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I completely agree that school counseling is a better fit because I like the daily variety and I am just not built for 40 hours a week of talk therapy. It's a lot and very taxing! If you have any other questions honestly feel free to comment or message me. I know how confusing navigating all of this can be and I wish I was more informed at the start of my career. I had essentially been talked out of school counseling, only to go back and finish that degree/license later on - should have stuck with my gut.
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It is completely ridiculous IMO that some states require teaching experience (dramatic eye roll). School counselors are NOT teachers! Ridiculous. Not sure where you are moving to, but most states it will be easy to get licensed as long as your program is CACREP accredited and you will likely have to take the school counseling Praxis (about and prep). Not all states have this test requirement (New Jersey doesn't for example). I believe Arizona is a fairly easy state to be licensed in, but the link in my original post has the general outline of what each state requires. If it interests you, NJ will do a transcript evaluation for $80 and will outline exactly what you need to be licensed. I did that and it put me at ease knowing that I was eligible and only doing exactly what I needed to for my license. You don't have to be a resident or anything and their requirements are pretty basic, every CACREP program should meet their standards. You can find more information here and if you wanted to, you would go to this site: https://www20.state.nj.us/DOE_TCIS_ONLINEED/ and create an account. From there you would "apply online" and then "certification application" and you will see the option for a transcript evaluation. I personally think it's one of the easier states to become licensed in and they processed mine within 2 weeks. I don't live there any more and hadn't for years when I got licensed, but that was how I personally got around the 2 year teaching requirement in NV. Once I applied with a license in hand, I was accepted no problem (makes total sense, good job licensing boards).
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I think it's a great idea to do your internship at 2 different levels and some states actually require that (one in elementary and one in middle or high). It will give you a better idea of where you want to go as well.
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Being in a program now for counselor education and working with master's students, I finally have an opportunity to say...here's what they should have told us! I feel that I was adequately prepared to work as a counselor, but licensing regulations, national certifications, etc., were just some mysterious thing we didn't really know anything about. My best advice is to ask as many questions as you possibly can about all of these topics to your faculty - most of them, if not all, should be happy to help!
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Since you're with CMHC it's probable you won't get much on play therapy, which you will really need to be in an elementary school. If you have the money and time, I highly recommend this book (School Based Play Therapy by Adrena Drewes and Charles Schaefer). I'm sure you have a lot going on already, but I'd get at least one play therapy book geared towards school counseling - it will make a big difference.
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Replying to this thread has made me feel helpful and has helped me avoid working on my dissertation... win-win! ;)
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Best of luck to you and seriously, feel free to reach out if you have any questions that I may be able to help with. I was a prac student once too and I know this sh*t is overwhelming.