A National Survey of School Counselor Preparation Programs: Screening Methods, Faculty Experiences, Curricular Content, and Fieldwork Requirements

Abstract

This article describes the results of a national survey regarding the preparation of entry-level school counseling students. The questionnaire asked counselor educators about credit hours. screening methods, previous faculty experiences in a school setting. course content. and fieldwork requirements. Survey results revealed similarities and differences among school counselor preparation programs.

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“…One hundred and eighteen participants responded to the 27 items assessing the degree to which the ten essential elements were reflected in their school counselor education programs, and are presented in Table 3 The results of this study extend the findings of Pérusse, Goodnough, & Noël (2001) with respect to screening methods, faculty experiences, curricular content, and fieldwork requirements of school counselor preparation programs. As was true of the previous study, 48 semester credit hours was the most common credit hour requirement.…”

“…The current research compares findings obtained from the present study with those reported in two previous studies -one by Pérusse, Goodnough, & Noël (2001) regarding screening methods, faculty experiences, curricular content, and fieldwork requirements and a second study by …”

“…It has been over a decade since (Pérusse, Goodnough, & Noël, 2001) original study, Pérusse, Goodnough, & Noël (2001) discussed the similarities and differences between school counselor preparation programs. While differences among programs were noted, there were similarities within the structure of programs.…”

“…The Pérusse, Goodnough, & Noël (2001) Table 3 and were rated by participants on a 4 point scale where 1=never, 2=sometimes, 3=usually, and 4=always.…”

“…Titles of courses supplied by the respondents were grouped into course content areas using the categories used in the previous study (Pérusse, Goodnough, & Noël, 2001), and additional course content areas were created to capture responses that did not fit. Table 2 shows course content areas designed specifically for school counseling students, and suggest that, on average, programs required one or two specialized courses for school counseling students.…”