SOC-OFE Masters Students - Field Experience Manual:

State Licensure Requirements - State Education Specialization

The State Education Specialization allows you to select and add courses to your program that are not included in your general program but may be necessary to meet the educational requirements for licensure in the state in which you plan to practice. The State Education Specialization requires approval by the Office of Certification, Licensure, and Compliance, and students cannot be enrolled in courses outside of their program requirements without approval. Questions about the State Education Specialization and licensure requirements should be directed to counlicensure@mail.waldenu.edu. See the Office of Certification, Licensure, and Compliance for information about applying to add the specialization to your program of study.

Note: It is your responsibility to identify those additional courses that may be required for licensure in your state.

There are two options within the State Education Specialization that apply to field experience:

The field experience courses are typically 3 credits per quarter. However, the School of Counseling offers a 5-credit version for each of the field experience courses for students whose states might require this for licensure. There are two journal assignments required in the 5-credit courses that are not required in the 3-credit version of the courses.

You may require enrollment in additional terms of a field experience course to meet state enrollment or hourly requirements for licensure. For example, some states may require more than the 700 hours (100 for practicum and 600 for internship) required by Walden for the completion of the field experience. While you are welcome to complete more than the required hours within the academic terms Walden requires, you may find that you need additional time to complete hours beyond program requirements that are required by the state licensure board. Alternatively, some states may require enrollment in more than the required number of academic quarters of a field experience course, regardless of the number of hours completed in the quarter.