Master of Arts in Counseling
Are you interested in pursuing a degree in counseling? By nature, those called to a career as a counselor have a strong desire to help others and should be able to inspire respect, trust and confidence. In the human services field, counselors work in diverse community settings providing a variety of counseling, rehabilitation and support services. Their duties vary greatly as there are many specific areas a counselor may choose to specialize in, ranging from arts therapy to trauma counseling, and more.
Ottawa University’s Master of Arts in Counseling (MAC) hybrid degree program includes 39 hours of online core classes along with nine hours of field placement experience that will prepare students to take the state licensure test. Graduates of the MAC program are well-qualified professionals who have advanced their intellectual and academic development and have developed a greater understanding and knowledge of concepts, ideas, and information in the profession through research, examination, inquiry, and application.
Counseling Classes
To streamline the program, Ottawa University's Counseling Masters program is divided into a recommended yearly schedule with the field-placement component consisting of nine semester credit hours, completed in eight terms, for a total of 900 client contact hours. During the field component portion of this program, students will work in a community behavioral health agency for approximately 15 hours per week to gain hands-on experience.
The hybrid MAC degree at OU meets the educational requirements in Arizona for licensure as an associate counselor, and in Wisconsin for licensure as a professional counselor in training. Arizona students have the option of completing concentrated areas of study. The post-master’s Certificates of Advanced Graduate Studies (CAGS) is a program reserved for master’s level professionals who have received a master’s degree in counseling or a related field.
Counseling Concentrations
Graduate students pursuing the Master of Arts in Counseling degree have the opportunity to gain deeper knowledge in a specialty area by completing 12-15 hours in one of four concentrations. You can tailor your MAC degree with one of the following counseling specialties:
• Christian Counseling
• Expressive Arts Therapy
• Gerocounseling
• Treatment of Trauma Abuse & Deprivation
Why Earn a Masters in Counseling?
"Perhaps the greatest benefit to attaining a masters in counseling is that you are choosing a career path in which you help people live better lives. The rewards are fundamental to why one chooses to be a counselor. You will be helping people cope on a daily basis and will often see the results firsthand. In addition to impacting the lives of others and working in a field that you love, you will have the opportunity to explore new challenges and learn new things about yourself." - American Counseling Association
For curriculum and course descriptions please download a program overview.
Related Degrees
Bachelor of Arts in Human Services
Master of Science in Addiction Counseling
Bachelor of Science in Addiction Counseling
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology
Human Service Blog
If you are interested in learning more about the helping profession, then please visit our Human Services Blog Spot.
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For more information about earning your MAC degree at Ottawa University, contact us today!