Liz Adams, a University of Houston-Victoria graduate student from Morton, first arrived to the university to find out how to aid people increase their mental wellness. Now, a alter to the university’s graduate counselor instruction plans is expected to give her and other students more expert prospects following graduation.
Katherine Bacon
The UHV University of Training, Health Professions & Human Development’s graduate counselor instruction plans are transforming from a Master of Instruction in counselor instruction to a Grasp of Science in scientific mental overall health counseling with two accessible concentrations in medical mental well being counseling and university counseling.
The modify is 1 that college, learners and alumni have been inquiring about and doing work towards, stated Katherine Bacon, UHV affiliate professor of counselor instruction. The transform will utilize to existing learners starting off with UHV’s May possibly graduates, but it will not be retroactively utilized to all those who already have graduated.
“The response to this improve has been overwhelmingly optimistic from the two our present students and alumni,” Bacon explained. “The shift to a Grasp of Science plan much more correctly reflects what our method does and how it prepares our pupils to serve the demands of their upcoming clientele.”
Equally the scientific psychological overall health counseling and the college counseling programs are accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling & Linked Educational Applications, which sets national benchmarks for counselor coaching programs. UHV’s method has two of 49 CACREP-accredited master’s levels in Texas, and UHV features the only CACREP-accredited school counseling and clinical psychological wellbeing counseling degrees in the Victoria and Better Houston parts.
Rachel Martinez
“This alter to the education school’s counseling programs is a wonderful accomplishment that will have a constructive impression on the upcoming potential clients for our pupils,” stated Rachel Martinez, interim dean of the university. “The accomplishment of this system and the change to a new designation is all owing to the hardworking, great faculty who supply this kind of a quality, demanding plan for our learners.”
The program’s shift is fascinating for Adams and other learners due to the fact of the possibilities that will come with the science designation, she reported. Quite a few businesses hope a counseling diploma to be a Grasp of Science instead than a Master of Education mainly because counselors are generally skilled as clinicians.
“A Learn of Schooling for a clinical area was a little bit like getting a small business degree awarded by an English program,” Adams explained. “Even although it’s a quality degree, it raises issues when businesses see it on a resume. This new designation will more closely align with what the method teaches and how the degrees will be made use of.”
Liz Adams
Adams selected to go after a diploma in medical mental health and fitness since of her former encounter doing work as a religious advisor for adolescent girls in Mexico and for a boarding university in Rhode Island.
“I was encouraging the girls obtain spiritual healing, but there were some instances when it was distinct that there were other mental well being problems that required to be tackled, also,” she reported. “I want to get my degree so I can assist men and women on all levels when it arrives to locating mental health expert services.”
Adams chose to attend UHV mainly because of its CACREP accreditation and the chance to just take on the web and night courses though she labored comprehensive time for the duration of the working day. Now, as she prepares to graduate in May possibly, she is looking forward to being 1 of the initial pupils to receive the new Master of Science designation.
“This modify is exciting, not just for me, but for all potential counseling learners,” she reported. “It will have an rapid affect on how we are acquired as specialists and is a testomony to our know-how and coaching. I’m grateful to the college for generating this change and to the faculty for its emphasis on excellence.”
To find out extra about the systems, call Bacon at baconk@uhv.edu or 832-842-3049.

The University of Houston-Victoria, positioned in the heart of the Coastal Bend region because 1973 in Victoria, Texas, presents
classes major to far more than 80 tutorial programs in the educational facilities of Arts & Sciences Small business Administration and Schooling,
Health Professions & Human Improvement. UHV presents facial area-to-confront classes at its Victoria campus, as properly as an instructional
web site in Katy, Texas, and online classes that college students can consider from any place. UHV supports the American Association of Point out
Faculties and Universities Chances for All initiative to improve recognition about point out schools and universities and
the critical job they have in offering a significant-top quality and obtainable education to an significantly various university student inhabitants,
as well as contributing to regional and condition economic growth.