Master’s in Counseling Clinical Experiences

Master’s in Counseling Clinical Experiences

Overview

The University of North Carolina at Charlotte Counseling Program offers clinical field placement opportunities over three semesters for counseling students to gain counseling experience at one of our many community partner locations. Counselors in training participate in a wide variety of counseling activities including one-on-one counseling with individuals, families, couples, and groups. All counseling students receive quality supervision on campus as well as on site with qualified clinical supervisors. As a CACREP accredited program, we contract with community partners who agree to support our students in their academic field placements. This involves weekly engagement with students, the ability to evaluate the performance and growth of those students under their supervision, and participate with our faculty in on-going assessment and evaluation.

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General Requirements Masters Student Field Experiences

  • All students complete 3 semesters of field placement
  • All students must complete 5 prerequisite courses before beginning their field work
  • All students must maintain current liability insurance throughout their field placement experiences
  • All students attend field placement campus courses (CSLG 7430 or CSLG 7435) during the semester they are at the field placement site
  • All students are responsible to secure their placement from the approve site listing provided each semester
  • At the end of the three semesters, students must meet the minimal hourly standards: 750 site hours with minimally 40% direct client contact
  • Students must have the opportunity to lead group processes in one or more of the following: therapeutic groups, process groups, didactic groups, classroom guidance, or the equivalent of the previous.
  • All students must have the capability to record counseling sessions throughout their time at the field placement site (at least one session weekly or otherwise indicated by their instructors)
  • All students are required to maintain a weekly log accurately reflecting their work on site

Prerequisite Courses for Practicum Placement

Completion of 18 semester hours of counseling course requirements with a B or better in:

  1. Counseling Theories
  2. Counseling Techniques
  3. Ethics
  4. Introduction to Clinical Mental Health Counseling or School Counseling
  5. Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling
  6. Group Counseling (pre- or co-requisite)

Additional Course Requirements:

  1. **Introduction to Play Therapy (pre- or co-requisite)**

**Note: Introduction to Play Therapy is required only for individuals working with children aged 10 or younger**

Standards of Practice

Throughout the course of a counseling students training and especially during their clinical field experience, students are required to adhere to “ethical practice” as described by the American Counseling Association’s (ACA) 2014 Code of Ethics.

Areas of specialization also have ethical standards of practice covering specific clinical work with clients and students:

Additionally, the Department of Counseling follows the Practicum and Internship standards as outlined by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) 2016.

Throughout a student’s clinical training, these ethical codes and standards of practice are enforced and serve as a guide in the development of a professional identity.

Questions about Clinical Field Experiences?

Contact:

Dr. John C. Nance

Director of Clinical Field Experience & Testing

jcnance@charlotte.edu

Visit our FAQ Page:

https://counseling.charlotte.edu/frequently-asked-questions/