Graduate Catalog  |  School of Graduate Studies  |

• Table of Contents
•  |  Graduate Programs
•  |  Graduate Course Descriptions
•  |  Admissions Information
•  |  Alphabetical Index

Marriage and Family Therapy Graduate Programs

Offered through the Department of Educational Leadership and Community Psychology
in the College of Education
A232 Education Building
Phone: 320.308.2160
Fax: 320.308.3216
Web site: www.stcloudstate.edu/elcp

Department Chairperson: Dr. Niloufer Merchant
Department Secretary: Ms. Sandra Radzak

Graduate Coordinator: Dr. Manijeh Daneshpour
Graduate Certificate Coordinator: Dr. Manijeh Daneshpour
Graduate Faculty: Connor, Daneshpour, M. Mayhew

Mission

The marriage and family therapy (MFT) program’s mission is to foster highly qualified professionals at the Master’s level, who possess the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to improve the quality of well-being, for individuals, families, and wider social systems within their diverse and multicultural setting. Clinical training gives balanced attention to the range of physical/organic, interpersonal, relational, and cultural/contextual factors that can cause or exacerbate the issues presented for treatment by providing multiple points of intervention designed to positively impact the client’s contextual environment.

Philosophy

Program faculty hold the philosophy that master's level education in marriage and family therapy must occur in a context that is systematically oriented. Experiences in this program emphasize family therapy as integrated with practice and research in family and human development. This context is also informed by gender and cultural perspectives presented throughout all coursework and practicum.

The faculty believe that theory and practice in marriage and family therapy are best accomplished in synergy; that is, the elements if theory, research, and practice are intertwined and emphasized in all coursework and clinical experiences throughout the student's training. Since the program resides within an academic setting, it is recognized the courses must be somewhat discrete and independent. However, courses cannot be undertaken independently without consideration of their systematic position in the entire program. It is the aim of the program for students to be challenged and encouraged to integrate their learning throughout their entire time in the program.

The curriculum consists of substantive courses in family relations and human development, statistics and research methods courses, marriage and family therapy emphasis courses, and internship. Substantive content/theory courses and clinical practicum must be completed simultaneously. Students must be provided with experiences that enhance their training and practice with a variety of therapy models, family types, presenting problems, therapy settings, and supervisory modes.

Goals

The primary goal of the Marriage and Family Therapy program is to train competent therapists to do therapy with a wide range of mental health problems. Therapists are trained to help with concerns about marriage, children/adolescents, mental illness, depression, sexual issues, divorce, family, school, health, and emotional difficulties.

Learning Outcomes and Measurable Objectives

The MFT graduate program at St. Cloud State University is committed to excellence in education and training and prepares students to:

1. Develop and apply expertise in the field of marriage and family therapy.
2. Think critically and engage in reflective, ethical, and legal practice throughout the marriage and family therapy education and professional practices.
3. Develop empathic, respectful, and congruent interpersonal skills and abilities to work successfully with individuals, groups and families from multicultural and diverse backgrounds in variety of educational, community, and mental health settings.
4. Communicate effectively using oral, written, listening, non-verbal attending and observational skills.
5. Collaborate skillfully and respectfully as marriage ands family therapy leaders, consultants, and team members in a variety of settings.
6. Develop marriage and family therapy skills necessary to assess and evaluate individuals and families.
7. Maintain an inclusive, multicultural, systemic and global perspective, emphasizing social justice and educational equity, access, and support.
8. Provide marriage and family therapy services through a wide variety of field-based partnerships informed by theory and practice.
9. Act as advocates with initiative, perception, and vision to lead and transform the practices and policies of those who provide services to individuals, families, schools, organizations, community, and policy makers.
10. Develop critical thinking and evaluation skills necessary to evaluate the latest advances in Marriage and Family Therapy research while applying the research in their clinical practice.

Program Description

Marriage and Family Therapy views and treats individuals seeking psychotherapeutic assistance at existing within a complex set of relationships. The Master of Science program in Marriage and Family Therapy provides academic and experiential training needed to prepare students for Marriage and Family Therapy licensure. To be admitted to the Marriage and Family Therapy focus the applicant must successfully complete a personal interview process with faculty. Careful attention will be given to previous work experience, academic background, scholarship, interpersonal skills and commitment to the field of Marriage and Family Therapy.

COAMFTE Accreditation

The Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE) is the national program accrediting body for the MFT field and is under the oversight of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT). Program accreditation brings national recognition and opportunities to a program, the faculty, and the students. A primary value to graduates of a COAMFTE accredited program is increased portability of education and experience across state lines in terms of practice opportunity and licensure.

The SCSU MFT program achieved Candidacy status accreditation from COAMFTE in December 2007. As of January of 2008, all graduates of the program are considered graduates of a COAMFTE candidacy program, and may receive all the rights and privileges of COAMFTE accreditation, e.g. portability of education for licensure in all states with MFT licensure.

Program accreditation is a nationally awarded status to a program. Currently, only one other institution in the state of Minnesota (the Doctoral MFT program in University of Minnesota) holds COAMFTE accreditation.

Employers

Graduates find employment as marriage and family therapists and work for varieties of agencies. Crisis clinics, correctional settings, schools and public and private mental health facilities also employ MFT graduates.

Admission deadline specific to the program

Fall semester, spring semester & summer sessions: March 1

Criteria for Admission

Applicants who meet the following standard may be admitted to the M.S. Program in Marriage and Family Therapy.

• Bachelors degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher education.
• Complete the application materials required by the College of Graduate Studies.
• A cumulative graduate grade point average of 3.00 or higher, on a 4.00 scale, in most recent degree program completed.
• Successfully complete an interview with the Program faculty. Careful attention will be given to interpersonal skills,  past individual and familial psychopathology, and commitment to the field of Marriage and Family Therapy.
• Provide 3 letters of recommendation.
• A current resume listing educational background, professional experience and volunteer and community involvements.
• A personal statement addressing the following:        
• A brief description of the applicant’s background, training and experience.
• A statement of short- and long-term professional goals.
• A statement of purpose regarding the interest in your degree program.
• Identify areas of strength and challenges in pursuing this program.

Master of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy

Plan A, 58 credits; Plan B, 52 credits

Thesis versus non-thesis option
(Plan A versus Plan B)

Before completing “Proposed Program of Graduate Study” blue forms for candidacy (see next section), students need to decide whether to follow Plan A or Plan B, thesis or non-thesis option, respectively. For those planning to pursue a doctorate degree at some time, conducting research and/or publishing a work should strongly be considered.  Research can be done with either Plan A or Plan B. Students who are planning to write a thesis should carefully read the Graduate Bulletin, “Field Studies, Thesis, Creative Works, and Starred Papers”. Note that the book “A Manual for the Preparation of Field Studies, Theses, Creative Works, or Starred Paper(s)”  should be purchased from the Husky Bookstore or downloaded from the School of Graduate Studies website.

I. Research: Min., Plan A, 12 Cr., or Plan B, 6 Cr.

Plan A:

• CPSY 675 Research Methods, 3 Cr.( Pre-requisites: CEEP 678)
• CEEP 678 Introduction to Graduate Statistics, 3 Cr.
• CPSY 699 Thesis, 6 Cr

Plan B:

• CEEP 678 Introduction to Graduate Statistics, 3Cr.
• CPSY 675 Research Methods, 3 Cr. (Pre-requisites: CEEP 678)

II. Major: Min., Plan A or B, 46 Cr.

• CPSY 619 Professional Orientation and Ethics, 3 Cr.
• CPSY 620 Family Systems, 3 Cr.
• CPSY 621 Family Conceptual Framework, 3 Cr.
• CPSY 622 Gender Roles in Families, 1 Cr.
• CPSY 623 Family Stress and Coping, 1 Cr.
• CPSY 624 Family Assessment, 3 Cr.
• CPSY 625 Family and Human Sexuality, 1 Cr.
• CPSY 658 Multicultural Counseling, 3 Cr.
• CPSY 659 Psychodiagnosis, 3. Cr (Pre-requisite CPSY 668)
• CPSY 668 Counseling Procedures, 3 Cr.
• CPSY 669 Counseling Practicum. 4 Cr. (Pre-requisites: CPSY 621; Co-requisite CPSY 619, 659, 668, & 671)
• CPSY 671 Theories of Marriage and Family Therapy, 3 Cr. (Pre-requisite CPSY 621)
• CPSY 672 Couple and Family Thereapy: Advance Theory and Practice, 3 Cr. (Pre-requisites: CPSY 619, 620, 621, 624, 659, 668 & 671)
• CPSY 696 Supervised Internship in Counseling, Min. 6 Cr. (600 hours) (Pre-requisites: CPSY 619, CPSY 620, CPSY 621, CPSY 624 & CPSY 671)
• CPSY 530 Seminar: Individual and Family Development, 3 Cr.
• CPSY 530 Seminar: Child Development and Treamtment, 3 Cr.

Other courses or changes may be substituted with consent of adviser.

Post degree requirements

Full-licensure: An additional 1000 post-degree supervised clinical contact hours in a clinical setting is required to complete the requirements for Marriage and Family licensure in the state of Minnesota.

Marriage and Family Therapy License Eligibility

The MTF regulatory requirements in Minnesota are among the most stringent in the US and Canada. Once graduation from the SCSU accredited graduate academic program in MFT, the therapist must pass the national MFT licensure examination. Subsequent to two years of post-degree clinical experience under state approved supervision, the licensure applicant must also pass a Minnesota state examination of practice procedures and ethical and legal issues. Application requirements are online at www.bmft.state.mn.us.

Program faculty

Manijeh Daneshpour, Ph.D., 1996 University of Minnesota– Twin Cities
Mick Mayhew, Ph.D., 1997 Iowa State University
Jennifer Connor, Ph.D., 2005 University of Minnesota – Twin Cities

Graduate Level Marriage and Family Therapy Certificate

This credentialing program provides academic and experiential training intended to prepare persons in the Community Counseling program and also professionals with Masters’ degrees in Human Services or a related field for Marriage and Family Therapy Licensure.

While postmaster students can transfer courses from their previous masters program, the Marriage and Family Therapy Certificate Program requires completion of several courses beyond the Master’s degree as indicated below: