UMUC-EUROPE GRADUATE PROGRAMS
BOWIE STATE UNIVERSITY

PSYC502 Syllabus

Course Title Principles and Philosophy of Counseling
Term TERM 4, 2003/2004
Education Center STUTTGART-VAIHINGEN-GRAD
Faculty Member Margo Coleman - mcoleman@faculty.ed.umuc.edu

Faculty Contact Information:

mcoleman@faculty.ed.umuc.edu

Consultation:

Office Hours: During lunch breaks and after classes on Saturdays.

Required Texts and Readings:

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, APA. Neukrug, E. (2003). World of the Counselor. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole. Neukrug, E. (2003). World of the Counselor Workbook. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.

Supplementary Readings:

All graduate students should be prepared to utilize the UMUC online library at http://www.umuc.edu/library/.  The library contains a large number of full text academic journals that are free of charge and immediately available.  The library homepage also contains a number of links related to improving students’ research and writing skills.

Recommended Journals:

A variety of full-text, online, free-of-charge and pay-per-view academic journals are listed on the Counseling Webboard at http://www.ed.umuc.edu/graduate/webboards/

Course Description:

Historical, philosophical, psychological, and sociological basis of counseling in different settings(school, agency, and community) and with different populations will be explored. Intervention strategies, theoretical models, working contexts, relationships to other professions, ethics, obstacles to service delivery, and personal qualities of counselors are reviewed. Students may receive credit for only one of the following courses: PSYC 502 or EDCP 610.

Course Goals:

This course introduces students to the field of counseling including specializations, professional ethics, relevant credentialing legislation, and current issues. It also provides an introduction to the basic counseling theories and skills.

Course Objectives:

The objectives of this course are for students to gain an information base and demonstrate competence in: The historical antecedents and current definitions of the counseling profession. The standards of counseling as a regulated profession including awareness of professional issues, ethics, and credentialing. The theories and basic counseling and interpersonal skills of communication associated with the counseling relationship. An understanding and appreciation of various populations with whom counselors work and a multicultural and diversity focus in counseling skills and advocacy. Familiarity with appropriate assessment procedures, community resources and intervention strategies and skills, and awareness of the specialty areas of counseling and their various settings. An awareness of future trends, particularly the expanded role of technology, and emerging concepts and theories in counseling. Enhanced self-awareness of personal strengths, interests, and abilities.

Grading Information:

Grades for this course will be assigned as follows:
 
    A     92%
    B     80 – 91%
    C     70 – 79%
    F     Below 70%
 Please note that Bowie State University does not use "D" for graduate students. The grade F(a) is used to designate academic failure. F(n) is used to designate failure for non-completion.  Grades of Incomplete or Withdrawal are governed by UMUC-Europe policies. For further details, please refer to the UMUC-Europe Graduate Catalog, available in your local Education Center or online at http://www.ed.umuc.edu/general_info/publications/catalogs.

Course Requirements:

Graduate school at the masters level focuses on helping students obtain the education needed for success as professionals in their chosen fields. Thus, UMUC-Europe Graduate Programs and Bowie State University share the common goals of promoting excellence in academic scholarship through thoughtful inquiry and the skillful application of knowledge and theory for the betterment of society.
 
In order to maximize your graduate educational experience in general and this course in particular, you are required to complete:
 
Midterm Exam 20%
Final Exam 20%
Workbook Exercises 20%
Research Paper 20%
Class Participation 20%

Description of Course Requirements:

Participate in classroom discussions: You are expected to come to class prepared to engage in all discussions in a professional and informed manner. Usually this requires two to three hours of additional for every hour of a face-to-face class.

CONFIDENTIALITY – While personal information from PSYC 432 undergraduate students is specifically NOT requested and specifically NOT required, there are graduate students in this class, who WILL be revealing some personal information. Throughout this class, we will work as a group, experiencing both ourselves and our group membership through ongoing communications and interactions. This is a class where all students will be doing self-examination. But GRADUATE (only) students will be doing some degree of sharing personal information with the class. Therefore, ALL students must be sensitive to the right to privacy of others. It is therefore important to practice our responsibility of keeping confidentiality throughout this class. Thanks!

Workbook Exercise:
Graduate should review and DO all exercises - corresponding to the weekend’s topics – in the Neukrug workbook BEFORE each set of weekend classes. Students will be notified which of these exercises will be turned in for grading. Note – the Workbook chapters are not always the same as the text chapters
 
Research Paper: You are required to conduct professional-level research, including appropriately citing works of others and avoiding plagiarism. Plan on committing approximately 150 hours over the duration of this course to producing professional level deliverables.

There is ONE written project, approximately 10 pages (“double spaced) – a paper on your (tentative) chosen career within counseling (school, occupational, addictions, prison, family, mental health, etc.). It will require the use of research articles and will contain a self-examination section. Further information will be available at the beginning of the term.
 
Complete two written examinations: The examination process in this class will assist you in developing the writing and critical thinking skills necessary to successfully passing the comprehensive exam required of all graduate students. Information on the examinations will be discussed during the beginning of the term.

Course Schedule:

COURSE SCHEDULE:
Note: ALL assigned reading should be done before each set of weekend classes begin. A good understanding of assigned reading is necessary for through discussion of assigned topics and for exercises done in class.

Weekend One: Chapters 1-3, 12, 13

Weekend Two: Chapters 4-8
MIDTERM EXAMINATION

Weekend Three: Chapters 9-11, 14, 15
PAPER DUE

Weekend Four: Chapters 16-20
FINAL EXAMINATION

Academic Policies:

Please refer to the UMUC – Europe Graduate Catalog, available online at http://www.ed.umuc.edu/general_info/publications/catalogs/ or from your local Education Center, for information on the following: Academic Integrity Course Load Exception to Policy Grade Appeal Process Make-up Examinations NondiscriminationStudents with Disabilities

Faculty Bio:

My educational background includes a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Hahnemann University and a Master's in Public Policy from the University of Chicago. I completed an APA-Approved clinical psychology internship at Tulane University in New Orleans. I specialize in the assessment and treatment of emotional, learning, and behavioral problems in children and adolescents. My research interests include the educational needs of youth living in foster care and the factors that contribute to the decision to graduate from high school. I have been an Assistant Professor for a program that trained master's and doctoral-level clinical psychology students and was a faculty mentor for a distance education institution. I have been with the University of Maryland University College since March 2003.


Last updated by Margo Coleman: March 4, 2004, 2:00 pm
Find this syllabus linked from the schedule at: http://www.ed.umuc.edu/schedule