Santa Clara University

Admission to counseling psychology graduate programs is open to students who
hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution of higher learning, have demonstrated
superior scholastic aptitude, and have given evidence of good citizenship and
moral character. A student who has been disqualified from any college or school at
Santa Clara University is ineligible for admission to these programs. Admission to the
master’s degree programs requires prior academic excellence at the bachelor’s degree
or higher level, experience in the field of counseling (broadly defined), and the estimate
of the faculty of the student’s potential to be a successful counselor.

Admissions Process

Students may apply for degree or nondegree status. Degree status refers to students
admitted by letter into a master’s degree or pre-license program offered by the School.
Nondegree status refers to students admitted by letter, not to one of these programs,
but to one or several courses offered by the program; this status is awarded only once.
Students applying for either degree or nondegree status should have a cumulative 3.0
grade point average (GPA). Occasionally, students are accepted for nondegree status
on a probationary basis if their undergraduate GPA is slightly below 3.0 or if their
record otherwise indicates that their GPA is not indicative of their current ability or
the quality of their work. A maximum of 9 units of coursework may be transferred from
this probationary status to a degree program.

All application documents are available online at http://www.scu.edu/ecppm/
about/admissions/index.cfm. For questions please call 408-554-4355.

Note: Decisions on admission are sent via postal mail. No specific reasons will be given
in case of rejection, and no information will be given by telephone.

Degree Status

To apply for degree status, submit the following to the Graduate Services Office:
1. Completion of an admissions application with a $50 nonrefundable application
fee. (Note: Counseling and Counseling Psychology applicants are required to
apply online at https://www.scu.edu/apply/edcp/handler.cfm?event=home.)
2. Two copies of official transcripts from all domestic and international colleges
and universities attended excluding extension courses.
3. Completion of a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution
(NEASC, NCA, MSA, SACS, WASC, NWCCU). International transcripts
must be evaluated by a National Association of Credential Evaluation Services
(NACES)-accredited and School of Education, Counseling Psychology, and
Pastoral Ministries-approved service to show U.S. bachelor’s degree equivalency,
course-by-course evaluation, and final cumulative grade point average. Please
contact the Graduate Services Office for a list of approved agencies.
4. Evidence of written and oral English proficiency.
5. Three letters of recommendation on the Santa Clara letter of recommendation
form. Recommendations should not be from family members or personal friends.
6. Statement of purpose (see application for topic).
7. Applicants seeking admission to a degree status program must submit scores
from either the Graduate Record Examination Aptitude Test, www.gre.org, or
the Miller’s Analogies Test, www.milleranalogies.com. The applicant may choose
which test to take. GRE and MAT scores are valid for five years.

Counseling Psychology application deadlines are as follows:

• April 1–15 for summer session
• April 1–15 for fall quarter
• October 1–15 for winter quarter
• February 1–15 for spring quarter

Decisions are issued quarterly, shortly after the deadline dates. Results of the admissions
decisions are sent to the candidates via postal mail.