Master of Counselling

Program overview

Athabasca University’s online Master of counselling (MC) is designed to meet the graduate academic requirements for professional counsellors or counselling psychologists.

In addition to core courses in the fundamentals of counselling psychology, you will choose a specialization from 1 of 2 areas:

• Art Therapy
• Counselling Psychology

Program details

The master of counselling is a 36-credit online graduate program. You must complete at least 24 credits through Athabasca University.

There is only one MC intake each year. The application deadline is in February. Credit classes in all three specializations start in September. All courses are online grouped study, with defined start and end dates. The program includes a 3-week face-to-face summer institute in Calgary and two long weekend practicum seminars in Alberta.

Routes and options

We offer 2 areas of specialization in the MC program.

Master of Counselling in Art Therapy

Art therapy lets individuals explore personal problems and potentials through painting, sculpture or drawing.

This specialization is offered in partnership with the Vancouver Art Therapy Institute. If you choose this route, you must attend an additional 2 summer institutes in Vancouver.

• Learn more about the Art Therapy specialization

Master of Counselling in Counselling Psychology

The courses in the counselling psychology specialization meet the graduate course requirements for licensing with the College of Alberta Psychologists. If you are from another province, you should check with your provincial regulatory body for course and program requirements.

• Learn more about the Counselling Psychology specialization

Completion times

Finish this program in as little as 3.5 years of full-time study. You can take up to 7 years to complete all requirements.

Admission requirements

Admission requirements include an undergraduate degree with a minimum grade point average (GPA), and a minimum number of credits in psychology or educational psychology.

• See full Master of Counselling admission requirements

Program requirements

Required courses

Detailed information about courses in this program can be accessed using the following link:

Tuition and fees

The MC has:

• an application fee
• a program admission fee
• a per-semester program fee

Tuition is then paid on a course-by-course basis. Students in the art therapy specialization will also have additional costs.

• See all MC fees