Date of Conferral

2016

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Counselor Education and Supervision

Advisor

Shari L. Jorissen

Abstract

There is a lack of accredited doctoral-level counselor education and supervision (CES) programs available to meet the documented and growing need for more qualified and competent professional counselors. The problem addressed via this study is the shortage of trained doctoral-level counselors and counselor faculty to train other counselors due to the lack of accredited doctoral-level CES programs. The purpose of this study was to better understand the factors that may influence or predict an institution's decision to pursue Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) accreditation in order to increase the number of programs that pursue specialized accreditation. The research question focused on understanding the predictive relationship between institutional factors and CACREP accreditation status. A quantitative, cross-sectional correlation design was employed that used existing secondary data provided by institutions on institutional, government, and CACREP websites, as well as existing literature. The target population was 91 doctoral-level CES programs offered through U.S. institutions. Key findings from both correlational and logistic regression analyses indicated that the existence of master's-level CACREP accredited programs was the strongest predictor of CACREP-accredited doctoral-level CES programs. Graduate enrollment and the public/private status of an institution were also found to be predictors of doctoral-level CES CACREP accreditation status. Increased availability of accredited doctoral CES programs would impact the number of highly trained counselors practicing within mental health services, thereby improving quality of life for counseling clients, their families, employers, communities, and society.

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