Supporting Community Mental Health and Whole-Person Care: Graduate Opportunities at Seattle University

The landscape of behavioral health care is changing. The World Health Organization reports that depression and anxiety have increased by 25% since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. This spike in mental health needs has influenced public awareness and increased demand for community mental health resources.

In response to these systemic changes, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics anticipates a 17% increase in careers in behavioral health through 2034. As demand for mental health support expands, communities need skilled practitioners who can provide whole-person support. Seattle University provides graduate opportunities for students to prepare for behavioral health careers rooted in clinical skill and community care. 

Students at Seattle University can choose from several pathways so they can best serve their intended communities after graduation. The Seattle University College of Arts & Sciences provides graduate programs in Psychology, Couples & Family Therapy, and Social Work. For further specialization, the College of Education also offers degree programs in school counseling, school psychology, and clinical mental health counseling.

How Behavioral Health Careers Strengthen Community Well-Being

Behavioral health professionals are key to helping individuals thrive and strengthening communities. Mental health care is necessary for those who identify with a specific mental health diagnosis, but it can also be an important tool for individuals who are navigating difficult life transitions or high levels of stress.

Seattle University’s Jesuit mission aligns with the principle of cura personalis, or care for the whole person. Students and faculty at Seattle University live out this value by honoring the physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual well-being of the campus community. Through whole-person care, community well-being is strengthened when practitioners view everyone around them as individuals and take the time to understand others’ backgrounds.

The focus on whole-person care is embedded across Seattle University, and is particularly relevant for those pursuing careers in clinical counseling and community mental health. Mental health clinicians who take a whole-person approach strengthen their communities when they lead with these core values:

• Approach clients with compassion and curiosity to learn more about them and their lived experiences
• Engage with trauma-informed care and social justice principles
• Prepare to engage in meaningful conversations free of judgment
• Connect clients with community resources, including housing support and substance abuse recovery

When mental health practitioners commit to treating the whole person, they are prepared to pursue behavioral health work in a range of care settings, including private clinics, non-profit agencies, hospitals, schools, and other community-based settings.

As prospective graduate students consider which behavioral health career trajectory best meets their personal goals, Seattle University has multiple pathways that prepare students for the contexts and communities they will work with following graduation.

Graduate Pathways for Behavioral Health Careers

Seattle University offers three graduate behavioral health programs through the College of Arts & Sciences, each designed to prepare students for a distinct form of behavioral health care after graduation. These pathways include a Master of Arts in Psychology (MAP), a Master of Arts in Couples & Family Therapy, and a Master of Social Work (MSW).

Like the other programs in the College of Arts & Sciences, students who pursue a graduate degree in the behavioral sciences benefit from a liberal arts education. The College’s core values include service to others and making a positive impact.

The mission of the College is “to develop and nurture a vision for a more just and humane world.” In pursuit of these values, each behavioral health program prepares students to do clinical work focused on community impact.

Preparing for Therapeutic Practice Through Psychology

Upon completion of this three-year course of study, students in the MA in Psychology program (MAP) can become licensed mental health counselor associates. Following graduation, they can provide in-depth, relationally based psychodynamic therapy with individuals, families and groups.

In this internationally renowned therapeutic training program, MAP students integrate interdisciplinary coursework. Students bring together knowledge about clinical psychology, existential-phenomenological philosophy, and the humanities with hands-on experiential and practical therapeutic application both in and outside of the classroom.

MAP students learn how to become therapists who are fully present with others through their experiences of suffering and distress, how to facilitate a process of meaning-making and healing, and how to work generously and expansively across a wide range of social and cultural contexts.

Graduate students are exposed to qualitative research and taught to prioritize reflective methods in their therapeutic practice. The MAP program offers a range of research expertise, including the following areas:

• Humanistic psychology
• Existential-phenomenological psychology
• Community psychology
• Culture and psychotherapy
• Relational and legal/professional ethics

Following the social justice mission of Seattle University, graduates are prepared to work across social and cultural differences to better meet the needs of a broad range of populations. This means that Seattle University MAP graduates are prepared to approach work with underserved communities with cultural sensitivity and ethical conduct.

Supporting Relationships Through Couples and Family Therapy

Students who intend to focus on relationships and systemic resilience can pursue the Master of Arts program in Couples & Family Therapy. Unlike other programs that largely focus on individuals, the Couples & Family Therapy curriculum prepares practitioners to focus on relationship-based treatment.

Graduates of this program are skilled in advocacy, systemic resilience, and trauma-informed care, with most finding work in private practice contexts. Through these lenses, couples and family therapists can treat patients from diverse intersecting social locations, including ethnicities and gender identities.

The core focus of the program includes these academic approaches:

• Family therapy theories and models
• Systems theory
• Ethics of clinical treatment
• Person-of-the-therapist exploration

Beyond program coursework, all graduates gain direct experience of at least 400 hours. Students begin their internship in their second year, providing 15 to 20 hours per week of onsite clinical work. Future couples and family therapists are trained to respond to their clients’ whole selves, considering relationships, home life, and community contexts.

Advancing Community Mental Health Through Social Work

The Department of Social Work also provides the opportunity for students to move into community behavioral health care and prepare them for advanced clinical social work practice.  Through a combination of social justice focused, trauma-informed coursework and community-based practicum, students are equipped to be competent and effective practitioners. After graduation, they will work to restore, maintain, and enhance human and community well-being with unwavering attention to social and economic justice.

Students in the Master of Social Work (MSW) program focus on social justice and clinical social work counseling. Two program options are available:

• Two-Year Path: Applicants with an undergraduate degree outside of social work can complete their degree and become an advanced clinical social work practitioner in two years. Students in this program complete 45 academic credits and 1000 hours of their practicum.
• Advanced Standing Path: This program is designed for those who already have a bachelor’s degree in social work from an accredited BSW program and want to grow their career as an advanced clinical social work practitioner. The Advanced Standing program requires 27 credits and 600 practicum hours.

Students are also able to choose between three optional sub-specializations: addictions counseling, medical/health social work, and trauma-informed practice. Following graduation, social workers connect counseling, advocacy, and community-based care.

Behavioral Health Care Across Community Settings

Much like there are several routes to a career in mental health, there are also many contexts where practitioners can provide care.

• Clinics: Behavioral health care in clinical contexts may include outpatient counseling, psychiatric evaluation, and medication management. This can include individual, group, or relationship counseling.
• Agencies: Mental health care at the agency level typically involves crisis intervention or case management that is provided by government or non-profit organizations.
• Community programs: Community mental health programs tend to provide accessible and low-cost support, including crisis hotlines, recovery programs, and peer support groups.

Beyond these sites, clinicians can also provide mental health support in educational settings. For students who intend to specialize in school-based mental health careers, there are several programs available through the Seattle University School of Education. Graduate students can choose between two specializations from the Counseling Department -– Clinical Mental Health Counseling and School Counseling.

Both specializations are offered as in-person and online asynchronous modalities. These programs complement the College of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences' offerings by preparing clinicians to work specifically in building more caring and just school systems.

How Seattle University Prepares Students for Whole-Person Behavioral Health Care

As mental health literacy and demand continue to increase, committed behavioral health professionals are key to providing communities with the support that they need. Professionals in community mental health are able to pursue gainful employment and also enjoy mission-driven work.

Across Seattle University’s behavioral health programs, professionals are prepared to help communities become more supportive places to live and learn. Through mission-driven education and extensive practical experience, Seattle University-trained clinicians are prepared to make a real-world impact.