Master of Counselling Admission Requirements

To be admitted to the MC program, applicants must have:

• an undergraduate (baccalaureate) degree, normally four years*
• a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 in the last 10 full course equivalents (30 credits).
• a minimum of three courses** (nine credits) in psychology or educational psychology, including:
  • a course in developmental psychology (3 credits)
  • a course in learning psychology (3 credits)
  • a course in counselling theories or personality theories (3 credits).

* The undergraduate degree must be conferred prior to the application deadline. Official, sealed transcripts including the date of degree conferral must be received by the program office on or before the application deadline.

** These courses must be at the second-year undergraduate level or above, and must be completed by the application deadline. An official, sealed transcript stating final course grades must also be date stamped by the application deadline.

To calculate your Graduate Admission GPA (the GPA AU will use for your entry into the program), please visit the Graduate Admission GPA page on the Faculty of Health Disciplines website.

If you are lacking the prerequisite psychology courses, they are available through Athabasca University. We recommend the following course options for completing your prerequisites (Note: A course in abnormal psychology is required only if you are applying into the Master of Counselling, Art Therapy specialization.

These courses are offered in an online learning format. To register in a course, please follow Athabasca University undergraduate course registration process.

If you are submitting alternative prerequisite courses from another post-secondary institution, please submit a course outline or syllabus if available. We do not review courses for equivalency prior to the application deadline. Prerequisites will be evaluated when your application is reviewed.

Preference is given in the admissions process to applicants who have two years or more of full-time experience in counselling or a related field.

Successful applicants are required to participate in a six-week online orientation before the start of the program. Failure to successfully complete the orientation may result in withdrawal of the offer of admission.

Applicants Without a Four-Year Degree

Applicants without a four-year degree will be considered if they have completed a degree equivalent in nature to three-year academic degree programs at Athabasca University. The degree must consist of a minimum of 90 credits (15 full-course equivalents). In addition, applicants must meet one of the following additional criteria:

Applicants must have a minimum of 18 additional credits (3 full-course equivalents) at the senior undergraduate or graduate level. The average grade point of the additional coursework must be at least 3.0 to apply to the Master of Counselling program or 2.5 to apply to the Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Counselling. These additional courses cannot be used as advanced credit towards the graduate degree.

or

Applicants must provide evidence of at least three years of full-time (or part-time equivalent) work experience. Applicants must demonstrate that the work experience has been completed within the last five years and was in an area related to counselling / human services or equivalent. Applicants must also demonstrate active professional development during that time period in areas related to counselling. Applicants must have an average GPA of 3.3 in psychology and educational psychology courses in their degree program and in any additional program prerequisites if applying to the Master of Counselling (and 2.8 if applying to the Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Counselling).