MA

Master’s Degree in Clinical Counseling Overview

Clinical mental health counseling, like many of the helping professions, is vital to building a healthy and prosperous society. If you want to join this field as a professional mental health counselor, start your higher education with a CACREP-accredited master’s in clinical counseling (MACC) degree at the California School of Professional Psychology (CSPP) at Alliant today.

In your master’s in clinical counseling (MACC) degree program, you’ll develop skills and expertise in professional counseling, diagnosing, treating, and guiding individuals and groups as they work to overcome disability, grow, and embrace change. In the program you’ll gain valuable, hands-on experience counseling individuals who are struggling with anxiety, depression, grief, loss, anger management, infidelity, and other issues. Throughout the graduate program, you’ll receive the training and preparation you need in the counseling profession to become an outstanding clinical mental health counselor.

To learn more about this program and other offerings, visit our CSPP-dedicated microsite. You’ll find videos featuring our university president, dean of CSPP, and faculty, along with numerous interactive features!

   STATE LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS

Program Highlights

CACREP-Accredited Program

The master's degree program in clinical counseling is CACREP-accredited, the recognized training standard for certified counselors by the Institute of Medicine and the Veteran’s Administration and its curricula content areas are the required educational training for counseling licensure in most states, making CACREP-accreditation a pathway to portability.

Credential Preparation

The master’s program prepares you to earn your California Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC) credentials by providing the tools you need to enter this rewarding field.

Hands-on Experience

You’ll get field training in your counselor education through an internship with supervised practice, where you’ll spend 700 hours gaining valuable experience, with a minimum of 280 hours under direct supervision and guidance.

Cultural Competence

In the graduate program you’ll develop methods of thinking critically and reflectively, breaking down walls of bias, and learning to help people of all cultures, communities, and backgrounds.

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Marriage and Family Therapy or Clinical Counseling; Which Path is Best for You?

Degree Information

Professional Training Through Supervised Clinical Experience

Starting in your first year of the CACREP-accredited master’s in clinical counseling, or MACC, program you can acquire real-world experience through unique observations of clients in clinical settings. As you progress in the MACC program, you’ll build on this initial exposure and develop your portfolio of clinical skills, gaining professional confidence along the way. The curriculum includes psychopharmacology, couple and family counseling, crisis, trauma and emergency response issues in counseling among others.

You’ll receive a total of 700 hours of clinical experience in individual counseling, family counseling, and group counseling. Of these, a minimum of 280 hours will be directly supervised clinical experiences.

Through your fieldwork as an intern of the MA counseling program, you’ll have opportunities to engage in clinical training experiences that serve a broad range of client populations. You’ll grow through experience with individual, family, group, and couple therapy, as well as psycho-diagnostic and neuropsychological assessment services. You’ll also gain experience with adults, children, families, and couples, learning and developing your counseling skill to counsel individuals who are struggling with ADHD, anxiety and depression, social skills, difficult behavior, anger management, grief and loss, relationship problems, sexual concerns, divorce, infidelity, intimacy and emotional closeness, and more.

Your Opportunity to Help Those in Need

Graduates of a masters clinical mental health counseling program are well-prepared to work in diverse community and healthcare settings. This health counseling degree equips students with the skills to assess, diagnose, and treat various mental health conditions. There are a variety of career paths available to clinical mental health counselors in the field of mental health counseling. Your counseling psychology skills may apply in the following:

• Community mental health clinics
• Couples and family services
• Outpatient and inpatient substance abuse centers
• Hospitals and health care agencies
• Government agencies and funded programs
• Public and private schools, universities and training programs
• Private and group practices

Clinical mental health counseling specialties provide the expertise and ethical practices to support clients in need of treatment, crisis intervention, and long-term therapy. Many professionals are planning to use their graduate education to specialize in areas such as trauma therapy, family counseling, or addiction treatment.

Links and Downloads

School Performance Fact Sheet

MACC Master Plan of Study

MACC Program Annual Report

MACC Sample Course Syllabi

Annual Post of Vital Statistics

Accreditation Status

Master’s in Organizational Psychology Overview

The master's degree program in organizational psychology (MAOP) is your opportunity to join one of the more fascinating specialties in psychology today. With a masters in organizational psychology degree you'll be better prepared to help companies or organizations, and the people within them, reach new heights of success.

This degree organizational psychology program is an exploration of human behavior in the workplace within the context of professional studies. This specialty applies psychological science to examine the many human factors influencing the workforce. It can be useful in a wide range of careers including talent management; organizational development; training and development; human resource management; organizational leadership; diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives; and more. Professional psychology career paths can lead to positions in a wide variety of industries, management consulting, education, government, and other sectors.

This one-year, 33-unit master’s program is offered online. All online organizational psychology programs are accepting applications. However, please be aware that on-ground organizational psychology programs are not accepting applications.

To learn more about this program and other offerings, visit our CSPP-dedicated microsite. You’ll find videos featuring our university president, dean of CSPP, and faculty, along with numerous interactive features!

Graduate Program Highlights

Wide Range of Careers

Deepen your skills and find a new career in organization development, talent and leadership development, human resources and talent management, and more in various industries, nonprofits, and government agencies.

Variety of Schedules

Online courses allow you to complete your coursework in the evening and the weekends.

Earn a Master’s in One or Two Years

With full-time enrollment of two courses per term, you can complete the industrial organizational psychology program in just one year, or opt for one course per term to complete the program in two years. Eight-week terms begin in January and August.

Small Classes

Get to know your industrial organizational psychology faculty and colleagues in a supportive climate, developing working relationships that can last a lifetime. Get to know alumni in our network and find jobs through powerful relationships.

Advance Your Degree Further

Take your education further with a degree that prepares you to be a consultant or leader. A PhD in industrial-organizational psychology can be completed in three years. A continuing education adds to your credential whether you plan to work in consulting firms or further utilize your expertise as an IO psychologist.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Increase your cross-cultural skills with multinational, multiracial faculty and graduate students, and support a society of inclusive excellence, equity, and belonging. Our IO psychology programs foster diversity and inclusion.

Experiential Training

Gain experience through class and real-world projects that apply the aspects of organizational setting and organizational behavior. These projects include surveys, interviews, talent assessments, leadership development, and designing programs for skill development and organizational change.

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Faculty

As an aspiring industrial organizational psychologist, you'll continue to learn from a faculty consisting of renowned experts with years of experience within the organizational and consulting fields and doctoral degrees earned at USC, Columbia University, Fielding Graduate Institute, UCLA, Northcentral University, and Alliant International University. The psychology department is comprised of past and current local, national, and international professional association leaders, organizational psychologists, journal editors, and consultants. Faculty areas of expertise include the following:

• Management consulting
• Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging
• Motivation and employee engagement
• Sustainability and systems thinking
• Organization development and change management
• Leadership and leadership development
• Coaching and mentoring
   

Faculty

Degree Information

What You will Learn

• Describe and apply industrial psychology principles, concepts, models, theories, and/or methods.
• Describe and apply ethical and legal principles to situations in organizational psychology.
• Demonstrate a positive, proactive, and non-judgmental attitude towards diverse cultures and identities.
•  Design culturally competent professional services in respective areas for diverse populations.
• Analyze data, evaluate results and communicate findings using applied research methods.
• Work effectively in teams and apply team building concepts.

How You will Learn

Designed for the aspiring organizational psychologist, this program equips the graduate student with the skills for organizational effectiveness across different work fields. Rooted in social science and industrial psychology, students learn theories and cases in the graduate school classroom and gain hands-on experience through class projects. Coursework prepares students to critically evaluate evidence-based principles of the discipline and integrate these principles into the management and development of human behavior in work environments. Coursework provides progressive learning integrating advanced critical thinking, evaluation of research-based models, technical skill development, and applied learning techniques within the realm of psychological science.

Multicultural and diversity issues, ethical practices, as well as proficiency in business concepts are integrated across the IO Psychology graduate study courses as cross-cutting competencies. Integrating competency development across courses prepares graduates to provide professional-level services in organizations.

Degree Objectives

Build your critical thinking skills through the integration of discipline-specific theories, psychological principles, models, concepts, and methods, and the development of practitioner skills. The master's in organizational psychology covers a wide range of competencies selected to deepen the knowledge and skills for practitioners already in one of the related career paths, and open doors to those career paths for people making a career transition or starting a career in IO psychology.

Discipline-Specific Knowledge

As graduate students of a masters in organizational psychology, you'll work on developing skills in leadership, talent development and talent management, diversity and inclusion, motivation and employee engagement, team dynamics and facilitating teams, coaching and mentoring, and applied research skills for needs analysis and program evaluation. This type of social psychology varies in focus depending on the role and organization. Hence, a graduate certificate program gives a specialized focus that lets you tailor your expertise to these specific areas within organizational psychology.

Why Organizational Psychology? 

The most important assets of any organization quite often are its people. Organizational psychology graduate program combines the fields of psychology, leadership, business, and other behavioral sciences to provide you with the knowledge and skills to create more effective and empowering workplaces and communities. Organizational psychology degrees at Alliant prepare professionals to create an environment where people develop their full potential, work in meaningful careers, lead effectively, work effectively in teams, and encourage others to do the same.

Links and downloads

School Performance Fact Sheet

Master’s in Couple and Family Therapy Overview

The nuclear family has evolved and the American household no longer looks the same as it has in the past, yet the family unit remains the cornerstone of our society. In this online, and COAMFTE-accredited marriage and family therapy master's degree program, you'll learn to help individuals and families, regardless of their home structure or circumstance. The MA in Marriage and Family Therapy is a counseling program that prepares you to be adept practitioners in the field of counseling psychology. The MFT masters program gives knowledge in behavioral science, mental health counseling, and the ways to address issues in dysfunctional family interactions under the supervision of a reputable MFT faculty.

Family counseling is a form of counseling psychology that aims to improve communication and resolve family conflicts. Many modern families and couples rely on the help of therapists with a clinical psychology background to guide them through life changes and challenging times. With a family therapy education and clinical practice experience, you can help make a difference as a therapist or mental health counselor in how these people relate to one another, and provide them with the tools to make their lives better.

As a graduate from the family therapy program, you'll have the education, skills, and  clinical experience you need to join the profession with confidence as a couple and family therapist or mental health counselor. Some of the topics you'll touch on in the marriage and family therapy master's program include family science, parent-child therapy, group therapy, trauma and crisis intervention, and all else related to your counselor education. Learn more about course offerings below.

To learn more about this family therapy graduate program and other offerings, visit our CSPP-dedicated microsite. You’ll find videos featuring our university president, dean of CSPP, and faculty, along with numerous interactive features!

   STATE LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS

Program Highlights

A Portable Degree

Alliant offers one of only a few on-campus, COAMFTE-accredited MA MFT programs in the state of California. MFT licensure is issued on a state-by-state basis, and a degree from a COAMFTE-accredited graduate program makes it easier to complete the licensure requirements and obtain MFT licensure in a new state.

Accredited Online MFT Program

Coursework is offered completely online, and is one of only a small number of online MFT programs in the nation to be COAMFTE-accredited. Choosing an online master program with COAMFTE accreditation makes it ideal if you are going to pursue becoming a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) and plan on traveling between states.

Hands-on Training 

Gain invaluable experience in a family therapy clinic setting while studying your counseling degree. Get into clinical mental health counseling and hands-on training through 300 hours of direct client contact, 100 supervision hours, and at least 100 professional development hours, giving you 600 to 1,300 hours to apply towards your license.Six Steps to a Successful Practicum

Service and Investment

If qualified, you can receive up to $50,000 of loan reimbursement from the National Health Services Corps in exchange for two years of work in an underserved area.

Cultural Competency

This MFT program has cultural competency at its core, and consistently adds culturally and linguistically qualified mental-health professionals into the workforce. Learning the principles of human development and family study, the MS marriage therapy program prepares you to conduct effective family counseling and address behavioral health challenges within familial dynamics.  

Compelling Coursework

In the marriage family therapy program, you'll explore areas relevant to mental health professions such as parent-child therapy, couples therapy, MFT theories and techniques, sex therapy, and more.

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Degree Information

Continuing a Legacy of Impact

MFT programs at CSPP have a long and storied history of esteemed faculty and industry luminaries that have passed through its doors to share knowledge to the next generation of family therapists. Students must meet specific admission requirements and fulfill all program requirements. For the last 50 years, these programs have worked to produce the best marriage and family therapists and the most-respected thought leaders in the field. 

Read more about our legacy 

Chemical Dependency Specialization Track

MFT graduate students have the option to earn a specialization in chemical dependency. This CAADE-accredited chemical dependency specialization provides a unique opportunity for you to prepare to work with individuals, couples, and families facing addiction through professional development hours, directly related to chemical dependency treatment.

Understanding how to treat addiction is one of the most valuable professional tools an MFT masters program can have. When working with families who are struggling with addiction, it's imperative to know the best care clinical practices for treating chemical dependency.

This specialization covers how to treat families from a systemic perspective, with a focus on treating clients who are experiencing addiction and substance abuse. This will be a part of your internship hours at a residential treatment center or intensive outpatient program, not as a separate clinical internship that would require increased hours. This specialization is embedded into the MA program and does not require any additional coursework.

Links and Downloads

School Performance Fact Sheet

San Diego Graduate Achievement Data

Los Angeles Graduate Achievement Data

Sacramento Graduate Achievement Data

Irvine Graduate Achievement Data

Online Graduate Achievement Data

As part of COAMFTE requirements, we provide the diversity composition of our student body, faculty, and supervisors. Please follow the link below for the related data. We hope this information will help you make an informed decision regarding your graduate study.

San Diego Diversity Chart

Los Angeles Diversity Chart

Sacramento Diversity Chart

Irvine Diversity Chart

Online Diversity Chart

Career Outcomes

• Mental health services in schools
• Mental health services in the community
• Social work and human services
• Facilities for residential treatment, including specialized care for substance abuse, eating disorders, domestic violence, and trauma
• Mental health services offered by private practitioners
• Instruction and education services
• Doctoral level education and training
• Writing and publication.