A counselor educator is much more than a hybrid of counselor and professor. The job requires skills from both of these realms, as well as those of an administrator, mentor, researcher, collaborator, gatekeeper and many others. It can be overwhelming if a person comes into the role unprepared, write Jane

The academic evaluation of graduate students in counseling education programs is straightforward: Their ability to master the material becomes apparent in grades assigned and credits earned. “However, evaluating trainee competency in the domains of interpersonal behavior, intrapersonal functioning and professional conduct to determine readiness to practice is much more subjective,”

As a counselor master’s student approaching graduation in December, a few lessons have become ingrained in my mind: “Always advocate on behalf of your clients”; “engaging in self-care is essential”; and “practice in accordance with the ACA Code of Ethics .” At times, when I am lying in bed after

[EDITOR’s NOTE: This is an online-only companion article to “Guiding lights,” a feature on the ins and outs of the counselor supervision process appearing in the June issue of Counseling Today.]   Counselor supervision can have quite a steep learning curve — one that often comes with several ups and

Counselors are not immune to trauma — in fact, far from it. Many practitioners say that personal or familial experience with trauma or mental illness actually spurred them to become professional counselors. The connection between personal experience and the pull to become a counselor is something that is hard to

The moment you decide to pursue a doctoral degree is one of the defining moments of your career. You have decided that you want to go further, push yourself and obtain the skills needed for training new counselors. You begin to research schools and their doctoral programs. A glimmer forms

Supervision is critical to the career development and advancement of many mental health professionals, including counselors, marriage and family therapists, and social workers. The boards responsible for licensure set standards regarding the number of hours, frequency and nature of the supervision necessary for licensure as an independent professional. Various professional