Our Programs Are Different

Standardized Patient Program
Standardized patients (SPs) are actors trained to simulate the medical history, physical symptoms, and emotional behaviors of real patients; SPs help CMHC students build clinical reasoning, communication, and practical skills in a supervised setting.
Flexible Coursework
Our online CMHC programming grants students the flexibility to maintain responsibilities outside the classroom while earning their degree and building meaningful relationships with classmates and faculty.
Systems-Based, Holistic Approach
CMHC at UWS adheres to a systems-based, holistic approach that focuses on the importance of the emotional, physical, social, spiritual, and intellectual components of the self.

Graduate Degrees in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Clinical mental health counselors provide crucial treatment for a variety of mental and emotional conditions, including anxiety, depression, grief, low self-esteem, stress, and suicidal impulses.

The Clinical Mental Health Counseling (CMHC) programs at University of Western States (UWS) emphasize a systems-based approach in which students consider the influence of families, groups, teams, and organizations on individual mental health and performance.

UWS offers two Clinical Mental Health Counseling programs:

  • M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  • Ed.D. in Sport and Performance Psychology with M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (EdD-SPP-CMHC)

The M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling program is accredited by the Masters in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council (MPCAC).

M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

  • Online with in-person supervised clinical field training at approved training sites in your local community
  • Classes Begin: Fall and Spring
  • Degree can be completed in 3 years
  • 90 quarter credits
  • Available concentrations: Rehabilitation Counseling

Ed.D. in Sport and Performance Psychology with M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

  • Online
  • Classes Begin: Fall and Spring
  • Complete in 5 years
  • 148 quarter credits
  • Available concentrations: Rehabilitation Counseling and Sport and Performance Psychology Consulting

Which Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program Is Right for Me?

M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

  • You want a counselor license.
  • You want to apply for clinical licensure in your state.
  • You want to start working as a professional counselor within two or three years.
  • You want to want to learn to assess, diagnose, and treat mental health disorders.

Ed.D. in Sport and Performance Psychology with M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

  • You want a counselor license.
  • You want to apply for clinical licensure in your state.
  • AND, you are interested in a degree that allows you to earn a master’s and doctorate in a shorter timeframe than you could earn them separately.
  • AND, you are interested in a degree that prepares you for multiple income streams as a sport and performance consultant, clinical counselor, educator, athletic director or sport program administrator.
  • AND, you are currently working in the field of sport and performance as an athletic trainer, consultant, coach, administrator or think you might want to teach or work in an administrative capacity in a mental health agency and need a clinical license.
  • You may be interested in the CMPC® (Certified Mental Performance Consultant) credential.

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Lean Further Into Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Both of our CMHC programs provide opportunities for further study of in-demand areas of the field.

Rehabilitation Counseling Concentration
Licensed professional counselors can learn to help individuals with disabilities or chronic conditions achieve independence, inclusion, and meaningful participation in all areas of life by enrolling in the Rehabilitation Counseling Concentration. This rigorous 30-credit certificate program fulfills the initial academic requirements for the Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) exam administered by the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification. Students must apply for the CRC credential independent of this program.

Sport and Performance Psychology Consulting Concentration
The Ed.D. in Sport and Performance Psychology with M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling program also offers a Sport and Performance Psychology Consulting (SPPC) Concentration for students hoping to pursue a career as a Certified Mental Performance Consultant®.
Gloria Rendon headshot
"Addiction counseling and the treatment of co-occurring disorders have allowed me to consider the benefits of mentoring, coaching, and motivation. Human behavior, thoughts, and feelings are deeply intertwined. The Ed.D. in sport and performance psychology with a clinical mental health counseling specialization expands on these notions and broadens my personal understanding of the human condition."
Gloria Rendon
CMHC Student