UB Launches New Online Mental Health Counseling Certificate

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The University at Buffalo Graduate School of Education (GSE) has established a new bridge online certificate program in Mental Health Counseling.

The certificate will be offered as an 18- to 24- credit-hour curriculum to prepare students with master's degrees in counseling-related areas to meet the academic requirements for New York State mental health licensing.

"We see bridge as a way to expand our capacity for preparing well-qualified mental health counselors for the State of New York," said Timothy P. Janikowski, associate professor and chair of the Mental Health Counseling Program. "The online component will provide students who are unable to attend classes in person the opportunity to obtain training from the expert faculty at the UB."

The advanced graduate certificate program, which was designed to ensure students learn and develop skills with a solid foundation based in research and empirical evidence, will launch with a class of 10 in August. It joins other online programs offered by GSE, such as rehabilitation counseling, library science, gifted education and science and the public.

The Graduate School of Education has been offering online programs for over 10 years, and all programs are taught by the GSE full-time faculty, as well as, renowned practitioners working in the field.

"This new program in Mental Health Counseling represents a strong investment in the expansion of online programs at UB Graduate School of Education," said Christine Kroll, assistant dean of the school. "Reaching out to diversify our student base is a key component to offering rich learning interactions that can't always be achieved in place bound classrooms."

The Graduate School of Education also offers an on-campus option for students who may wish to pursue the program in a traditional classroom.

Interested applicants may apply for the new program or other fully online programs, through GSE's online program website.