PHENIX CITY, Ala.-The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) has accredited three counseling programs at Troy University’s Phenix City Campus.

The programs, which are taught at the master’s level, include community counseling, mental health counseling and school counseling. The eight-year accreditation, which is the longest accreditation period a program can receive, runs through March 31, 2015.

According to Kathryn Ness, chair of the department of counseling and psychology at the Phenix City Campus, the department had to complete an extensive self study documenting that it had complied with the regulations associated with the seven-year accreditation in 1999. 

“The accreditation means that using external national standards, we have been judged as offering a high-quality program,” Ness said.  “We were all very proud of having achieved this accomplishment for a second time.”

Ness said the primary purpose of accreditation is to assure prospective employers that students have been trained in an “excellent” program. 

“Indicating that you graduated from a CACREP-approved program is a definite plus on a resume,” Ness said.

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