The Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (CMHC) degree prepares individuals to be leaders and advocates in the field of mental health counseling and follows a nationally recognized curriculum aligned with national and state standards. The program’s 63 credits include course content in professional orientation and ethical practice, social and cultural diversity, human growth and development, career development, trauma-informed care, helping relationships, group work, assessment, and research/program evaluation. Applicants are considered from any discipline, including psychology, social work, education, music and others.
The Fredonia Difference
The CMHC program is delivered in a low-residency, hybrid format, with students doing much of the course work online and doing their field work in clinical settings near their own home. This program format does not require a student to leave their current position to complete their graduate degree, which is typically a major barrier to post-baccalaureate study for students from historically underrepresented groups. Students will come to campus one weekend a month for in person classes with their professors, at the start and end of each course.
The SUNY Fredonia College of Education, Health Sciences, and Human Services is in the process of developing a campus-based counseling clinic equipped with state-of-the training equipment which allows for students to receive an immersive, comprehensive training experience including audio and video of review of sessions.
The CMHC program is taught by award-winning, international experts and leaders in the counseling field with clinical, teaching, and research experience.
Resources
Download the CMHC Student Handbook PDF.
Professional Licensure Disclosure
New York State prides itself in the high quality of its licensed and certified professionals. For the protection of its citizens, each license and certificate has requirements that individuals must meet in order to be licensed or certified in New York State. SUNY’s academic programs leading to licensure or certification are carefully designed to meet and exceed these State requirements. This is a role SUNY plays in protecting the public. Other states frequently have their own requirements, so if your goal is to practice in another state, this disclosure will help you check to see what that state requires. Enrolled students and prospective students are strongly encouraged to contact their state’s licensure entity using the links provided in the full disclosure document to review all licensure and certification requirements imposed by their state(s) of choice.
Effective July 1, 2024, federal regulation requires institutions of higher education to make a determination whether a Title IV eligible academic program that leads to professional licensure or certification meets the educational requirements for licensure/certification in the U.S. State where the institution is located and the U.S. States where “distance education” students are located at the time of initial enrollment in the program, as well as U.S. States where the program is advertised as meeting such requirements, and if applicable, the U.S. State where students attest they intend to be licensed/certified. The MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling program at SUNY Fredonia is registered by the New York State Education Department and thus meets the educational requirements for licensure/certification for New York State. Through a good faith effort, and for the purpose of complying with the federal regulation, we have determined that the MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling program at SUNY Fredonia meets the educational requirements for licensure/certification in the following U.S. States: New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Jersey, however, it is important to note that [SUNY Fredonia is not the licensure/certification authority in these U.S. States and cannot assess whether an individual candidate will be issued a license/certificate in these U.S. States and instead it is incumbent on each individual candidate to contact the licensure/certification authority in the applicable U.S. State for any further guidance on the requirements for licensure/certification requirements and application processes.
Students in a state not listed here should contact the Program Director, Dr. Sabrina Musson, for specific questions about Fredonia's Mental Health Counseling program.
