The Department of Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology offers a Master of Arts degree program in school counseling or a Master of Science degree program in clinical mental health counseling, with the option to specialize in addictions counseling or child and adolescent counseling.

Prerequisites for Admission

Applicants to all graduate programs in the Department of Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology should have graduated with, or be about to graduate with, a bachelor’s or a master’s degree from an accredited institution appropriate to their chosen field of graduate study.  Experience in human service (field work, or service learning, or volunteer or employment) is helpful.

Admission applications that are incomplete or received after the deadline will not be reviewed. To ensure your file is complete and on time, please contact the Graduate School at (414) 288-7137 or email at gradadmit@marquette.edu.

• Master's admission applications due to the Graduate School: February 1, 2023
• Master's virtual interviews (approximately 8am-4pm CST): Friday, March 3, 2023

Materials to be submitted for application

All of the following materials must be submitted to the Graduate School via online application or address below by the appropriate deadline. Please do not send them to the department.

Marquette University Graduate School
1324 W. Wisconsin Ave., Room 305
Milwaukee, WI 53233

• Graduate School application form and application fee
• Official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate institutions except Marquette—they must come directly from the institution to Marquette University.
• Test scores on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) general test are normally required, not the GRE subject test (psychology). Please see www.gre.org for score reporting schedules. NOTE:  Due to COVID-19 the GRE is optional for students applying for the 2023-24 academic school year.
• A statement of purpose. Please use the guidelines listed on the Marquette Graduate School webpage on drafting a SOP.
• Counseling specialty area/concentration.Prospective master's in counseling students applying to the clinical mental health program need to indicate if they are electing to specialize in child/adolescent counseling, addictions, rehabilitation counseling or no specialization (general counseling). Noting a specializations doesn't affect an applicant's probability of being accepted into the program. However, these assist us greatly in course planning and advising. 
• Resume or Vita.
• Three letters of recommendation from individuals who can address one's academic and professional potential.
• International applicants only must submit a TOEFL score or other acceptable proof of English proficiency.

For further application information, please contact the Graduate School at (414) 288-7137, find Marquette's admissions materials online or email Coreen Bukowski, academic coordinator.

Virtual Interviews

After all applications are reviewed, the highest-ranking applicants will be contacted for an interview, which is required for admission. International applicants and others for whom the timeline/CST wouldn't be conhesive can request to interview over the phone on a mutually agreed date/time prior to the listed interview date. Master's interviews will be periodically all day (8am-4pm CST) on Friday, March 3, 2023.

Applicant evaluation by departmental faculty

Department faculty comprehensively review applicant files, emphasizing all aspects of applicants’ backgrounds. Our assessments of potential for graduate study and success in the field are based on all components of the application, and we do not use cutoff scores with regard to previous grades or test scores. The previous median GRE combined test score of our recent master’s in counseling students was 303, and the median undergraduate GPA was 3.5. The median score on the GRE writing assessment for master's students was 4.5. The faculty admits students with lower test scores or grades when there are significant compensating factors that are important for determining success in the field. If relevant, applicants should highlight these factors in their Statement of Purpose.

Those applicants who are judged to show good potential for graduate study in our department are then invited for an interview with the departmental faculty and a group of current graduate students. After the interviews have been completed, faculty review each application and make a decision about admission to the program.

Tuition and financial aid information

Tuition for a graduate education student can be found on the Graduate School tuition page. This level of tuition is fairly competitive with other institutions.

Most of the scholarships and assistantships that we offer go to doctoral students, but occasionally there are assistantships given to master’s students. Master’s students who are primary and secondary school teachers in southeastern Wisconsin are eligible for two scholarship opportunities: the Milwaukee Area Teachers Scholarship, which provides scholarships for K-12 teachers from the greater Milwaukee area, and the Catholic Schools Scholarship, which covers part of the tuition for students employed by Archdiocese of Milwaukee schools. These scholarships are available only to students enrolled at Marquette. More information is available at the Graduate School's financial aid page.

We will not know the number of assistantships available to next year's students until our admissions offers are sent out during the middle of the spring semester.

Visiting the department

You are welcome to visit the department to find out more about our programs. We are located in room 150 of the Walter Schroeder Health and Education Complex, 560 N. 16th Street. See our campus map we are building number 29. Please contact Coreen via email or (414) 288-5730 to let us know you are interested in visiting or would like someone to contact you.  Contact the Graduate School to schedule a campus visit/tour.

Marquette's Graduate School also holds a fall open house. The next one is being held virtually TBA. For more information and to RSVP.

We look forward to meeting you!