Counseling Women: A Graduate Master's Degree Specialization for Training Mental Health Professionals to Work with Women

Abstract

This article describes a unique master's level specialization for counselors of women and highlights the rationale for instituting this specialized training program, the training format, the program curriculum, and the evaluation methods employed. Also included is a discussion of the systemic implication of such training as it affects those being trained, the training institution itself, and the delivery of mental health services.

Certification of Specialties: Not If, But How

“…Without some recognized plan for recognizing specialties, they can be self-proclaimed. For example, how should proposals for specialties in counseling women (e.g., Nickerson, Espin, & Gawelek, 1982), counseling for eating disorders, counseling victims of abuse, or even sports counselors as proposed by Miller and Wooten (1995) be handled? Counselors will need to recognize that many professional interests and areas of emphasis in their practices are not specializations that can be recognized by a professional credential.…”