| Faculty | Prerequisites | Admission | Requirements | Course Offerings |
253.535.8782
Faculty: Norris Peterson, Ph.D., Dean, Division of Social Sciences
Charles York, Ph.D., Chair, Department of Marriage and Family Therapy
David Ward, Clinic Director
Cheryl Storm, Faculty
Callison, Concanon, Fitzpatrick, Lewis, Lundbeck, Tschimperle, Practica Supervisors
“As I visit with interns from MFTH programs, I realize what a
superior education I received from PLU... other programs only touch on
small amounts of what we studied…”
Kathleen Maxey, MFT Graduate
The primary objective of the Marriage and Family Therapy (MFTH) program is to train clinicians interested in counseling children, adults, couples, or families with a wide range of mental health problems, ranging from the chronically mentally ill to troubled children, from a marriage and family therapy perspective. Students participate in an intensive 20-hour-per-week, four or five semester clinical experience which includes 500 hours of therapy under close supervision in an on-campus clinic and in a community placement. The on-campus clinic and four off-campus sites offer all students a managed care clinical experience. Academic courses are scheduled at 3:00 p.m. to allow students to work full-time during their first academic year while they prepare for their clinical experience. Because faculty recognize that adult students bring expertise with them, students are highly involved in learning via exercises, classroom discussion, and real-life activities. The program is secular in nature and emphasizes the application of theory to practice, rigorous evaluation, and direct supervision of one's clinical competency.
The program is fully accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) and also complies with Washington State licensure requirements for marriage and family therapists.
Applicants who have a degree in family studies, human services, psychology, sociology, social work, or the equivalent are not required to meet any program prerequisites. Applicants who do not have a degree in any of these areas are required to complete a minimum of 15 semester hours (22.5 quarter hours) in family social sciences, human services, psychology, sociology, or social work.
The MFTH program is looking for individuals who have professional goals consistent with the program, volunteer or professional experience in the social services, the ability to handle the academic rigor of the program, and the personal qualities required of couple and family therapists. Our goal is to have a student body highly diverse in spirituality, age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and also inclusive of international students. To be considered for admission, applicants must: have a bachelor's degree, submit transcripts of all undergraduate work, have a specific interest in MFT, provide a current resume, obtain two letters of recommendation, complete an application, and prepare a career statement.
The comprehensive career statement (maximum of five double-spaced typed pages) should address the following questions:
This statement replaces the required goal statement on the application form.
Based on a committee review of applicants' written materials, a pool of applicants to be interviewed is established. The primary purpose of the interview is to determine the fit between the applicants' professional goals and the purpose and mission of the MFT program.
Accepted applicants must make a $300.00 advance payment to confirm their acceptance of an offer of admission within three weeks of their acceptance date.
MFTH 500: Human Development (4)
MFTH 503: Systems Approach to Marriage and Family Therapy (4)
MFTH 504: Family Development (4)
MFTH 505: Social Science Research Methods (4)
MFTH 507: Comparative Marriage and Family Therapy (4)
MFTH 510: Human Sexuality and Sex Therapy (2)
MFTH 511: Psychosocial Pathology: Relationship to
Marriage and Family Therapy (4)
MFTH 512: Professional Studies in Marriage and Family Therapy (3)
MFTH 519: Practicum I (2)
MFTH 520: Theory I (2)
MFTH 521: Practicum II (2)
MFTH 522: Theory II (2)
MFTH 523: Practicum III (2)
MFTH 524: Theory III (2)
MFTH 525: Practicum IV (2)
MFTH 526: Development of a Personal Integrated Theory (2)
Elective:
MFTH 527: Extended Practicum V (2)
MFTH 599: Thesis (4)
MFTH 500: Human Development
Individual personality development, normal and abnormal manifestations, over the life span. (4)
MFTH 501: Graduate Workshop
Graduate workshops in special fields for varying lengths of time (1-4)
MFTH 503: Systems Approach to Marriage and Family Therapy
An introduction to the systems paradigm and post-modern ideas for treatment strategy and intervention. (4)
MFTH 504: Family Development
Exploration of how family life cycle stages are affected by divorce,
remarriage, ethnicity, feminist issues, and other unplanned events. (4)
MFTH 505: Research Methods in Marriage and Family Therapy
Basic research concepts including formulating research questions,
research design, analysis of data, and theory construction. Emphasis on
understanding and evaluating rather than conducting research. (4)
MFTH 507: Comparative Marriage and Family Therapy
Intensive comparative study of the theoretical rationale of the
prominent schools of thought within the field of marriage and family
therapy. Prerequisite: MFTH 503. (4)
MFTH 510: Human Sexuality and Sex Therapy
An overview of the nature of sexual health and the treatment of common
sexual dysfunctions. Prerequisite or co-requisite: MFTH 503. (2)
MFTH 511: Psychosocial Pathology: Relationship to Marriage and the Family
Exploration of the treatment techniques and assumptions of leading
family therapists regarding such psychosocial dysfunctions as divorce,
family violence, delinquency, psychosomatic symptoms, drug addiction,
and disturbed adolescents. Prerequisite: MFTH 503. (4)
MFTH 512: Professional Studies in Marriage and Family Therapy
Study of professional ethics and Washington State laws which affect
clinical practice, including family law, legal responsibilities, and
interprofessional cooperation. (3)
MFTH 519 Practicum I (2)
Prerequisite: MFTH 507 and 512; may be taken concurrently when schedule allows.
MFTH 521: Practicum II (2)
MFTH 523: Practicum III (2)
MFTH 525:Practicum IV (2)
The four semesters of practica are part of a continuous process toward developing specific therapeutic competencies in work with individuals, couples, and families. The practica present a competency-based program in which each student is evaluated regarding: 1) case management skills; 2) relationship skills; 3) perceptual skills; 4) conceptual skills; 5) structuring skills; and 6) professional development skills. Practica requirements include 100 hours of supervision of 500 client contact hours. Faculty are AAMFT-Approved Supervisors or the equivalent and use live supervision and video tapes of student sessions as the primary methods of clinical supervision.
MFTH 527: Extended Practicum V
For students who wish to complete their required practica in five
rather than four semesters. This course is an extension of the
previously described practica courses. (2)
MFTH 520: Theory I (2)
MFTH 522: Theory II (2)
MFTH 524: Theory III (2)
The three semesters of theory taken in conjunction with MFTH 519, 521, and 523 constitute an in-depth study of one approach toward marriage and family therapy with an emphasis on applying theory in practice.
MFTH 526: Development of a Personal Integrated Theory
The fourth semester of theory taken in conjunction with MFTH 525 is an
in-depth study of the student's preferred ideas, style, methods, and
values. Students develop an integrated personal approach to marriage
and family therapy that synthesizes their learning in the program. (2)
MFTH 590: Graduate Seminar
Selected topics as announced. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor. (1–4)
MFTH 591: Directed Studies (1–4)
MFTH 595: Graduate Readings
Independent study card required. (1–4)
MFTH 598: Research Project (1-4)
MFTH 599: Thesis (4)