Counseling (PhD)

 

 

PhD graduates and faculty members at commencement exercises.

The PhD program in Counseling seeks to provide opportunities for intellectual, psychological, and spiritual growth to foster the individual's contribution within a pluralistic society. 

Ready to teach other counselors?

Get your PhD

At the University of Holy Cross, for PhD students who want to become full-time or part-time university faculty members, you’ll have opportunities to become a teaching assistant, supervise master’s student interns, or serve as an adjunct faculty member, boosting your vitae with actual teaching and supervision experience. For PhD students who want to provide leadership in counseling programs, you will complete coursework in leadership and advocacy, program evaluation, and ethical and legal issues, preparing you to administer counseling programs in agencies, schools, universities, and private practices.

Your first two years of PhD coursework will include activities leading up to completing your dissertation. Your advisor will help you focus on a topic that you are passionate about, and you will draft outlines and full chapters of your dissertation before you enter your final year.

Past dissertation topics include:

• The experiences of young, urban, financially independent, working women in India related to the possibility of marriage in the future;
• Ethical and legal self-efficacy in play therapists;
• Professional advocacy among school counselors in Alabama;
• Attorneys’ views on counselor expert witness credibility;
• Counselors who use horses as co-facilitators in treating individuals;
• The reunification between adopted individuals and their biological parents; and
• How children with anxiety experience participating in yoga classes.

Our doctoral graduates go on to teach in colleges across the country, serve as site visitors for accreditation and officers in local and national professional organizations, own large successful private practices, and hold administrative positions in mental health agencies, schools, and universities.

On-line program delivery and residencies

The University of Holy Cross PhD degree program is delivered on-line only. The university campus is located in New Orleans, Louisiana. Most courses are asynchronous. Accommodations are made for students who are not able to attend any synchronous Zoom class meetings.

Beginning with PhD students admitted for Fall 2026 semester, two in-person on-campus residencies will be required. One residency will be held when students begin the PhD program, and a second residency will be required later during the time students are earning their degrees. All on-line counseling graduate programs that are accredited by CACREP must do the following during the two residencies: observe students’ professional behaviors with professors and/or university staff, and with peers; observe the students to ensure they can deliver core counseling skills; and provide feedback to students regarding strengths and areas of need for remediation.

CACREP specialized practice areas offered

Our counseling graduate program offers master’s degrees in clinical mental health counseling; marriage, couple, and family counseling; and school counseling. In addition, faculty members have expertise in establishing and maintaining private practices in counseling; play therapy; legal issues in counseling; trauma informed counseling; counseling in agencies; and counseling diverse clients.

A few places where our PhD graduates teach and lead in full-time positions

Archdiocese of New Orleans
North Carolina State University
Wayne State College, Nebraska
Catholic Charities
Loyola University of New Orleans
National Board for Certified Counselors
Southeastern Louisiana University
The University of North Carolina at Pembroke
Wake Forest University, North Carolina
Walden University, Minnesota
Xavier University of Louisiana
University of Alabama
Eastern Kentucky University
Emporia State University, Kansas

Admissions Criteria

Admission to the PhD degree program includes consideration of each applicant’s career goals; aptitude for PhD-level study consistent with on-line delivery of the program; potential for success in forming effective counseling relationships with diverse populations; and potential for success as a teacher, supervisor, leader, or administrator in counselor education and supervision.

Minimum PhD degree requirements

To earn the PhD degree, admitted students must have completed a 60-credit CACREP-accredited master’s degree program in counseling or must hold a counseling master’s degree and make up any missing components of a CACREP-accredited master’s degree program in counseling. The PhD degree requires an additional 60 semester credits in counseling doctoral-level core courses, research courses, dissertation hours, and a 600-hour internship. In addition to coursework, PhD students must complete a dissertation and a portfolio. See the PhD Student Handbook for detailed PhD degree program requirements.

PhD degree program costs and financial aid

Costs for completing degree programs and available financial aid at the University of Holy Cross can be found at this website: https://uhcno.edu/admissions/tuition.php. Students who are full-time teachers or counselors while enrolled in the PhD degree program are eligible for a tuition discount. Students employed full-time as teachers are eligible for discounts of 50% for tuition only (not fees) and students who are employed as full-time counselors are eligible for discounts of 20% for tuition only (not fees). Contact Dr. Carolyn White at cwhite@uhcno.edu for discount requirements and details.

PhD degree program mission and objectives

Mission

The mission of the PhD program in Counselor Education and Supervision at the University of Holy Cross is to prepare professional counselors to provide leadership in the profession of counseling. Counseling leaders must be excellent counselors, supervisors, teachers, researchers, and scholars. The program is designed to enhance the counseling skills of doctoral students, prepare counselors for the roles of clinical and administrative supervisor, develop the teaching skills of students, teach students to conduct research, and prepare students to become counseling scholars. The program prepares doctoral students to become university faculty members in counselor education programs or leaders in the specializations of clinical mental health counseling, marriage and family counseling, and school counseling.

Objectives

1. To deliver a PhD degree program in counselor education and supervision that meets the standards of the Council on Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).
2. To prepare PhD degree-level professionals to teach in counselor education graduate programs and to provide leadership in counseling in agencies, schools, and private practices and to become leaders in the counseling profession.
3. To continually assess the PhD degree program and make adjustments if necessary to ensure students are receiving a high quality educational experience.
4. To deliver a PhD degree program in counselor education and supervision that fits within the mission of the University of Holy Cross and reflects the core beliefs of the Marianites of Holy Cross, a Catholic congregation of women, by educating the whole person. 

Key performance indicators

1. Students will demonstrate knowledge and skills in counseling.
2. Students will demonstrate knowledge and skills in supervision.
3. Students will demonstrate knowledge and skills in teaching.
4. Students will demonstrate knowledge and skills in research and scholarship.
5. Students will demonstrate knowledge and skills in leadership and advocacy.

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