M.A. Marriage and Family Therapy 

Mark Baird (Program Director)

Student Learning Outcomes:

• Students have the basic core competencies to infuse systemic, relational and biopsychosocial/spiritual perspectives into their academic work and clinical activities with individuals, couples and families from diverse levels of the socioeconomic strata and with other marginalized groups (ethnic, cultural, religious, sexual orientation).
• Students have the basic core competencies to provide systemic and relational clinical activities from multiple philosophical and theoretical frameworks.
• Students have the basic core competencies to be discerning consumers of empirical research and/or program evaluation in their scholastic work and/or clinical services.
• Students have the basic core competencies to be designers of empirical research.
• Students have the basic core competencies to recognize, articulate and account for influences of contextual factors on client systems when working with individuals, couples, and families from diverse levels of the socioeconomic strata and with other marginalized groups (ethnic, cultural, religious, sexual orientation) and can adjust scholarship and clinical activities as appropriate.
• Students will be able to integrate a client’s spirituality into the context of therapy.
• Students have the basic core competencies to meet or exceed minimal legal, ethical and other professional regulatory standards (i.e., national and state laws, the AAMFT Code of Ethics, and agency ethical policies and procedures).
• Students have the basic core competencies to account for the influence of higher order moral principles (i.e., beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy, justice, and fidelity) and moral reasoning schemas (e.g., duty-based, ends-based, care-based, and/or narrative-based) on moral/ethical decisions faced by clients and therapists.
• Students graduating from the MFT program will become professional practitioners.

Admission Policies

1. No more than nine semester credits should be taken prior to admission to the program, as there is no guarantee those credits will count toward a graduate degree.
2. Applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.
3. Complete an online application by the posted deadline found on the program's webpage.
4. There are two levels of admission, as follows:
   1. Full admission: cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher, satisfaction of all prerequisites and acceptable recommendations.
   2. Restricted admission: cumulative grade-point average of 2.7 or higher, acceptable recommendations, and conditions identified by the admissions committee.
5. The entrance-exam requirement is waived for applicants with an undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher. Applicants with an undergraduate GPA below 3.0 must submit official GRE or MAT scores or complete an analytical essay in lieu of GRE or MAT scores. Please see the application for the essay prompt. 
6. Prerequisites or corequisites prior to graduate study may be required where applicants lack appropriate preparation. Students whose first language is not English may be required to complete prerequisites prior to consideration for admission to the program. These courses are determined with an advisor to improve expertise in English, math, education methods and study skills.
7. Part of the application process to the program is completion of the character-and-fitness supplement. Based upon a review and documentation of items disclosed in this supplement, Whitworth may deny admission to any individual. 
8. For international students, the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or International English Language Testing System (IELTS) and the GRE are required prior to admission. The minimum score accepted is 88 on the TOEFL or an overall score of 7.0 on the IELTS. Testing is also done in English and in math prior to the student’s graduate coursework, to determine any prerequisites that need to be written into the degree plan. International applicants with diplomas from non-English-speaking universities may be required to provide a professional credential evaluation of their university transcripts from World Education Services. International students must also provide a current passport copy and proof of adequate financial resources for graduate study prior to admission.
9. All applicants will be interviewed as part of their admissions process.

Academic Policies

Academic Standards

Whitworth offers guided studies that may be taken on a tutorial basis. Program director approval is required. Proposals are submitted  with the approvals of the faculty supervisor and the director/department chair via the electronic guided study proposal form by the registration deadline of the term during which the study will be taken.

Admission and Expulsion

1. Students who take no courses toward the completion of their master’s degree within a one-year period will be placed on inactive status, unless arrangements have been made for a hiatus. In order for a student to return to active status they must reapply and they will be responsible for any new university or program requirements.
2. Students may be suspended or expelled for failure to meet academic standards and for plagiarism, cheating, misrepresentation of background information, or violation of program requirements. Subsequent readmission follows the procedures for new admission under the catalog requirements in effect at the time of reapplication.
3. Whitworth reserves the right to withhold transcripts and diplomas until all campus debts are settled.
4. Students are prohibited from bringing children, other family members and/or guests to their classes except in an emergency and with the permission of the instructor.

General Guidelines

1. Marriage and Family Therapy students are registered for courses by their advisor.
2. Check with your advisor each term for pre-registration advising and for exit requirements. Students must be cleared by their advisor prior to course registration each term.
3. Tuition is paid through student financial services located in McEachran Hall. If a student enrolls in a course that is not approved for a specific program, that class will be considered an enrichment course only; it will not count toward a graduate degree or certification program.

Dean

MIKE EDIGER

Program Director

MARK BAIRD