Master of Science in Counseling/Marriage, Family and Child Therapy

0 Credits

Portfolio I is an admission readiness assessment which samples and evaluates the student's cognitive, affective, and behavioral skills in critical areas of the counselor education process. It is a six-workshop, 24-hour, noncredit assessment that helps determine student appropriateness for the program and gives the potential student the opportunity to evaluate his or her aptitude for the counseling program. Portfolio I must be passed before a student may be admitted to any graduate counseling program in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

3 Credits

This course is designed to be a foundation for understanding diversity among clients in a pluralistic society. Emphasis will be on integrating awareness, knowledge, and skills related to counseling differences and similarities based on age, race, ethnicity, national origin, religious affiliations, gender identification, sexual orientation, physical/mental limitations, social class, etc.

3 Credits

This course presents students with theoretical frameworks to foster an understanding of the various dimensions of human development. Emphasis is placed on biological, cognitive, and psychosocial development within the context of gender, family systems, social roles, and culture. Students evaluate clinical situations and assess potential therapeutic interventions in context.

3 Credits

This course presents the student with the primary theoretical models of personality theory used in counseling practice, including psychodynamic, cognitive behavioral, humanistic, integrative, multicultural, and systems theory. A focus on evidence-based practices that incorporate diversity issues is a significant feature of this course. Students have opportunities to establish a strong theoretical foundation as the basis of clinical practice.

3 Credits

This course covers legal and ethical responsibilities of the marriage and family counselor, including California state laws governing mental health professionals. Emphasis is placed on the current legal patterns and trends governing client rights, duty to warn, duty to protect, treatment of minors, parent consent, multiple relationships, and application in special situations and with special populations. Students learn how to interpret and act appropriately in a wide variety of ethical situations as well as recognize and explore the relationship between a practitioner’s sense of self and human values and his or her professional behavior and ethics.

3 Credits

This course focuses on intensive skill building in individual counseling. The relationship between assessment, theory, application of strategy and intervention, setting goals with clients, closure, and referral are emphasized as essential to the counseling environment. Emphasis is also placed on treatment plans, ethics, and cultural diversity.

3 Credits

This course provides an overview of the fundamentals of research and evaluation in the counseling profession. Topics include critical analysis of research literature, statistical analysis, qualitative and quantitative research methods, needs assessment, and program evaluation. Emphasis is placed on understanding connections between research design, theories, and the utilization of results in the professional practice of counseling.

3 Credits

The focus of this course is on tests used in counseling and test reports, with an emphasis on learning how to integrate testing as an additional tool in counseling. Tests most commonly encountered in the counseling field are identified and reviewed, and the following components are discussed: psychometric properties of tests, test selection criteria, administration, interpretation, and reporting of test results.

3 Credits

This course introduces students to models and tools of assessment and diagnosis for the purpose of developing competency in evaluation and treatment planning for professional counseling practice. Students learn about and practice intake assessment techniques, mental status examinations, using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, outcome-based treatment planning, and behavioral analysis. Emphasis is placed on writing clear, accurate, and useful assessments and treatment plans. Multicultural and ethical issues in assessment are also explored.

3 Credits

Students build on the skills gained in previous courses, focusing on the more complex or problematic disorders. Students enhance their skills by using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders® for report-writing and treatment plan development. Emphasis is on accepted treatment approaches and outcome-based assessments; the development of critical-thinking skills; and on multicultural, legal, and ethical issues.

0 Credits

Professional Counseling Assessment Portfolio II helps students integrate and evaluate their learning in the Master of Counseling program at midpoint. Like an assessment center, Portfolio II provides an integrative experience requiring the student to bring together all of what he or she has learned in previous courses in the program and to demonstrate how that learning has been applied both personally and professionally.

3 Credits

This course provides an overview of the development of family systems theory as a discipline and the therapeutic approaches that have emerged. Fundamental assumptions and concepts of general systems theory are introduced and contrasted with individual theories of psychology. The historic development of family systems thinking is explored. Evolving therapeutic models are introduced and contrasted with family systems concepts. In this course, students will explore the major systems theories’ approaches to diagnosis, treatment, and change and explore ethnic differences in family patterns and attitudes toward therapy. Critiques of systems theory and research issues are discussed.

3 Credits

This course introduces fundamental concepts and practices that underlie couples and family therapy in human systems. It teaches an integrative approach to the treatment of the broad range of presenting problems that arise within marriage and family relationships. The course will introduce culture-specific interventions used for the treatment of culturally different families.

3 Credits

This course provides students with intensive knowledge, awareness, and skill-building in group counseling. Content emphasizes such areas as different types of groups, dynamics, norms and boundaries, leadership styles, leading and co-leading, and treatment plans. Confidentiality, selection procedures, ethics, and diversity are included as key components of effective group counseling practice.

3 Credits

The goal of the course is twofold. It examines the history, biochemistry, main effects and side effects of prescription psychotropic medication and also covers the many facets of human sexuality and the treatment of sexual dysfunctions. Topics include biological concepts of mental distress, principles of drug action and metabolism, the physiology, psychology, and sociology of sexuality, including the effects of sexual attitudes and functioning on individuals and families. Ethics and methods of working with medical personnel are included.

3 Credits

This course addresses addiction concepts and counseling practices. Topics include an overview of dependency theories, major substances of abuse, assessment, diagnosis, treatment modalities, special topics, and working with diverse populations.

0 Credits

This course is an orientation to the pre-practicum and practicum courses.

3 Credits

This course exposes students to a variety of models in the treatment of children and adolescents, including the developmental variables that may have an effect on behavior and family intervention. Systemic approaches to treatment of chronic illness, incest, delinquent behavior, adolescent chemical dependency, child suicide, psychosomatic disorders, families in crisis, fire setting, school phobia, and other behaviors and learning problems are explored.

3 Credits

This course provides the student with a comprehensive overview of vocational theory and career counseling. It includes the historical foundations of vocational theory and the relationship of these to skills and techniques utilized in career counseling and vocational development practices. Vocational and career counseling is examined as an integral component of the overall assessment and treatment of clients representing diverse populations found within the scope of community, mental health, and marriage and family counseling. Emphasis is placed on the examination of adults in transition and the nature of work in a changing world. Students develop competencies necessary to provide career and vocational counseling to clients across the lifespan.

3 Credits

In this course, students will be required to apply marriage and family counseling theory, along with therapy skills acquired throughout the program. Students will gain a deeper understanding of working with diverse families, families in transition, families with mental health issues, families facing crisis and trauma, along with current trends in marriage and family counseling.

3 Credits

This course focuses on the assessment and continuing development of student counseling and clinical documentation skills. Students have a variety of opportunities to receive feedback and to evaluate their ability to integrate theory into practice. Students determine their styles and strengths as professional counseling practitioners, as well as identify areas needing further development. Individualized practice sessions, case management skills, and feedback are designed into the course.

3 Credits

The Marriage/Family/Child Counseling Internship is a clinical experience required of all MFCC students. The internship is divided into two sections, each lasting 15 weeks. The internship experience comprises Portfolio III of the counseling portfolio series. Students are placed in community agencies where they provide clinical marriage/family/child counseling services to clients under the direction of an approved licensed site supervisor.

3 Credits

The Marriage/Family/Child Counseling Internship is a clinical experience required of all MFCC students. The internship is divided into two sections, each lasting 15 weeks. The internship experience comprises Portfolio III of the counseling portfolio series. Students are placed in community agencies where they provide clinical marriage/family/child counseling services to clients under the direction of an approved licensed site supervisor.