Lead with Knowledge, Ethics, & Empathy
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See Courses & Program Info
View a complete list of program courses; eligibility requirements; field experience details; NCE, LGPC, and LCPC information; and more.
Review the program-specific admission requirements carefully, as you’ll need to meet certain eligibility requirements and submit documentation to be considered for admission to the program.
Program Admission Requirements
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Experience Recommended for Success
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This program requires a total of 60 credits. You'll begin by taking an Onboarding Program Orientation before starting your coursework.
- Required foundation courses: 12 credits
- Required core courses: 39 credits
- Elective courses: 9 credits
Foundation Courses
- CNSL 604
- CNSL 606
- CNSL 611
- CNSL 612
Core Courses
- CNSL 614
- CNSL 621
- CNSL 622
- CNSL 624
- CNSL 626
- CNSL 627
- CNSL 628
- CNSL 631
- CNSL 632
- CNSL 633
- CNSL 690
- CNSL 691
- CNSL 692
Elective Courses
You’ll need to take three elective courses (for a total of 9 credits) from our approved list in the "Select Clinical Professional Counseling Electives” section.
This program requires a total of 9 elective credits. To fulfill this requirement, take three courses from the following approved list:
- CNSL 634
- CNSL 641
- CNSL 643
- CNSL 644
- CNSL 648
- CNSL 651
- CNSL 653
- CNSL 661
- CNSL 663
- CNSL 668
- CNSL 671
- CNSL 673
- CNSL 678
- CNSL 681
- CNSL 683
- CNSL 685
- CNSL 687
- CNSL 688
- CNSL 689
- CNSL 693
- CNSL 694
- CNSL 696
The clinical professional counseling program requires 100 hours of supervised clinical field experiences embodied in practicum and 300 hours in each of two internships. These experiences are devoted to practicing specific clinical skills, including interviewing, assessment, intervention, documentation, and consultation in clinics, agencies, and other organizations that provide clinical mental health counseling services.
You will pursue site experiences that can provide the types of activities, numbers of clients, and supervision needed to meet counseling degree fieldwork requirements, as well as any specific fieldwork requirements of your state licensure board. We recommend that you familiarize yourself with the licensure and supervised fieldwork requirements for your state.
Course Progression & Prerequisites
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General Master's Degree Requirements
- You must maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher at all times.
- All degree requirements must be fulfilled within five consecutive years.
- Any transfer credits must have been earned within the above five-year time frame to be applied toward a graduate degree.
- Please review the overall master’s degree requirements for additional considerations.
All aspects of the courses and practicum have been designed to align with Masters in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council (MPCAC) 2024 accreditation standards. However, at the present time the CPC program is not eligible for accreditation. The program will seek accreditation from MPCAC once MPCAC's standard of a minimum of four graduates within the prior two years has been achieved. In addition, this program has been carefully designed to meet the requirements for licensure as a professional counselor in Maryland, but students are encouraged to contact the MD Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists directly to determine if other requirements are necessary. Maryland does not require accreditation by MPCAC or CACREP to be eligible for licensure.
Gain Guided Experience in Mental Health & Counseling Services
This program is designed to help learners like you become clinical professional counselors equipped with therapeutic, progressive diagnostic, and consultative skills. We aim to promote personal and professional growth through coursework and supervised field experiences, enhancing your ability to deliver client-centered, culturally responsive, and ethically competent mental health counseling services.
Our program focuses on helping students achieve the following:
18%
Job Growth
Employment for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors is projected to grow 18 percent by 2032, much faster than the average for all occupations.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics | Occupational Outlook Handbook | Last Reviewed: April 30, 2024
122M
Residents Without Care
More than 122 million U.S. residents (more than a third of the population) live in areas with a shortage of mental health counseling professionals.
Source: Health Resources & Services Administration | “Health Workforce Shortage Areas” | Last Reviewed: April 30, 2024
3K
Clinical Hours Needed
The Maryland Department of Health requires 3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience in professional mental health counseling over three years for master’s-level applicants.
Source: Maryland Department of Health: Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists | “Professional Counselors” | Last Reviewed: April 30, 2024
Practice Real-World Skills in Your Coursework
Throughout the online master's degree program, your instructors will assign coursework that will help you prioritize real-world skills and hands-on experiences. You may engage in course projects that include the following:
- Interviewing practicing mental health counselors that work in different contexts (e.g., school, community, private practice) gaining insights into their use of assessment tools and current trends in the field of practice.
- Role-playing and simulations, readying you to conduct intake interviews or create treatment plans.
- Experiential modules like mock counseling sessions and group exercises that help you apply what you learn in a practical context.
- Program evaluations, working collaboratively with classmates to evaluate, analyze, and generate actionable recommendations for program enhancement.
- Case studies that apply professional standards and develop ethical decision-making
Explore UMGC Insights
Gain insight and delve deeper into a range of topics, including clinical mental health counseling, mental health and wellness, psychology, student networking, and more.
FAQs
Get answers to questions that current and prospective students are asking about program-specific admission, credibility, taking courses in counseling online, and more.
The online master's degree in clinical professional counseling is a career-focused graduate program that is designed to prepare you to meet the growing need for clinical mental health counseling professionals in community, business, and school counseling settings.
In this 60-credit online program, you’ll benefit from a counseling degree curriculum that begins with a self-paced onboarding course and continues to help you build career-focused skills in professional orientation, applied counseling theory and techniques, human development, and multicultural/diversity knowledge and awareness.
You will also build knowledge in advanced theory, application, and techniques that incorporate psychopathology and diagnosis, group clinical mental health counseling, and research methods and program evaluation. Specialized and elective courses will help you focus on specific subject areas, including substance use and dependency; career development; behavioral disorders; and marriage, couples, and family therapy.
Be sure to check with your state's licensure board for any additional information about clinical mental health counseling careers in your state and any requirements you must meet after successful completion of this program.
As a 60-credit graduate program, UMGC's online master's degree in clinical professional counseling is one of our larger programs. If you take 12 credits of coursework each fall and spring term and 6 credits in the summer, you may be able to graduate in two and a half years. With a more conservative approach of 9 credits each fall and spring term and 6 credits in the summer, you may be able to graduate in less than three and a half years.
These estimates can change depending on how many credits you complete each term and the number of credits you may be able to transfer to UMGC.
Please note that you will have to pursue professional experience after successful completion of the program to receive licensure. Be sure to check with your state's licensure board for any additional details.
UMGC is committed to keeping our tuition and fees as affordable as possible. The online master's in clinical professional counseling follows the standard graduate program tuition rates, which appear at the top of this webpage. We also offer scholarships for eligible students and an interest-free monthly payment plan.
Costs associated with textbook rentals, purchases, and special technology needs will be minimized when possible, and should be expected by learners of this program. As a professional preparatory program, the need for specialized content that is current and aligns with professional standards of practice is essential.
You don't need to have majored in a specific area to be successful in the online master's degree in clinical counseling program at UMGC. However, you will need to meet specific admission requirements to be accepted into this counseling program and also pass a background check to complete supervised fieldwork during practicum and internships.
Plus, previous coursework (e.g., introductory psychology, introductory statistics, research methods, and lifespan development) or experiences in related helping professions may be beneficial. These experiences will familiarize yourself with course concepts and professional counseling environments in different industries.
All program-specific admission requirements and recommended experiences are listed in the counseling degree courses section of this page.