or
3. A master’s degree in counseling or a closely related field that includes graduate-level course work of at least two semester hours or three quarter hours in each of the following areas:
Human Growth and Development: Includes studies that provide an understanding of the nature and needs of individuals at all developmental levels.
Social and Cultural Foundations: Includes studies that provide an understanding of issues and trends in a multicultural and diverse society.
Helping Relationships: Includes studies that provide an understanding of counseling and consultation processes.
Group Work: Includes studies that provide an understanding of group development, dynamics, counseling theories, group counseling methods and skills, and other group-work-approaches.
Career and Lifestyle Development: Includes studies that provide an understanding of career development and related life factors.
Appraisal: Includes studies that provide an understanding of individual and group approaches to assessment and evaluation.
Research and Program Evaluation: Includes studies that provide an understanding of types of research methods, basic statistics, and ethical and legal considerations in research.
Professional Orientation and Ethics: Includes studies that provide an understanding of all aspects of professional functioning including history, roles, organizational structures, ethics, standards, and credentialing.
Field Experience: A minimum of 700 hours of supervised counseling experience in an appropriate work setting.
A minimum of 60 graduate credits in professional counseling must be attained before the CAGS is granted. A minimum of 12 graduate credits in professional counseling beyond the prerequisite 48 graduate credit master’s degree must be completed in the Department of Counseling and Human Services at The University of Scranton in order to obtain the CAGS.
Each student will design a plan of study in conjunction with his/her Program Director that addresses licensure requirements and the student’s unique career and professional development needs.
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