The CACREP Accredited Counselor Education track in the Education PhD program is designed specifically for those who wish to pursue careers as counselor educators at the university level or as supervisors in schools or agencies. The Counselor Education PhD program offers courses and supervision that emphasize competence in teaching adult learners, counseling practice, clinical supervision, research/scholarship, and leadership/advocacy.
As part of the program's pragmatic approach to preparing counselor educators, in addition to classroom studies, all doctoral students complete clinical and supervisory experiences in the UCF Community Counseling and Research Center. The UCF Community Counseling and Research Center serves as a hub for training and research in the program, with doctoral students providing (a) counseling services to children, adolescents, and adults through the provision of individual, couples, and family therapy and (b) supervisory services to master’s students during their practicum. The CCRC serves more than 1400 individuals, couples, and families in the central Florida community. Our programs objectives are centered on a primary goal, which is the education of outstanding counselor educators prepared to assume leadership roles in diverse settings.
The Counselor Education track in the Education PhD program requires a minimum of 69 credit hours beyond the master's degree. Students must complete 24 credit hours of core courses, 21 credit hours of specialization courses, 15 credit hours of dissertation, and 9 credit hours of internship. All students must also complete the candidacy examination.
Total Credit Hours Required: 69 Credit Hours Minimum beyond the Master's Degree
Track Prerequisites
A master's degree in Counseling (or a closely related field) and master's level competency in educational research and statistics.
Degree Requirements
Required Courses
45 Total Credits
Core
24 Total Credits
- Complete all of the following
- Earn at least 6 credits from the following:
- IDS7500 - Seminar in Educational Research (1 - 99)
- Complete the following:
- IDS7501 - Issues and Research in Education (3)
- EDF7475 - Qualitative Research in Education (3)
- EDF7403 - Quantitative Foundations of Educational Research (3)
- EDF7463 - Analysis of Survey, Record, and Other Qualitative Data (3)
- IDS7502 - Case Studies in Research Design (3)
- EDF7406 - Multivariate Statistics in Education (3)
Specialization
21 Total Credits
- Complete the following:
- MHS7406 - Advanced Theories in Counseling (3)
- MHS7801 - Advanced Practicum in Counselor Education (3)
- MHS7700 - Literature and Leadership in Counselor Education (3)
- MHS7311 - Scholarship and External Funding in Counselor Education (3)
- MHS7611 - Supervision in Counselor Education (3)
- MHS7730 - Research Seminar in Counselor Education (3)
- MHS7497 - Advanced Multiculturalism in Counseling (3)
Required Internship
9 Total Credits
- Complete all of the following
- Earn at least 6 credits from the following:
- MHS7840 - Internship in Counselor Education (3)
- Complete the following:
- MHS7808 - Internship in Counseling Supervision (3)
Dissertation
15 Total Credits
- Earn at least 15 credits from the following types of courses: Doctoral students must present a prospectus for the dissertation to the doctoral adviser, prepare a proposal and present it to the dissertation committee, and defend the final research submission with the dissertation committee.
Candidacy
0 Total Credits
- To enter candidacy for the PhD, students must have an overall 3.0 GPA on all graduate work included in the planned program and pass all required candidacy examinations. Candidacy examinations will be scheduled by the student and major adviser. The associate dean for graduate studies and research must be notified of the date and location of the exam 30 days in advance. Students must be enrolled in the university during the semester the candidacy examination is taken. The following are required to be admitted to candidacy and enroll in dissertation hours: - Completion of all course work, except for dissertation hours. - Successful completion of the candidacy examination (both written and oral). - Successful defense of the written dissertation proposal. - The dissertation advisory committee is formed, consisting of approved graduate faculty and graduate faculty scholars. - Submission of an approved program of study.
Candidacy Examinations
0 Total Credits
- All PhD candidates will be required to complete a candidacy examination. Please note that there may be variations in length of exam time and content based on the respective requirements of each track. For the Counselor Education track in the Education PhD, there are five examination foci, each of which have a written component and a verbal defense component: - Counseling in Counselor Education. - Teaching in Counselor Education. - Supervision in Counselor Education. - Research & Scholarship in Counselor Education. - Leadership & Advocacy in Counselor Education. For more information on the candidacy exams, refer to the Counselor Education PhD Handbook.
Grand Total Credits: 69
Application Requirements
Financial Information
Graduate students may receive financial assistance through fellowships, assistantships, tuition support, or loans. For more information, see the College of Graduate Studies Funding website, which describes the types of financial assistance available at UCF and provides general guidance in planning your graduate finances. The Financial Information section of the Graduate Catalog is another key resource.
Fellowship Information
Fellowships are awarded based on academic merit to highly qualified students. They are paid to students through the Office of Student Financial Assistance, based on instructions provided by the College of Graduate Studies. Fellowships are given to support a student's graduate study and do not have a work obligation. For more information, see UCF Graduate Fellowships, which includes descriptions of university fellowships and what you should do to be considered for a fellowship.
Independent Learning
The dissertation satisfies the independent learning requirement.
