Alfred University On-Campus Week for Mental Health Counseling and School Counseling Students
Recently, Alfred University hosted over 100 Master’s students on campus, as part of the Master’s in School Counseling and the Master’s in Mental Health Counseling programs. CITE partners with Alfred to offer these programs in and around NYC.
This On-Campus week is a state requirement that is sometimes greeted with trepidation, “I have to go where?” A student might ask.
“Alfred University, in Alfred, NY,” comes the answer.
“Where’s that?”
“Well, the middle of… um. Well, it’s a charming town, and the campus is beautiful.”
“Oh. How far is it?”
“It’s, uh… it’s far. But we take you there!”
“…Oh.”
But by the end of the week, after the Thursday night barbecue, after the students have bought all of the Alfred swag the bookstore has (sorry, bookstore), after the bonding that can only happen living in dorms (remember those?) and the class projects, after the ice breakers, meeting the faculty, getting straight answers about financial aid and registration issues, after a busy but productive week of discovery and bonding, students often refer to this experience as one of the most enjoyable and important in their journey through the Alfred University Master’s Degree in School Counseling or Mental Health Counseling.
Here are some student and instructor perspectives on the week:
Sharon Medina, student –
This week, I’ll get my projects done, and study for the ethics exam on Friday. I’m looking forward to the barbecue. What I thought was so great was how, by the second day, everyone had bought Alfred gear. That shows how amazing Alfred is, and how comfortable we feel. What I love more than anything is that the staff is amazing.
Leonardo Blackman, student –
It’s been exciting to be a student again. I graduated from undergrad 14 years ago. It feels good. I readjusted to doing a lot of reading. I feel very comfortable on campus.
Jay Cerio – Dean of the Downstate Program –
I teach several courses especially during the summers when students are on campus. When students are on campus, they’re primarily involved in one three-credit graduate course. They’re in class usually morning, afternoon, and evening to meet the state education requirements for the residency, for class time. We provide some breaks where they work on the assignments, and we have some orientation activities related to transitioning to the program. Part of the week involves developing relationships with the other students, their colleagues, and the faculty. We tend to emphasize practical training and skills, and in this first course they get to see that, and to see how it will apply to other courses in the program.
Bob Bitting – Associate Dean for the Greater NYC area programs –
The group on campus right now is 115 students – for a 6 day residency. In addition to being on campus and being part of this cohort, they get linked in to Alfred University — the library, IT, Financial Aid, etc, so that by the time they leave they can access everything that any of our on-campus students can access. Just the experience of getting away from NYC helps the groups start to be cohesive. It’s a pretty intensive program. We feel that the cohort approach is the best way to build that mutual support and help students get through the program.
Alfred University’s Master’s in School Counseling and Master’s in Mental Health Counseling programs take place in person, on weekends in and around NYC. Learn more here.
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CITE is the Center for Integrated Training and Education . For over 25 years, CITE has and continues to train TEACHERS (Early Childhood, Professional Certification, Special Ed,Grad Courses, Bilingual courses, DASA); COUNSELORS (School, Mental Health Masters, Advanced Certificate); and ADMINISTRATORS (SBL, SDL, Public Admin, Doctorate) in all five boroughs of NYC, Yonkers, Westchester, and Long Island.
