COURSE CURRICULUM

The Clinical Mental Health Counseling program at the University of New Haven is a 60-credit graduate program designed to train students for professional practice in the diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and promotion of mental health and emotional wellness, and it is structured to meet educational requirements for the Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) credential. The curriculum is divided into a 48-credit core sequence and a 12-credit elective or concentration component, ensuring both broad professional preparation and individualized academic focus. Core coursework includes PSYC 6609 Research Methods; COUN 6617 Career Counseling and Development; COUN 6625 Life Span Human Development; COUN 6629 Theories of Counseling; COUN 6630 Professional Orientation and Ethics in Counseling; COUN 6631 Counseling Skills and Techniques; COUN 6632 Group Counseling; COUN 6633 Family Therapy; COUN 6634 Assessment in Counseling; COUN 6636 Diagnosis and Treatment of Mental Health Disorders; COUN 6637 Multicultural and Diversity Issues in Counseling; COUN 6639 Addiction and Substance Abuse Counseling; COUN 6650 Trauma and Crisis Intervention; and the required clinical sequence of COUN 6690 Practicum, COUN 6691 Internship I, and COUN 6692 Internship II. This structure ensures students develop both theoretical understanding and practical counseling competence across individual, group, and family settings, while also gaining diagnostic and treatment skills for a wide range of mental health conditions. A strong emphasis is placed on ethical practice, cultural competence, human development across the lifespan, and evidence-based counseling methods. The program outcomes require students to demonstrate mastery of the eight core counseling competency domains, integrate theoretical knowledge with supervised clinical practice, and exhibit professional-level counseling and intervention skills during internship experiences. The 12-credit General Concentration allows students to tailor their education by selecting four courses from disciplines such as psychology, sociology, criminal justice, public administration, or public health, enabling interdisciplinary exploration of behavioral health, social systems, and community services. This flexibility supports preparation for diverse professional environments including mental health clinics, hospitals, schools, rehabilitation centers, nonprofit agencies, correctional institutions, and private practice settings. Overall, the program is designed to produce highly trained, ethically grounded, and clinically competent counselors prepared for licensure and professional practice in the mental health field.