Clinical Mental Health Counseling Concentration

Dr. Nicole Knickmeyer Chair, Department of Psychological Science and Counseling
Professor Location: Clement Building, Room 205B
Phone: 931-221-7232
Email: knickmeyern@apsu.edu
Website: https://www.apsu.edu/mscounseling/

Dr. Kim Coggins Graduate Coordinator Associate Professor of Counseling
Location: Clement Building, Room 221B
Phone: 931-221-7234
Email: cogginsk@apsu.edu
Website: https://www.apsu.edu/mscounseling/


Master of Science in Counseling - Clinical Mental Health Counseling concentration

The Clinical Mental Health Counseling concentration prepares students to work in a variety of community agency settings and/or eventual private practice. Students completing this concentration will have met the educational requirements for licensure in Tennessee as a Licensed Professional Counselor with Mental Health Service Provider status. The curriculum requirmements include coursework, a 100-hour practicum experience, 600-hour internship and a comprehensive examination.

Admission Requirements:

The prerequisite for pursuing this degree is 12 hours of psychology or psychology related courses that can include: introduction to psychology, human development, psychopathology (or closely related coursework). If seeking a master’s degree in counseling, candidates must request admission to candidacy before completing nine hours of graduate course work.

Admission to the M.S. in Counseling Program (both Clinical Mental Health Counseling and School Counseling concentrations) is competitive and selective. Listed below are the required application materials and the associated scores (if necessary) for each.

• Application for admission Application Fee: $45 domestic or $55 international
• Official transcripts from all colleges attended Verification of lawful presence in the United States (i.e. submit a license or other approved document)
• Bachelor’s degree, from a regionally accredited institution showing a minimum cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.00 or higher
• Three letters of recommendation
• Personal Statement - 2-3 page essay that responds to the prompt: “Please describe what is drawing you to the Counseling field. What strengths do you bring with you to the program and the profession? Specifically, address your experience related to diverse populations and how that will inform your work as a counselor.”
• Military documents (if applicable)
• Individual and/or group interview with Counseling program faculty
• Admission decision by department

​All applications completed (including supporting materials) prior to the deadline will be reviewed. Those applicants who meet the admissions requirements will be contacted for a face-to-face interview. Students will be admitted based on the number of available openings in their program of interest, in addition to the criteria listed above. The Department of Psychological Science and Counseling does not grant conditional admissions.

Priority admission will be given to applicants whose files are completed and who meet admission requirements prior to February 20th for summer or fall admission. Later applications will be considered based upon openings. Students seeking to apply after February 20th must contact the coordinator of the counseling program. Applicants to the Department of Psychological Science and Counseling must be formally admitted to the department before they can enroll in classes.

For more information about the application process, please visit apsu.edu/grad-studies.

Retention Policies:

Students in the M.S. in Counseling program must meet certain academic and professional standards to qualify for retention in and graduation from the program. These specific standards are outlined in the M.S. in Counseling Program Handbook and include:

• Students must earn a grade of “B” or higher in all required Program of Study courses.
• Students must maintain a 3.0 GPA
• Students must pass a written Comprehensive Exam
• Student must complete the program within time limitations
• Students must maintain ethical and professional behavior both in their academic work and their clinical work.
• In the event that a student is placed on a remediation plan, the student must demonstrate the required progress on the remediation plan to remain in the M.S. in Counseling program.

Note: We cannot guarantee post-completion OPT (Optional Pactical Training) for F-1 studemts to allow for completion of supervised post-masters clinical hours required for LPC Licensure.

Some University Programs have additional requirements and information included in the Program Handbook. Program Handbooks, which are incorporated into herein by reference, are available by selecting the following link: Counseling.