Neumann University
PCC Newsletter December, 2014
Having been accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Programs (CACREP) for the past seven years, changes implemented by the organization are now reflected in revisions within Neumann’s first graduate program, the Master’s in Pastoral Counseling. One revision requires a new title for the Master’s program. CACREP recently dissolved the category Community Counseling under which the program was originally accredited. The category is now Mental Health Counseling and the Master’s program will reflect this with the name, Pastoral Clinical Mental Health Counseling. While longer the title does reflect the core clinical aspect of the program in that the main focus psychologically is its emphasis on an approach grounded in developmental theory rather than the medical model and its holistically focused approach. Another revision involves the number of credits needed for degree completion. CACREP has increased the required total to 60. In actuality, most students have been acquiring this number of credits already before their matriculation, some even delaying collecting their diploma until this number.is reached. Several reasons have driven the change. Many states which license graduates as professional counselors demand a total of 60 credit hours before applying for licensure. Such is the case with PA, NJ and MD, from which many of our students come. Another factor is that in recent years no funding, loans and otherwise, can be applied to post-graduate courses.
The necessary revisions to increase the degree requirements to 60 credits will go into effect in Fall, 2015 for all students entering from that point forward. The changes include the increase of credit value for courses, previously offered as two credits and now three, and the move of former electives into required three credit courses. The decision on which electives to list as required mirror contemporary issues which have come to the fore as important areas of learning for the counseling professional. The added courses with the scheduled time for them to be offered, beginning Summer, 2015 follow: PCC 785-A: Addictions Counseling will be first offered in Summer 15 — Dr. Sophia Park; PCC-789-A: Trauma and Crisis will be first offered in Summer 15 — Suzanne Mayer, ihm; PCC-782-A: Research Methods will be offered in the Fall, beginning with 2015 — Dr. Jim Houck;
I N S ID E T H IS IS S U E :
Alumni in PC/SD Shine PCC-786-A: Multicultural Counseling will be offered each Spring PC Lead Prayer at AAPC beginning 2016 — Dr. Beth Toler;
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4 PCC-780-A: Psychological Testing Five December Graduates will be first offered in Summer Introducing Sr. Diane, osf 5 2016;
PCC-781-A: Career Counseling will be offered in Summer 2016 for three credits as it will just have been completed in Spring 2015.
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