Rehabilitation Counseling Master's Degree Option

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Program Mission

The primary mission of the rehabilitation counseling emphasis within the Counselor Education program is to train counselors who specialize in providing counseling services to people with disabilities.  As such, we place strong emphasis on the counseling aspects of each student's program of study.

Graduates leave prepared to work as rehabilitation counselors in public and private agencies in a wide variety of settings with a wide variety of clientele, such as persons with physical disabilities, mental retardation, psychiatric disabilities, and alcohol/chemical addiction. Rehabilitation counselors provide and coordinate services to assist people with disabilities to achieve the fullest physical, mental, social, and economic productivity and community integration. Rehabilitation counseling is distinguished from psychology and social work in that attention is paid to vocational placement and independent living as a key part of the helping process.

Highlights of the Rehabilitation Counseling Program

• Of all the accredited master's programs in rehabilitation counseling, Penn State was ranked number 3 by U.S. News & World Report in 2007.
• We are a CORE accredited program, which allows students to sit for the CRC exam in their last semester of study.
• We have been successful in writing Rehabilitation Services Administration grants and often are able to fund students for tuition and a stipend for one year of study.
• Over the past five years, 100% of the graduates of this program have found employment as rehabilitation counselors.
• The Penn State rehabilitation counseling program is one of the oldest programs in the country.
• As a program and a department, we place strong emphasis on multiculturalism and train our students to be culturally aware counselors.

Degrees Offered

Either the M.Ed. or M.S. degree may be earned; the former requires a departmental paper, the latter additional statistics/research courses and a formal thesis. Students are routinely admitted to the M.Ed. program, but may elect the M.S. with their advisor's approval early in their course of study upon presentation of a satisfactory thesis proposal. The master's degree in counselor education with a rehabilitation counseling emphasis is a terminal degree. The program is accredited by the Council on Rehabilitation (CORE), therefore graduates are eligible to take the Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) Exam when 75% of their coursework is completed.

Length of Program

The rehabilitation counseling emphasis is a two-year program, with a fall semester start date. Students are required to complete the 51-credit CORE-accredited program, including a one semester off-campus internship under the supervision of the Program Internship Coordinator (CRC) and an Agency Supervisor (CRC). The internship may be completed in a variety of settings that provide rehabilitation counseling services. Students who wish to work toward counselor licensure may want to take additional courses.

Psychiatric Rehabilitation Program Option

A psychiatric rehabilitation option has been developed that includes the regular program content and two additional courses, REHAB 410 (Psychiatric Rehabilitation) and PSY 412 (Abnormal Psychology). Students who elect this option will also be required to do an internship serving clients with psychiatric disabilities, as well as complete a related master's paper or thesis.

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Department of Counselor Education,
Counseling Psychology, and Rehabilitation Services ©2001

Program Coordinator
Brandon Hunt, Ph.D. [ bbh2@psu.edu ]
327 CEDAR Building, University Park, PA 16802
Phone: (814) 863-2408
Fax: (814) 863-7750