Admissions and Financial Aid

Admission to the Graduate Counseling and Human Services Programs

Admissions decisions are based on consideration of a combination of criteria: college grade-point average, Graduate Record Examination scores, recommendations, professional commitment, work or volunteer experience in the human services field, and suitability for the profession. Candidates for the counseling and human services programs are not required to have a specific undergraduate major or minor. Applicants being considered for admission are required to have a personal interview with program faculty. The successful completion of a criminal background check may be required as a condition of acceptance. Continuance in the program and admission to candidacy are based on success in academic courses and on personal, ethical, and performance considerations.

Please Note: The Masters of Arts in Human Services is scheduled to begin with its first cohort in the fall semester of 2012 for part-time, online students and in the fall of 2014 for full-time, on campus students. Learn more about the Online Human Services Program Here. Additional information about the full-time, on campus is coming soon.

Generous Scholarships Offered to Accepted Full-Time Counseling Program Applicants

An average of fifteen applicants are selected to enter the Reynolda Campus full-time counseling program each year. All of those selected will be awarded partial tuition scholarships that cover approximately 85% of the tuition cost. Each full-time counseling student is also issued a reconditioned laptop computer with the standard WFU software load.

As part-time students, online students are not eligible for tuition scholarships, however the financial aid office will help students investigate loan and other scholarship options. For more information, please see the Graduate School Prospective Student Webpage. Online students are not eligible to receive a WFU reconditioned laptop computer.

Additional Financial Assistance

Hearst Minority Assistantships. These assistantships are available to under-represented minority graduate students on the WFU Reynolda campus. Candidates must be United States citizens and belong to one of the following under-represented minority groups: African American, Hispanic (including Puerto Rican, Native American, Alaskan Native or Native Pacific Islander. All eligible applicants to graduate programs on the Reynolda campus (includes full-time Counseling and Human Services programs) will be considered.

See the Graduate School Bulletin for information about other grants and loans that are available.

Several departments on campus advertise paid positions directly to counseling students. Reynolda Campus graduate counseling students work part-time in such areas as the Learning Assistance Center, Residence Life and Housing, Student Financial Aid, the Office of Student Development and the Student Union.

Time Table

The deadline for completed applications for the full-time Reynolda Campus program is January 15. All application materials are submitted directly to the Graduate School Office. Applicants can expect to receive notification of admission decisions by the middle of April.

Applications to the online programs are accepted on a rolling admissions schedule for the fall, spring and summer cohorts. Applicants can expect to receive notification of an admission decision approximately two weeks following receipt of a completed application, which includes a recorded personal interview.

The Personal Interview

Based on the material contained in his or her application, an applicant to one of the full-time programs may be invited to campus for a personal interview. If invited, applicants must arrange to appear in person. Telephone interviews are not scheduled.

Criminal Background Check

Acceptance to the program will be contingent on the successful completion of a criminal background check. The background check is standardized and mandatory for all students. Any student who has a criminal offense documented through this procedure will have to address this on a case-by-case basis with the Program Director and Department Chair. Areas of concern may include, but are not limited to, felony convictions, especially those involving harm to others, theft or fraud convictions, and patterns of misdemeanors other than moving traffic violations.

For application materials for the full-time on campus (Counseling) or part-time online programs (Counseling or Human Services), please complete the application posted on the Graduate School website.