M.A. in Marriage & Family Therapy

Description
The two-year Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy program prepares persons for careers as theologically-informed marriage and family therapists. The course of study is firmly rooted in systemic family theory and extensive supervised experience. With its unique theological component, this is a premiere master's degree in the field of marriage and family therapy. It ideally positions students for a variety of mental health career options in religious settings, community agencies, or eventual private practice. The program also serves as quality preparation for doctoral study.

Objectives
The Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy degree program will give students an opportunity to develop an initial competence in the following:

• Ability to conceptualize human problems within a family systems framework, informed by a Christian understanding of biblical truth;
• Awareness, attitudes, and therapy skills needed to assess, diagnose, and treat various human problems within this same systemic structure;
• Ability to function as informed entry level practitioners in various religious and secular settings.

Supervised Therapy
The Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy program is designed with careful attention to clinical skills and professional development. Therefore, students in the program are required to complete a minimum of 300 hours of direct client contact before receiving their degrees. A substantial number of these hours must be with couples and families. At least four semesters and/or summers will be in the Seminary's on-site Marriage and Family Therapy Clinic where students receive individual supervision, group supervision, and supervision based on direct observation, videotape, or audiotape of their clinical work. Completing a one-semester internship their last year is an option for persons in the Marriage and Family Therapy program. This internship allows students to focus their clinical efforts in a number of specific areas including work with adolescents and their families, substance abuse issues in the family, school behavior and its impact on marriage and family life, and other opportunities. All supervision is provided by AAMFT Approved Supervisors or Supervisors-in-Training.

Licensure and Credentialing
The Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy degree program meets all of the academic requirements for licensure as a Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) in most states and provinces. Students may then choose to complete the additional clinical contact, supervision hours, and licensing examinations required of postgraduates. Students have the responsibility to obtain advisement and information from the states/provinces where they seek licensure and from organizations in which they seek membership and credentials as therapists. Faculty guidance is available in these areas.

Sioux Falls Seminary Student Assessment

Requirements for Graduation
Satisfactory completion of 62 semester hours of which 36 hours must be in marriage and family therapy, plus an additional 9 semester hours of Supervised Therapy.

Supervised experience requiring a minimum of 300 hours of direct client contact, a substantial portion of which must be with a couple or family in the room with the student, and the majority of which must be on-site at the Sioux Falls Seminary Marriage and Family Therapy Clinic.

• Maintenance of a 3.0 grade point average.
• Recommendation of faculty.

• Bible
• Old Testament Literature, 3 hrs.
• New Testament Literature, 3 hrs.
• 
  
• Theology and Ethics
• God, Christ, and Humanity, 3 hrs.
• 
  
• Marriage and Family Therapy
• Principles and Techniques of Systemic Therapy I, 3 hrs.
• Principles and Techniques of Systemic Therapy II, 3 hrs.
• Theories of Marriage and Family Therapy I, 3 hrs.
• Gender, Class, and Culture
•     OR              3 hrs.
  
• Human Development and the Family Life Cycle
• Introduction to the Family System, 3 hrs.
• Ethical, Legal, and Professional Issues, 3 hrs. 
• Human Sexuality, 3 hrs.
• Research Methods in Marriage & Family Therapy, 3 hrs. 
• Assessment, Diagnosis, and Treatment, 3 hrs. 
• Theories of Integration, 1 hr.
• Readings in Integration, 1 hr.
• Existential and Spiritual Issues in Systemic Therapy
•      OR          3 hrs.
  
• Creation, Spirit, and the Church
• Marriage and Family Therapy Electives, 6 hrs.
• 
  
• Supervised Therapy
  Supervised Therapy, 7 hrs.
• Supervised Therapy, 2 hrs. 
•     OR
• Supervised Therapy (Internship), 2 hrs.
  
• 
  
• Other Requirements
• Graduate Theological Research, 1 hr.
• Electives, 5 hrs.

Total Required, 62 hrs.