Sex Therapy Certificate

Program Overview

The Certificate in Sex Therapy (CST) is offered by the Couple and Family Therapy Department. The CST meets the academic requirements of the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, and Therapists (AASECT). The curriculum includes core knowledge of human sexuality education and sex therapy training, as well as attitudes and values training, i.e., Sexual Attitude Reassessment (SAR).

By providing the curriculum through an intersecting social justice and self-of-the-therapist (experiential) lens, this certificate reflects the systemic values of the Couple and Family Therapy Department and Adler University’s mission of graduating socially responsible practitioners, engaging communities, and advancing social justice. These values are reflected throughout the readings, applications, and activities included in the CST. Adler University’s mission is to promote inclusion, diversity, and advocacy for all identities, of which sexuality is an essential component for competent clinicians to address.

The mission of the Certificate in Sex Therapy is to prepare socially responsible professionals with core knowledge of human sexuality education and sex therapy training that meets the highest standards of the field, including an ethical consciousness and cultural competence.

Program Goals include:

To provide students with core knowledge of human sexuality education, including diverse identities.
To create the opportunity for students to self-assess and understand their own attitudes and values (i.e., self-of-the-therapist) through a social justice perspective.
To train students in the ethical practice of sex therapy, preparing them to engage in the required clinical component and supervision.
To graduate socially responsible practitioners of sex therapy sensitive to social justice and diversity with a goal of inclusion and advocacy consistent with Adlerian principles.

This program is created specifically as a certificate to complement current graduate students in clinical programs and pre-licensed and licensed professionals to build on their training.

Credentials

The Couple and Family Therapy Department and Adler University have been approved as an Organizational Provider II by AASECT, effective July 1, 2021. The Certificate in Sex Therapy is a non-clinical opportunity that provides students with all the foundational education and training necessary to accompany the required clinical work and supervision (not included) for the Certified Sex Therapist designation from AASECT.

*Alignment of AASECT Requirements for Sex Therapy Certification*
AASECT Requirements	Adler’s Certificate in Sex Therapy
Membership in AASECT	Requirement of SEX-690
AASECT Code of Ethics	Covered in SEX-692
Academic and Professional Experience	Prerequisite or Co-requisite
Clinical Certification & Licensure	Prerequisite or Co-requisite
Human Sexuality Education: Core Knowledge	90 hours provided through the CST Coursework
Sex Therapy Training	60 hours provided through the CST Coursework
Attitudes and Values Training	14 hours provided through the CST (SEX-691)
Clinical Experience, Field Work, Internship or Professional Training Experience	Not included as this is a non-clinical certificate. Graduates will be supported in seeking out these opportunities through faculty advising.

This program meets the requirements for the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, and Therapists (AASECT) and is approved for 164 CE credits. Completion of this program does not ensure or guarantee AASECT Certification. For further information, please contact [email protected].

Admission Requirements

Qualified professionals or students in license-eligible graduate clinical training programs may apply for the CST program following the application procedures outlined in this Adler University Catalog and the certificate website.

Application requirements include:

A completed clinical master’s degree in couple/marriage and family therapy, medical family therapy, counseling, art therapy, psychology, social work, or other related mental health fields that lead to clinical licensure, or be currently enrolled and in good standing in a clinical master’s program in any of these fields and eligible to begin practicum by the start of the certificate program.

A GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale for all undergraduate coursework and/or a 3.25 or higher on a 4.0 scale for all graduate coursework.
A statement of intent specifically outlining the applicant’s interest in becoming certified as a sex therapist consistent with the mission of the certificate and the institution (this is only for external applicants).

Language competency level and exam requirements are consistent with policies across Adler University.

Admission for Current Adler University Students

Current Adler University students may add the CST with the approval of their faculty advisor, program director, or department chair via the Registration Exception Form and the Application to Add or Drop a Certificate on the Chicago Campus. Graduate students may concurrently enroll in the certificate while working on their clinical master’s or doctoral degree. Prerequisites for students of this standing are (a) they must have completed the coursework in their degree program that allows them to be practicum eligible or ready and (b) have approval from their faculty advisor.

Students may not transfer coursework into the CST as it has been uniquely designed to meet AASECT requirements, and transferred coursework may not align with the certificate’s design and structure. Current students may consult with their primary program of study about utilizing CST courses as electives to meet their own degree requirements. Students are also not required to take all four courses of the certificate. They will not receive the certificate if they elect to take fewer than the complete curriculum. Still, they can use the completed coursework in their application to AASECT, as evidenced by their transcript.

Students in the Couple and Family Therapy Department may add the certificate program with the approval of their faculty advisor. They are also pre-approved to utilize CST courses to meet the elective requirements in either the MCFT (M.A. in Couple and Family Therapy) or CFTD (Ph.D. in Couple and Family Therapy) programs. MCFT students have six electives for the Certificate as they will not be required to take MCFT-653, which is designed specifically for non-certificate students.

“Students-at-large” Enrollment

Students who are neither in a current graduate program nor enrolled in the CST may take select courses with approval as space is available. Most commonly, students may request to take SEX-691: Sexual Attitudes Reassessment as a stand-alone course, which is equivalent to AASECT’s SAR requirement for 14 continuing education credits (CEs). The full certificate is equivalent to 164 CEs, as listed below.

Course Requirements

The Certificate in Sex Therapy requires the following 10 credits of coursework:

SEX-690 A Biopsychosocial Approach to Sexuality Across the Lifespan - three credits (50 CEs)

SEX-691 Sexual Attitude Reassessment (SAR) - one credit (14 CEs)

SEX-692 Diversity in Sexuality: Socio-cultural, Medical, Technological, and Ethical Influences - three credits (50 CEs)

SEX-693 Sex Therapy in Action: Assessment, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Psychosexual Issues and Dysfunction - three credits (50 CEs)

Total: 10 credits/164 CEs

Note: The coursework is offered for credit/no credit. Students must earn credit for the course to move on in the certificate. A no credit is cause for the student to retake the course. Because the grading is structured as credit/no credit (which carries zero GPA points), students only enrolled in this certificate program will not have a GPA.The CST is offered in a blended format with one in-person weekend residency per course and a combination of synchronous and asynchronous e-learning across the semester. Students may take the courses in any order, though we recommend that they be taken sequentially. Students may start in the certificate in any semester (fall, spring, or summer). Consistent with University policy, certificate-only students are not required to complete the Social Justice Practicum (SJP). Students also enrolled in degree programs must complete the SJP per their degree requirements.

No clinical component is offered as part of the CST as it is a non-clinical certificate. To meet the designation requirements of AASECT, students must engage in specific clinical and supervision requirements as outlined on the AASECT website. Degree programs at Adler University are not obligated to create practicum opportunities for the certificate, especially as students may take the courses concurrent with their practicum. Students will receive academic advising to develop a plan to fully complete certification requirements as part of their enrollment in the certificate.

The CST follows all policies and procedures of Adler University as outlined in this Academic Catalog, the Adler University Student Handbook, and the Couple and Family Therapy Department Handbook on Adler Connect. If a student has a grievance that has not been remediated through the established University grievance policies, AASECT should be contacted at [email protected].

Certificate Completion Requirements

Upon successful completion (CR) of each course, the student will receive an AASECT certificate indicating successful completion of an AASECT-approved continuing education activity. Completion of the full certificate (10 credits/164 CEs) is indicated with conferral by the Adler University Registrar confirming the following requirements:

Successful completion of the required courses and credit hours specified in the curriculum requirements.
Students must receive credit (CR) in all coursework, retaking any courses with a “no credit.”
Successful completion of the required paper as part of SEX-691: Sexual Attitudes Reassessment (SAR).
Submissions of completed graduation application and full payment of any outstanding tuition and fees.
Demonstration of professional attitude, decorum, and ethics commensurate with the profession of sex therapy.
Faculty approval for graduation and recommendation to the Board of Trustees for the conferral of the Certificate in Sex Therapy.