Prospective Students

Cupola atop a building on the Molloy University campus

What is a Clinical Mental Health Counselor?

  • Professionals who treat cognitive, behavioral, and emotional aspects of mental health & substance abuse conditions
  • Combines traditional psychotherapy with a practical, problem-solving approach that creates a dynamic and efficient path for change and problem resolution.
  • Provides psychotherapy to help clients:
    • Understand their behaviors, emotions and thoughts.
    • Identify stressors
    • Teach them healthy coping & problem-solving techniques

 

How Mental Health Counselors Serve Their Patients

  • Assessment and diagnosis*
  • Brief & long-term therapeutic services
  • Treatment planning & progress monitoring
  • Focused counseling services for specific populations & needs:
    • Couples/families
    • Substance use/abuse
    • Children & adolescents
  • Psychoeducational and prevention programs
  • Crisis Management

 

Career Outlook

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the projected growth in need for licensed mental health counselors is 22%, which is much faster than the national average at 5% for all occupations.

Where is this growth coming from?

  • The national recognition for mental health services has led to federal & state policies expanding access to such services, especially through insurance
  • The number of specific populations such as military veterans seeking mental health treatment is expected to increase over the next decade
  • Acknowledging the importance of mental health has led to an increase in those willing and eager to seek treatment
  • The demand for mental health professionals has increased job openings in treatment facilities

 

Our Program

Our program provides our graduates with academically rigorous courses, incorporating clinical skills training with evidence-based counseling principles.

 

Highlights

  • A program designed for working students with classes exclusively in the evenings
  • Dedication to the highest standards of accreditation, being CACREP accredited
  • Committed to equitable and inclusive education in a culturally diverse environment with a value for social justice advocacy. 
  • Faculty that is highly versed in numerous counseling theories and interventions
  • Best practices and ethical standards embedded throughout the program
  • Highly experiential coursework and hands-on practice
  • Small class sizes and one-on-one mentorship throughout the program

 

Program Structure

60-Credit Program, which fulfills the education requirements for NYS licensure in Mental Health Counseling

  • Offered as part-time, 3-year cohort model
  • Classes run throughout the year so that you can complete the program quickly, yet remain a part-time student

Most classes are offered in-person, with some classes offered as hybrid or fully online to allow for flexibility

Clinical experience is completed in the final year of the program:

  • 100-hour Practicum in Summer semester (approximately 7 hours per week at a clinical site);
  • 600-hour Internship in Fall and Spring (300 hours each semester with approximately 21 hours per week at a clinical site)

Prospective Student Information

  • CACREP Accreditation

    The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), is the gold standard accrediting body for Counseling programs and recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

    Accredited Programs provide the following to students:

    • Recognition that the program has been evaluated and meets or exceeds national standards
    • Knowledge that the graduate has met prerequisites for credentialing and is ready for entry into professional practice
    • Understanding that the focus of the program will be on professional counseling, not psychology, education or other helping profession

  • Course Progression

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  • Additional Program Information

    Fall and Spring classes are held on the same day throughout the duration of the program

    • For example, if your classes are on Mondays from 5:25-9:55 in the first year, this will also be the case in year two and three
    • In the third year, there will be an additional course in the Fall and Spring to accommodate Internship I and II, which will be on an additional evening
    Intersession/Winter classes will be online classes held during the two weeks between New Years Day and Martin Luther King Day (On or about January 2 – January 11) – Classes are generally a mix of synchronous and asynchronous work
    • Summer:
      • Year 1 – Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:25-7:35 for 8 weeks (Approx. June and July)
      • Year 2 – One class is held for 8 weeks for 4 hours per week, as described above. The second class is a practicum class that will be a summer-long course (approx. 2 hours per week from the end of May to the end of August)