Program Outcomes

The Rehabilitation Education programs at Emporia State University (ESU) are comprised of a B.S. in Rehabilitation Services Education and an M.S. in Rehabilitation Counseling. Established in 1966, the Rehabilitation Counseling program is fully accredited by the Council on Rehabilitation Education through 2014 (www.core-rehab.org). The Rehabilitation Program is a 60-credit degree, with approximately 27 credits available online to accommodate students throughout the state. It is the sole graduate-level rehabilitation program in Kansas and Missouri.

There are presently 19 graduate students in the Rehabilitation Counseling program. The department has 4 full-time, tenure-track faculty, with an instructor-to-student ratio of 1:7. All faculty members teaching CORE-accredited curriculum have doctoral degrees in rehabilitation counselor education or a closely related field, and each holds the Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC; www.crccertification.com) credential.  All students in the Rehabilitation Counseling program are required to maintain a B (3.00) average or greater to qualify for degree candidacy. Student outcomes are evaluated annually using data collected in the program assessment process.

Since 1966, over 500 students have earned an M.S. in Rehabilitation Counseling at ESU. The program has graduated 25 students in the past five years (2008-2012), averaging five annually. Despite ESU’s rural location, 35% of graduates were from underrepresented groups, including persons with disabilities. Presently, 85% of program graduates are employed by Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS), Veterans Affairs, various non-profit and/or community-based programs, and in private practice and/or for-profit settings in both rehabilitation and counseling.

Certification as a CRC is not a condition of rehabilitation counselor employment at the state of Kansas. The Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board (BSRB) accepts the National Counseling Exam (NCE) to become a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC). Although national certification and state licensure are not required of rehabilitation counselors employed in state and community rehabilitation settings, roughly, 27% of program graduates choose to obtain the LPC, Licensed Addictions Counselor (LAC), or CRC credential.