Marriage and Family Therapy, M.A.

(also see School Counseling  and Clinical Mental Health Counseling )

The Department of Counseling and Family Therapy is committed to training counselors who will provide leadership in serving the needs of both the local and the global community. Programs are holistic, reflecting an integration of mind, body, and spirit.

The Master of Arts Program in Marriage and Family Therapy is designed to provide students with a solid core of knowledge about marriage and family therapy, as well as to train them to become professional marriage and family therapists. Students who pursue this degree ordinarily intend a professional career in this specific field. The program’s basic orientation is the “General Systems” paradigm within which students are exposed to structural, strategic, solution-focused, systemic, and social constructionist approaches in addition to the other major modalities of the discipline. Students are encouraged to select and integrate those approaches that best fit their own clinical style. The program emphasizes a broad blend of theoretical knowledge and therapeutic approaches, with the primary goal of training competent clinicians in the field of marriage and family therapy.

The Department of Marriage and Family Therapy is nationally accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE).

Learning Outcomes

• Develop a core knowledge of marriage and family therapy practice
• Develop skill proficiency in professional practices
• Increase student’s capacity to use oneself as an instrument in the therapeutic process
• Develop skilled approaches to collaborating with clients, colleagues, the profession, and the community

Matriculation Requirements

A student seeking to matriculate into the Marriage and Family Therapy Program is required to submit the following to the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies:

1. A completed admission application along with a nonrefundable application fee
2. All official college transcripts mailed directly to the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies from accredited institutions that evidence at least a baccalaureate degree with a GPA of 2.7 or higher
3. Two letters of professional reference recommending the candidate for graduate work in the Marriage and Family Therapy Program at the University of Saint Joseph
4. All immunization records as required by the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies

In addition, Marriage and Family Therapy applicants are required to:

5. Submit a personal entrance essay (essay guidelines available through the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies)
6. Sign up for a group interview/information session once the application and an official transcript are submitted and received

Students who have not provided our office or the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies with the required documents are not eligible to be matriculated into the Marriage and Family Therapy Program. Please review the list above and contact the Department of Counseling and Family Therapy if you have any questions.