ECG-Counseling, Human Service

ECG 600. Intro to Integrated Care Counseling. 3 Hours.

Integrated care capitalizes on the combined expertise of mental health and primary care providers working together within a single treatment setting to more effectively address the physical health problems of individuals suffering from mental illness. Within these settings mental health counselors work collaboratively with health care professionals to design and implement comprehensive biopsychosocial treatment plans. This course addresses the specific needs of students preparing for contemporary counseling careers in both primary care and behavioral health settings, including the multi-faceted roles and functions of a professional counselor, the counseling needs of special community populations, and the professional/ethical issues unique to integrated care counseling.

ECG 605. Introduction to Employee Assistance Counseling Programs. 3 Hours.

Employee Assistance Counseling Programs or Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) provide counseling, assessment and services to address personal problems and work-related concerns that hinder employees’ well-being, work productivity, and job performance. EAPs may assist employees with mental health and substance use disorders, relationship issues, financial and legal problems, and eldercare. In addition, EAPs provide resources and referral information, psychoeducation, supervisor consultation and work-site trainings. EAP services are typically an employer sponsored benefit provided at no cost and counseling and referrals may be delivered by telephone, in-person or through video-conferencing technology. The primary aim of this course is to provide a comprehensive overview of EAPs and EAP service delivery in the United States. This course will cover the history of EAPs in addition to program design, EAP-related legislation, and ethical considerations.

ECG 612. Professional Orientation. 3 Hours.

This course emphasizes an understanding of professional roles and responsibilities; ethical and legal issues; historical perspectives; preparation standards; credentialing; trends and issues in the counseling profession. Central to this course will be an on-going self-evaluation of the student's attitudes, values, interpersonal skills, and motives for choosing counseling as a potential profession. Threaded throughout the course will be the concept of the counselor as a social change agent and advocate for clients, the community, and the counseling profession. This course is open to Non-Degree seeking students.

ECG 613. Foundations of Substance Abuse. 3 Hours.

The foundations of Substance Abuse course is an introductory overview of relevant theory, research, and practice associated with substance abuse and addictions counseling. The course will be presented as a blend of didactic and practical elements to increase student knowledge of fundamental concepts while providing opportunities to experiment with approaches to working with clients presenting with substance abuse and /or addictions concerns. To that end, the instructor will introduce topics that include pharmacological issues and terminology, models of addiction, theories on etiology, diagnosis and assessment, and evidence based treatment strategies. A practicum element that requires students to practice the introductory concepts of Motivational Interviewing will accompany lectures, group discussion, case studies, and demonstrations over the course of the semester. This course is open to Non-Degree seeking students.

ECG 616. Motivational Interviewing. 3 Hours.

Motivational Interviewing (MI) is an approach to behavior change designed to enhance intrinsic motivation by exploring and resolving ambivalence within the client. This course will introduce the underlying philosophy of MI, as well as the key MI principles, concepts, and “active ingredients” that make MI successful in a variety of settings with a variety of populations. Emphasis will be placed on instruction of the four fundamental processes of MI, engaging, focusing, evoking, and planning; MI interventions, treatment fidelity, short-term models, responding to discord between practitioner and client, and developing change plans. The instructor will provide supervision and feedback of MI practice for all enrolled students. Though the course will be fully taught online, the instructor will evaluate students based on their presentation of the skills of MI.

ECG 619. Special Issues for School Counselors. 3 Hours.

This course will expose the school counselor-in-training to a variety of critical incidents. These incidents (situations) will cover a variety of experiences which will be presented in a seminar environment and will require the student counselor's expertise and proper response. Authorities from the various school systems, law enforcement agencies, counseling/ mental health agencies, and child protective agencies will provide knowledge and insight from their perspectives.

ECG 620. Foundations of School Counseling. 3 Hours.

Social, psychological, economic, and philosophic trends leading to development of guidance programs in American schools. Organization and administration of guidance services. This course is open to Non-Degree seeking students.

ECG 621. Theories of Individual Counseling. 3 Hours.

Students will be provided an introduction to counseling theories. Students will explore beliefs about different approaches and methods of counseling including, educational, vocational, systemic, and personal counseling.

ECG 623. Comprehensive Counseling and Guidance: M/H School. 3 Hours.

Principles and practices of comprehensive counseling and guidance in the middle/high school related to curriculum, guidance services, and the guidance program.

ECG 624. Assessment. 3 Hours.

The purpose of this course is to provide an introductory overview of assessment methods, instrumentation, and basic principles of measurement. Discussion topics will review techniques for assessing intellectual ability, aptitude/ achievement, psychopathology, emotion, and personality. Additional topics will include clinical assessment, communicating results,multicultural considerations, and ethical/ legal issues. This course will orient students to common instruments used in educational and clinical settings, common selection procedures, measurement methods, administration, scoring, and interpretation.
Prerequisites: EPR 590 [Min Grade: C]

ECG 626. Group Counseling: Process and Procedures. 3 Hours.

This course provides an introduction to many of the important challenges facing group leaders and group members in contemporary society. Ethical guidelines particular to group work will be discussed. Students will be exposed to how common counseling theories can be applied in group settings. Students will gain an understanding of group developmental stages and processes, and how these dynamics influence group growth and productivity. Leader skill development will be emphasized. Approximately 20 hours of class time is spent in a laboratory experience wherein each student is provided the opportunity to function in a group.
Prerequisites: ECG 621 [Min Grade: C](Can be taken Concurrently)

ECG 627. Comprehensive Counseling and Guidance: Elementary School. 3 Hours.

Principles and practices of comprehensive counseling and guidance in Elementary School related to curriculum, guidance services, and the guidance program.

ECG 628. Social and Cultural Diversity. 3 Hours.

This course is designed to expose students to various cultures, and the methods, values, and beliefs that organize family life and human development. Using the oppression model, students will examine how the intersections of race, class, culture, gender, ethnicity and sexuality shape and affect the lives of individuals and families and the therapeutic process itself. Intervention practices, social advocacy models, and resistance strategies will be reviewed.

ECG 630. Career Development: Vocational and Life Planning. 3 Hours.

This course will introduce students to the concepts of career development. The course will present the philosophical and historical foundations of career counseling. Students will learn how to apply career counseling theory to practice. Instruction will include career counseling technique, career assessment, career exploration, job market strategies, examination of workplace issues, and lifestyle and wellness concepts.

ECG 631. Suicide Prevention. 3 Hours.

The course will address the epidemiology of suicide, demographic and incidence information about at-risk groups, risk factors, protective factors, warning signs, assessment of emergency risk and chronic risk, intervention strategies, nomenclature, national strategy planning, prevention advocacy, and attention to the bereaved and complicated mourning and subsequent postvention. Students will be engaged in case studies and assessment exercises, research and review into the literature, hear from guest speakers including advocates and survivors, journal writing and reflection, exams, and presentations. This course is open to Non-Degree seeking students.

ECG 638. Practicum I: Clinical Skills and Techniques. 3 Hours.

The Counseling Techniques course is a forum for the instructor to introduce candidates to the practical skills necessary for development as a counseling professional. Through classwork lecture, discussion and demonstration will be used in the instruction of course material, an emphasis on experimental education will be implemented to encourage growth in candidates' use of counseling skills. Opportunities to integrate counseling skills with counseling and multicultural theory will be afforded throughout the coursework.
Prerequisites: ECG 621 [Min Grade: C]

ECG 650. Diagnosis and Treatment of Psychological Disorders. 3 Hours.

This course will introduce students to the diagnosis, treatment, and conceptualization of mental disorders. First, students will learn about diagnostic classification, models for conceptualizing and treatment planning. Finally, students will receive a broad introduction into psychopharmacological interventions associated with the treatment of mental disorders.

ECG 652. Advanced Counseling Techniques. 3 Hours.

This course will involve the study of theoretical approaches to counseling which have been demonstrated to be culturally-relevant and conceptually inclusive of multiple theories and techniques: Advanced Cognitive Behavioral Therapy techniques will be emphasized (other techniques will also be explored). Selected readings, academic discussion and clinical application will be stressed. Critical thinking and active participation are essential. Students will focus on the application of theoretical information towards a goal of case conceptualizations as a precursor to effective treatment planning.
Prerequisites: ECG 621 [Min Grade: C] and ECG 638 [Min Grade: C]

ECG 653. Counseling Children and Adolescents. 3 Hours.

This course will review current evidenced based treatment interventions for children and families. Candidates will learn play therapy techniques, art therapy techniques, and behavioral interventions including how to create behavioral contracts, and methods for writing informative treatment plans. Candidates will also learn specific strategies for engaging parents and siblings in treatment, and will learn specific structural and narrative based theoretical approaches to family therapy.

ECG 660. Relationships and Human Sexuality. 3 Hours.

Introduction to the theory of human sexuality and considerations of couples therapy will be presented, followed by a discussion of systematic goal setting, treatment planning, and assessment, and an investigation of issues of dysfunctional sexual functioning, sexual disorders, and its effect on couple and family systems. Focus will be given to specific issues to take into account in the practice of systematic couples therapy, including cultural diversity, age, disability and illness, diverse sexual behavior, sexual trauma, and rape. Appropriate assessment and intervention methods, as well as techniques utilizing a contextual and systemic approach will be studied and practiced.

ECG 661. Play Therapy I. 3 Hours.

This course will introduce students to the philosophical underpinnings and theoretical approaches of play therapy with children. During this course, students will learn to appropriately conceptualize mental health in childhood, develop treatment plans, and apply play theory techniques for the treatment of children. Group counseling and incorporating families into play therapy will also be considered.

ECG 662. Play Therapy II. 3 Hours.

Counseling children. Advanced counseling theories and advanced techniques appropriate to working with children are explored. Play therapy is emphasized.

ECG 680. The Intersections of Family and Community Systems. 3 Hours.

This course will examine the interactions and issues that arise between the family system and prominent community and social systems, with a focus on the education system and schools, the medical system and wellness, and mental health. Contemporary issues affecting families in the context of these systems will also be examined. These interactions and issues will be examined through a systemic lens with an emphasis on family strengths and resilience.

ECG 685. Marriage and Couples Counseling. 3 Hours.

This course is designed to introduce students to principles of effective couples therapy while preparing them to critically assess couple relationships. This course will be taught from a systems perspective and will include an overview of models and techniques drawn from evidence based research. This course is designed to blend theory and application. Students in this course will participate in didactic and experiential learning and will participate in simulations and case presentations to further understand clinical aspects of couples therapy.
Prerequisites: ECG 691 [Min Grade: C]

ECG 689. Advanced Family Counseling Techniques. 3 Hours.

This course will serve as an in-depth exploration of limited theories of family therapy, including Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Family Therapy, their more recent expressions within the professional literature, and how to consider them against the standards of evidenced based practice. Conceptual understanding and acquisition of specific treatment skills through direct clinical experiences and reflection/advisory teams will be emphasized. This course is designed to allow students to gain a greater understanding of how these key theoretical approaches and techniques, and advanced systemic concepts, can be applied in marriage and family therapy practice.
Prerequisites: ECG 685 [Min Grade: C] and ECG 691 [Min Grade: C]

ECG 691. Introduction to Couples and Family Counseling. 3 Hours.

The purpose of this course is to provide an introduction to family, systems, and relational therapies. An overview of theoretical concepts and intervention strategies associated with traditional and systemic theories of marriage and family therapy will be provided. This course also provides an examination of how family therapy has been shaped through cybernetics and systems theory.

ECG 692. Independent Readings in Counselor Education. 1-3 Hour.

ECG 695. Practicum II: Supervised Field Experience. 3 Hours.

This clinical course is designed to give students the opportunity to demonstrate basic counseling skills with students/clients at a school or agency and to begin to move toward proficiency. Knowledge and skills developed in previous course work will be applied in the clinical setting. The counselor-in-training is involved in serious counseling interactions with clients. Student counselors recieve feedback and supervision from on-site supervisors, group seminar supervisors, and UAB faculty members. Counselors in-training are assigned to a school, or agency setting for a minimum of 100 clock hours, 40 of the hours must be in direct service with clients. Prerequisites: Completion of Area I Courses, Completion of required personal counseling sessions, a grade of "Pass" on the comprehensive exam, and satisfactory dis-positional evaluations/successful resolution of a dis-positional letter.

ECG 696. Counseling Internship A. 3 Hours.

The internship provides an opportunity for the student to perform, under supervision, a variety of activities that a regularly employed counselor would be expected to perform in the clinical setting. A regularly employed staff member is defined as a person occupying the professional counseling and clinician’s role to which the student is aspiring (school or clinical mental health). The intern is involved in counseling interactions with clients. Interns receive feedback and supervision from their on-site supervisor, group supervisors, and UAB faculty members. Interns are assigned to a school, agency, or rehabilitation setting for a total of 600 clock hours, 240 of the hours must be in direct service with clients. In this course, students will be challenged to become more self-aware of both their professional approach to counseling as well as how they personally influence the therapeutic space. This development will occur primarily via direct feedback from peers, facilitated by the group supervisor, as well as opportunities for personal reflection and individualized feedback from the supervisor. Interns are often unaware that counselor development hinges on one’s willingness to explore themselves. The goal of this internship is to push the boundaries of this lack of awareness within a safe and supportive atmosphere and to challenge others to do the same for the benefit of providing our clients with a more authentic representation of ourselves as professional counselors. Interns are always given the opportunity to discuss this in the group setting or on an individual basis as desired.
Prerequisites: ECG 695 [Min Grade: P]

ECG 697. Counseling Internship B. 3 Hours.