Liberty--MA in Counseling questions

Discussion in 'Nursing and medical-related degrees' started by armywife, Sep 24, 2011.

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  1. armywife

    armywife New Member

    How long does it take to complete this program? If you've been through this program can you tell me if you enjoyed it and how long it took you to complete it? I wanted to know if they offer the classes on a cycle which would make it difficult for you to complete it quicker than usual.

    Did you choose 48 or 60 hours?
     
  2. Garp

    Garp Well-Known Member

    I was once enrolled but later completed another program. I liked it. I would choose the number of credit hours you need for licensure as a professional counselor in your state. I believe most are 48 but not sure. Check that out first.
     
  3. SurfDoctor

    SurfDoctor Moderator

    Holly, this does not address your question, but I would like to remind you to ensure that a degree from Liberty will fulfill the requirements for licensure in your state. It varies by state and I know of people who did not check and finished a program only to find out that they could not practice in their state. This was not Liberty, but the principle is the same. Liberty is great, just be careful.
     
  4. JBjunior

    JBjunior Active Member

    This is true but when I was considering (and enrolled but changed my mind before starting) this program there were only 2-3 states that the Liberty program didn't work in. Oregon, Louisiana (I think, it could have been Alabama), and one other I want to say. Oregon only accepts CACREP and Louisiana required a certain portion of classes a certain way. Things change yearly and even daily so verify and re-verify that it will work for you. You would ideally want a CACREP degree but if you are getting the steal of a deal on tuition at Liberty not much can compete with it.
     
  5. Hadashi no Gen

    Hadashi no Gen New Member

    To add to this, there are some states that limit the amount of online education that can be incorporated into a person's grad counseling program. If I remember correctly, NJ and NH are among those. I would check into that for sure... as well as the 48/60 hour requirement. It is about half and half, but some states have recently changed from 48 to 60. A friend who moved from one state with a 48 hour requirement, where he was a licensed counselor, to another state with a 60 hour requirement can not legally work as a counselor until he goes back to grad school for 12 credits. This is why it'd be nice if there were a national license, eh?
     
  6. armywife

    armywife New Member

    I live in Texas where they only require a 48 hour program and do not require cacrep. Cacrep programs are double the cost so I cant justify to myself doing that if I don't need it. I heard somewhere you can't bill tricare or Medicaid without cacrep. That would concern me
     
  7. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    Also, is it possible that the 60 hour program would be more useful if you ever applied to a doctoral degree program? What is the content of the added 12 credits?
     
  8. graymatter

    graymatter Member

    I've been an adjunct in Liberty's MA Counseling program and do clinical supervision for practicum and internship students. Most finish the degree in 3 years since there is a full internship. There is no cohort format as there are in other programs so you could conceivably finish faster. The program is large enough that just about every course is offered every section. You can upgrade elective courses to PhD-level courses if that is a career goal as well.

    As has been noted, there are states that lean heavily towards CACREP (LU isn't) and others that don't like the blended/online format (LU requires at least 3 on-campus intensives).

    For most, its a great program. A complaint I've heard from non-local students has been the frustration of securing sites for practicum/internship components as LU doesn't really help with this.

    I would STRONGLY encourage you to do the 60 hours masters as there are states (including Virginia where LU is based) that require 60 and you wouldn't want to come up short. As has been noted, in states that require 60 hours, there is no reciprocation for those with a less-than-60 hour masters/license.

    CACREP does not effect my ability to bill Medicaid or Tricare.

    To be TOTALLY honest, I'd recommend LU's program only to those who CANNOT take an on-campus program. While I've taught on-ground and online for LU and believe it to be a good online program (I've taught for 3 others as well), I believe that I learned much more about counseling (if that is indeed your goal) by taking it on-campus (not LU).
     
  9. graymatter

    graymatter Member

    Electives. Some states require specific electives be taken - such as psychological testing (Ohio) or substance abuse treatment (Virginia and several others). Some students choose to take PhD electives (since LU has an online PhD in Counseling) on certain treatment modalities (CBT, psychodynamic, etc). They are working on (or perhaps its started now) offering specializations; for instance, you can take the 12 hours in PTSD, ASD, TF-CBT, and another - and consider have a certificate/specificalization in "trauma." Something like that anyway.
     
  10. armywife

    armywife New Member

    From looking at their website Liberty's PhD in counseling didn't look to be very distance learning friendly with people being required on campus very often. Am I wrong about that?
     
  11. graymatter

    graymatter Member

    Most classes are blended format. The course itself is 8-12 weeks long and includes a 1-week intensive in the first few weeks. Most students are able to double-up the courses so they can come for back-to-back weeks each term. Some electives (the most popular ones) are available as online-only courses.
     
  12. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    It sounds like those added 12 credits, properly crafted, could be very useful.
     
  13. armywife

    armywife New Member

    I have heard a lot of people say this but if Texas only requires 48 and I'm permanently in Texas, why would I need to worry about it? I'm not leaving Texas and the difference in cost is very significant to me b/c I'm paying for this out of pocket.
     
  14. Hadashi no Gen

    Hadashi no Gen New Member

    It seems like you are dead set on taking the 48 hour online program. If you are sure that you will stay in TX for the rest of your life, that they will not up their reqs to 60, and that you want a program that is completely online, I am wondering what else there is that we can do to help you in your search.

    It also seems like you have been looking for a graduate program for a very long time. I hope that you find one that works for you and offers everything that you need to be a great therapist.

    In my opinion... I am glad that the requirements in my state and surrounding area are so high. I am in my second 600-hour internship, have taken over 48 hours of credit... and finally feel like I am beginning understanding who I am in this field. If my program ended after my first practicum/internship, and at 48 hours, I don't think that I would be ready to work as a full time professional counselor. That's just me though. You may be totally ready with 48 credit and 300 total/100 direct hour in-program internship like TX requires.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 26, 2011
  15. Hadashi no Gen

    Hadashi no Gen New Member

    It depends on the program. Some doctoral Counseling programs that I have seen require that the student's Master's degree be from a CACREP institution, not mentioning anything about 48 or 60 credit hours. There are other programs that I have seen, like some Marriage and Family Therapy doctorates, that require a 60-hour Masters in a clinical mental health concentration (MFT, counseling, social work, clinical psych, etc).
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 26, 2011
  16. eilla05

    eilla05 New Member

    You are correct about the online thing and Kansas for example is one of those states. However I do believe that as far as college credits goes and obtaining your license that those who took 48 credits instead of 60 can indeed get licensed in SOME states as long as they have had their professional license in their current state for 5 years or more. Not all states are like this but there are some.

    To the OP....

    If you intend to stay in Texas the 48 hour track might work for you but you might want to call up the licensing board and ask them what would happen if say in a few years they decided to require 60 credits. Better to save yourself the headache now and just do the 60 hour track then to have to deal with it later. Were talking 4 courses here and only a couple grand. If your going to put any effort into the program why not just do the 60? Something else to think about is that many many states are starting to require CACREP accreditation and if something happened in the couple of years it takes you to finish the program and Texas started requirring CACREP then what?

    The cost of a CACREP school is exactly why I chose to go another route for my Masters. If we ever stop moving I intend to hopefully find a local university that is CACREP approved where I can take on site courses for my counseling degree.

    Here is the option I was so close to pursuing but the price held me back! But with the cost you will pay for Liberty for a non-cacrep degree this is a good alternative..

    CE Online - Counselor Education - Adams State College
     
  17. kirkhenderson123

    kirkhenderson123 New Member

    You should really check out University of West Alabama (Home Page). This is only a 33-credit program but you can take more classes if you want. All online, about $1600 per course. I am four classes away from graduating and really love it! With Liberty you are going to have to travel to their campus for several courses to take as intensives for one week at a time...
     

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