Counselor Education

The mission of the Counselor Education Program at The Ohio State University is to prepare highly qualified, ethical and culturally competent, professional counselors and counselor educators who exemplify compassion, social justice, and empathy for the human condition. We draw from a pool of international applicants and prepare graduates for careers in schools, agencies, universities and community and clinical placements using evidence-based best practices, quality pedagogy, and intensive cohort-based classroom and supervised field-based experiences.

1. We believe that regardless of setting or specialty, we are all counselors, with a shared set of core values and identity that unite us in a professional community.
2. We believe that counseling needs to be informed by compassion and humanistic understanding of the human condition.
3. We believe that all clients, colleagues, and students need to be appreciated for their inherent dignity and worth and their unique diversity constellation.
4. We believe that all individuals should be empowered to speak up for what they need and that counselors and counseling students should be social justice leaders who advocate on behalf of underserved populations as well as on behalf of the counseling profession.
5. We believe that our program is more than courses – it is an intentionally designed community of students, faculty, alumni, and supervisors who care about each others’ wellbeing.

• Graduates of the MA program will demonstrate an ethical orientation to counseling through providing research-informed, non-judgmental counseling practice.
• Graduates of the MA program will demonstrate culturally competent and affirming counseling approaches as they work with individuals, families, and communities towards building resilience, informing recovery, and enhancing wellness.
• Graduates of the MA program will demonstrate the ability to invest in their clients’/students’ personal, cultural, and social wellness through innovative and culturally affirming practices in individual counseling, group counseling, and career counseling.
• Graduates of the MA program will be able to use research, assessment, and an evidence-based lens as means of understanding historical and current social structures and practices that impact human development, access to opportunities, and efforts to thrive in the face of oppression.
• Graduates of the MA program will be able to apply leadership and advocacy strategies to address systemic and complex social determinants of health in order to invest in clients’/students’ personal, cultural, and social wellness.
• Graduates of the PhD program will be able to teach new counselors, lead educational counseling programs, and conduct research that adheres to ethical and socially just foundations, serving the community and the profession through continuous self-assessment and improvement.

Every student, faculty member and field supervisor is expected to exhibit these values at all times for the purpose of promoting success in the lives of our clients:

• The development of a professional identity as a counselor that is built on the highest academic and professional standards
• An ongoing advocacy and social justice approach infused with ethical and social responsibility
• The use of a practitioner-scientist model that uses evidence-based best practices in counseling
• A commitment to a wellness and strength-based approach with an emphasis on lifelong personal and professional growth
• An understanding of the importance of working toward systemic change through leadership, collaboration and service within the community
• A respect for diversity and the importance of culture, family, and values in the counseling process
• An intellectual curiosity that drives the development and dissemination of new knowledge and best practices in professional counseling and counselor education
• A commitment to helping each member of the Ohio State Counselor Education family flourish in the field of counseling through a discovery of each individual’s passion that lies at the intersection of research, teaching, service and practice for the betterment of the people we serve, the counseling profession and our own lifelong journeys as professional counselors.

The Ohio State Counselor Education Program is committed to maintaining a community that recognizes and values the inherent worth and dignity of every person; fosters sensitivity, understanding, and mutual respect among its members; and encourages individuals to strive to reach their own potential. In pursuit of its goal of academic excellence, the Program seeks to develop and nurture diversity, believing that it strengthens the organization, stimulates creativity, promotes the exchange of ideas, and enriches campus life. The Ohio State University prohibits discrimination against any member of the campus community on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin or ancestry, marital status, parental status, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability status, health status, or veteran status.

As counselors, we live these beliefs. This is more than policy, this is our lived experience with clients and with each other. Living lives as social justice advocates means integrating the values of dignity and worth of all human beings in all of our personal and professional interactions. We believe that we are at our best when we work together to promote equity and access for everyone, to understand and fight oppression in all its forms, and to encourage each member of our community to establish a personal set of principles and ideals that will direct that individual toward a lifelong commitment to social justice and advocacy. We recognize that this is developmental in nature and that we are all striving as individuals and as a community.

• CACREP Vital Statistics
• Counselor Education Program Evaluation
• Comprehensive Evaluation Plan