Program Planning

Recommended Course Sequences for Durham Students

For Full-Time Students

Master of Arts

Master of Education

For Part-Time Students

(EFFECTIVE FOR STUDENTS BEGINNING SEPT. 2007)

The Graduate Program in Counseling (GPC) faculty approved the course sequences noted below. All part-time students are to begin their degree programs during Summer Session. It is understood that some students may want to take credits - maximum of 8 (other campus) to 12 (UNH Campus) - prior to admission to degree status. ** (see below) Be advised that most Fall and Spring Semester courses are restricted to students who have achieved degree status in the GPC. It may be possible for non-degree students to enroll in EDUC 851, 927, 930 and 931. The instructor, based on assessment of the student's academic preparation and experience, will determine whether to permit the student's enrollment. Admission to the course will also depend on whether the course has reached enrollment limit with degree status students.

**For example, a prospective student might enroll in EDUC 920 during the summer and become interested in applying for degree status. The student might then enroll for an elective course in the Fall Semester and perhaps EDUC 851 in the Spring. That student could then meet the February application deadline to begin as a degree student during Summer Session. They would then follow one of the course sequences noted below.

It is also understood that the Graduate School gives students six years to complete the degree requirements. With that in mind it is possible, though not encouraged, for students to plan a course sequence that allows them more time to complete the GPC. Please be advised that this will require very careful planning and attention to prerequisites, date of course offerings, and the availability of openings in the highly restricted practicum and internship experiences. It may also result in an open semester(s) where students will not be enrolled in courses, thus necessitating that they pay the Graduate School's Continuing Enrollment fee.

Master of Arts

Master of Education (two course per semester sequence)

Master of Education (one course per semester sequence)

Recommended Course Sequences for Manchester Students

One of the cohort sequences requires two courses per semester and a second sequence requires one course per semester. Careful attention has been devoted to providing a course of study that considers pre-requisites and the logical sequencing of practicum and internships numbered 919, 925, 926.

(EFFECTIVE FOR STUDENTS BEGINNING IN SUMMER SESSION 2007)

As with the Durham part-time program, all UNHM students are to begin their Master of Education (MED) degree program during Summer Session. Two course sequences are available. One of the cohort sequences requires two courses per semester and a second sequence requires one course per semester until the third and final year when two courses per semester are required.

Two Course Per Semester Sequence

Once Course Per Semester Sequence

Internships

Reservation Requirements for EDUC 925, Counseling Internship I; EDUC 926, Counseling Internship II; and EDUC 929, Advanced Counseling Internships

Early in their program, students are required to meet with their advisor and be fully informed concerning their obligations with respect to reserving internships. The intern completes a reservation form for these seminars, and submits the form to Janet Thompson.

Prior to the requested semester, students on the reservation list will receive a written notice asking that they indicate their section preference for EDUC 926 or EDUC 929. Students generally select sections based on instructor preference or day/time of seminar. Efforts are made to match each intern with either their first or second preference. Prior to the beginning of the semester the student will receive a written notice of their assigned internship section and instructor.

Log Books: Documentation of Internship Hours for School Counselors and Mental Health Counselors

Interns are required to maintain a log book of their weekly activities while at their off-campus internship sites. A summary log is required at the culmination of each internship.

M.A. Thesis and Non-Thesis Options

Thesis Option: Composition of Thesis Committee, Meetings, and Writing Process

Master’s thesis committees are generally composed of the student’s academic advisor acting as the chair along with two other members of the graduate faculty. Upon occasion the student may be interested in a particular area of study and wishes to have a particular faculty member serve as the chair. This is usually approved and that faculty member then serves as the chair of the committee. There are also times when a particular person is not a member of the graduate faculty but has particular expertise in the area under investigation. The committee chair, at the request of the student, may petition the Graduate School to allow committee membership for that individual.

M.A. students who have completed EDUC 930 (Research in Counseling) have generally produced a thesis proposal. This written proposal is presented to the committee members for their review. A meeting of the committee and the candidate is then scheduled. This is not a ‘defense’ meeting but one in which the proposal may be refined and strengthened.

This is also a time for full discussion of Institutional Review Board (IRB) obligations. The candidate then re-writes the proposal including revisions agreed upon by the committee, and this becomes the agreement between the student and the committee. IRB approval must be obtained prior to conducting any research with human or animal participants.

In most cases the proposal becomes the first chapters of the thesis (Introduction, Review of Literature, and Procedures). The student will complete the second draft of the first three chapters and provide each committee member with a review copy. This is followed by the incorporation of any suggested changes into the final copy of the three chapters. These are then provided to the committee members for final review.

When the last two chapters (Results and Discussions) are completed, the written document is provided for committee review. The final steps include completion of preliminary pages, e.g. title page, abstract, signature page, acknowledgements, dedication, etc. Signatures are obtained from committee members and the student submits the thesis to the Graduate School Office in Thompson Hall. Students are responsible for adhering to deadlines for thesis submission published each semester by the Graduate School.

Non-Thesis Option: Inquiry Project Guidelines

1) The inquiry project will be implemented during the candidate’s final sequence of internship (EDUC 926/929).

2) The project will consist of reflective inquiry into a problem or issue of counseling interest that emerges from the candidate’s internship experience.

3) The project will be developed in consultation with, and directed by a GPC faculty member to include both a written paper and an oral presentation. Candidates will enroll for 2 credits of EDUC 995 Independent Study.

4) The paper will demonstrate an integration of personal and professional inquiry, and is expected to be supported by counseling experiences, literature review, and professiona training or internship reflections.

5) The paper must be approved by both the faculty director and by a second reader from among the GPC faculty. After this approval, the candidate will schedule an oral presentation of this Inquiry Project to faculty and peers in the GPC.

M.Ed. Comprehensive Examination

A – ELIGIBILITY: Students may take the comprehensive examination no earlier than the semester in which they complete all course requirements for the Master of Education degree.

Prior to the examination the student completes her/his “Intent to Graduate Card” and meets with their faculty adviser. Having completed this orientation meeting the student will place his/her name on the “sign-up” sheet found in Room 109 Morrill Hall, Durham – or at UNHM.

B – SCHEDULING: Comprehensive examinations will be offered in the fall and spring in November and April. Examination period will extend from 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM.

C- EXAMINING COMMITTEE: There will be two readers for the examination, namely the student’s faculty adviser and one other counseling faculty member. In the event of a pass and a fail evaluation for the entire examination a third counseling faculty member will become a reader.

D- DESIGN OF THE EXAMINATION: The examination will include one question from each of the following courses: 919, 920, 921, 922, 923, 924, 932, 933.

E – EVALUATION: The general criteria utilized in evaluating the examination are as follows:

Knowledge--comprehensive and well articulated grasp of the topic
Application--adapts theory-into-practice with complex counseling problems
Documentation--drawing upon and references to professional literature on topic
Synthesis of Ideas--discerns connections between various ideas and concepts