Transition to School Counseling Certificate

The College of Education (COE) offers a Transition to School Counseling Certificate for students who have a prior master's degree in community or mental health counseling.

Admission Requirements

1. Submission of a FGCU Post-Baccalaureate Non-Degree Certificate Application to the Office of Graduate Admissions.
2. Master's degree in counseling or closely related field from an institution that maintains accreditation by a U.S. Department of Education sanctioned accrediting body (https://www2.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html) or equivalent foreign institution, as documented by official transcripts.
3. An official transcript of all completed post-bachelor's coursework.
4. Documentation of any Counseling certification or license held in Florida or any other U.S. state if applicable.
5. A Statement of Eligibility from the state of Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) that assesses the candidate as a School Counselor within the 12 months prior to application.
6. Submission of a written statement of career goals including the understanding that internships are only offered during the day and during the fall and spring terms.
7. Completion of the following courses or their equivalents:
   • Sch Couns Special Populations (3) (SDS 6425 at FGCU)
   • School Couns Leg/Ethical Iss (3) (SDS 6705 at FGCU)
   • EDF 5259 Classroom Mgt and Org (3) OR Grp Wrk for School Counselors (3) (SDS 6515 at FGCU)
8. International graduate applicants are required to submit a minimum TOEFL score of 550 (paper-based test), 213 (computer-based test), or 79 (internet-based test) or IELTS score of 6.5.

Deadline: Applications for admission are considered on a continuing basis but applicants should consider that required courses may only be offered once per year and that internships are completed at the end of the program.

NOTE:  Counseling Criminal Record Policy Statement: All applicants are advised that in order to complete the program they must complete internships. Most internship facilities do background checks and will not permit the placement of counselor interns with criminal records. The department reserves the right to deny program admission to any applicant if it appears that applicant is unlikely to be able to complete the internship requirement due to a criminal record, thus inhibiting their ability to complete the program.

Additional Graduation Requirements

• Students must satisfactorily complete the minimum number of credits specified by the certificate program in specific courses or approved substitutes.
• A grade of B or higher must be earned in all graduate courses used as prerequisites and in each required course.
• A cumulative GPA of 3.0 for all coursework and Satisfactory (as appropriate) for all field experiences in the certificate program.

Program Requirements

Required Courses (17 credits)

EDG 6356 Inst Models and Strategies (3)
RED 5147L Developmental Reading (3)*
SDS 6010 Intro to School Counseling (3)
SDS 6418 Sch Couns Ldrship Acct & Supv (2)
SDS 6600 Consult & Collab Prob Solving (3)
300 hour internship: SDS 6830 School Counseling Internship (3)

*Note: Requires 15 hours of field supervision during the day.

At the completion of requirements students apply for certification as a school counselor directly with the FLDOE.

Total Semester Hours Required: 17 Hours