The Education Specialist (EdS) Degree Program in Counselor Education is designed for individuals who already hold a Master’s degree in counseling or a related field. The program objectives are to assist practicing counselors to develop greater expertise and leadership skills in their current counseling field and to gain knowledge and practice in the supervision of counselors. The program will build upon the knowledge, skills, and dispositions counseling professionals have acquired from pursuing the Master’s degree and being employed in the profession.
The EdS Program will provide a venue for practicing counselors in clinical mental health or school settings to learn more about advancing client/student achievement and clarifying their professional identity. Additionally, the EdS Program will provide opportunities for counselors to further develop their clinical counseling and group skills, their professional identity, their theoretical orientations, and ability to supervise others. Throughout the program, counseling professionals will become more self-aware, more knowledgeable about current counseling policies and practices, more skilled at collaborating with other professionals to effect change, and more responsive to the particular needs of students and clients.
The EdS Program is designed to meet the needs of non-traditional students. Courses are offered during evening hours, on Saturdays, or in hybrid or online formats to accommodate those who may already be working in clinical mental health or school settings. Applicants who hold either current state counseling licensure or school counselor certification, and who have a history of professional counseling work and service to others will be considered more highly during the admissions process. Although the student body is quite varied, we are committed to increasing the numbers of diverse students in our program to be more representative of the surrounding community.
All of the full-time Counselor Education Program faculty hold doctoral degrees and have professional experience in their particular subject areas. Several hold professional licensure (LPC) and certifications, and they are actively involved in the counseling profession. Faculty members frequently present at state, regional, and national conferences, often in collaboration with counseling students, reporting on descriptive or experimental research which has been conducted during the program courses.
Admissions Procedures and Requirements
Please see the College of Education for specific admission information:
http://www.gru.edu/colleges/education/documents/edscouncprocedure.pdf
Program Eligibility and Systematic Assessment of Students
Students are expected to maintain an overall grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.0 across all courses attempted in the EdS program. Any course in which a student earns a grade of D or F will need to be retaken. Student progress throughout the program is regularly monitored and assessed by program faculty. Students showing deficiencies in either academic or non-academic areas may be placed on probation and/or remediation status and may be either reinstated or dismissed based on subsequent academic or non-academic performance.
Consult the College of Education Graduate Programs portion of the university catalog for information on retention and exit from programs, time limits for completion of degree, graduate appeals and financial aid.
EdS in Counselor Education Degree Requirements
• 30 semester hours of academic work
• Advanced practicum in counseling supervison
• Successful completion of a Professional Development Plan and Review during the final semester
