Why Pursue a PhD in Counselor Education?
This doctoral program is nationally accredited through the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). Department of Counseling faculty members are the leaders of international counseling associations, with positions such as former and current presidents and journal editors. Program graduates will have opportunity to learn from these faculty members and acquire advanced theoretical knowledge, advanced clinical skills, research skills and advanced clinical supervision skills.
Research Opportunities
The PhD in Counselor Education conducts research in the following topics: creative interventions relative to relationship issues, grief and loss, Relational Cultural Theory, multicultural issues in counseling, behavioral health issues, brief family consultation, creative approaches to aging, on-line counseling, addictions, suicidal tendencies, crisis intervention, treatment of trauma, mentoring in the learning environment, legal and ethical issues in school counseling, injurious behaviors, rape and sexual assault.
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Admission & Application Requirements
Applications are submitted through the UTSA Graduate Application. Please upload all required documents (listed below) on your UTSA Graduate Application. It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure completion and submission of the application, a nonrefundable application fee, and all required supporting documents are on file with UTSA by the appropriate application deadline.
| Counselor Education and Supervision (PhD) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Admission is only available for the Fall semester | ||
| Required Degree | Master’s Degree from an accredited college or university in the United States or have proof of equivalent training at a foreign institution. | |
| Minimum GPA | 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) Departments may consider GPA of last 60 semester credit hours | |
| Coursework | 18 credit hours in an area related to this graduate degree and at least 12 hours must be at the upper-division level. | |
| Transcripts* | Required from all institutions attended; international transcripts must be recorded/translated to English | |
| Credential Evaluation | Required if you have earned university-level credit from foreign institutions. Submit an evaluation of your transcripts from Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE) directly from the graduate admission application platform | |
| English Language Proficiency | 600 TOEFL Paper / 85 TOEFL Internet / 7 IELTS / Duolingo 130 | |
| Purpose Statement | Required | |
| Resume | Required | |
| Letters of Recommendation | 2 academic or professional reference(s) demonstrating your attributes for successful completion of this program (you will request these through the Graduate Admissions Application; let your recommenders know of your deadline to ensure submissions are on time) | |
| *Unofficial transcripts will be taken into consideration for admissions; however, if admitted into the program, you must submit official transcripts to the University. | ||
Application Deadlines
Applicants are encouraged to have their admission file completed as early as possible. All applications, required documents and letters of recommendation, if applicable, must be submitted by 5:00 PM U.S. Central Time on the day of the deadline. Deadlines are subject to change.
| Counselor Education and Supervision (PhD) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Timing on Admission Decision: Students can expect to hear back on an admission decision within 4 to 6 weeks after March 1. | |||
| Application Deadlines for: | Priority | International | Domestic |
| Spring 2025 | Not Available | Not Available | |
| Summer 2025 | Not Available | Not Available | |
| Fall 2025 | February 1 | February 1 | |
| Spring 2026 | Not Available | Not Available | |
| Summer 2026 | Not Available | Not Available | |
Career Options
UTSA prepares you for future careers that are in demand. The possible careers below is data pulled by a third-party tool called Emsi, which pulls information from sources like the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau, online job postings, other government databases and more to give you regional and national career outlook related to this academic program.
The program is full-time and courses are taken one or two days a week on the UTSA Downtown Campus.
