DIGEST - Volume 10, Issue 1

18 TPC Digest Online Counselor Education Donna S. Sheperis, J. Kelly Coker, Elizabeth Haag, Fatma Salem-Pease O nline counselor education has been studied extensively since its inception in the late 1990s. With nearly 80 fully online programs accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs and many more in a hybrid format or not accredited, online counselor education has been consistently growing. Experiences of students within these programs have received limited attention. In addition, much of the existing literature is related to overall online learning and is not specific to counselor education. Although this manuscript did not take on the topic as a research study, students were invited to participate in informal interviews about their experiences and to serve as coauthors if they were interested. Graduate students are taking more online courses than ever before, with the number of options increasing almost 50% over the last 8 years. Many of the participating students shared that flexibility was a huge factor in choosing an online program. They shared that having online classes allowed them to be part of the graduate school experience while still managing work and family. Because research on the rigor of online programs shows that students receive similar levels of training with little difference in academic outcomes, online counselor education programs must look at ways to maximize the online learning experience for students. Something that students talked a lot about in this regard was the concept of asynchronous versus synchronous learning. Asynchronous learning simply means that students do not attend required meetings of the class during a given week, although they likely have assignments with required dates. Much more than the old correspondence course model, asynchronous classes hold students to defined learning outcomes on a weekly basis but allow the student to determine when they will do the work in order to submit assignments by the due date. Synchronous learning, on the other hand, occurs online but in real time. The most common form of synchronous interaction is the use of online class meetings or residencies. When online counselor education students shared with us about these two modalities, they were almost universally supportive of some synchronous options in a program. Students shared feeling more connected with their program, professors, and peers via synchronous learning opportunities. Much of what students shared fit with existing literature around something called the community of inquiry . The community of inquiry is the social, cognitive, and teaching presence in the online coursework that can provide a foundation for learning. Overall, this manuscript strove to share the stories of students who participated in both synchronous and asynchronous distance counselor education programs at the master’s and doctoral level. Students talked about finding online programs to be viable options to work flexibly within their adult lives. In addition, they shared that they were more satisfied when there were efforts to foster connection through synchronous or other means found in a community of inquiry. Finally, this manuscript provides additional areas for research in exploring the experiences of students in online counselor education programs. Donna S. Sheperis, PhD, NCC, ACS, CCMHC, LPC, is an associate professor at Palo Alto University. J. Kelly Coker, PhD, NCC, LPC, is an associate professor at Palo Alto University. Elizabeth Haag was a graduate student at the University of the Cumberlands. Fatma Salem-Pease was a graduate student at Southern New Hampshire University. Correspondence can be addressed to Donna Sheperis, 5150 El Camino Real, Los Altos, CA 94022, dsheperis@paloaltou.edu. A Student–Faculty Collaboration |