This CACREP-accredited program of study is designed for candidates who wish to focus on linking research with practice in school counseling. It prepares candidates to be skilled counselors, practitioner scholars, educational leaders, and advocates who work in K-12 school settings.

Thesis Experience

Candidates complete a six-credit Thesis Seminar over two semesters where they are mentored in research methods to either evaluate their practice or identify student needs during the internship experience.  Candidates work with program faculty, who becomes their thesis advisor, throughout the process to select a research focus, choose methodology, and analyze data and draw conclusions.  Candidates must receive permission from their thesis advisor to move on to Thesis II. Candidates not granted permission will transition to the M.Ed. track and take an elective in place of Thesis II. Candidates may also elect to transition to the M.Ed. after thesis I if they no longer wish to pursue the thesis option. In the event that a candidate takes the thesis I class and transitions to the MED track, thesis I becomes an elective.   GC 797 - Thesis Seminar I  and GC 798 - Thesis Seminar II  are pass/fail.

Students must submit a master's thesis that adheres to Loyola's thesis guidelines. Thesis seminar is taken concurrently with internship and is broken up into two semesters.

Clinical Experience

Students are responsible to apply for practicum and internship and must adhere to all application deadlines. Students will not be eligible to apply for practicum or internship after the application deadline passes.

Internship and practicum must be completed in schools during regular school hours. Practicum may be completed one day a week or an equivalent of one day per week. Internship requires students to work part-time (two to three days a week) or full-time (five days a week) in schools. There are no exceptions. To avoid dual relationships, internship cannot be completed at an intern's school of employment. In cases where the intern is working in a paid counseling position, internship may be completed if the position meets the requirements for the types of activities we expect (often requiring new responsibilities) and supervision that meets CACREP requirements. In these cases, a proposal must be drafted by the intern and approved by faculty prior to placement.

Students are required to complete criminal background checks prior to beginning practicum and internship and obtain professional liability insurance. All students are required to have valid background checks on file for the duration of their experience and are responsible to know their site's background check procedure/requirements. Procedures and fees for this process may vary slightly depending upon clinical experience site. Candidates should consult Loyola's School Counseling Handbook for specific policies and steps for successfully completing their clinical experiences.

Practicum and internship courses are pass/fail.

School Counseling Dispositional Outcomes

Loyola School Counseling Masters Students are regularly assessed on the school counseling dispositional outcomes throughout the duration of the program. Student progress related to the dispositional outcomes are documented during techniques, practicum and internship and reviewed yearly by program faculty. Dispositional outcomes can be found on our Digital School Counseling Handbook Moodle page. These outcomes are reviewed with students during the new student orientation.

Remediation

Should students not be meeting expectations regarding professional dispositions or academic performance, a Student Success Plan will be initiated. Student Success Plans are initiated for the following reasons:

1. Disposition concerns were recorded at one of the three transition points.
2. A student receives their first C as a final grade in a course. 

Procedure

1. Upon initial concern, the professor of the course will meet individually with the student to discuss the concern and identify actions the student could take to address that concern.
2. If at one of the three transition points a professor identifies a student as able to move forward in the program with reservations or if a student receives a C as a final grade in an academic class, a Student Success Plan will be created. 
   
   The Student Success Plan is co-created by the student and identified faculty member. If the Student Success Plan is initiated due to a disposition concern, the plan gets submitted to the academic advisor and the academic advisor will meet with the student to review the plan. Additionally, the Success Plan will be reviewed with the practicum and/or internship professor when the student enters that experience. The academic advisor will maintain a copy of the plan and provide the student with a copy. 
   
   Should the Student Success Plan be initiated due to earning a C as a final grade in a class, the success plan will be co-created between the student and academic advisor. The academic advisor will maintain the plan and provide the student with a copy. The Student Success Plan template is included in the School Counseling handbook for student's review.
3. Should concerning issue persist or multiple concerns occur when the student is enrolled in practicum or internship, a Performance Assessment Review (PAR) could be initiated. 

Performance Assessment Review (PAR)

The PAR is a written document where program faculty raise a concern specific to a student's progress on one or more of the disposition learning outcomes. A PAR can be submitted to the program director and the student's academic advisor at any time during the program. 

Should a PAR be submitted during the Practicum or Internship experience, the student could be required to withdrawal from the clinical experience until such time as a remediation plan has been developed. Additionally, if a practicum or internship student is dismissed from their school site, that student will need to withdraw from the clinical experience for the remainder of the semester.

When a PAR is initiated, the student will be contacted by his or her academic advisor and the academic advisor will schedule a meeting with the student to review the concerns outlined in the PAR. After this meeting, the student may issue a written statement prior to the PAR committee's meeting. 

The PAR committee is comprised of the student's academic advisor, school counseling Program Director and two additional faculty members (if PAR is submitted during practicum or internship one of the two faculty members in attendance will be the Coordinator of Clinical Experiences). The PAR Committee determines the remediation plan.

Remediation plans are thoughtfully constructed and must be approved by all members of the PAR committee and the Chair of Education Specialties. The academic advisor will notify the student of the remediation plan in writing and the plan will be reviewed with the student. Remediation plans cannot be appealed.

The PAR process is part of a formal academic process and as such, third parties are not permitted to participate in any part of the process. Refer to the Professional Assessment Review (PAR) Form for areas assessed.

If stated in writing, students placed on a formalized remediation plan who are not able to meet the conditions of the plan, may be dismissed from the program.

In the case of any dismissal, students may appeal the dismissal by following the process outlined in the school counseling handbook and university catalog.  

Master's Comprehensive Examination

A candidate's mastery of course content is assessed near the end of the candidate's program using a comprehensive examination. The examination is generally given twice a year, and each candidate must pass the exam in order to graduate. Degree candidates are responsible to apply and sit for the examination at the appropriate time, no sooner than one semester before the semester in which the candidate is scheduled to graduate. Students who document licensure as a Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC or equivalent) are not required to take the Counselor Preparation Comprehensive Examination (CPCE).