Mental Health Counseling, MS

Society is putting ever-greater focus on wellness and mental health. Our fully accredited master’s program in mental health counseling will put you in a position to make a difference in this vital field.

Build a Foundation for Practice

Learn to understand the nature, development and treatment of various forms of mental health-related problems in this program. As a student, you’ll combine counseling, assessment and consultation skills needed for clinical practice with an ability to put evidence-supported practices to work. Be part of a program that emphasizes personal and professional growth, respect for human diversity, social justice, client strengths and ethical responsibility.

Empowering Healthy Minds

Growing up on Long Island, Luisa Perez Ortiz had trouble finding resources to help navigate her own struggles with mental health. Today, Perez Ortiz is an alum of GSE’s mental health counseling master’s program—a path made possible through a SUNY scholarship supporting underrepresented students pursuing mental health degrees.

Luisa Perez Ortiz.

Points of Distinction

Starting in your second year, you’ll complete 600 hours of clinical work that build the skills necessary to pursue professional practice. By the time you graduate, you’ll be eligible to pursue licensure as a mental health counselor in New York State.  

Student shaking hands with career advisor.

Our long-standing relationships with non-profit mental health centers, hospitals, college counseling centers and substance abuse treatment centers are at the core of our program. As a student, you’ll have internship opportunities that deliver lasting hands-on experiences.

UB’s master’s program in mental health counseling is accredited by the Master’s in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council (MPCAC). This accreditation is a seal of approval that tells you—and future employers—that your education is informed by the latest, most-effective practices.

Program Summary

Find details about application deadlines and requirements, courses and more. Have questions? Contact our admissions office. 

Academic credential granted Master of Science (MS)
Credits required for completion 60

Time to completion

  • On campus, full-time: 5 semesters, or 4 semesters plus summer
  • Online, part-time: 8 semesters plus 2 summers through a combination of synchronous and asynchronous courses
  • See program coursework for details
Course delivery On campus or online
Experiential contact hours 600
Application deadline
  • On campus: Feb. 1
  • Online: June 1, then rolling until July 1
Myles Faith.

Faculty Expertise

Myles Faith, PhD, is a professor of counseling, school and educational psychology. Faith has spent decades studying “nature vs. nurture” with respect to childhood obesity and its impact on families. His work includes investigations into how children’s eating behaviors and body weight may be influenced by their temperaments, access to technology at school and at home—even their mothers’ eating habits and health during pregnancy.

Faith’s goal is to develop better evidence-based interventions that help parents and caregivers find positive strategies for healthy eating.

Learn More About Program Faculty

Resources