Session Information
22 SES 07 B, Teaching, Learning and Assessment in Higher Education
Paper Session
Contribution
As European universities align themselves with the Bachelors - Masters - Doctoral cycles of higher education, as described through the Bologna project, expectations and implications of post-masters experience will need further evaluation. As one example of the career trajectory in the Counseling field, we will present the results of a study that is limited to U.S. participants. We examined the current practices and impact of doctoral students in Counseling regarding counseling experience during years between their masters and doctoral studies. Some U.S. university doctoral programs either prefer or require this experience, but there is little research on the topic.
Five research questions are answered: 1) What do advisors recommend to masters students regarding post-master’s experience before applying to doctoral programs? 2) What are the practices and preferences for hiring faculty in relationship to experience? 3) What are the expectations and policies for admission to doctoral programs? 4) How do current doctoral students and recent graduates reflect on how their amount of post-masters work experience impacted their doctoral studies? 5) How do new faculty reflect on how their amount of post-masters work experience impacts their current responsibilities?
Many areas of study allow and encourage students to progress directly through the Higher Educational process from Bachelor's degree to Master's degree to Doctoral degree. In Guidance and Counseling, however, there is value added by having experience as a Counselor prior to continuing to the doctoral degree, particularly for those seeking faculty positions. Results indicate practices, preferences, and requirements for different types of counseling background. Implications for international applications to Doctoral programs in different fields of study and careers will be discusses as well.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
As indicated earlier, there is little research in this area. The only applicable resources in related areas are: Nelson, K.W., Canada, R.M., & Lancaster, L.B. (2003). An investigation of nonacademic admission criteria for doctoral-level counselor education and similar professional programs. Journal of Humanistic Counseling, Education and Development, 42, 3-13. Piercy, F.P., Dickey, M., Case, B., Spenkle, D. H., Beer, J., Nelson, T., & McCollum, E.. (1995). Admissions criteria as predictors of performance in a family therapy doctoral program. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 23, 251-259. Proctor, E.K. & Munson, C.E. (1996). Should doctoral programs graduate students with fewer than two years post-MSW practice experience? Journal of Social Work Education, 32, 161-172.
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