Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology

Department of Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5226 USA
(269) 387-5100

Program Outcomes Report for CACREP Accredited Programs

The following information is our best effort to capture some of the program outcomes for the CACREP Accredited programs in the Department of Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology at Western Michigan University. There are a variety of challenges in measuring program outcomes, including size and scope of program, the number of graduates from our programs, and the difficulties in maintaining current contact information with graduates who may have moved out of state or even out of the country. Furthermore, completion rates are difficult to measure with precision as students may transfer from one accredited program to another, transfer to a program that is a better fit, or decide to discontinue a program because they have already met their educational objectives that may not require a conferred degree (i.e., school counseling students who only complete a minimum number of credits to maintain their teaching certificate without the intention to complete a degree). On a regular basis, the Department of Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology survey students, graduates, site supervisors, and employers to obtain useful information about our program. The following information is organized by CACREP-Accredited program areas for year 2015-2016.

Clinical Mental Health Counseling—M.A.

  • The Clinical Mental Health Counseling program is currently accredited by CACREP as a Community Counseling program. 
  • The program requires the completion of 60 credit hours, including a 100 hour practicum and 600 hour field practicum/internship.
  • 106 students are currently enrolled in this program option
  • There were 29 graduates from this program option.
  • The completion rate for this program was 88%.
  • The pass rate on the National Counselor Exam was 90%.
  • Based on the number of returned surveys in our latest program evaluation, the job placement rate for graduates from this program option was 69%.

College Counseling—M.A.

  • The College Counseling program is currently accredited by CACREP as a College Counseling program. 
  • The program requires the completion of 48 credit hours, including a 100 hour practicum and 600 hour field practicum/internship.
  • 26 students are currently enrolled in this program option
  • There were 4 graduates from this program option.
  • The completion rate for this program was 86%.
  • The pass rate on the National Counselor Exam was 90%.
  • Based on the number of returned surveys in our latest program evaluation, the job placement rate for graduates from this program option was 38%.

School Counseling—M.A.

  • The School Counseling program is currently accredited by CACREP as a School Counseling program. 
  • The program requires the completion of 48-59 credit hours, including a 100 hour practicum and 600 hour field practicum/internship. For students who hold a valid teaching certificate, the program is 48 credit hours. For students who do not hold a valid teaching certificate, the program is 59 credit hours.
  • 75 students are currently enrolled in this program option
  • There were 30 graduates from this program option.
  • The completion rate for this program was 63%. 
  • The pass rate on the National Counselor Exam was 90%.
  • Based on the number of returned surveys, the job placement rate for graduates from this program option was 52%.

Counselor Education and Supervision—Ph.D.

  • The Ph.D. program in Counselor Education and Supervision is currently accredited by CACREP as a Counselor Education doctoral program. 
  • The program requires the completion of at least 69 credit hours beyond the master’s degree. To receive full admission to the doctoral program, students must have completed the equivalent of a 48 credit hour master’s degree in counseling.
  • For 2014-2015, we received 19 applications to the Ph.D. program.
  • 22 students are currently enrolled in this program option
  • There were 0 graduates from this program option during this year.
  • The completion rate for this program was 50%. Students have a maximum of 7 years to complete a Ph.D. at WMU. To calculate the completion rate for a given year, the Office of Institutional Research pulls data from one admission year over 7 years ago and then looks to see how many of those students graduated within their allotted time. For the particular year pulled, 1 of 2 students admitted that year have completed within the 7-year window. For 2014, the completion rate was 80%.
  • Based on the number of returned surveys, the job placement rate for graduates from this program option was 100%.