UT Tyler Graduate Counseling Program Earns Professional Reaccreditation

October 24, 2024 | Hannah Buchanan

The University of Texas at Tyler has been granted a reaffirmation of professional accreditation through 2032 by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs for its clinical mental health counseling graduate program.

CACREP is the leading national accrediting body for professional counselor preparation programs.
UT Tyler’s achievement involved a three-year process consisting of a reassessment of student
outcomes, comprehensive self-study, peer evaluation, site visit and final council review. The
program was initially accredited in 2012.

“We are delighted that our graduate clinical mental health counseling program earned
reaccreditation for the maximum number of years possible. The CACREP accreditation provides
assurance of a quality educational program that prepares professional counselors who are more
than ready to serve the East Texas region,” said Dr. Pradeep “Max” Dass, UT Tyler College of
Education and Psychology dean.

The council contributes to the unity of the counseling profession by bringing together practitioners, educators and students and by continually improving professional preparation, educational research and scholarship, and practice.

“Completing a program with CACREP accreditation allows students to sit for a national exam that
allows them to be licensed in any state,” said Dr. Zahide Sunal, UT Tyler assistant professor and
program coordinator. “Additionally, clients and consumers of counseling services benefit from the
rigorous preparation of the professional counselor who has graduated from a CACREP-accredited
program.”

UT Tyler's 60-credit-hour program is designed to prepare graduates to become Licensed
Professional Counselors, or LPCs, in various mental health settings with the appropriate postgraduation experiences. Students develop competencies in diagnosis and assessment, evidence-based counseling/psychotherapy techniques, group processes, human development, and addiction and career counseling.

For more information, contact Sunal at zsunal@uttyler.edu or visit uttyler.edu.

With a mission to improve educational and health care outcomes for East Texas and beyond, UT
Tyler offers more than 90 undergraduate and graduate programs to more than 10,000 students.
Through its alignment with UT Tyler Health Science Center and UT Health East Texas, UT Tyler has
unified these entities to serve Texas with quality education, cutting-edge research and excellent
patient care. Classified by Carnegie as a doctoral research institution and by U.S. News & World
Report as a national university, UT Tyler has campuses in Tyler, Longview, Palestine and Houston.