How to Apply

Application Requirements

Prospective students will need to submit the following materials:

Online Admissions Application: Begin the application process by submitting an online application and paying the non-refundable $65 application fee.

Degree Requirement: An undergraduate degree (B.A., B.S., or the equivalent) from an accredited college or university.

Minimum GPA: A GPA of 3.0 or higher in previous coursework is required. However, a GPA below 3.0 does not automatically disqualify an applicant. CIIS will consider a prospective student whose GPA is between 2.0 and 3.0. These individuals are required to submit a GPA Statement and are encouraged to contact the Admissions Team to discuss their options.

Transcripts: Official transcripts from all accredited academic institutions attended where 7 or more credits have been earned. If transcripts are being mailed to CIIS, they must arrive in their official, sealed envelopes. Transcripts from institutions outside the US or Canada require a foreign credit evaluation through World Education Services (WES) or CIIS will also accept foreign credential evaluations that are in a comprehensive course-by-course format from the current members of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES).

Goal Statement: What do you envision doing, professionally, with a M.A. in Counseling Psychology with an emphasis in Community Mental Health? How do you envision spending your work time and energy? Please provide a one-page statement of professional goals and objectives.

Resume 

Admissions Essay: Please address the following two questions in a four-to-six page (typed, double-spaced) reflection:

1. What do you understand psychotherapy to be? In your own words (without jargon), please define psychotherapy and describe how you think that it works. In the context of psychotherapy, what is the process of healing and growth? (We are not seeking a textbook or academic definition, but rather a window into your thinking and perspective on psychotherapy).
2. Reflect on the considerations unique to providing psychotherapy for historically marginalized, under-represented, and/or oppressed individuals, communities, and populations? What qualities of a therapist or therapy do you think are most important in this context? Please give an example of one such quality that you possess or are working on cultivating.

Two Letters of Recommendation: Letters of recommendation will be accepted from academic advisors, professors, professional supervisors, or someone able to attest to your ability to undertake the work required for your program. Recommenders should use standard business format and include full contact information-name, email, phone number, and mailing address.

Candidate Selection

The Community Mental Health program considers the following factors to be desirable for admission: a background, interest, and demonstrated commitment to public and community mental health (work or volunteer), and evidence of a commitment to achieving positive health outcomes in these settings. 

Alternatively, experience in community planning, community organizing, and/or social justice in a paid or volunteer position is helpful, as is personal stability and energy to become an effective therapist and academic records that indicate probable success in completing graduate study. The statement of professional goals and objectives submitted with the application form should address these issues. 

The program also seeks individuals who exhibit the interpersonal communication skills required of psychotherapists. These include a congruence of feelings and action, an ability to listen and attend, a willingness to be self-reflective, and an openness to evaluating and changing behaviors and attitudes.

Because the program operates on a cohort model, students are interviewed about their goals, objectives, and experiences. These interviews aim to create a cohort of students who can support, motivate, and sustain one another during the seven semesters of study.