Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health CounselingMaster of Science

The Master of Science (M.S.) in clinical mental health counseling at Lynn University is accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), 1001 North Fairfax Street, Suite 510, Alexandria, VA 22314, +1 703-535-5990.

Lynn University offers an M.S. in clinical mental health counseling. Students enrolled in the M.S. in clinical mental health counseling (CMHC) can earn their 61-credit degree in two or more years of coursework taken year-round during the fall, spring and summer semesters. Entry into this program is annually in the fall semester. Full-time enrollment in this program is defined by a minimum of 9-credits per semester. The program is offered in both on-campus and online synchronous formats. On-campus students can elect to take a maximum of 6 courses online while the remaining (14) are taken on-campus. Online synchronous students will take a minimum of two on-campus courses in residency/intensive weekend formats while the remaining courses (18) are taken online.

Admission into the program is competitive and requires an interview with the clinical mental health counseling program admissions committee, which is comprised of program faculty. Students will be evaluated and admitted based on their: aptitude for graduate-level study; relevance of career goals; potential for developing effective counseling relationships; responsiveness and sensitivity to cultural issues; and prior academic performance. The clinical mental health counseling program makes continuous and systematic efforts to attract and enroll a diverse body of students. Students will engage need to engage in online and digital interactions throughout the program.

The program provides various opportunities to meet student needs and to foster an environment of inclusivity through faculty-student research projects, scholarly endeavors, attaining sites with varying specializations and mindful admissions decisions. Students enrolled in the clinical mental health counseling program are provided with a faculty mentor and an academic advisor. Students are taught primarily by core faculty with the assistance of experts in the fields of research, individual assessment, neuroscience, experimental psychology, developmental psychology, cognitive psychology and personality psychology.

During the final year of the program, students enroll in three full semesters of fieldwork experience, at which time they have the opportunity to train as counselors in mental health agencies. Substantial resources are invested in enhancing the learning environment and improving professional skills development. The program’s faculty and students have a multitude of teaching and learning resources at their disposal specific to the field and related specialties.

The clinical mental health counseling program at Lynn University provides education, training and practice for individuals who are motivated to become professional counselors. The program follows the tenets of the field of counseling and trains students to become effective counselors from a strengths-based, competency-based orientation. Counselors are helping professionals who are trained to assess, diagnose and treat clients dealing with a range of issues from minor life challenges to mental disorders. Effective counselors develop a strong therapeutic relationship with clients and work collaboratively to identify and build on clients’ strengths and resources.

The Master of Science (M.S.) in clinical mental health counseling (CMHC) prepares students interested in working with clients individually, with couples, families or groups to address social, personal, emotional, vocational and educational issues. The 61-credit hour program includes coursework designed to meet national accreditation standards and licensure requirements in the state of Florida. The program can also prepare students for licensure in other states or countries. Students are encouraged to research those requirements for any states or regions for which they are seeking licensure. Students will have the opportunity to work in a variety of settings, including community mental health agencies, substance abuse treatment centers, family and group counseling centers, and schools, among others.

1. It meets educational requirements for licensure as a mental health counselor in the state of Florida
2. Students have the opportunity to sit for the certification exam to become a nationally certified counselor (NCC)
3. It offers opportunities to gain experience and intern with mental health agencies
4. It enables students to work in the counseling field upon graduation
5. The program has an accelerated track that allows students to complete the program in two years

Students accepted to the graduate program in clinical mental health counseling may have the opportunity to apply for graduate assistantships within the department and throughout the university.

Students in the program may have the ability to become a licensed mental health counselor (LMHC) in the state of Florida or a similar license according to location. Students interested in pursuing licensure or postgraduate employment are responsible for researching the specific requirements to attain these outcomes. As employment requirements and licensing requirements do change, it is incumbent upon students to be aware of the individual situations that make them eligible or ineligible for licensure.

The CMHC program aims to meet the objectives of preparing students for the field of professional counseling. We train students to be prepared to meet goals within the domains of knowledge, skills and attitudes. See the CMHC annual report for outcomes of goals and objectives.

To prepare students with the content knowledge required for certification, licensure and to achieve success in their professional endeavors.

• Demonstrate an understanding of the history, identity, credentialing and current issues related to the counseling profession.
• Describe the influence of gender, race, age, ethnicity, culture, SES, religion, sexual orientation, and disabilities in counseling research and practice.
• Describe a range of core issues in the development of the lifespan, including basic theoretical and methodological concepts, such as lifespan theories of development including physical, intellectual, moral and social development.
• Examine career development and build competencies for assisting individuals with career planning and decision-making, including the use of assessment instruments and interventions.
• Articulate counseling interventions and acquire basic counseling skills, including building rapport and treating individuals with trauma, developmental issue and other mental health challenges.
• Examine and apply group therapy models and associated techniques.
• Demonstrate the capacity to assess, evaluate, and diagnose, as well as provide appropriate assessment feedback to an individual via administering, scoring, interpreting and implementing selected educational and psychological assessment methods.
• Describe the theoretical and practical interpretations of qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection and program analysis in counseling research and programs.

To provide didactic and experiential opportunities for students to assess, conceptualize, diagnose and treat individuals, groups and families from a strengths-based perspective unique to the counseling profession.

• Demonstrate the capacity to assess clients in a clinical setting.
• Apply a model of case conceptualization to clients in a clinical setting.
• Provide accurate diagnoses for clients in a clinical setting.
• Develop and implement a treatment plan for clients in a clinical setting.

To train students who become professional counselors to practice within ethical, legal, multicultural, social justice and advocacy competency guidelines of the profession.

• Demonstrate behaviors commensurate with ethical guidelines of the profession as outlined by the American Counseling Association.
• Demonstrate behaviors within the legal guidelines of the profession as outlined by the state of Florida.
• Demonstrate behaviors within the multicultural and social justice guidelines of the profession as outlined by the American Counseling Association.
• Demonstrate behaviors commensurate with advocacy competencies as defined by joining a professional counseling advocacy group.

To promote student understanding and awareness of self and others within the therapeutic relationship.

• Examine interpersonal and intrapersonal experiences in experiential and fieldwork courses.
• Develop and monitor a self-care action plan as a counselor-in-training.
• Monitor own performance of clinical practice through client and supervisor feedback.

Clinical mental health counseling core faculty members include Debra Ainbinder, Lucinda Bratini, Ali Cunningham and Robert Freund, Jonathan Sperry. Full time affiliate faculty is Tracy Baker.

• Core faculty members earned their terminal degrees from CACREP accredited counseling and counselor education programs.
• Core faculty identify as counselors and counselor educators, attend counseling-related conferences and research within the field.
• Affiliate faculty are full-time faculty who teach in the CMHC program based upon their areas of expertise in experimental psychology, developmental psychology and neuroscience.
• Faculty collaborate with other research institutions such as Penn State University and Florida Atlantic University.

1. Students must complete the required course curriculum. Satisfactory completion of these courses must be in compliance with university Academic Standards for Graduate Work as well as Program Competency Standards (See Statement of Competence below).
2. In order to move on to Practicum/Internship, students will need to have the endorsement of the faculty and appropriate evaluations on the Professional Performance Evaluation instrument and successfully complete the Practicum Entrance Exam.
3. Students must satisfactorily complete the experiential components of their curriculum based upon the standards outlined in the CMHC Student Handbook, the Practicum/Internship Handbook, and the university Academic Standards for Graduate Work.
4. Students must satisfactorily complete a standardized exit exam and skills-based exit exam commensurate with all program expectations and policies. No graduate degree will be conferred without the satisfactory completion of the exit exams.

In graduate work, the grade earned in a course not only represents a grade but is also a symbol of competence in the field. It is for this reason that the master’s in clinical mental health counseling has instituted a competence requirement for satisfactory completion of a course. This requirement is stated as achieving a grade consistent with knowledge at the 80 percent threshold (on a 100 percent scale) or higher in a course. This competency requirement applies to a course deemed essential for counseling professionals. Students who do not achieve this level of competency are considered to be lacking in the necessary competency for this course and are required to retake the course until they can document appropriate competence (defined as at least a grade of 80 percent). The courses to which this competency requirement applies are:

CSL 510 PROFESSIONAL COUNSELING IDENTITY AND ISSUES
CSL 520 PSYCHOPATHOLOGY
CSL 605 PRACTICUM IN COUNSELING
CSL 610 COUNSELING THEORIES
CSL 615 GROUP THEORIES
CSL 640 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL FOUNDATIONS
CSL 660 TRAUMA AND COMMUNITY COUNSELING
CSL 690 LEGAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES IN COUNSELING
CSL 680 TECHNIQUES AND INTERVENTIONS IN COUNSELING
CSL 681 DIAGNOSIS AND ADVANCED COUNSELING TECHNIQUES
CSL 685 CAREER DEVELOPMENT
CSL 695 INTERNSHIP IN COUNSELING I
CSL 700 INTERNSHIP IN COUNSELING II

In the State of Florida, the current requirements and process for licensure as a mental health counselor (LMHC) can be found in the Florida Board of Mental Health Counseling's website and may include:

1. 60-credit master’s degree from a CACREP accredited program or a degree that includes 700 hours of fieldwork at an approved site.
2. Upon graduation, students register as a Mental Health Intern with the state of Florida. This is post master’s and must be completed by the student. Part of this process includes verification of practicum and internship hours through a letter generated by the Registrar’s office at the university.
3. Students may need copies of their syllabi or course descriptions from the Academic Catalog. This may be true when attempting to become licensed in other states as well.
4. In the state of Florida, once students are Registered Mental Health Counseling Interns, they must complete a minimum of two years post-graduate work under appropriate supervision. Students must check with the Licensing Board for details and specifics on these requirements.
5. During this two-year post-master's clinical experience, students will have the opportunity to sit for the state-approved licensing exam.
6. Upon successful completion of all licensing requirements, students may be approved by the state board and offered a license as a mental health counselor.
   

The program may not prepare students for licensure in other U.S. states or countries. Although academic preparation is similar, licensure requirements do vary state by state. Together with CMHC program faculty, students will explore information on licensure requirements in other states to aid in their preparation.

International students on an F-1 visa are eligible to work in the U.S. for up to 12 months after they complete their degree through Optional Practical Training (OPT). Currently, the length of OPT cannot be extended past 12 months for international students in this degree program.