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2016-2017 SGPP Catalog and Handbook 
    
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2016-2017 SGPP Catalog and Handbook [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Marriage and Family Therapy Certificate

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Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFTs) are mental health professionals trained in psychotherapy and family systems, and licensed to diagnose and treat mental and emotional disorders within the context of marriage, couples, and family systems. Marriage and family therapists treat a wide range of serious clinical problems including depression, marital problems, anxiety, individual psychological problems. and child-parent problems. Marriage and family therapists take a holistic perspective to healthcare; they are concerned with the overall long-term well-being of individuals and their families.

Saint Mary’s University offers two marriage and family therapy programs: the Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy, and the Graduate Certificate in Marriage and Family Therapy. Students in both programs take certain marriage and family therapy courses together. The Graduate Certificate in Marriage and Family Therapy program is for professionals working in the human services. Courses are designed to enhance the professional’s understanding of and use of systemic and relational interventions with individuals, couples, and families. This program is offered to professionals with master’s degrees in mental health related programs who desire further academic specialization from a systemic perspective. The curriculum meets the educational requirements for licensure with the Minnesota Board of Marriage and Family Therapy.

  1. From FAQs on MFTs, www.aamft.org, June 2006

Professional Accreditation

The Marriage and Family Therapy Post Degree Program at Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE) of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT), 112 S. Alfred Street, Alexandria, VA 22314, (703) 838-9808.

Program Mission and Educational Outcomes

Mission: Recognizing the relational and systemic qualities of all life, the Marriage and Family Therapy programs at Saint Mary’s University exist to aid students in deepening their own understanding of relational health and their own skills in facilitating relational health in all kinds of human systems.

The Marriage and Family Therapy program uses three sets of educational outcomes to outline the scope, emphasis, and rigor of the program and to assess its quality: program outcomes, faculty outcomes, and student learning outcomes.

The MFT program outcomes reflect both the professional skills and practice required of program graduates and embody the result of effective core learning outlined for programs in the Schools of Graduate and Professional Programs and the requirements of the Minnesota Board of Marriage and Family.

  1. MFT students meet academic and skill requirements after core courses, pre-practicum courses, practicum, and integration activities.
  2. MFT graduates achieve professional development markers: obtain MFT jobs, pass national and state MFT exams, and receive MFT licensure.
  3. MFT alumni contribute to the profession through professional presentations and publications, advocacy activities and leadership, and teaching.
  4. MFT students reflect an understanding and respect for cultural diversity.

The MFT faculty outcomes articulate the teaching and learning requirements aligned with the university and program missions. MFT faculty members are expected to do the following:

  1. Encourage diversity of thoughts and experiences in teaching.
  2. Demonstrate current knowledge in the subject area taught.
  3. Develop effective teaching plans and assessments and updated and innovative classroom experiences.
  4. Provide real world examples in teaching and supervision.
  5. Challenge students’ thinking processes and mindsets.
  6. Model ethical services from an academic and clinical perspective in teaching.
     

Student Learning Outcomes

Graduates of the Graduate Certificate in Marriage and Family Therapy program are expected to be able to do the following:

  1. Reflect an understanding of and respect for cultural diversity through professional relationships and communication with diverse clients, peers, and organizations.
  2. Integrate basic knowledge of marriage and family theory to clinical practice.
  3. Integrate knowledge of marriage and family therapy models to clinical practice.
  4. Develop a systemic perspective to diagnose and treat mental health issues of individuals, couples, and families.
  5. Evaluate professional practice issues to act in an ethical manner based on the marriage and family therapy codes of ethics, legal requirements, sound judgment, and professional compassion.
  6. Analyze research for use in couple and family therapy.
  7. Demonstrate written, verbal, and nonverbal communication skills with clients and professionals.
  8. Create effective interventions to promote well-being in clients through preventative, developmental, systemic, and/or remedial services.
  9. Articulate plans for future professional development.
The Marriage and Family Therapy Certificate program is no longer accepting students.

Degree Requirements

Marriage and Family Studies 10 cr.
Marriage and Family Therapy 6 cr.
Professional Issues 4 cr.
Treatment Planning 3 cr.
Practicum 4 cr.
Exit Interview 0 cr.
Total 27 cr.

 

Marriage and Family Studies: 10 cr.

Marriage and Family Therapy: 6 cr.

Professional Issues: 4 cr.

Treatment Planning: 3 cr.

Practicum: 4 cr.

The Practicum in Marriage and Family Therapy provides students enrolled in the Graduate Program in Marriage and Family Therapy the opportunity to complete the licensing board requirement for a practicum experience. The Board of Marriage and Family Therapy requires students to complete 300 clinical hours of direct client contact. Each 2-credit practicum course requires the completion of 150 direct contact hours and each student must complete 4 credits of practicum in meeting that requirement. A practicum supervision seminar is taken concurrently as a part of the practicum requirements. The supervision seminar provides an environment for presentation of case material, as well as a venue for discussing problems and concerns that arise in the practicum setting. Personal and professional issues relevant to the practicum experience are examined.

The student completes a supervised practicum experience in a counseling or mental health setting under direct supervision. This experience consists of a minimum of 300 clinical contact hours. This experience must include at least 150 hours of direct clinical service with couples and families. A practicum seminar class must be taken concurrently:

Exit Interview

The final program requirement is an exit interview with the program director or the clinical director.

Faculty

The faculty members for this program have earned doctorate or master’s degrees. Faculty are selected for their combination of educational and professional experience and expertise.

Admission Requirements

A master’s degree from a regionally accredited institution, for which applicants maintained at least a 3.0 grade point average, is required for admission. In addition, the applicant must have completed the graduate courses listed below. These courses may have been completed as part of a master’s degree or doctoral program, or may be taken separately at a regionally accredited institution of higher education.

Applicants must have coursework in the following areas:

  1. Three courses (nine semester credits) in human development, human behavior, personality theory, human sexuality, psychopathology, and behavior pathology.
  2. One course (three semester credits) in marital and family therapy covering marital and family communication, family psychology, family therapy, methods of intervention, family assessment, sex therapy, major theories of marital and family therapy such as structural, strategic, transgenerational, experiential, object relations, contextual and systemic therapy.
  3. One course (three semester credits) in research covering design, methods, statistics, and special issues in research in marital and family studies or a related field.

An applicant who is lacking one or more of these courses may apply to be admitted as provisional and take courses in the Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy or Counseling and Psychological Services programs.

Application Process

Applicants must submit:

  1. Completed application form with the nonrefundable application fee (fee not required for alumni or students seeking readmission or veterans and active military personnel) and,
  2. An official transcript issued to Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota from the institution posting the applicant’s completed bachelor’s degree and other relevant transcripts documenting program pre- requisites and potential transfer credits. (An official transcript is one that is sent or carried to the university in an envelope sealed by the granting university. Transcripts from countries other than the U.S. must be evaluated by a university accepted evaluation source, such as World Education Services, www.wes.org, or Educational Credential Evaluators, www.ece.org, and be deemed equivalent to accredited U.S. university standards.) and,
  3. A personal statement which includes:
    1. brief description of the applicant’s background, training, and experience and,
    2. statement indicating the career goals of the applicant and his or her reasons for seeking admission to the program and,
    3. description of the areas the applicant considers to be his or her strengths and areas in which the applicant wishes to develop greater strengths and abilities and,
    4. personal information the applicant wishes to share.
  4. Letter(s) of recommendation that verify professional and/or volunteer experience and academic ability and,
  5. A current résumé listing educational background and work experience.

Please Note: Application materials should be sent to the attention of the Office of Admission on the Twin Cities campus.

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