Our dedication to Racial Equality and Social Justice (RESJ) spans decades. Learn more about our RESJ Initiative
School Adjustment & Mental Health Counseling
-
Credits for Licensure:
60
-
Credits:
60
-
Degree:
Master of Education
Program Description
Prepare for careers in mental health counseling working with PreK-12 students and their families in schools and clinical settings. The School Adjustment and Mental Health Counseling program emphasizes the use of evidence-based counseling strategies and features extensive real-world training experiences. Graduates will be ready to meet the licensing standards of the Massachusetts Board of Allied Mental Health and Human Services Professionals and the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
What Is Mental Health Counseling?
Mental health counseling is a rapidly growing field that involves helping people to achieve mental and emotional well-being. A school adjustment counselor, also known as a school social worker, focuses on the mental health needs of students, working one-on-one with at-risk students, or with groups of students.
Cambridge College School Adjustment and Mental Health Counseling Program Highlights
Designed for working professionals, the School Adjustment and Mental Health Counseling program at Cambridge College offers a flexible, affordable option for earning your master’s degree.
- Hands-on career training. Gain real-world professional preparation through extensive research opportunities, internships, and field placements based on Massachusetts state standards for school adjustment counseling.
- Flexible class options. Earn your master’s degree while balancing work and family time. Cambridge College offers flexible day, evening, weekend, and online course options designed to meet the needs of adult learners.
- Experienced faculty. Work closely with expert faculty who bring diverse research and professional school counseling experience to the program.
- Exceptional value. Earn your master’s degree without breaking your budget. Cambridge College is one of the most affordable four-year private nonprofit colleges in the nation, offering world-class education and low tuition.
- Convenient locations. All of our classroom locations are close to public transportation and/or offer free parking for students.
Cambridge College welcomes more than 300 students from over 50 different countries around the world and was recently ranked as one of the Most Ethnically Diverse Colleges in America by Best College Reviews.
- Addictions Counseling Concentration: Learn more.
- Rehabilitation Counseling Concentration: Learn more.
- Trauma Studies Concentration: Learn more.
School and Mental Health Counseling Learning Outcomes
This program prepares you to work with students, families, schools, and community personnel, providing knowledge and practical skills related to:
- Therapeutic relationships
- Normal and abnormal intellectual, social, and emotional development
- Learning disorders and emotional issues affecting student achievement
- State-of-the-art diagnostic instruments, procedures for testing, and interpreting results
- Medical conditions and medication related to physical disabilities and learning disorders
- Prevention and treatment strategies for substance abuse, physical and sexual abuse, and violence in PreK-12 students
- Laws and regulations pertaining to the legal rights of students and families
Jobs in School Counseling and Mental Health Counseling
Graduates are prepared to meet the licensing standards of the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Allied Mental Health Professionals and the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. In addition, graduates may apply for the following credentials:
- School Social Worker/School Adjustment Counselor (all levels). Program approved by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education as preparation for initial licensure.
- Mental health counseling licensure by the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Allied Mental Health Professionals. Candidates must also pass an exam and complete two years of post-master’s supervised clinical practice.
- Students completing the Alcohol/Drug concentration are eligible for CADAC certification by MBSACC and LADC licensing by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
School Adjustment and Mental Health Counseling
Example School Adjustment and Mental Health Counseling Courses
The School Adjustment and Mental Health Counseling program trains mental health professionals to work with PreK-12 students and their families in schools and clinical settings. The curriculum includes courses such as:
- Rogerian Person-Centered Therapy: Basic Counseling Skills
- Perspectives in Cross Cultural Counseling
- School Adjustment/Mental Health Internship Seminar
- Field Experience
Download the School Adjustment and Mental Health Counseling program sheet.
Related Programs at Cambridge College
If you’re still exploring degree options, you might be interested in learning more about these programs at Cambridge College:
Curriculum
The course sequence below is highly recommended. Take 2-4 courses/term (not including 0-credit courses).
See also program pdf for internship courses and sequence options. Prior to enrolling in the SAC internship, students must complete 75 hours of directed field-based training in a school site, achieved through successful completion of CCP 698 Pre-Practicum Readiness Seminar (0 credit).
Students electing Addictions Counseling or Trauma Studies take only one school adjustment elective.
This course provides an experiential approach to career development for mental health, school and rehabilitation counselors to support clients with and without disabilities across the lifespan in both individual and group settings. Orientation to key assessment instruments, online resources, labor market information, transferable skills analysis, job placement strategies and work-related supports will be made to support the career guidance process and to develop comprehensive plans of action for clients.
This course addresses the following Massachusetts State Standard for School Counseling: i. Career counseling.
For Rehabilitation concentration, take a concentration course instead of CCP638.
Students may take both CCP522 Pre-Internship Clinical Skills and CCP524 Pre-Internship Supervision Laboratory instead of CCP520.
CCP698A must be taken in the term prior to enrolling in CCP792A.
Registration in this course is a prerequisite to field experience. This 0-credit course triggers Tevera fee and student access.
This course is designed to prepare students in the Mental Health, School Adjustment, and School Counseling programs to lead psychoeducational and/or counseling groups for children and adolescents. Class lectures and experiential activities will provide a theoretical and practical framework for organizing and leading theme-oriented counseling groups in school and community mental health settings. Readings will provide students with different theoretical perspectives on working with groups as well as the practical tasks in managing and working with school age youngsters in a group setting. Designing curriculum for the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, physical and sexual abuse, and violence as well as numerous other topics will be reviewed. The course explores counseling issues and provides specific techniques and strategies that are developmentally appropriate and applicable to the school/community settings. Application of ethical standards and legal requirements unique to counseling children and adolescents is included.
This course addresses the following Massachusetts state standards for school adjustment counseling: a. principles of therapeutic relationships. b. theories of normal and abnormal intellectual, social and emotional development. d: Prevention and treatment of substance abuse, physical and sexual abuse, and violence in PreK-12 students.
This course addresses the following Massachusetts state standards for school counseling: f. knowledge of strategies used for the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, physical and sexual abuse, the spectrum of mental illnesses, and violence in PreK-12 students. e. theories of normal and abnormal intellectual, social and emotional development. l. group counseling and group leadership.
Registration in this course is a prerequisite to field experience. This 0-credit course triggers Tevera fee and student access.
Please note: Take CCP 561 or CCP 715.
Prerequisites: CCP520, passing scores on MTEL Communication and Literacy Exams.
(enrollment limited to 10.) This course is for students in the School Adjustment/Mental Health program who are in their first semester of an approved ESE/SAC School Internship. This course focuses on students’ mental health counseling practice which is conducted in an approved school setting. A minimum of 225 hours of internship experience are required under the supervision of a qualified supervisor (Massachusetts Regulations 262 CMR) and must also have ESE licensure as a School Adjustment Counselor. Goal(s) for each student will be established with their College internship instructor and site supervisor at the beginning of the experience. Casework, note taking, diagnostic and treatment planning will be analyzed and explored in the classroom with a focus on enhancing students’ clinical skills in these areas. Use of Functional Behavior Assessments will be discussed as well as the formation of groups in the school setting. Additionally, a review of the principles of therapeutic relationships, developing techniques for communicating and working with families, agencies/systems, and school and community personnel; and the use of supervision will be discussed. The diagnosis and treatment of learning and behavioral disorders, when to recommend an educational evaluation, an FBA, an IEP or a 504 will also be discussed. SAC interns will learn to develop plans for the prevention, treatment and referral of students engaged in legal or illegal substances, school violence, school crises and other situations. The progress on the completion of a portfolio demonstrating the student’s advancement through their program of study is required in this course. This course includes the fundamental occupational tasks of assessment, case presentation, case collaboration, team membership and client interaction. Onsite training supervised by a state-approved licensed/certified school adjustment counselor who also has clinical licensure as an LMHC, LICSW, LMFT, licensed psychologist, or psychiatrist is required.
The fieldwork experiences in this course address the following Massachusetts State Standards for School Adjustment Counselors: 3: A practicum of 900 hours, 450 of which must be working with children, adolescents, and families in an educational setting. 4: A passing score on the Communication and Literacy Skills test.
Standard a: Principles of therapeutic relationships. C: Learning disorders, including emotional issues affecting student achievement, and their treatment. D: Prevention and treatment of substance abuse, physical and sexual abuse, and violence in PreK-12 students. F: Techniques for communicating and working with families and school personnel.
Two SOPC elective or concentration courses and the following:
Prerequisites: CCP520, CCP792A, passing scores on MTEL Communication and Literacy Exams. (enrollment limited to 10.) This course is for students in the School Adjustment/Mental Health program who are in the second semester of an approved ESE/SAC School Internship. This course focuses on students’ mental health counseling practice which is conducted in an approved school setting. A minimum of 225 hours of internship experience are required under the supervision of a qualified supervisor (Massachusetts Regulations 262 CMR) and must also have ESE licensure as a School Adjustment Counselor. Goal(s) for each student will be established with their College internship instructor and site supervisor at the beginning of the experience. Casework, note taking, diagnostic and treatment planning will be analyzed and explored in the classroom with a focus on enhancing students’ clinical skills in these areas. Development of Behavior Intervention Plans based on Functional Assessments will be discussed as well as establishing groups in the school setting and evaluating their impact. Additionally, a review of the principles of therapeutic relationships, developing techniques for communicating and working with families, agencies/systems, and school and community personnel; and the use of supervision will be discussed. The diagnosis and treatment of learning and behavioral disorders, when to recommend an educational evaluation, an FBA, an IEP or a 504 will also be discussed. SAC interns will learn to develop plans for the prevention, treatment and referral of students engaged in legal or illegal substances, school violence, school crises and other situations. The completion of a portfolio demonstrating the student’s advancement through their program of study is required in this course. This course includes the fundamental occupational tasks of assessment, case presentation, case collaboration, team membership and client interaction. Onsite training supervised by a state-approved licensed/certified school adjustment counselor who also has clinical licensure as an LMHC, LICSW, LMFT, licensed psychologist, or psychiatrist is required.
The fieldwork experiences in this course address the following Massachusetts State Standards for School Adjustment Counselors: 3: A practicum of 900 hours, 450 of which must be working with children, adolescents, and families in an educational setting. 4: A passing score on the Communication and Literacy Skills test.
Standard a: Principles of therapeutic relationships. b. Theories of normal and abnormal intellectual, social, and emotional development c: Learning disorders, including emotional issues affecting student achievement, and their treatment. d: Prevention and treatment of substance abuse, physical and sexual abuse, and violence in PreK-12 students. e. Knowledge of state-of-the-art diagnostic instruments; procedures for testing and interpreting results. f Techniques for communicating and working with families and school personnel. g. Knowledge of the criminal justice system with particular reference to the juvenile justice system and organizations. h. Knowledge of medical conditions and medication related to physical disabilities and learning disorders. i. Federal and state laws and regulations addressing the legal rights of students and families
Also required:
- One SOPC elective or concentration course
Program Chair
Core Faculty
Senior Instructor
Admissions
-
Admission Test:
No standardized graduate school tests required for admission into non-licensure programs
-
Admissions Office:
1-800-829-4723
- Application Form:
-
Application Fee:
$50 ($100 for international students)
Health Requirements for Massachusetts Students
The Massachusetts Health Department and Cambridge College require the following of students in Massachusetts:
Immunizations – All students in Massachusetts are required to get certain immunizations before you can register for your first term. See form
Health Insurance – In Massachusetts, undergraduate students taking nine or more credits/term and graduate students taking six or more credits/term must enroll in the College’s health insurance plan. Students who have insurance with comparable coverage may request a waiver. See information and enroll or waive.
School Requirements
International Students
International students need to provide supplemental documentation:
- Official demonstration of English language proficiency
- Supplemental documentation for issuance of I-20
- International transcripts, evaluated by an accepted evaluation service
Transfer Credit
Please complete the transfer credit request form if you wish to have prior course work evaluated for transfer. Learn more.
Tuition
-
Credits for Licensure:
60
-
Credits:
60
-
Cost per credit hour:
$609
-
Application Fee:
$50 ($100 for international students)
-
Health Insurance Fee:
$3,962 - Required for Massachusetts students only. See waiver details on Tuition & Fees page.)
-
Internship/Practicum Fee:
$400
Note: Rates are as of July, 2022, and are subject to change without notice. Rates apply to all students, unless otherwise noted.
Financial Aid
Cambridge College offers financial aid to students in our degree programs who are enrolled at least half time. Undergraduate students must be enrolled in at least 6 credits each term. Graduate and doctoral students must be enrolled in at least 4 credits each term. Learn more
Grants, Scholarships and Loans
Cambridge College welcomes the opportunity to support your efforts to pay for college. Federal, state and local resources in the form of grants, scholarships, loans and work-study, including Cambridge College Scholarships, are available to help defray the cost of tuition. Learn more
Getting Your Company to Help
Many companies have tuition assistance programs, designed to help their employees with their professional development. Learn more