Our Marriage and Family Therapy programs are systemically based, meaning that we focus on understanding problems and issues in the context of relationships, particularly family relationships. Students looking for a career in mental health that focuses on impacting the lives of individuals, couples, and families, with an emphasis on relational, societal, and cultural impacts, will find a home in ULM's Marriage and Family Therapy program.
The undergraduate minor in Marriage and Family Therapy is an 18 credit hour course schedule that includes Foundations of Marriage and Family Therapy as well as several other foundational classes in relational and systemic study. Many students with Behavioral Science majors naturally meet the requirements of an MFT minor within their major courses of study.
With an intentional focus on a systemic orientation, ULM's Marriage and Family Therapy Master of Arts program is committed to preparing future therapists and counselors for careers serving a diverse population and wide range of therapeutic concerns.
This two-year program encompasses 60 credit hours and includes 300 hours of hands on training in both ULM's on-campus Marriage and Family Therapy clinic, and community counseling partnership sites outside the university. Students are provided a curriculum, client experience, and community connections designed to prepare them as clinically, ethically, and culturally competent mental health professionals.
Master of Arts Graduate Achievement Data
The MFT Ph.D. program supports and nurtures graduate students in their academic coursework, scholarship, and service to the community, focused on the development of critical advanced clinical, supervisory, and research skills. There are two Ph.D. options within the program.
The Clinical Ph.D. is a three-year program consisting of two years of classroom experience including 200 hours of hands-on training in Marriage and Family Clinics, and one year of full-time internship which is either clinically or research-based. Ph.D. students have the opportunity to earn credentials as American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) Approved Supervisors, and a teaching track also allows Ph.D. students the chance to earn teaching experience within the MFT undergraduate minor program.
Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Achievement Data
The non-clinical Ph.D. with a concentration in Systemic Studies is a fully online program. Coursework includes two years of full-time classwork, plus a dissertation. The non-clinical emphasis speaks to a wide range of disciplines as many students who choose this program are already established professionals. Coursework explores diverse contexts of stability and change and how the application of system theory can affect both working and personal relationships. The online nature of the program allows for flexibility and independent study while guidance and advisory support is provided by MFT faculty.
Those seeking clinical experience are encouraged to explore ULM’s COAMFTE-accredited in-person Marriage and Family Therapy Ph.D. program.
Making sure your program is the right financial investment is an important part of the search process.
COST & FINANCINGGiven that ULM MFT students receive a challenging education, unique research opportunities, and prolonged experience in supervised hands-on training, graduates of the ULM MFT program have a 100% job placement rate in Louisiana and across the nation in community mental health agencies, clinical practices, academia, as well as a variety of other settings.
Graduates of the program also have a 100% pass rate in state and national licensing exams and are eligible for dual licensure of LPC and LMFT credentials.
ULM offers the only COAMFTE - accredited Masters of Marriage and Family Therapy program in the states of Louisiana and Arkansas. The Clinical Ph.D. in Marriage and Family Therapy is also accredited by the COAMFTE (Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education)
The ULM Marriage & Family Therapy (MFT) Clinic is staffed by interns of the Marriage & Family Therapy program, under direct supervision by clinical faculty. The clinic’s goal is to provide clients the opportunity to learn, change, and develop through personal growth experiences. While clients work toward personal growth,the clinic also provides MFT students with supervised hands-on training and research opportunities. Individual, group, and family services are provided to persons of all ages and cultures, and services are provided to the local community, as well as made available to ULM students, faculty, and staff.
ULM’s Don D. Jackson Archive houses Marriage and Family Therapy’s historical and one-of-a-kind documents, video, and audio, dating back to the inception of the field.Students in the Master of Arts program are encouraged to collaborate on research projects as time allows and can conduct an optional thesis. Ph.D. students take advanced research coursework in which intense one-on-one teaching assists the student in developing, proposing, and ultimately defending and publishing their dissertation research.
With collections of writings from MFT founders, reel-to-reel recordings of sessions and conferences, unpublished research materials, rare photographs, first editions books, and more,the archives provide a means of conclusive research and professional development for both students and faculty of the program.
In effort to maintain a family-style, cohort model, a limited number of students are admitted to the Marriage and Family Therapy Master of Arts Program. Students should apply before theFebruary 1 Priority Deadline. Applications submitted after this deadline will be considered only if spots have not been filled.
Prospective students submit applications to ULM’s Graduate School, and subsequently to the Marriage & Family Therapy Program. Upon acceptance into the Graduate School, the MFT Admissions Committee will review applications, and invite select individuals to participate in group and individual Interviews.
Please note that admission into the graduate school does not guarantee admission into the Marriage and Family Therapy Program.
Marriage and Family Therapy Program:
MFT Program Policies & Procedures
Master of Arts:
MFT Master of Arts Program Handbook
MFT Master of Arts Clinic Handbook
Clinical Doctorate:
MFT Clinical Doctorate Program Handbook
MFT Clinical Doctorate Clinic Handbook
MFT Dissertation Committee Form
Non-Clinical Doctorate (Online):
MFT Non-Clinical Doctorate Program Handbook
Recent graduates from the ULM program have found employment in settings such as:
Graduates are also active in family life education and enrichment in a variety of contexts. Approximately 10-15% of the graduates from the ULM program have pursued doctorates in marriage and family therapy or related fields.
Here are a few of the top careers in this field:
The COAMFTE (Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education) accredited Master's degree program in MFT is an intensive, 60 credit-hour program requiring two years of full-time study. The curriculum of the MFT master’s program focuses on understanding problems and issues in the context of relationships, particularly family relationships. Students are prepared to work in a wide variety of professional MFT settings with diverse populations experiencing a broad range of problems. Coursework required for the MFT MA program qualifies students academically to meet Professional Counselor and Marriage and Family Therapist licensure requirements in Louisiana and many other states. Since the program is accredited by COAMFTE, students can qualify for Clinical Membership in AAMFT upon completion of the clinical practice requirement.
Master of Arts Course Sequence 2024
Master of Arts Course Sequence 2019
The COAMFTE accredited clinical Ph.D. degree program in MFT at ULM embraces an intentional focus on clinical, systemic orientation, clinical practice, and qualitative and quantitative research. This clinical Ph.D. program includes courses related to philosophical and epistemological orientations, including thetheoretical and clinical applications of such ideas, as well as courses related to family studies and human development,research methods, and clinical supervision. Students are prepared to work in a wide variety of professional marriage and family therapy settings with diverse populations experiencing a broad range of problems.
Clinical Doctorate Course Sequence
The non-clinical Ph.D. degree program in MFT with a concentration in Systemic Studies is a fully online, 60 credit-hour degree program. The non-clinical emphasis integrates systemically oriented philosophy and theory and speaks to a transdisciplinary study of therapy, counseling, coaching, consultation, teaching, social service learning, and other professions concerned with systemic thinking. This program is designed for Masters level professionals from a wide array of disciplines who wish to explore the diverse contexts of stability and change and how the application of system theory can affect both working and personal relationships. Those seeking clinical experience are encouraged to explore the COAMFTE-accredited clinical Ph.D. program.
Non-Clinical Doctorate Course Sequence
Students on a Marriage and Family Therapy degree path are eligible for membership in the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT), the professional association for the field of Marriage and Family Therapy. Ph.D. students are offered the opportunity to earn national supervisory credentials as an AAMFT Approved Supervisor through rigorous coursework in a Doctoral program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Marriage and Family Therapy (COAMFTE).
ULM hosts the alpha chapter of Delta Kappa, the international Marriage and Family Therapy honor society founded at ULM in 1998 by Dr. Charles Cole. While recognizing the achievements of practitioners in the field who have made significant contributions to the field, the alpha chapter of Kappa Delta seeks to encourage and foster community service by organizing such local services as mental health screenings, fundraising for breast cancer and suicide preventions awareness, supporting food insecurity initiatives, and more.
Graduate assistantships are available for students in the MA and on-site, clinical Ph.D. programs. These positions are competitive and come with a tuition waiver and monthly stipend. Please visit the Graduate Assistantships page for more information. The financial aid office can assist students with other forms of financial assistance.
Learn more about financial aid options: https://www.ulm.edu/financialaid/
Learn more about scholarship opportunities: https://www.ulm.edu/scholarships/
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