As a student in the program, you are assured of learning from highly skilled psychologists who are committed to fostering your development as a mental health professional.

In addition to the depth of quality courses and the willingness of our instructors to help each student develop his or her area of expertise, Assumption College offers unique advantages to help you advance your career:

• Assumption has the only M.A. offering a fully integrated curriculum based on cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in the United States.
• The Aaron T. Beck Institute for Cognitive Studies at Assumption College attracts CBT practitioners from around the globe to present at and attend workshops and lectures on campus.
• Our graduates are frequently recruited for positions requiring a Master of Arts in Clinical Counseling Psychology.
• Assumption offers generous Graduate Fellowships with 30 credits of tuition remission.
• You choose four electives, which provides flexibility to focus on your personal interests.
• All faculty bring extensive clinical experience to the classroom, and full-time faculty also have impressive research credentials.
• The program can be completed in two years.
• The numerous practicum-internship opportunities in Worcester, a city renowned for health care, are key components of the program.
• The program is designed to prepare graduates to meet the educational requirements for licensure as a Mental Health Counselor in Massachusetts and most other states.*

We welcome you to join the many leading mental health professionals who began their careers in our program at Assumption College.

The Assumption College Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology program prepares you for a career as a mental health counselor, fully integrating Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) theory and practice in addressing common clinical problems like aggressive behavior in children, ADHD, depression, anxiety and substance abuse.

Why Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is So Crucial and Relevant for Today’s Clinician

CBT and other evidence-based treatments have repeatedly proven their effectiveness in clinical settings throughout the United States and around the world.

For a number of the most common mental health conditions, CBT has proven to be the most effective treatment. As a result, CBT is increasingly being recognized, promoted and reimbursed by federal healthcare-policy makers, insurance companies and HMOs. The domino effect is that employers are actively seeking skill-based counselors with practical cognitive therapy experience.

The M.A. Program is Built on a Set of Competencies in Five Major Domains:

• Competence in developing an interpersonal relationship with clients and clinical supervisors
• Competence in clinical assessment
• Competence in implementing evidence-based interventions
• Competence in evaluating psychological research in domains that contribute to the practice of mental health counseling
• Ethical and professional conduct in relationships with clients, faculty, and colleagues