Master of Science Counseling: School Counseling 60 Credits | School of Social and Behavioral Sciences | Bronx, Dobbs Ferry & Online

It take 3 years to complete the program if you are a full time student. 

You need to decide what type of counseling you want to do in order to focus your work activities, practicum and internship courses. There are several specialties. First decide whether you wish to pursue school counseling or to counsel in an agency or hospital setting. This will help you decide upon a Master's Degree in School Counseling or a Master's Degree in Mental Health Counseling.

The M.S. in School Counseling will prepare you to become a school counselor in urban and suburban schools. The M.S. in Mental Health Counseling will prepare you to become a mental health counselor in other public and private agencies.

Admission to the graduate program requires:

1. Two professional letters of recommendation,
2. An 800-1000-word personal statement answering the following questions:
   1. What does it mean to be a school counselor?
   2. What influenced you to want to be a school counselor?
   3. What are your three biggest strengths?
   4. Your three biggest challenges?
   5. How will your strengths and challenges impact you as a student in the school counseling program and as a future school counselor? (If your GPA is below a 3.0, this must be one of your challenges that you discuss.)
   6. What influenced you to apply to Mercy College?
3. A résumé,
4. Completion of a baccalaureate degree or its equivalent from an approved institution,
5. An undergraduate cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above (on a 4.0 scale).

If you do not meet all these requirements you may be admitted on a provisional basis until you have demonstrated your ability to do adequate graduate-level work by earning grades of B or better in at least the first 18 credits.

No. Certification is done by specific certifying bodies like the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC). Licensure is established by individual states. Some states (such as Virginia and Tennessee) require 60 graduate hours for licensure. However, most of these will allow you to graduate with a 48 credit degree, and then take 12 post-graduate credits. You should read the licensing law for the state(s) in which you wish to become licensed to ensure that your academic work will meet those requirements.

Level I (Basic foundational knowledge, theories and skills): 18 Credits

Level II (Intermediate pre-internship prep, social basis of behavior and assessment):  24 Credits

Level III (Advanced specialty concentration and internship): 18 Credits

Total: 60 Credits

For a full curriculum listing visit our catalog. 

Download a copy of the sequence map for:

• 2020 - 2021 M.S. Counseling Sequence Map

ARCHIVE

• 2019 - 2020 M.S. Counseling Sequence Map
• 2018 - 2019 M.S. Counseling Sequence Map
• 2017 - 2018 M.S. Counseling Sequence Map

Graduates of the Master of Science in School Counseling will be prepared to assume a professional school counseling role in a school setting. Graduates will be expected to do the following:

1. Identify and apply the American School Counseling Association standards to qualify for certification as a School Counselor in New York State.
2. Demonstrate mastery of Human Growth and Development, Social and Cultural Foundations, Theories of Counseling, Groups, Lifestyle and Career Development, Appraisal, Research and Program Evaluation, and Professional Orientation and Ethics.
3. Identify, explain, and respond to concerns, issues, and challenges relevant to today’s students.
4. Define, explain, and apply counseling, assessment, advocacy, prevention, and intervention techniques to assist students.
5. Apply current knowledge and research from social and behavioral sciences, including the use of technology, to the practice of counseling in a school setting.
6. Identify and explain the impact of cultural diversity on counseling techniques and make appropriate applications.

ATTN School Counseling Students:

The New York State Department of Education has approved a new regulation for school counselor preparation programs that goes into effect Fall 2021. The program will move from 48 to 60 credit hours. This changes the certification requirements as well. If students have met all requirements for provisional certification before 2/1/2023, but have not completed their preparation program, and they wish to be provisionally certified, they must apply for certification through the Office of Teaching Initiatives- Individual Evaluation pathway. Therefore, those who enter into the program Summer/Fall 2020, then will be required to adhere to the new regulation standards, if they are unable to be provisionally certified by Feb 1, 2023.

Please click here for more information.

• Baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university with a grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 or higher.  Applicants with a GPA lower than 3.0 may be considered for provisional acceptance. 
• Two (2) detailed written letters of recommendation from instructors in the major area of study or professional contacts. One letter must be from a professor.
• An up-to-date Resume
• In an 800-1000-word personal statement, please address the following questions:
  • What does it mean to be a school counselor?
  • What influenced you to want to be a school counselor?
  • What are your three biggest strengths? Your three biggest challenges? How will your strengths and challenges impact you as a student in the school counseling program and as a future school counselor? If your GPA is below a 3.0, this must be one of your challenges that you discuss.
  • What influenced you to apply to Mercy College?