Master of Arts in Counseling

Rehabilitation Counseling Concentration

 

Rehabilitation Counseling

“ … the process of working in collaboration with persons with disabilities to achieve their vocational, social, and personal functioning goals.” - Counsel on Rehabilitation Education, 2004.

 

Rehabilitation Counselor

“ … a counselor who possesses the specialized knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to collaborate in a professional relationship with people who have disabilities to achieve their personal, social, and vocational goals.” - Councill on Rehabilitation Education, 2004.
 

Mission

The Mission of the UAB Rehabilitation Counseling concentration is to prepare qualified professional Rehabilitation Counselors to work effectively and ethically with people with physical, mental, and/or emotional disabilities.

 

Goals

The goal of the Rehabilitation Counselor concentration at UAB is to prepare competent practitioners to assist people with disabilities to improve their overall quality of life, reach their fullest capacity for independence, and achieve their maximum potential psychologically, socially, vocationally, and economically. The program operates on the foundational assumption that rehabilitation counselor assist clients by empowering them to exercise control over their lives. Rehabilitation counselors in the program are trained to focus on the whole person, including physical, psychological and spiritual aspects, as well as family, social and work relationships.

 

Objectives

Toward meeting the mission and goals, the Rehabilitation Counseling concentration has the following objectives:

	To recruit and select qualified graduate students, with appropriate attention given to the inclusion of candidates from minority, women, disabled, and otherwise under represented populations
	To offer a graduate curriculum of didactic courses, practicum and other clinical experiences, and internships that reflect the best practices and current standards of the profession
	To provide graduate level counselors in training with the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and philosophical orientation that facilitate their working effectively with diverse populations
	To prepare of professional counselors for a wide variety of human service settings, both public and private
	To provide in and out of class experiences that facilitate the personal and professional growth of counselors in training
	To network with community (public & private) agencies, schools, and other entities for planning and evaluation of the overall training program
	To provide students with research and evaluation skills relevant to their levels of preparation and to instill a commitment to the pursuit of objective assessment and evaluation of clients and rehabilitation programming
	To provide students with a foundational understanding of best practice and professional ethics, and the application of such surrounding ethical dilemmas
	To provide an understanding of and appreciation for professional associations and the benefits and importance of active membership and participation
	To gauge the achievement of the mission and goals of the program by developing and implementing procedures for the systematic evaluation of program processes and outcomes

The rehabilitation counselor needs advanced skills in interpersonal communications, counseling, career guidance, assessment procedures, case management, coordinating services, job development & placement, and an understanding of psychosocial and medical aspects of disability. Rehabilitation Counselors work closely with family members, and confer with a broad range of professionals, such as physicians, occupational therapists, physical therapists, audiologists, and other health professionals. The curricula of the concentration in Rehabilitation Counseling are designed to help students develop these skills.
The faculty of the Counseling Program at UAB is committed to graduating students who possess the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of a rehabilitation professional, are well prepared to pass the CRC (Certified Rehabilitation Counselor) Exam, and competent to enter the field of rehabilitation counseling.