The Counseling program offers a Master of Arts degree with three possible concentrations: Clinical Mental Health; Marriage, Couples, and Family; and School Counseling. Admission requirements are the same for all three concentrations. The Clinical Mental Health and School Counseling concentrations are accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) and meet the academic and field experience requirements established by the Alabama Board of Examiners in Counseling (ABEC) for licensure as a professional counselor (LPC). The Marriage, Couples, and Family concentration is also CACREP-accredited and prepares students for a path to licensure as LPCs or as marriage and family therapists (LMFT). Properly credentialed counselors provide mental health services to individuals, families, and groups to treat mental, behavioral, and emotional problems and disorders.

The UAB Counseling program also offers two graduate counseling certificates in Marriage, Couples, and Family Counseling and in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. Current counseling graduate students concentrating in clinical mental health or school counseling, as well as practitioners with a master’s degree in clinical mental health or school counseling, may pursue a Marriage, Couples, and Family certificate. Current counseling graduate students concentrating in school counseling or marriage, couples, and family counseling as well as practitioners with a master’s degree in school counseling or marriage, couples, and family counseling may pursue a Clinical Mental Health certificate. These certificates will enhance the versatility of counselors and expand the range of knowledge and services they are able to offer their clients.

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The Community Counseling Clinic

The UAB Community Counseling Clinic provides individual and group counseling services to residents of Jefferson County. The clinic is also a training site for graduate counseling students fulfilling practicum and internship clinical requirements. We use state-of-the-art recording equipment for video counseling sessions — a practice that allows clinic supervisors not only to monitor and review sessions but also to provide essential feedback to trainees.

Accreditation

The Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) provides recognition that the content and quality of a program has been evaluated and meets the highest standards set by the profession. All three UAB counseling specialties (Clinical Mental Health Counseling, School Counseling, and Marriage, Couples, and Family Counseling) are CACREP-accredited.

• Program Evaluation and Assessment Manual
• Assessment Data
• 2020-2021 Program Evaluation Report
• 2021-2022 Program Evaluation Report

Mission

The Counseling program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham creates an academically rigorous, student-centered, and supportive environment to help move students toward acquiring the knowledge and skills needed for entering the profession as effective school, mental health, and/or family counselors.

Vision

Producing competent and effective professional counselors.

Values

We promote the movement of individuals toward:

• Self-Awareness - We promote and encourage reflective teaching, practice, and research.
• Professional Relationships - We model caring, supportive, and stimulating relationships for our students that inspire their intellectual curiosity, ethical conduct, and professional excellence.
• Excellence - We practice continuous improvement and innovation through our evidenced-based services, teaching, and research.
• Diversity - We value individual differences and promote a multicultural and sensitive environment, free from discrimination and inequity.
• Student-Centered Training - We train counselors, who can support the development of clients from adolescence through adulthood.
• Client-centered Care - We train students to provide effective, sensitive, and collaborative care, uniquely tailored to the individual needs of clients.
• Collaborative Engagement - We engage with our campus and community partners to support and develop new opportunities for the underserved in Alabama.

Achievement Awards

Achievement awards are presented to former professors and graduates who have made a significant contribution to the counseling profession.

• Meet the Award Winners

Zeta Chapter of Chi Sigma Iota

Zeta is the UAB Chapter of Chi Sigma Iota, an international honor society for students, professional counselors, and counselor educators that values academic and professional excellence in counseling. The mission of the organization is to promote scholarship, research, professionalism, leadership, advocacy, and excellence in counseling and to recognize high attainment in the pursuit of academic and clinical excellence in the profession of counseling. In 2015, Associate Professor Larry Tyson of the Department of Human Studies was named Chi Sigma Iota Outstanding Faculty Advisor for a Large Chapter, and the UAB Zeta Chapter received the Outstanding Chapter Award. Visit the Chi Sigma Iota website or contact Dr. Dayna Watson for more information about the organization and membership requirements.