The School Counseling program at the Rockland Graduate Campus is dedicated to producing school counselors who are competent, caring, and knowledgeable about current issues and trends in the counseling profession. When they finish the master’s degree, students will be eligible for New York State certification in School Counseling. The program includes structured internship experiences in the local schools, where faculty members foster close relationships with area school teachers and administrators. The Department of Counseling and Development espouses the standards and ethics put forth by the American Counseling Association, the New York Counseling Association, and the Westchester/Putnam/Rockland Counseling Association.

The faculty is composed of professionals who are experienced in their field and have the appropriate academic credentials. The entire faculty is active in professional organizations. The goal of the faculty is to provide an education which is academically grounded in current theory and practice but which places students first. As a result of this priority, faculty and students work closely together in a collaborative and supportive learning environment. Faculty members are available to students for individual guidance and take pride in the role they play as professional mentors.

We are proud of our institution and program, and if you think your future includes a career in School Counseling then we hope you will consider our program. Please contact me if you have any questions.

Dr. Linda Rosen
Program Director
Linda.Rosen@liu.edu

• Program Description
• Admissions Policies
• Degree Requirements
• Course Descriptions
• Faculty

back to top

ADMISSIONS POLICIES

back to top

back to top

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

EDC 600 Introduction to Professional Counseling
This is the basic course for counseling in schools, colleges, and mental health agencies and explains the role of the professional counselor. The course focuses on the student as a person and as a potential counselor. The changing world of the counselor is also the world of the developing client. Forces contributing to the variable and emerging culture of values, societal norms, and individual choices are examined in relation to the developmental world of young persons and adults and to the practices, philosophies, and principles of the institutions with which counselors are associated.
Three credits.

EDC 610 Behavior Dynamics Over the Life Span
Offered on rotation
This course explores the dynamics of human behavior over the life span, including healthy adjustment verses maladjustment at each stage of life. The major models describing human behavior and the causes of mental illness are examined. The classification of mental illness and adjustment disorders according to the DSM IV are discussed and illustrated.
Three credits.

EDC 613 Diversity and Socio-Cultural Issues in Counseling
Offered on rotation
Major contributions of sociology and anthropology will be examined with a view to understanding the role of sociocultural factors in human development and behavior. This course will also examine the impact of the diversity of our society, of the sociocultural viewpoint on contemporary concepts of adaptive and maladaptive human behavior, and related mental health issues.
Three credits.

EDC 614 Developmental Counseling with Children
Prerequisite: EDC 600
Offered on rotation
This course will focus on understanding the principles and rationale of developmental counseling with children from a multicultural perspective. Students will become familiar with the three main functions of the developmental counselor: counseling, consulting, and coordinating. Students will be made aware of the kits, games, audiovisual material, and special programs used by the developmental counselor. In addition to an overview of developmental stages and developmental tasks which children face, the course will include exploration and experimentation with various and unique methods used in developmental counseling.
Three credits.

EDC 615 Theories of Counseling
Prerequisites or corequisites: EDC 600 and EDC 610
Offered on rotation
This is the basic course in counseling theories and techniques and their application within a multicultural and diverse society. Students will gain an understanding of the major theories of counseling and psychotherapy (e.g., psychoanalytic, person-centered, behavioral, existential, gestalt, reality, cognitive-behavioral, family systems, etc.) In addition, the counselor as a person and professional will be explored, as well as ethical issues in counseling and therapy.
Three credits.

EDC 659 Counseling for the College Admission and Selection Process
Offered on rotation
This course is designed to provide systematic training in counseling for the college admission and selection process. Graduate students and those who are already in the field will be introduced to concepts and practical skills required for competency in working with diverse populations: the traditionally aged college student applicant, the disadvantaged, the minority student, the gifted, the learning disabled, the student athlete, and the adult. The course will consist of lectures, presentations, cooperative and group learning activities, video viewings, class discussions, and "hands-on" type of activities designed to enhance knowledge of the college admission and selection process. College admission personnel and school counselors will be invited as guest presenters.
Three credits.

EDC 668 Counseling Pre-Practicum
Prerequisites or corequisites: EDC 600, EDC 610 and EDC 615
Offered on rotation
This is the basic counseling laboratory course designed to provide supervised practical counseling experience from a life span and multicultural perspective that can be applied in the school setting. Students will learn the basics in terms of the active listening skills and the use of appropriate counseling techniques through role-play and other activities. Students must have seven actual tape-recorded role playing sessions with another student in the course who will act as the client and/or another person (discretion of the professor); interview summaries, detailed analyses, and other relevant counseling experiences are part of the course. Orientation to the role of the professional counselor and ethical concerns will be discussed. Professional liability insurance, available from ACA and other professional associations, is mandatory.
Three credits.

EDC 669 Counseling Practicum
Prerequisite: EDC 668; Pre-requisite or Co-requisite: EDC 687
This course is an in-depth counseling laboratory course designed to provide supervised practical counseling experience from a life span and multi-cultural perspective through successful completion of 100 hours of to wit: sixty (60) hours of observation, interaction, and supervision at a school or mental health agency site; thirty (30) hours of direct service via individual and group counseling to clients at that site; and ten (10) hours off site with clients who will be audio-taped. The purpose of the sixty hours, which can be interspersed throughout the semester, is to acclimate the practicum students to the environment in which the counseling experience occurs. Interview summaries, detailed analyses, and other relevant counseling experiences are a part of this course. Again, it must be emphasized that Practicum students in 669 must provide forty (40) hours of direct service to clients of which thirty (30) hours take place at a school or agency site and ten (10) hours are provided to non-site clients. With on-site clients, practicum students are to document and describe each individual and group counseling experience, which are to be shared with the cooperating counselor and reflected in the logs given to the University professor. These clients are supervised by and remain the primary responsibility of the cooperating counselor. The remaining ten (10) hours with non-site clients are audio-recorded and shared only with the University professor and the other students in EDC 669. Practicum students meet in group seminar with the University professor every week. In addition, the University professor provides an hour of individual or triadic supervision (i.e., professor and two students), the time for which is built into this six (6) credit course. While the professor and the two students are interacting, the other practicum students observe the supervision being given by the professor. After the triadic supervision occurs, the observing students will be asked to offer their comments and suggestions, immediately after the triadic supervision or during the group class. The appropriate roles of the professional counselor, based upon the Ethical Guidelines of the American Counseling Association, are covered. This course is also designed to develop and extend the student’s understanding and competencies begun in 668, Counseling Pre-Practicum. This course must be completed prior to taking EDC 683, Counseling Internship I. Health insurance is mandatory.
Six credits.

EDC 670 Educational Tests and Measurements
This is a survey course in the principles and practices of testing and assessment used in schools. After a quick look at the concepts of educational statistics, and the underlying mathematical basis of standardized tests, the student will examine the most widely used tests and assessments that he/she will be expected to know and understand in the K-12 setting: achievement tests, interest inventories, aptitude and intelligence measures. In addition, time will be devoted to the New York State Learning Standards, and the assessments which will accompany the higher graduation requirements.
Three credits.

EDC 676 Career Development
This course in an in-depth study of theories and emerging patterns in career development counseling. Attention is given to psychological, sociological, economic, and education dynamics. Emphasis is placed on practical counseling techniques at the various stages of development, and on the effect that career choices, problems and solutions have on members of the family system. Data from sociology and anthropology will be used to understand psychological issues of career and employment as they make an impact on the family.
Three credits.

EDC 690 Counseling Internship I
Prerequisites: EDC 614, EDC 669
Offered on rotation
This course is designed for students in the latter part of the graduate program, after having taken considerable theory and course work in the counseling process. The student is required to attend seminar meetings, to prepare weekly logs directed toward observation, insight, and evaluation of activities in the field setting. Related professional readings and development of an action or research project are also required. The student is expected to develop a counseling caseload, participate in group work, attend staff meetings, and meet with the field supervisor for evaluation. A minimum of 300 hours in a counseling setting, appropriate to the student’s specialization, is required. Health insurance required for Mental Health Counseling students.
Three credits.

EDC 691 Counseling Internship II
Prerequisite: EDC 690
Offered on rotation
A second semester internship required for counseling students. Course content and time requirements are the same as for EDC 683. Health insurance required for Mental Health Counseling students.
Three credits.

EDC 687 Group Approaches: Theories and Practice
Offered on rotation
This course will help prospective counselors and practicing counselors understand the dynamics of therapeutic forces within a counseling group, to facilitate changes in their clients’ behavior, and to help clients learn to assist themselves. Evaluative techniques and research findings are considered.
Three credits.

EDC 689 Group Counseling Laboratory
Prerequisite: EDC 687
Offered on rotation
Goals of the Course: This course requires student demonstration of accepted and appropriate practice and procedure in supervised professional group counseling methods and experiences. The course presumes familiarity and understanding of the dynamics of therapeutic forces within a counseling group, the ability to assist in self-awareness and discovery, and the competence to facilitate change. Although theory will be reviewed, it is the practice in effective group counseling leadership that will be the focus and goal of this course. Professional reading, viewing of group counseling videotapes, and analysis and evaluation of group sessions are used. Students will lead a minimum of two but preferable three group sessions.
3 credits Pass/Fail only

EDC 702 Research Methods in Counseling
Offered on rotation
This course is an overview of basic principles in human relations, covering what a counselor should know in order to understand case studies and to evaluate his or her own work and the studies reported by all in the field. Various types of research designs are covered and students will develop a research proposal during the course. The emphasis is practical.
Three credits.

EDC 700 Independent Study
Offered on rotation
Independent study involves in-depth development of a project idea as an area of study in a previous course. Permission to take this course is based on the merit of the proposed study and the needs and background of the student. Permission requires the signature of the faculty member sponsoring the study, the Department Chair, and the Dean of the School of Education. Hours arranged.
One, Two or Three credits.