To receive the Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology degree, students must complete 90 units.
Ways to Learn
Quick Facts
- 2.5 Years/ 10 Quarters
- Part-Time & Accelerated Options
- 90 Units
- Morning, Evening & Weekend Options
This Program is Now Available at NU
The Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology program has been relocated to JFK School of Psychology at NU. To learn more, visit the new program page.
Overview
“Follow your passion,” the old saying goes. But what about compassion? With a license-eligible Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology from John F. Kennedy University, you’ll gain the knowledge and skills necessary to transform your affinity for helping others into a career in Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT).
Marriage and Family Therapists work with clients of all ages and life circumstances, from children to seniors, guiding them through life’s many challenges. JFK University’s MA in Counseling Psychology prepares graduates to attain their full potential as practitioners by focusing on the development of clinical skills through extensive practical experience. Our expanded focus on clinical skills, assessment, and diagnosis make JFK University graduates some of the most highly sought-after Marriage and Family Therapists in the competitive Bay Area job market.
Highlights
- Satisfy California Board of Behavioral Sciences Requirements and gain exam preparation with this license-eligible degree
- Attune yourself to issues of multiculturalism and social justice
- Learn from a faculty of practitioner-scholar experts
- Accelerated evening/weekend option
PROGRAM LEARNING OUTCOMES
Students completing the Master’s in Counseling Psychology will be able to do the following:
Articulate and evaluate the role of the self in marriage and family therapy and in professional clinical counseling along with developing strong professional identities as therapists and counselors and demonstrating leadership and advocacy applicable to furthering the professions.
Assess and diagnose client problems systematically and contextually.
Establish, maintain, evaluate, and utilize the therapeutic relationship to serve the mental health needs of diverse clients.
Recognize their own potential biases and deliver culturally sensitive treatment.
Utilize concepts, structures, theories, models, and technologies appropriate to the practice of marriage and family therapy and professional clinical counseling.
Identify, explain, and apply state, federal, and local laws that govern the provision of psychotherapy and counseling and can employ ethical decision-making processes.
Be aware of, evaluate, and respond to measurable outcomes of their work with clients using the research tools and methods in the field and employing evidence-based practices in psychotherapy and counseling interventions, assessments, and program evaluations.
Why JFKU

A Modern, Multifaceted Degree in Counseling Psychology
JFK University’s master’s degree program in Counseling Psychology provides a robust contemporary education in the counseling arts and the practice of psychotherapy, integrating recent findings in fields such as trauma research, developmental attachment, systems theory, and neurobiology (including interpersonal neurobiology) with a grounding in evidence-based practices and psychotherapy.

Accelerated Degree Program
The MA in Counseling Psychology is also offered in an accelerated format, which allows students to complete the program in 2 years instead of 2 and a half. Classes are held on Thursday evenings and all day Saturday on the Pleasant Hill campus, making this track an accessible option for students who are also holding down a full-time job.


An Emphasis on Clinical Practice
Our program graduates stand apart from the competition thanks to the volume of practical experience and clinical skills training they receive. Whereas most programs require only one quarter of clinical skills training, JFK University requires three. And the JFK University MA in Clinical Psychology offers up to twice as many courses dedicated to assessment and diagnosis as other programs.

Practitioner-Scholars Who Practice What They Teach
Our faculty members collectively have published dozens of articles, books, and studies, and they have travelled the country giving talks on their respective areas of expertise. Their diversity of backgrounds and viewpoints exposes our students to the full breadth of clinical psychology and allows them to make informed decisions about which theoretical approaches and practice areas suit them best.
Curriculum
Child - This course explores in-depth a theoretical approach and application of a specific theory used with children, adolescents, and their families in MFT and PPC practices. Theory topics regularly offered include Attachment-Based Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, and Expressive Arts Therapy. This course may be repeated for credit with a change of topic.
OR Family - This course explores in-depth a theoretical approach and application of a specific theory used with individuals, couples, and families in MFT and PCC practice. Theory topics regularly offered include Bowen Therapy, Object Relations Therapy, Structural Family Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Postmodern Therapy, and Gottman Marital Therapy. This course may be repeated for credit with a change of topic.
OR, Individual - Explores specific theoretical and evidence-based approaches to psychotherapy and counseling with individuals selected from such schools of thought as Psychodynamic-Psychoanalytic Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical-Behavioral therapy, and Humanistic-Existential Therapy. This course may be repeated for credit with a change of topic.
Child - This course explores in-depth a theoretical approach and application of a specific theory used with children, adolescents, and their families in MFT and PPC practices. Theory topics regularly offered include Attachment-Based Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, and Expressive Arts Therapy. This course may be repeated for credit with a change of topic.
OR Family - This course explores in-depth a theoretical approach and application of a specific theory used with individuals, couples, and families in MFT and PCC practice. Theory topics regularly offered include Bowen Therapy, Object Relations Therapy, Structural Family Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Postmodern Therapy, and Gottman Marital Therapy. This course may be repeated for credit with a change of topic.
OR, Individual - Explores specific theoretical and evidence-based approaches to psychotherapy and counseling with individuals selected from such schools of thought as Psychodynamic-Psychoanalytic Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical-Behavioral therapy, and Humanistic-Existential Therapy. This course may be repeated for credit with a change of topic.
Child - This course explores in-depth a theoretical approach and application of a specific theory used with children, adolescents, and their families in MFT and PPC practices. Theory topics regularly offered include Attachment-Based Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, and Expressive Arts Therapy. This course may be repeated for credit with a change of topic.
OR Family - This course explores in-depth a theoretical approach and application of a specific theory used with individuals, couples, and families in MFT and PCC practice. Theory topics regularly offered include Bowen Therapy, Object Relations Therapy, Structural Family Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Postmodern Therapy, and Gottman Marital Therapy. This course may be repeated for credit with a change of topic.
OR, Individual - Explores specific theoretical and evidence-based approaches to psychotherapy and counseling with individuals selected from such schools of thought as Psychodynamic-Psychoanalytic Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical-Behavioral therapy, and Humanistic-Existential Therapy. This course may be repeated for credit with a change of topic.