Counselor Education

Counselor Education

General Mission Statement 

The Counselor Education Program at SUNY New Paltz trains highly skilled mental health and school counselors knowledgeable in both the practice and science of counseling. The program’s climate combines rigorous academic standards along with a collegial and supportive mentoring environment that conceptualizes students as emerging professionals. The program is committed to academic and personal development of counseling trainees within an atmosphere that values cultural and intellectual diversity. The program’s goal is to prepare mental health and school counselors who: 

  • Possess the knowledge and skills necessary to practice as highly competent counselors
  • Demonstrate intellectual curiosity and a commitment to continually expanding their counseling knowledge and proficiency 
  • Understand and model the professional standards and ethics of their profession 
  • Attend to their own personal growth, as well as that of their clients, through utilizing supervision, valuing interpersonal feedback, and engaging in ongoing self-evaluation 
  • Show mastery of the research process and understand its central role in counseling practice and conducting program evaluation 
  • Are open-minded and respectful of multicultural and intellectual diversity 
  • Use their counseling knowledge to function as compassionate and caring practitioners, advocates, and leaders within their profession and within the communities they serve 

Programs of Study 

The Counselor Education Program offers training in the following areas: 

  • M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  • M.S. in School Counseling
  • Advanced Certificate in Clinical Mental Health Counseling 
  • Advanced Certificate in Trauma & Disaster Mental Health 

These comprehensive professional education programs combine theoretical and skill-based approaches to serving clients, focusing on the preparation of professional counselors who have the commitment, knowledge, skills, attitudes, values and self-awareness to offer quality counseling services to individuals, families, and groups. 

Our programs can be pursued on a full-time or part-time basis, up to the time of internship when a full-time commitment is generally required. 

Questions, Comments, Suggestions? 

If you would like more information about counselor education at SUNY New Paltz please contact: 

Sonia Gorenstein, Graduate Assistant
Office: Wooster Hall 311
Email: gorensts1@newpaltz.edu