Prepares professional counselors to serve as leaders in education, supervision, research, and advocacy through a hybrid doctoral program.
The Counselor Education and Supervision doctoral program (CES Ed.D.) is designed to produce scholars and leaders prepared to train and supervise professional counselors to address the needs of those served in mental health and education settings. Tailored around each student’s unique career goals, the program allows students to focus on the counseling specialties of clinical mental health counseling and/or school counseling.
The program prepares practicing counselors, counselor educators, counseling supervisors, and leaders to:
- Conduct research and engage in creative activities that contribute to the profession
- Provide culturally responsive counseling supervision
- Facilitate learning and counselor education within a decolonization social justice framework
- Engage in leadership and advocacy at local, regional, and national levels
- Deliver advanced professional counseling services in a variety of settings
The CES plan of study follows a hybrid model. Courses are offered in various formats, with most including a combination of online and on-ground classes. The program is created for working professionals and may be completed in four years. This program currently includes 49 credits of coursework. In order to meet revised accreditation standards, the program will require 60 credits of coursework beginning in summer 2026.
Doctoral students participate in supervised fieldwork designed to meet the unique learning needs of each student. Additionally, doctoral students complete a 600-hour internship that includes the practice of professional counseling along with supervised experiences in at least two of the following doctoral core areas: teaching, supervision, research and scholarship, and leadership and advocacy. A comprehensive exam as well as completion of a dissertation are required for degree completion.
- Advanced Individual & Group Counseling Practice
- Counseling Supervision in Clinical and School Settings
- Current Issues & Professional Counselor Identity
- Ethics in Counselor Education and Supervision
- Leadership & Advocacy in Counseling
- Multicultural & Social Justice in Counselor Education and Supervision
- Quantitative & Qualitative Research Methods
- Statistics & Research Design
- Teaching in Counselor Education
The program objectives of the Counselor Education and Supervision Doctoral (CES Ed.D.) The program at Southern Connecticut State University includes elements related to overarching objectives and each of the five doctoral core areas.
Graduates will:
Overarching Objectives
- Understand and implement counselor education and supervision practices that are legal and ethical.
- Implement inclusive andragogical and supervisory strategies (e.g., accessible design, affirming feedback, and equitable evaluation practices) that support the success of all.
- Provide culturally responsive counselor education and supervision services in the context of decolonization and liberation, integrated with an ecological, social justice framework.
- Demonstrate an understanding of the counselor educator and supervisor’s role in the broader systemic context, including department and university, professional organizations and the community.
- Develop an identity as a professional counselor in various roles related to counselor education and supervision.
Counseling Objectives
- Conceptualize client and student concerns from multiple theoretical perspectives with attention to issues of social justice, equity, and inclusion.
- Provide counseling services to clients and students in a diverse and ever-changing society.
Supervision Objectives
- Evaluate the effectiveness of supervisees’ counseling in a developmentally congruent manner and apply multiple theories of supervision.
- Demonstrate knowledge and skills related to evaluation, gatekeeping, and remediation practices in counselor education and supervision
Teaching Objectives
- Understand and apply teaching andragogy; instructional and curriculum design for on-ground, hybrid, and online course instruction.
- Use effective methods of evaluating teaching that respond to the learning needs of individuals with diverse intersectional statuses.
Research and Scholarship objectives
- Demonstrate knowledge and skills of quantitative and qualitative research by formulating researchable questions, selecting appropriate designs, collecting and managing data, applying analytic methods (e.g., descriptive and inferential statistics, thematic analysis), and interpreting findings with attention to rigor, ethics, and limitations.
- Understand and apply skills related to professional presentation and publication by communicating results clearly in APA-style writing and oral/visual formats, developing conference posters and presentations, preparing manuscripts for peer review, and responding to reviewer feedback.
Leadership and Advocacy objectives
- Understand and apply the role of the agency and the school leader.
- Engage in critical discourse on current issues in the counseling profession.
- Enact leadership and advocacy within communities, within the counseling profession and on behalf of the counseling profession.
- Apply leadership theory within counseling practice and counselor education.
Careers
The Counselor Education and Supervision program prepares students for leadership and practice in professional counseling in a variety of settings. In higher education, graduates may work as counselor education faculty members, researchers, or clinical counseling supervisors. In K-12 educational settings, graduates may provide advanced leadership in school counseling supervision or administration. Graduates may also work as agency directors or administrators or as leaders among college counseling/student affairs professionals.
Typical Job Titles
- Advanced Clinical Practitioner
- Counselor Educator
- Counselor Supervisor
- Counselor Education Researcher
- Mental Health Agency Administrator
Accreditation
The Doctoral program in Counselor Education and Supervision is accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).
In the CES Doctoral Program, I have found a space where I can embrace and understand my identity as a counselor, a space where I can grow as a leader, and where I can feel confident engaging in research, supervision, and the education of future counselors.
Rista Luna, '26
Counselor Education and Supervision, Ed.D.
Counselor Education and Supervision, Ed.D.
School / College
College of Education
Department
Counselor Education
Contact
Dr. Louisa L. Foss-Kelly
counselingeddgrad@southernct.edu