Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling (MA/MHC)
Mission Statement
The MA in Mental Health Counseling (MA/MHC) equips students to integrate professional counseling with a biblical worldview to serve all peoples.
Program Outcomes
Students graduating with a Master of Arts degree in Mental Health Counseling will be able to:
- demonstrate the integration of a Biblical worldview with counseling theory and practice;
- articulate a faith-praxis involving the need for service to underserved client populations;
- demonstrate knowledge of and adherence to cultural competency standards when working with diverse clients;
- demonstrate sufficient knowledge in the field’s core competency areas;
- assess, deliver, and document interventions consistent with current standards of care in the counseling profession;
- demonstrate personal and professional growth as evidenced by critical self-reflection.
Program Objectives
Students graduating from the MA/MHC program will be able to:
- integrate a biblical worldview in counseling theory and practice;
- apply their faith in areas of service to underserved client populations;
- adhere to cultural competency standards when working with the needs of diverse clients;
- display thorough content knowledge in core competency areas in the field of counseling psychology;
- assess, deliver, and document appropriate interventions that are consistent with current standards of care in the counseling profession;
- critically reflect upon their personal growth and refine their counseling skills in order to provide ethical and professional care for clients.
Additional Admissions Requirements
In addition to the General Admissions requirements, an interview with MA/MHC faculty may be required for admission.
Candidacy
In addition to the candidacy requirements outlined in “Academic Policies,” MA/MHC students are required to participate in one semester of group counseling while in residence. This group experience is offered in the summer.
A separate fee is charged for this counseling.
Program Prerequisites
The following courses are program prerequisites for the MA/MHC:
9 semester hours of psychology, including
- General Psychology (3 hours)
- Statistics (3 hours)
- any clinical psychology elective, including therapeutic, personality, abnormal psychology, or any developmental elective (3 hours).
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Common Core Courses | 6 | |
| ID 5001 | Foundations for Integrative Thought | 3 |
| ID 5002 | Foundations for Cultural Engagement | 3 |
| Required Counseling Courses | 27 | |
| MH 5210 | Counseling Skills Training | 3 |
| MH 5310 | Counseling Theories | 3 |
| MH 6110 | Career Counseling | 3 |
| MH 6130 | Group Counseling | 3 |
| MH 6520 | Human Growth and Development | 3 |
| MH 6710 | Psychology and Theology | 3 |
| MH 6720 | Ethics & Issues in Counseling | 3 |
| MH 7210 | Psychological Testing | 3 |
| MH 7900 | Psychological Research Methods | 3 |
| Concentration | 21-27 | |
| Select one of the two concentrations listed below. | ||
| Total Hours | 54-60 | |
Concentrations
Mental Health Counseling (60 credits)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Common Core and Required Counseling Courses | 33 | |
| See course list above. | ||
| Required Concentration Courses | 24 | |
| MH 5120 | Substance Abuse Counseling | 3 |
| MH 5400 | Foundations of Mental Health Counseling | 3 |
| MH 6015 | Community Counseling | 3 |
| MH 6610 | Human Sexuality | 3 |
| MH 6650 | Multicultural Issues in Counseling | 3 |
| MH 7450 | Psychopathology | 3 |
| Participation in Group Counseling Experience | 0 | |
| MH 7961 | Internship in Counseling I | 3 |
| MH 7962 | Internship in Counseling II | 3 |
| Concentration Elective | 3 | |
| Select one course: | ||
| MH 5140 | Principles of Guidance and Counseling | 3 |
| MH 6530 | Child & Adolescent Counseling | 3 |
| MH 6625 | Theoretical Foundations of Marriage & Family Therapy | 3 |
| MH 7140 | Crisis Counseling | 3 |
| MH 7950 | Counseling Practicum | 3 |
| MH 7963 | Advanced Counseling Practicum | 3 |
| MH 8000 | Current Studies in Counseling and Psychology | 1-3 |
| Total Hours | 60 | |
- 1
The State of Florida requires 1,000 internship hours for licensure, a percentage of which may be specified as face-to-face. Students unable to meet this requirement in two semesters of internship can enroll in further onsite work using MH 7950 or MH 7963 as one of the Mental Health Counseling concentration electives.
Guidance and Counseling (54 credits)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Common Core and Required Counseling Courses | 33 | |
| See course list above. | ||
| Required Concentration Courses | 18 | |
| MH 5140 | Principles of Guidance and Counseling | 3 |
| MH 5145 | School Consultation Procedures | 3 |
| MH 6140 | Counseling Exceptional and At-Risk Children | 3 |
| MH 6530 | Child & Adolescent Counseling | 3 |
| Participation in Group Counseling Experience | 0 | |
| MH 6911 | Guidance & Counseling Practicum I | 3 |
| MH 6912 | Guidance & Counseling Practicum II | 3 |
| Concentration Electives | 3 | |
| Select one of the following: | ||
| MH 5120 | Substance Abuse Counseling | 3 |
| MH 6015 | Community Counseling | 3 |
| MH 6610 | Human Sexuality | 3 |
| MH 6625 | Theoretical Foundations of Marriage & Family Therapy | 3 |
| MH 6650 | Multicultural Issues in Counseling | 3 |
| Total Hours | 54 | |
Capstone Options for Students Not Pursuing Licensure
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| MH 7480 | Counseling Psychology Capstone Integrative Paper | 3 |
| MH 7478 | Counseling Psychology Capstone Project | 3 |
| MH 7985 | Counseling Psychology Thesis | 3 |
| MH 7986 | Counseling Psychology Thesis Extension | 0 |
| MH 7910 | Advanced Research Methods | 3 |
| MH 7969 | International Counseling Experience | 3 |
Required Capstone Experience
Students in the MA in the Mental Health Counseling program must meet internship requirements in order to be licensed in the state of Florida. In addition, students in the Guidance and Counseling Concentration must meet the practicum requirements for state certification. Students not pursuing licensure/certification may opt to complete the degree by choosing among three other capstone options: Capstone Project, Capstone Thesis or the International Counseling Experience with the program director’s approval. Students completing the capstone options will need 60 credit hours for graduation in the Mental Health Counseling concentration and 54 hours in the Guidance and Counseling concentration.
However the student chooses to meet the capstone experience requirement, all students must register for course credit for their selected capstone experience in the semester in which they start the capstone. Students making progress toward completion of a capstone but unable to finish in a single semester can apply for a capstone extension. They must then register for MH 7486. Capstone extension fees will be assessed. Students who opt to fulfill the capstone by writing a thesis must also take MH 7910.
The capstone experience must be completed subsequent to candidacy and is supervised by a faculty member. Students opting to write a formal master’s thesis should consult the Mental Health Counseling Program Director for details.
Note
Although all courses can be completed in a distance/hybrid modality, this program cannot be completed entirely in a distance/hybrid modality as it includes field experiences, internships, and/or similar components that may require in-person participation on site.
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology/Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling
The Trinity College Undergraduate Program and Trinity Graduate School (TGS) offer a dual degree Bachelor of Arts/Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling option at Trinity Florida that allows students to take graduate coursework toward the MA in Mental Health Counseling while completing their BA in Psychology. With this accelerated option, students can apply to the MA/MHC program at TGS while still completing an undergraduate degree. Interested students are advised to discuss the program with their advisor as early as possible to allow for expedient course planning and to assure that overlapping course requirements can be planned and scheduled.
Students may apply for the dual degree program upon completion of 70 credit hours with a 3.0 cumulative GPA. A positive recommendation from a TIU instructor capable of assessing their suitability for graduate work is required. This instructor must have had substantial interaction with the student, per the Dean or the Dean's designee. Transfer students may apply for the program if they have 70 hours of undergraduate course work, a positive recommendation from a psychology instructor, and a 3.0 GPA for all transferred college work, including a 3.0 GPA in Trinity coursework.
Approved students will take nine (graduate) credits in the MA/MHC, which, upon completion of those nine credits, will reduce the number of (undergraduate) credits required to complete a bachelor's degree from 120 to 111. This can be accomplished in one or more of the following ways:
- ID 5001 Foundations of Integrative Thought (3 hours) replaces either BI 101 or BI 111 in the general education category Biblical Studies; or 3 hours of undergraduate elective credit.
- ID 5002 Foundations of Cultural Engagement (3 hours) replaces the general education requirement in the category Social Science; or 3 hours of undergraduate elective credit.
- One graduate MHC course (3 hours) replaces 3 hours of undergraduate elective credit.
Or, if a student does not take ID 5001 and/or ID 5002 as an undergraduate, one or two additional MHC courses (3 or 6 credits) replace an additional 3 or 6 hours of undergraduate elective credit.
Thus on completion of the undergraduate degree, students will be approximately a full semester ahead as they continue graduate studies in the MA/MHC program.