Build the experience and gain the confidence you will need serving diverse individuals with a master's in clinical rehabilitation counseling. Our program prepares graduates to work in a wide variety of vocational rehabilitation, mental health, and educational settings with individuals who are emotionally, socially, and vocationally adjusting to the disability experience.
Our immersive graduate program is organized around core foundation courses, an intensive on-campus practicum training clinic experience, interpersonal growth experiences, advanced theory, and specialty practice courses, culminating in a half-time field internship placement.
Our program’s 90 graduate credits are designed to meet CACREP national accreditation standards for Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling and meets the academic degree requirements to become licensed as a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Oregon and other states.
Portland State University's Counseling programs are accredited by CACREP and the Oregon Teacher Standards and Practice Commission (TSPC).
Program objectives
PO1: Graduates will demonstrate skills and competencies to address the biopsychosocial aspects of chronic illness and disability including: history and development of rehabilitation counseling; theories and models related to psychosocial adjustment to disability; medical aspects of disability; and assessment screening tools that are reliable and valid for use with people with disabilities
PO2: Graduates will demonstrate skills and competencies necessary for the contextual dimensions of rehabilitation counseling practice, focusing on the following as it relates specifically to people with disabilities: case management, continuums of care, biopsychosocial adjustment, occupational and vocational analysis, legislation and policy, multicultural counseling competencies, and legal and ethical practice.
PO3: Graduates will demonstrate skills and competencies of clinical rehabilitation counseling practice, including: career and diagnostic assessment practices; advocacy for people with disabilities; strategies for interdisciplinary and collaborative work; and strategies to educate employers, educators, and families on disability accommodations and relevant legislation.
Our department is intertwined with Portland’s community of counselors. We provide counseling services to community members at our Community Counseling Clinic and serve community clients at internship sites. The counseling department also provides clinical supervision to post-master's counseling interns and contributes leadership/consultation for the Oregon licensure board and professional organizations such as the Oregon Counseling Association (ORCA) and the International Association of Rehabilitation Professionals (IARP).
Our graduates are eligible to obtain both the Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) and the National Certified Counselor (NCC) certifications as well as eligible for licensure as Professional Counselors. Our graduates are employed in public mental health agencies, public and private community counseling agencies, employee assistance programs, day treatment and inpatient hospital settings, private practice, group practice, community colleges, university settings, and public and private vocational rehabilitation agencies. As graduates of the clinical rehabilitation counseling program at PSU, students are trained in how to provide interventional or therapeutic services as well as cultivate in-depth local business networks and community resources.
Graduates can:
- Support middle and high school students planning for postsecondary life.
- Work as counselors in private practice or community agencies and be eligible for promotion to clinical supervisors.
- Provide teaching and support for individuals developing independent living and employment skills.
- Consult with major companies to develop accommodations for disabled employees.
- Provide expert witness testimony for workers compensation and Social Security hearings.
- Assist veterans returning from service who are interested in pursuing employment or educational goals.
Examples of employment found by our graduates:
- Cascadia Behavioral Healthcare
- DePaul Treatment Center
- Cedar Hills Hospital
- Oregon Commission for the Blind
- Outside In
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
- DHS Vocational Rehabilitation
- Three Firs Counseling