MA in Counseling Psychology

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MA in Counseling Psychology Program Description

The Seattle School offers the MA in Counseling Psychology (MACP) degree for students seeking graduate education in the area of counseling. As a learning community informed by incarnational theology, we believe that our Triune God is continually made known through relationship. As persons created in the image of God we seek to honor the other as sacred and adopt a way of thinking and being that is filled with awe, gratitude and hope. Our calling is to face our fallenness and embrace suffering as we move toward reconciliation and restoration. Our purpose is to unite Christian theology with philosophy and interpersonal psychology. We teach and practice the art of psychotherapy as a discipline insistent upon finding meaning in the nature and purpose of the human encounter.

Our Approach

Understanding the pedagogical roots of The Seattle School Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology Program

Relational Therapeutic Approach

The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology is an institution that believes that God is a God of relationship. From creation to covenant to the incarnation, the grace and presence of God is revealed through God’s interaction within humanity.

The Seattle School Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology program, grounded in a Relational Psychology and Trinitarian Theology, challenges the student to enter into the sacredness of the human relationship, knowing that through this endeavor, the Holy is present and active. The MACP program, with its emphasis on Relational Models of Psychotherapy, evolves not only from our mission, but from current research which reports that the most significant movement toward change and transformation is rooted in the authenticity and care of the relationship that develops between a client and therapist.

The relational approach at The Seattle School extends beyond a therapeutic model and serves to shape the pedagogy and community life as a whole. The Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology at The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology is unprecedented in crafting a degree program that embodies this relational mission in every aspect of its coursework and practical experience.

Cohort Structure: Communal and Interpersonal

Community is a significant aspect of The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology experience providing students a cohort to journey with as they learn what it means to be with others.

Traditionally, students in the MACP program begin the fall term with a series of courses together with other new students from all three programs. During this first term, a spirit of community and group collaboration is built through a dialogical classroom atmosphere and neighborhood reading groups that provide the space to dig deeply into course content and materials.

Relational Faculty: Diversity in Therapeutic Models and Practice

The counseling faculty at The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology serve the community as educators and therapists.

Current experiences with a variety of client populations and clinical settings create a dynamic learning environment and establish an atmosphere of collaboration in which students and faculty learn from one another. Our faculty come from diverse educational backgrounds and integrate their knowledge of Object Relations and Attachment Theory, Psychodynamic, Relational, Existential, Psychoanalytic, Family Systems and Cognitive Behavioral therapeutic models into their teaching and training curriculum.

Theological Integration

Our theologies are an integral part of how we relate to others. As therapists, our understanding of God impacts how we sit with our clients, how we hope for them, and how we fight for redemption in their brokenness.

With a mission built upon a deep belief in a relational God and a view of humanity as persons artfully created in the image of God, The Seattle School places a psychological and a theological emphasis on the profound significance of human relationships. Because we are created for community with God and one another, The Seattle School equips MACP students to care well for others – in mind, body, and spirit. Counseling students study theology and biblical genre alongside psychology coursework, allowing for a greater sense of integration with their own souls as well as in their practice.

Praxis Oriented

Believing that learning is fostered as much by felt experience as information gathering, the Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology curriculum has been intentionally constructed to provide students with a hands-on, practical education.

Throughout the three year program, MACP students participate in three practicum courses that facilitate their growth as practitioners through small group interaction, supervised practice counseling opportunities, faculty and facilitator feedback. An emphasis on praxis, found in practicums, classroom training, and internship field experience, provides students with a holistic learning environment that fosters the therapeutic skills necessary to make use of the interpersonal space for therapeutic conversations and personal transformation.

Because of our emphasis on learning through doing, MACP alumni are able to step into the work of counseling with both a deep sense of their personal impact as well as the tools and experience gained through their education.

Personal Transformation Through Story

Who we are is at the root of what we do. At The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology, we honor the story that has brought each of us to where we are.

Whether in a classroom setting or in a therapeutic setting, The Seattle School holds to the belief that every person has a story that is unique, significant, and deserving to be heard and known. Embedded in the curriculum and the culture at The Seattle School is a spirit of exploration and a desire to know one’s own story – for the sake of redemption in these stories and transformation in the stories of others. The Seattle School invites MACP students, both in required personal therapy and in reflective coursework, to embrace the philosophy that you can only take another as far as you have gone yourself.

Program Objectives

Upon receiving the MA in Counseling Psychology degree, the graduate will be prepared for counseling vocations in private practice, family services, counseling centers, mental health clinics, and residential and outpatient treatment programs. The program is designed to meet the educational requirements for licensure as a mental health counselor in the state of Washington. It is the responsibility of the individual applicant to be aware of the educational content requirements leading to licensure or certification in her or his intended state of residence. Upon completion of the degree, the graduate should be able to:

• Demonstrate the assimilation of the core theoretical principles of therapeutic counseling through articulating the principles and employing them in practice.
• Distinguish between the practice of individual and group therapeutic intervention and demonstrate skills needed for both.
• Evidence an awareness of multicultural issues in the therapeutic environment.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the stages of human development and a coherent theory of human personality as necessary for professional competence.
• Compare and contrast the core theoretical principles with other major approaches to counseling, and demonstrate knowledge of the convictions of major theorists.
• Evidence the skills necessary to assess psychopathologies according to the current DSM-IV taxonomy and understand professional strengths and limitations in working with particular psychopathologies. This understanding includes the knowledge of when to refer to other professionals and how to do so.
• Demonstrate psychological and therapeutic assessment knowledge and skills.
• Evidence interpersonal skills needed for effective work with clients.
• Assimilate the codes of professional counseling ethics.
• Identify and articulate aims and objectives for life-long personal and professional development in the field of counseling.

Program Goals

In addition to the school’s general educational goals, the MA in Counseling Psychology program endeavors to achieve the following goals:

• Prepare students for a professional counseling career. Many states offer certification or licensure for the counseling profession. Although the educational requirements of many states can be met through the MA in Counseling Psychology program, it is the responsibility of each student to determine her/his state’s requirements and plan an educational experience to meet the requirements.
• Prepare those students who intend to go into the mental health field to impact others and their cultures with relational purpose.
• Promote personal growth through understanding unique giftedness as well as considering any hindrance to caring for others.
• Inter-relate biblical, theological, philosophical, and cultural studies with the fields of psychology and counseling.

Degree Requirements

The MA in Counseling Psychology is conferred upon the attainment of certain academic and personal requirements. In addition to the general graduate school requirements, degree candidates must:

• Prepare students for a professional counseling career. Many states offer certification or licensure for the counseling profession. Although the educational requirements of many states can be met through the M.A. in Counseling Psychology program, it is the responsibility of each student to determine her/his state’s requirements and plan an educational experience to meet the requirements.
• Prepare those students who intend to go into the mental health field to impact others and their cultures with relational purpose.
• Promote personal growth through understanding unique giftedness as well as considering any hindrance to caring for others.
• Inter-relate biblical, theological, philosophical, and cultural studies with the fields of psychology and counseling.

In addition to classroom experiences, the student will participate in practicum training. We believe that the strongest tool that a person brings to a counseling or helping relationship is herself or himself. Therefore, our practicum experiences offer counseling training as well as an opportunity to look at personal matters that impact the student's ability to counsel effectively. A student is never required to disclose personal matters, however the practicum courses do call for a look at one’s relational style and any matters that impede or enhance the process of counseling. This is accomplished through small group practicum led by faculty which includes faculty feedback, peer interactions, and individual conversations with practicum facilitators. Through these experiences, the student can place theoretical counseling constructs into practice.

• Give evidence of a level of personal maturity and stability that is consistent with counseling-related vocations
• Complete all courses in the prescribed MA in Counseling Psychology curriculum with a minimum grade point average of 2.7.
• Students are expected to fulfill a minimum 40 hours of psychotherapy (session should be a minimum of 45-50 minutes each).