Eastern Michigan University Division of Academic Affairs Proposal Review Form College of Education Complete and return this form to the Course and Program Development Office by the Review Deadline. Failure to return this the form by the Review Deadline signifies a recommendation to Approve the proposal. Distribution : Sponsoring College: Type of Proposal: New course New Program New Certificate Course Revision Program Revision Academic Level: Undergraduate Review Deadline: Department: Course Number Program Title Certificate Title Course Number Program Title Graduate: Recommendation of the Reviewing Council. (Check one of the following) Approve Approve with Comment Do Not Approve Table Pending Additional Information If Recommendation other than Approve is selected above, please explain. Council Chair Signature Action of Dean I concur do not concur with the above recommendation. College Dean (or designate) Signature
EASTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY DIVISION OF ACADEMIC AFFAIRS OUTLINE FOR SUBMITTING PROPOSALS FOR NEW DEGREE PROGRAMS Use this outline to prepare proposals for new programs, including undergraduate majors and minors and graduate majors. Proposals should be submitted in narrative form, organized according to the following outline. Guidelines for submitting such proposals are on the following pages. PROPOSED PROGRAM NAME: POST- MASTER S CERTIFICATE IN CLINICAL MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELING DEGREE: N/A (GRADUATE CERTIFICATE) REQUESTED START DATE FALL 2014 DEPARTMENT(S)/SCHOOL(S): LEADERSHIP AND COUNSELING COLLEGE(S): EDUCATION CONTACT PERSON: IRENE MASS AMETRANO CONTACT PHONE: 487-2863 CONTACT EMAIL: IAMETRANO@EMICH.EDU I. Description: A. Goals, Objectives, Student Learning Outcomes The primary goal of the proposed Post-Master s Certificate in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (CMHC) is to provide opportunities for counseling program graduates to gain the knowledge and skills for working in community-based mental health centers, hospitals and other treatment centers, and private practice. Upon completion of this program, students will have gained the advanced clinical competencies necessary to work with clients presenting with a range of mental and emotional disorders, as well as the skills necessary to promote mental health and wellness. A secondary goal is to provide additional training for graduates of 48-semester hour counseling programs who seek employment in states that require 60 credit master s degrees or in Veterans Administration settings (see Rationale for more on this issue). A third goal is to increase credit hour production in the Counseling program by capitalizing on already existing program and coursework offerings. B. Program Students must complete a minimum of 12 credit hours, however exact coursework requirements will be determined based on the student s previous master s level coursework. All students will be required to have completed (within the last 15 years) a CACREP-accredited 48 semester hour master s program in school, college, or community counseling. Certificate in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (Credit Hour Requirements: 12 21) Required Core (13 credit hours) COUN 622: Diagnosis and Treatment Planning in Counseling (3) COUN 660: Case Management: Using Community Resources in Counseling (2) COUN 623: Advanced Treatment Planning and Intervention (3) COUN 694: Ethical, Legal, Professional Issues in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (3) COUN 691: Counseling Internship (2 credits/300 hours) Required Cognates (8 credit hours)
COUN 515: Crisis Intervention (3) COUN 575: Substance Abuse Counseling (2) COUN 574: Couple & Family Counseling (3) 2 Electives (to be determined with adviser; program must be a minimum of 12 credits) COUN 651: Counseling with Children COUN 653: Counseling Adolescents COUN 570: Diagnosis & Treatment Planning with Depressed Clients COUN 591: Special topics - Counseling Supervision COUN 591: Special topics - Counseling Women COUN 591: Special topics - Counseling LGBT Populations COUN 591: Special topics - Counseling for Grief and Loss COUN 591: Special topics Spirituality in Counseling Other: TBD Typical Program of Study: As an example, take a student coming into this program with a master s degree in School Counseling (48 semester hours) from Eastern Michigan University. The student has already taken COUN 622 Diagnosis and Treatment Planning and COUN 515 Crisis Intervention, so those courses are waived. Based on our current course rotation, the student s program of study would like this: Fall 2014 COUN 575 Substance Abuse Counseling (2) COUN 651 Counseling with Children (3) Winter 2015 COUN 623 Advanced Treatment Planning (3) COUN 694 Ethical, Legal, Professional Issues in CMHC (3) Summer 1 2015 COUN 660 Case Management: Using Community Resources (2) Summer 2 2015 COUN 574 Couple & Family Counseling (3) Fall 2015 COUN 691 Counseling Internship (2) Total credits = 18 C. Admission To be considered for admission, applicants must provide evidence of each of the following: 1. A master s degree from a CACREP-accredited program in a regionally accredited institution of higher education. The master s degree must have been obtained within the past 15 years. 2. Evidence of academic potential for continued graduate-level student as evidenced by a graduate grade point average of a 3.3 on the previously completed master s degree. 3. International students must meet the following additional criteria: An official score report from either the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), International English Language Test System (IELTS), or the Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB) must be sent by the testing service directly to the University. Student score reports, faxes or photocopies will not be considered official. Minimum scores for admission are 550 (Paper-based Test), or 79 (Internet-based Test) for the TOEFL; 77 on MELAB; or 6.5 (or higher) on the IELTS. If the TOEFL is taken, the Test of Written English (TWE) is also required.
4. Statement of Intent: A one-page narrative statement focusing on the applicant's motivation and rationale for seeking a certificate in Clinical Mental Health Counseling as well as his or her background and goals related to professional studies 3 5. Résumé: A focused, summary of relevant educational, career, and/or life experiences 6. Three Recommendations: These must be completed on recommendation rating forms available from the Department of Leadership and Counseling. They should be completed by professionals with knowledge of the applicant's suitability for graduate work (e.g., supervisors or graduate program professors). D. Projections We routinely receive inquiries from graduates of our 48 credit master s programs, along with graduates of other counseling programs in the region, asking about the availability of postmaster s coursework in mental health counseling. Members of the Counseling Program Advisory Board, who are mental health professionals working in a range of a local agencies, have encouraged us to provide such coursework. Our newly implemented 60 credit hour Clinical Mental Health Counseling program is quickly becoming our largest master s program, indicating that applicants desire the additional training that this program would provide. Since we plan to implement this program with existing program resources, we anticipate that we can accept about 10 students per year. We expect that this will meet the current need for the program. If demand turns out to be higher, we will explore ways to add courses to meet the need. II. Justification/Rationale The counseling profession is changing rapidly. Nationally, all states require professional counselors to hold a license to practice, and the majority of states require a 60-semester hour master s degree to obtain such a license. Michigan will likely move from the current 48-semester hour licensure requirement to a 60-semester hour requirement in the next few years. In addition, counseling program accreditation (CACREP) requires a 60-semester hour program for clinical mental health counseling. We implemented such a program in the Fall 2011 and recently received full CACREP accreditation for that program. The demand for that program is greater than that for our other program tracks. These changes have several important implications. First, they reflect agreement in the profession that additional knowledge and skills are necessary to provide competent clinical services in today s world. This program will provide opportunities for those who desire additional training to receive it. Second, because there is no licensure reciprocity across states (having a counseling license in one state does not automatically translate into a license in another state), professional counselors in Michigan who hold 48 semester hour master s degrees have some difficulty obtaining licenses and employment in states that require a 60-semester hour degree. Nearby states such as Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Illinois all require the additional coursework. Many of our current students, and those who call to inquire about additional coursework, express the desire to have a portable license that will be more easily recognized elsewhere. This program will meet that need. Third, federal agencies such as the Veterans Administration now require counselors to hold 60-semester hour master s degrees to provide counseling services in VA hospitals, and the Department of Defense insurance program (Tricare) will only approve counselors with 60 semester hour master s degree programs for
reimbursement. This program will expand employment opportunities for professional counselors who may not otherwise be eligible for employment in these settings. 4 III. Preparedness All required and elective courses in this certificate program are already being offered on a regular basis. No new courses need to be developed. COUN 622 and COUN 515 are offered twice a year; COUN 691 is offered year-round, and other identified coursework is offered at least once a year. If ten students are admitted to this program each year, we can provide the courses and advising with our existing resources. IV. Assessment/Evaluation Student Learning Outcomes: Students in this program will be assessed/evaluated in the same ways that students in our 60-semester hour master s program in Clinical Mental Health Counseling are evaluated.** All students admitted to this certificate program enter with a level of basic counseling competence expected upon graduation from a CACREP accredited program. Beyond that, we are responsible for assessing each student s competence for working in clinical mental health settings. Evaluation of those specialized competencies is built into the coursework required for students in our Clinical Mental Health master s degree program (which is required for students in this certificate program). During the culminating internship (COUN 691), which students must complete in a community/clinical setting, site supervisors evaluate interns on the skills and dispositions necessary for effectiveness in these settings. **NOTE: Descriptions of the process and assessment rubrics used to evaluate learning outcomes for students in the master s program in Clinical Mental Health Counseling are available from the Department. Program Evaluation: This program is not separate/distinct from our master s program in Clinical Mental Health Counseling in that students take some of the same courses and are required to complete a clinical internship. Thus the same procedures used to evaluate our master s degree programs will be used to evaluate this program. Students' evaluations of each course are one assessment procedure used to evaluate the effectiveness of instructors and the courses themselves. Internship site supervisor evaluations will be critical in telling us whether students in the certificate program have acquired the skills necessary to work in clinical settings. Finally, a steady increase in the numbers of students (and student credit hour production) enrolled in our courses will indicate that this program is meeting a need. V. Program Costs This program can be implemented with current resources in the Department of Leadership and Counseling. Due to the existing master s degree program in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, we already offer all courses on this certificate program. These courses will continue to be offered by regular and adjunct faculty.
VI. Action of the Department/College 5 1. Department/School (Include the faculty votes signatures from all submitting departments/schools.) Vote of faculty: For 7 Against 0 Abstentions (Enter the number of votes cast in each category.) I support this proposal. The proposed program can X cannot be implemented without additional College or University resources. Jaclynn Tracy October 23, 2013 Department Head/School Director Signature 2. College/Graduate School (Include signatures from the deans of all submitting colleges.) A. College. I support this proposal. The proposed program can cannot be implemented within the affected College without additional University resources. College Dean Signature B. Graduate School (new graduate programs ONLY) Graduate Dean Signature VII. Approval Associate Vice-President for Academic Programming Signature