Quick Reference Guides for CHRD Students

Certification and Licensure:

• All students graduating from the CHRD Department are qualified to become Nationally Certified Counselors (NCC).
• To obtain the NCC, students must successfully complete the program and take the National Counselor Exam (NCE) which NBCC administers.
• Certification by NBCC does not give counselors legal status, but it does convey to the public that those holding the certification have met the minimal standards of practice established by the professional community.
• Because the CHRD Department is a nationally accredited program, students who are in their last two semesters of coursework are permitted to register through the department to take the NCC Exam prior to completing their degree for a student fee of approx. $230.
• The faculty recommends that students take the NCC Exam after taking their oral exams so that the faculty can advise the students of what areas they need to study for and what they have already mastered.
• In addition to the minimum of a master's degree and successful completion of the National Counselor Exam required for certification, licensure in South Dakota (and most other states) requires additional post-degree experience and supervision. Note: SDSU is accredited by CACREP so students graduating from the CHRD programs are eligible to have their post-degree experience and supervision waived through the GRA-NCC program. An application is required and students are still required to pass the NCC Exam. Contact Jay Trenhaile Jay_Trenhaile@sdstate.edu for more information on this program.
• The CHRD Department also offers a newly approved specialization in Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling Specialization.  This program is designed to prepare graduates to be eligible for licensure in counseling (LPC) and certification through the Commission for Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (CRCC).  Accreditation through the Council on Rehabilitation Education (CORE) will be sought around 2008.
• The School Counseling course of study is designed to meet the certification requirements for South Dakota , while the (Community) Agency Counseling course of study is designed to meet the requirements of the Board of Counselor Examiners of South Dakota.  Currently, there are no certification or licensure requirements for student personnel professionals. 
• The South Dakota Board of Counselor Examiners, the licensing body in the state of South Dakota for counselors, offers two levels of professional licensure: The Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) credential and The Licensed Professional Counselor - Mental Health (LPC-MH).
• For more information on licensure visit the National Counseling Association website at http://www.counseling.org/Counselors/LicensureAndCert.aspx?

LPC-MH:

• The LPC-MH was established by law in South Dakota in 1995. As a credential, the LPC-MH is considered a second tier licensure, representing the highest level of licensure for counselors now available in South Dakota .
• To receive this license, applicants must posses at least master's degree in counseling (48 credit hours) with an emphasis in the agency track.
• Students graduating from CHRD's agency track will fulfill most of the coursework needed for the LPC-MH by virtue of completing the department's requirements. The course in psychopharmacology, however, is not required of agency track students. Therefore, those wishing to pursue the LPC-MH should plan their course of study carefully. Further, students desiring the LPC-MH credential should also work closely with faculty to ensure that the internship setting they chose meets the criteria for approved clinical settings.
• After having obtained a master's degree-- and having completed the all required coursework--those seeking the LPC-MH must then: gain an additional 2000 hours of clinical experience, gain an additional 2000 hours of clinical experience, and successfully complete the LPC-MH exam administered by the South Dakota Board of Counselor Examiners.
• Those pursuing the LPC-MH should seek approval from the licensing board of their proposed site and supervisor prior to beginning any clinical experience intended for use toward the LPC-MH.

Additional Information for School Counselors:

• There are at least three different certifications that are immediately applicable to school counselors.
• State school counseling certification. The South Dakota Board of Education certifies school counselors for the state and graduates from CHRD's school track are immediately eligible for this certification. Further, school counselors MUST have this endorsement by the second year of their employment in order to maintain their positions.
• Nationally Certified Counselor (NCC) is the certification described earlier and all graduates from the CHRD program are eligible for this certification upon successful completion of the National Counselor Examination. The NCC is not particular to school counselors, nor is it required for practice as a school counselor, but it does reflect to the public and other professionals that the holder has met national standards for counseling professionals.  
• Nationally Certified School Counselor (NCSC). Students completing the school counseling program may, at the time they take the NCE, apply for the National Certified School Counselor (NCSC) designation. This certification is not required for practice as a school counselor in the state of South Dakota but does reflect to the public and other professionals that the holder has met national standards specific to school counselors. The NSCC does not require an additional test, but it does require an additional fee and additional post-degree supervision. For more details about the NCSC contact this department.
• Students completing the school counseling track are not currently required to pursue state licensure; the CHRD faculty encourages school track students to strongly consider obtaining professional licensure. Students in the school track have completed necessary coursework and are eligible to pursue, at a minimum, the tier of professional counselor licensure in South Dakota .
• For more information on specific state requirements for School Counselor Licensure visit the American School Counselor Association website at http://www.schoolcounselor.org/content.asp?contentid=242

Pre-Practicum:

• This course provides an introduction to basic therapeutic skills and structures compatible with a wide range of theoretical approaches. Students learn to conduct counseling interviews in order to successfully identify clients' conflicts, determine clients' desire for change, explore options and assist client action. This course serves as a foundation for Practicum and requires department consent and several prerequisites including CHRD 601, 602, 603, and 610.
• This course has a limited enrollment of 12 students.

Practicum:

• This course builds on the basic counseling skills learned in Pre-Practicum and preferably directly follows that course in students' course work. In addition to enhancing basic counseling skills, this course is designed to help students integrate theory and practice. As part of their course work, students are asked to develop theory- based conceptualizations of client concerns. The faculty reserve the right to deny admission to CHRD 786 if they have reason to suspect a student might be unable to provide quality counseling services to clients. A minimum of 20 semester credit hours, including, CHRD 601, 602, 603, 610, 661, 766, and 785, with a grade of "B" or better in 766 and 785. Retakes limited to two retakes.
• Practicum is not offered in the summer due to the work load of the course so students should carefully plan their course of study with this in mind.
• This course has a limited enrollment of 5 students per section, there are usually several sections offered to meet the needs of students.

Internships:

• The student’s internship is the final class they take before graduating from the Counseling and Human Resource Program. During the internship students work in a real setting such as a school or mental health facility and conduct sessions while also meeting periodically with faculty and on site supervisors to help the student keep developing and improving as a counselor.
• Internships are offered every semester and it is recommended that student internships last two semesters for maximum benefit to the student. Students should keep in mind that they can complete practicum in the fall and do the Internship from January to June. This is technically enough hours to be two semesters and offer maximum student benefits, but still allows the students to graduate in the spring and have the majority of summer to find employment. 
• Students should be familiar with the internship handbook which is available at http://www3.sdstate.edu/ClassLibrary/Page/Information/DataInstances/ 9869/Files/47620/2007-2008InternshipHandbook.doc

Written Exams:

• Counselor Preparation Comprehensive Examination (CPCE)
• The CPCE is a written exam taken by 48-hr students in the Student Affairs, School Counseling and (Community) Counseling track specializations.
•  The CPCE covers the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), eight common core areas as defined by their Standards of Preparation and consists of 160 items with 20 items per core area. The time limit for the exam is three hours.
• The cost for the exam is: $40.00, due and payable prior to taking the examination. The exam is offered during the Fall, Spring and Summer semesters.
• Examinations are scored by the Center for Credentialing & Education, Inc. (CCE). Students receive a score in each of the eight CACREP core areas and a cumulative score. Exam results are received by the Department approximately three weeks from the date of the exam. The student’s advisor will contact the student with their exam result.

Traditional Written Exam:

• The Traditional Written Exam is administered to students enrolled in the Administration of Student Affairs–36 hr track specialization.
• The exam is a series of six essay questions from the student’s advisor that have been integrated with the eight content areas delineated by the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC). The questions may consist of the student’s internship experience, revolving around a client or student, several clients or students, or a particular activity experienced during the internship. The exam has a time limit of five hours.
• The essay Written Examinations will be evaluated by several criteria.  Students should demonstrate the ability to answer questions based on evidence drawn from a professional knowledge base they have gained through the program and personal experience. Additional primary consideration will be given to how well students integrate the eight CACREP core areas with their practical experience. Exams will be evaluated for depth, thoroughness, clarity of ideas, and ability to integrate theory and practice. Content, writing style, grammar, sentence structure, punctuation, and spelling are also considered when written exams are assessed. 

Oral Exam:

• In addition to the written exam, students must satisfactorily complete a comprehensive oral examination at the conclusion of their coursework. In the oral exam, students choose between articulating a theoretical orientation to counseling or an in-depth case study (examples from Practicum and Internship are most helpful in illustrating the ability to integrate and apply theory).
•  Students will be examined over the content of courses completed during their graduate program, their ability to integrate and apply knowledge in their internship settings, and their readiness for entrance into the counseling profession. Students under degree Option A will defend their thesis and Option B students will defend their work on a research problem
• Students will schedule their oral exam the day they have completed the written exam in the CHRD department office. The Oral exam is administered by an Advisory Committee that consists of the following individuals

1)      The student’s advisor—acts as chairperson of the committee, must have Graduate Faculty status

2)      Major department representative —an additional CHRD faculty member Minor/supporting area representative—must have Graduate Faculty status; can be from the CHRD department or an instructor outside of the department from whom you took a class

3)      Internship Site Supervisor—can be an additional member of a student’s oral exam committee; the site supervisor plays an integral role in the student’s internship work for an academic year.  Because the oral examination focuses on how the student integrates coursework with practical experience, the site supervisor can be a valuable member of the committee.  The SDSU faculty encourages students to ask site supervisors to be part of the Advisory Committee.

4)      Graduate Faculty Representative—selected by the Graduate Dean and has responsibility to ensure a quality orals examination experience and fairness to students.