Couple and Family Therapy, (M.A.)

Program Overview

The Master of Arts in Couple and Family Therapy (MCFT) is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE). It is a clinical program through which students acquire therapy skills emphasizing the enrichment and treatment of couples/relationships, families, and individuals. When working with couples/relationships, families, and individuals, students are trained to understand relational or systemic concerns within the broader contexts of development, family roles and functioning, as well as community and social circumstances. The clinically intensive coursework and practicum experiences provide students with strong conceptual, assessment, treatment planning, and intervention skills based on the major couple and family therapy models.

Graduates of the program have the core professional identity as a couple and family therapist (CFT) qualified for professional membership with the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT). CFTs are mental health professionals who recognize that relationships and patterns of engaging influence individual and relational functioning and, therefore, need to be part of the therapy process. CFTs work with couples/relationships, families, and individuals (children, adolescents, teenagers, adults, and geriatric populations) in a wide variety of clinical settings such as, but not limited to, community mental health centers and agencies, group and private practices, hospitals, schools, substance abuse treatment programs, correctional facilities, and residential treatment programs; their training is not limited to serving only couples/relationships and families.

The curriculum and supervised training are intended to help students who complete the degree meet the educational requirements for licensure as a Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) in Illinois. Licensure requirements can vary from state to state in terms of their expectations of practicum hours and coursework. Students are strongly encouraged to review the licensing requirements in any state in which they would anticipate practicing. COAMFTE accreditation improves portability across states as the curriculum and training meets the highest standards and rigor in the field.

MCFT students may also add the Certificate in Sex Therapy to their program of study by either stacking the certificate onto their degree, allowing them to still take some of the department’s elective courses or utilizing certificate courses to meet the electives requirement in the degree.

The Master of Arts in Couple and Family Therapy program is dedicated to training quality couple and family therapists who are firmly grounded in systemic theories and who are socially responsible and sensitive to diversity and social justice issues, with a clear professional identity as couple and family therapists. This mission is achieved through a commitment to our Program Goals and Student Learning Outcomes.

Program Goals

1. To develop a clear professional identity as an ethical couple and family therapist.
2. To train students to develop a systemic worldview in their work as a couple and family therapist.
3. To graduate socially responsible professional couple and family therapists sensitive to social justice and diversity.

Student Learning Outcomes

1. To understand and apply systems, modern, and postmodern couple and family therapy theories.
2. To assess ethical, legal, and professional issues related to clinical practice.
3. To demonstrate cultural competency in practicing couple and family therapy with diverse populations.
4. To display proficiency in clinical skills in the practice of couple and family therapy.
5. To demonstrate knowledge of Adlerian principles that can complement systemic work with couples, families, and individuals.
6. To illustrate knowledge and integration of couple and family therapy research.
7. To describe, understand, and identify issues of social justice, social responsibility, and oppression with couples and families.
8. To establish a clear professional identity as a couple and family therapist.

Program-Specific Admission Requirements

In addition to admission requirements common to all the Adler University graduate clinical programs, the CFT core faculty will review undergraduate transcripts (and graduate transcripts, if applicable), letters of recommendation, and a statement of interest. It is recommended that applicant’s statement describes why they are choosing the field of couple and family therapy, as well as addressing any deficits where students do not meet the stated admissions requirements. Application requirements include:

• A baccalaureate degree from a college or university regionally accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or an equivalent degree from an international college or university.
• A GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale for all undergraduate coursework and/or a 3.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale for all graduate coursework.
• Commitment to the profession of couple and family therapy as demonstrated in their application essay.
• Letters of recommendation from writers who hold an advanced degree.

 

CFT Professional Development - Self of the Therapist

The mission of the MCFT program is to train quality couple and family therapists firmly grounded in systemic theories who are culturally competent and socially responsible. To bring the curriculum, social justice lens, and clinical practicum experience together, the CFT program attends to self-of-the-therapist growth and development throughout the curriculum and specifically in the following course sequence:

Orientation -> 510 -> 660 -> 537 -> 600 -> Practicum Seminars -> 512 -> Capstone Project.

Because of this sequence, students cannot transfer in any of these courses but may use a transferred graduate-level equivalent course to meet the program’s elective requirement following the university’s transfer policies.

Social Justice Practicum

The Social Justice Practicum (SJP) is a non-clinical and non-discipline-specific experiential practicum. Students gain the knowledge, skills, and perspectives to utilize collective power and social justice strategies to build a more equitable society. 

·  The SJP is designed to help students learn how to work alongside different communities as agents of social change and serves as the catalyst for students to realize and understand their strengths and responsibility to contribute to social equity. 

·  The SJP unites the academic institution and larger communities and is an anchor of student learning at Adler University. This experiential learning process includes attending monthly workshops to explore civics, intersectionality, and community organizing and completing a practicum at community-based organizations to work on projects that will strengthen the social justice missions of our community partner members. 

All students must complete the SJP before advancing onto any clinical or discipline-specific training, respective of the program in which they are enrolled. SJP requirements include: 

- Completion of a minimum of 200 hours at an approved SJP site.

- Completion of online modules.

- A formal SJP presentation at the Social Justice Symposium.  

- Students must receive a grade of “Pass” for the midterm and final evaluation to receive credit for completing the SJP.  

The SJP may not be waived, and life credit is not admissible to meet this requirement. 

MCFT Clinical Practicum

The clinical practicum is a vital part of training at Adler University. Providing therapy for couples/relationships, families, individuals, and groups while under close supervision is the primary path that transforms Couple and Family Therapy (CFT) students into entry-level therapists. Students in good standing (academic and comportment) and with a grade of “B” or better in all practicum prerequisitecourses begin clinical practicum in the program’s second year. Students required to postpone clinical practicum as decided by the CFT Student Development Committee (SDC) or who do not earn a B or better in these courses must retake them, postponing the start of practicum and extending the overall length of the program.

Over the course of the practicum, weekly clinical supervision is provided at the practicum placement by the site supervisor and also by an AAMFT Approved Supervisor or Supervisor Candidate through the practicum seminar on campus. Site supervisors are licensed mental health professionals who meet the supervision requirements set by the state of Illinois. Additionally, they have the necessary experience and expertise with the site’s clientele.

Practicum seminar supervisors are AAMFT Approved Supervisors or Supervisor Candidates and have experience and expertise in both providing systemic therapy and supervising from a systemic perspective. This combination of supervision ensures that student therapists provide quality care to clients and facilitates their growth and identity development as CFTs.

The clinical practicum for full-time students occurs in the second year of the program. Students approved to begin their clinical practicum spend approximately 20 hours per week, for a minimum of 12 months, at an approved practicum site. The practicum is composed of a required 350 hours of direct client contact with couples, families, individuals, and groups, including a minimum of 140 relational or conjoint hours. Additionally, a minimum of 100 hours of supervision, including hours with an AAMFT-approved supervisor or supervisor candidate, must be completed. Up to 100 hours of supervision can also be used toward LMFT licensure requirements in the state of Illinois.

Students must maintain continuous enrollment in practicum until they have completed all practicum requirements. If students do not meet all the clinical requirements by the end of their 12 months and nine credits of practicum, they will enroll in additional seminar credits, increasing the overall credits and cost for the degree and extending the length of time to completion.

The clinical training director of the CFT program will collaborate with students to identify the clinical experiences that meet the needs of the CFT profession and the goals of the student. Additional resources regarding clinical practicum are available in the CFT Clinical Training Manual.

Capstone Project

The Capstone Project required of all MCFT students consists of two parts - the Master of Arts Qualifying Exam (MAQE) and the Professional Portfolio. The Capstone Project is used as part of the evaluation of students’ competencies across the program’s eight Student Learning Outcomes and is completed within MCFT-512 in the student’s final summer of the program. Students who must continue in additional semesters to complete their clinical practicum requirements will receive an incomplete in MCFT-512. They will be able to take the MAQE and submit their Professional Portfolio in the semester concurrent with their final practicum seminar resolving the incomplete. Students only receive credit (CR) for the course once they have successfully completed and passed all parts of the Capstone Project.

Graduation Requirements

1. Successful completion of the foundational curricular areas as specified in the curriculum requirements.
2. Successful completion of the foundational practice component.
3. Successful completion of the Capstone Project, including the Master of Arts Qualifying Examination (MAQE) and Professional Portfolio.
4. Successful completion of Social Justice Practicum I and II.
5. A cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher and no more than two grades of B- or lower (not including courses that must be retaken for clinical practicum readiness).
6. Submission of completed graduation application and full payment of all outstanding tuition and fees.
7. Demonstration of professional attitude, decorum, and ethics commensurate with the profession of couple and family therapy.
8. Faculty approval for graduation and recommendation to the Board of Trustees for the conferral of the Master of Arts in Couple and Family Therapy.