The academic term consists of 10 weeks. Participation in practicum must begin during Week 1 and is expected through the full duration of Week 10, regardless of the accumulation of hours or completion of other course requirements. Students must participate weekly at the practicum site throughout the entire term in which they are enrolled. Students may not plan to complete the practicum in less than 10 weeks, and they should not plan time off during the field experience for vacations or other professional or personal obligations. Students must earn 1 continuous hour of live, in-person or videoconference supervision each week and must obtain at least 1 indirect or direct hour each week of the quarter.
In addition to the requirements listed under the Field Experience Requirements, the current CACREP standards require that students completing practicum experiences do the following:
The MS in Addiction Counseling practicum consists of 100 hours of clinical field experience, including at least 40 hours of direct counseling. At least 21 of the direct client contact hours must be devoted to individual addiction counseling. Students may engage in supervised couples, family, and/or group addiction counseling as part of the practicum, as long as the 21 direct individual addiction counseling hours are satisfied. Students must also earn a minimum of 15 hours of group supervision from their faculty supervisor and 10 hours of individual or triadic supervision from their Walden-approved site supervisor for each term of enrollment in practicum.
The MS in Marriage, Couple, and Family Counseling practicum consists of 100 hours of clinical field experience, including at least 40 hours of direct counseling. At least 10 of the direct client contact hours must be devoted to marriage, couples, and/or family counseling using a systemic approach. Students may engage in supervised individual and/or group counseling as part of the practicum, as long as the 10 direct marriage, couples, and/or family counseling hours are satisfied. Students must also earn a minimum of 15 hours of group supervision from their faculty supervisor and 10 hours of individual or triadic supervision from their Walden-approved site supervisor for each term of enrollment in practicum.
The MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling practicum consists of 100 hours of clinical field experience, including at least 40 hours of direct counseling. At least 21 of the direct client contact hours must be devoted to individual mental health counseling. Students may engage in supervised couples, family, and/or group mental health counseling as part of the practicum, as long as the 21 direct individual mental health counseling hours are satisfied. Students must also earn a minimum of 15 hours of group supervision from their faculty supervisor and 10 hours of individual or triadic supervision from their Walden-approved site supervisor for each term of enrollment in practicum.
The MS in School Counseling practicum consists of 100 hours of field experience, including 40 hours of direct face-to-face counseling, consultation, and classroom guidance. Students must also earn a minimum of 15 hours of group supervision from their faculty supervisor and 10 hours of individual or triadic supervision from their Walden-approved site supervisor for each term of enrollment in field experience. The school counseling field experience must be completed in a school (pre-K through 12).
Students in the Dual Degree must complete a clinical mental health counseling practicum, which adheres to the requirements listed under MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling above.
Some states may require an additional practicum in school counseling, which would adhere to the requirements listed under MS in School Counseling above.
Successful completion of the practicum includes passing both coursework and fieldwork requirements. The final grades are either Satisfactory (S) or Unsatisfactory (U). A deficiency in any item listed below may result in a U grade for the course and require the student to repeat the field experience course before moving on in the program. Graduate students may retake a course only one time. Students who fail a required course twice will be dismissed from the university. Practicum is a required course for all of School of Counseling programs. To successfully complete practicum, all requirements, including hourly requirements and final documents must be complete by the end of Week 10; if hourly requirements are not met, then the student will need to request an Incomplete (I) grade or a Practicum Extension.
To complete practicum satisfactorily, students must achieve ALL of the following: