School Counseling Master's Degree

Master's Program

Accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP, 2009), the MEd in School Counseling program prepares students with the professional competencies necessary to organize, implement, and evaluate a comprehensive school counseling program in a K–12 school setting. In addition to application to the MEd graduate program, students should apply to the School Counseling Certification Program if they intend to practice as a certified professional school counselor.

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Why Pursue a Master's Degree in School Counseling

The Master of Education in School Counseling provides the foundation for graduates to become certified school counselors in Texas (with two years of teaching experience at the time of application for state certification). Additionally, this program provides a diploma and transcripts specifying students’ training and specialty in school counseling. A variety of career opportunities are available upon graduation and state certification in education, non-profit, private, state, and federal sectors.

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Admission & Application Requirements

Applications are submitted through the UT San Antonio Graduate Application. Please upload all required documents (listed below) on your UT San Antonio 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 UT San Antonio by the appropriate application deadline.

School Counseling (MEd)
	Required Degree	Bachelor'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	Completed adequate credit hours or foreign institution equivalent coursework as preparation for the program.
	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 FCSA or any NACES-approved credential evaluation agency.
	English Language Proficiency	100 TOEFL iBT / 7 IELTS / Duolingo 130 For exams taken on or after January 21, 2026: We require a minimum TOEFL iBT score of 5.0.
	Narrative Statement (2026-27)	Required See Instructions for Narrative Statement
	Narrative Statement (2027-28)	Required video response addressing three program-specific questions. Submit a shareable video URL through the application. See Narrative Statement Video Instructions* below for requirements and submission details.*
	Letters of Recommendation	3 Applicant Rating Form(s) demonstrating your academic and personal attributes for success in 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.

Apply 2026-27 Application Apply 2027-28 Application

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.

School Counseling (MEd)
Timing on Admission Decision: Completed applications are reviewed after the application deadline. Admission decisions are released following review committee meetings in late March and late October.
Application Deadlines for:	Priority	International	Domestic
Spring 2027		October 1	October 1
Summer 2027		Not Available	Not Available
Fall 2027		March 1	March 1
Spring 2028		October 1	October 1
Summer 2028		Not Available	Not Available

Funding Opportunities

Resources

Career Options

UT San Antonio prepares you for future careers that are in demand. The possible careers below are based on 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 majority of courses are offered in the evenings one night a week from 6:00 PM to 8:45 PM at the Downtown Campus.

Creative interventions relative to relationship issues, grief and loss
Comprehensive school guidance and counseling program effectiveness
Multicultural issues in counseling
Behavioral health issues
Brief family consultation
Creative approaches to school guidance and counseling services
On-line counseling
Addictions
Suicidality
Crisis intervention
Child abuse and other trauma
Legal and ethical issues in school counseling
Injurious behaviors

Overview

Applicants to the MEd in School Counseling program must submit a video response to satisfy the Narrative Statement requirement. The submission should include a single video answering the three questions below. Video may not exceed 5 minutes in length.

Before You Begin

State your name at the beginning of the video. Before answering each question, state the question number and title. For example: “I’m [Name]. Question 1 – Motivation.” Be mindful of the time limit so you can adequately address all three questions within 5 minutes.

Question 1 – Motivation

What personal, academic, or professional experiences brought you to the field of school counseling, and how have those experiences developed your professional interests?

Question 2 – Self-Awareness

What unique perspectives, skills, or qualities contribute to your counseling suitability and your potential success in forming effective counseling relationships? What qualities do you still need to develop?

Question 3 – Goals

What are your professional goals? How do your goals align with the core values of the School Counseling program?

Recording Requirements

Record all responses in one continuous video. Do not stop, edit, cut, or splice the recording. Videos may not exceed 5 minutes and recordings longer than 5 minutes will not be reviewed. Your face should remain clearly visible throughout the recording, and you should speak in your own words rather than reading from a script.

Submission Instructions

Upload your video to YouTube using the Unlisted visibility setting. This allows reviewers to view the video using the link without making it publicly searchable. Copy the shareable link and paste it into the designated field within your application. Before submitting, verify that the link opens correctly and can be viewed by others. Videos that are inaccessible, private, removed, or otherwise unavailable to reviewers will not be considered.

Mission Statement

The Department of Counseling at UT San Antonio prepares ethically grounded, community-informed, and professionally competent clinical mental health counselors, school counselors, counselor educators, supervisors, and researchers with a strong professional counselor identity to serve in a global society. We are a Hispanic-Serving Institution, and as a Tier One Research University, we cultivate leaders and agents of change who embody our core values and are equipped with empirically supported practices. We are committed to innovation in training and practice, empowering our graduates to meet evolving professional demands and enriching the quality of people’s lives.

Core Values

Professional Ethics & Innovation. We uphold the highest ethical standards and are committed to the responsible integration of emerging technologies, such as telehealth and Artificial Intelligence (AI), to advance access and care.
Strength-Based, Wellness-Focused Approach. We emphasize wellness, prevention, and resilience, integrating strength-based strategies alongside responsive intervention.
Community-Informed Advocacy. We prepare counselors to be civically engaged, legislatively aware advocates who promote affirming communities and access to quality care as part of a global society.
Trauma-Informed Practice. We embrace trauma-informed principles, research, and practices that create environments and approaches that prioritize safety, trust, empowerment, and collaboration.
Relational Learning & Creativity. We value relational competence, creativity, critical thinking, and personal growth for faculty, students, and the communities we serve.
Collaboration & Mentorship. We foster a student-centered culture of collaboration, mentorship, and mutual support that enhances professional development and leadership for our students and faculty.
Holistic, Systemic Perspective. We recognize the complex, interconnected systems that impact individuals and families. We attend to cultural, social, and structural influences to provide holistic, context-sensitive care.