Application Deadlines
Deadline dates for applications and receipt of all required application materials are:
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| July 1 | Fall Admission |
| November 1 | Spring Admission |
| April 1 | Summer Admission |
Any exceptions to these deadlines must be granted by the graduate program chair.
Application Materials Required for the EdS in School Counseling P-12
Applicants for an Education Specialist (EdS) program must submit all of the following documentation to Graduate Admissions to be considered for admission:
Graduate Admissions
Jacksonville State University
700 Pelham Road North
Jacksonville, Alabama 36265-1602
Applicants will not be considered for admission until all required documents are received by Graduate Studies.
- Completed JSU Graduate Application for Admission.
- Non-refundable $35.00 application processing fee.
- Official transcripts from all colleges/universities with degrees posted. To be considered for admission, applicants must hold a degree from an institutionally accredited institution or its foreign equivalent. (Students who have previously attended JSU do not need to request a transcript from the university.)
- Valid Master’s-level professional educator certificate in School Counseling. ALL certificate(s) must be valid throughout the program and at graduation.
- Applicants must have completed two full years of full-time acceptable P-12 professional educational work experience prior to admission to the program and will document their educational experience on the state-approved Supplemental EXP Form. Applicants should contact their superintendent’s office/central office for completion of this form.
- Background check1. Any candidate applying for admission to a state approved teacher education program shall be required to be fingerprinted for a criminal history background check through the Alabama State Department of Education to the Alabama Bureau of Investigation (ABI) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Instructions for completing the background check can be found here.
- Professional resume.
- Three Graduate Reference Forms completed by individuals who can provide qualitative assessment of the applicant’s potential for success in graduate coursework. Reference forms will be submitted electronically. Instructions for submission will be sent through email to the applicant upon submission of the online graduate application.
- International student applicants must see the International Student Applicants section of this catalog for other application and enrollment requirements.
- Applicants whose packages are complete will be contacted to schedule an appointment for a writing sample and an interview with faculty members of the program.
| 1 | If the candidate holds a valid Alabama professional educator certificate and has already completed a background check through that process, another background check will not be required. |
Admission Requirements for the EdS in School Counseling P-12
Applicants are admitted on a selective basis by the faculty members of the program, upon review of the completed application package.
Minimum Requirements for the EdS in School Counseling P-12
An overall GPA of 3.50 is required on all coursework attempted for the education specialist degree. Transfer credit cannot be used to raise the GPA to the required 3.50.
Any course completed for the master’s degree or for master’s level professional educator certification may not be repeated or counted for the EdS degree. Graduate courses at the 400 level will not count as credit towards the EdS degree.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Core Requirements | 18 | |
| Advanced Counseling Theories | ||
| Advanced Career Counseling | ||
| Action Research Counseling I (to be taken toward the end of the program) | ||
| Action Research in Counseling II | ||
| Advanced Group Procedures in Counseling | ||
| Survey Course in Special Education 1 | ||
or EFD 552 | Diversity Issues in Education | |
or EFD 645 | Contemporary Challenges in Multicultural Education | |
| Concentration Requirements | ||
| Select twelve semester hours, by advisement, from the following: | 12 | |
| Assessment in Counseling | ||
| Professional Ethics and Legal Issues | ||
| Introduction to Play Therapy | ||
| Children and Grief | ||
| Couple, Marriage and Family Counseling | ||
| Rehabilitation Counseling | ||
| Psychopathology: Diagnosis and Treatment of DSM Disorders | ||
| Geriatric Counseling | ||
| Substance and Behavioral Addictions in Counseling | ||
| Psychopharmacology | ||
| Crisis Counseling Intervention Strategies | ||
| Psychological First Aid & Disaster Counseling | ||
| Clinical Experience I in Mental Health Counseling | ||
| Clinical Experience II in Mental Health Counseling | ||
| Holistic Counseling: Spirit, Soul and Body | ||
| Supervision in Counseling | ||
| Psychological Principles of Learning | ||
| Leadership in Education | ||
| Total Hours | 30 | |
30 Graduate Semester Hours Required for this Degree
| 1 | Students who have not previously satisfied the special education requirement at the undergraduate or graduate level must take SPE 500 Survey Course in Special Education (3). If course was taken for prior level certification, the student must take EFD 552 Diversity Issues in Education (3) or EFD 645 Contemporary Challenges in Multicultural Education (3) |
Graduation and Comprehensive Exam
A comprehensive exam is required for this degree; please see the graduate advisor for full details. All students must apply for graduation by the given deadline of the semester in which they plan to graduate. Please see the Graduation and Comprehensive Exam section of this catalog for more information.
Completion of this program leads to eligibility for Education Specialist professional educator certification in School Counseling P-12.
Please Note: Teacher education programs are approved by the Alabama State Board of Education and are, therefore, subject to periodic revision resulting from changes in State certification requirements. Subsequently, modifications in students’ programs may become necessary. Students in all graduate level teacher education programs must schedule their coursework each semester with approval of their faculty advisors.
Alabama Class AA Professional Educator Certification Requirements
Issuance of Alabama professional educator certificates is the legal responsibility of the Alabama State Department of Education. Universities cannot issue a professional certificate. To be eligible to apply for certification, a student must meet all required admission criteria and complete a program of study at a college or university that has been approved by the State Board of Education to offer a program leading to the desired certificate. When a student completes the program of study, the institution recommends to the State Department of Education that the appropriate certificate be issued.
- Alabama State Department of Education regulations are subject to change; therefore, it is recommended that students apply for certification upon graduation. During their last semester of coursework, students should contact Teacher Education Services, 207 Ramona Wood Hall, for information about this process. The university cannot recommend any student for certification who has not satisfied all state and university requirements for admission to and completion of an approved program. Please see the Alabama Certification Instructions on the Teacher Education Services website.
- Students certified in states other than Alabama who wish to apply for certification in Alabama upon completion of the education specialist degree must apply for Alabama certification on the undergraduate and master’s levels prior to applying for the education specialist level certification. Earning an education specialist degree at JSU does not automatically entitle a student to an Alabama certificate without first holding the appropriate undergraduate and master’s certificates from Alabama.
- Recommendation for certification must be made within 60 months of program completion. Recommendation after 60 months requires completion of a current program.