Choosing a career in counseling means answering a powerful call — to help others heal, grow and thrive. At UCF, we’re committed to helping you get there. That’s why our graduate programs in counseling look beyond just grades and test scores. We want to know what drives you, where you’ve been and how you plan to make a difference.
Whether you're pursuing Clinical Mental Health Counseling, School Counseling, Marriage, Couple and Family Therapy, Career Counseling, or Counselor Education, our admission process is holistic and student-focused. We consider your academic background, life experience, professional goals and commitment to the field — because great counselors are shaped by more than numbers.
If you’re ready to answer your calling, we’re here to help you every step of the way — starting with making our admission process as transparent as possible.
Where Counselors Practice
- Assisted Living Communities
- Correctional Facilities
- Faith-based Organizations
- Government Agencies
- Halfway Houses
- Hospitals
- Mental Health Clinics
- Rehabilitation Centers
- Private Practices
- Residential Care Facilities
- Schools, Colleges and Universities
Application Deadlines
We offer several counseling graduate programs, which have slight differences in when to apply and when students can enroll.
Please refer to the program you’re interested in below.
February 1 (Fall)
September 1 (Spring)
January 15 (Fall)
July 1 (Spring)
*PhD applicants who wish to be considered for university fellowships or assistantships should apply by the fall priority date.
The information below pertains primarily to the master’s degree programs. Get more information about the doctoral degree admission process.
What You Need to Apply
1 Online Application
$31 Application Fee
Any Applicable Residency Forms
All Official Transcripts
Include transcripts from all institutions attended, each sealed in an envelope by the registrar of the former institution and sent directly to:
UCF College of Graduate Studies
P.O. Box 160112
Millican Hall 230
Orlando, FL 32816-0112
3 Letters of Recommendation
These should be from faculty, supervisors, mentors and/or professionals who are familiar with your work ethic and experience. Ideally at least one of these letters would come from a current/past professor, but if it has been a while since you were in school, the letters may be obtained from others who can attest to your aptitude of being a counseling graduate student and a future professional counselor.
1 Personal Goal Statement
This should be between 500 and 700 words, typed using 12-point font in either Times New Roman or Arial, and uploaded with the application as either a Word document or a PDF file. Be sure to cover the following topics:
- Reflection on Personal Experiences: Describe specific events or experiences in your life that ignited your passion for a career in the counseling field. This could include personal struggles, witnessing challenges faced by others, or a significant moment that made you realize the importance of mental health.
- Collection of Hands-on Experiences: Highlight paid experiences, volunteer work, internships or research/laboratory experiences in counseling-like settings that have provided you with hands-on experiences and skills. This could include opportunities where you have spent time with the population that you intend to one day provide counsel.
- Connection to Personal Values: Explain how becoming a professional counselor aligns with your core values and beliefs.
Applicants will need to bring a copy of their Personal Goal Statement with them to the interview.
1 Professional Resume
Experience factors highly in our consideration of applicants.
- Be sure to include all counseling-related experiences that demonstrate your skills and knowledge of the counseling profession as well as the position, dates, employer, supervisor, city, state, responsibilities and duties performed. It’s best if these experiences are relevant to the counseling specialty you’re applying to. Examples include such things as behavioral health tech, case manager, classroom teacher (full-time or substitute), childcare worker, camp counselor, lab/research experience, crisis line worker and group facilitator/leader.
- In addition to experiences listed above, please include current or recent paid work experience.
GRE Scores
PLEASE NOTE: All applications, aside from official transcripts, must be submitted together with the online application. You will receive an email notifying you of its receipt once it’s been submitted, but it will not be processed until your application fee and requirements are received by the UCF College of Graduate Studies. The above files will not be returned to or copied for the applicant.
What to Expect
Interested in learning more about one of our graduate counseling programs? Participate in one of our info sessions and meet one of our faculty members to review details and ask questions.
The Interview
Qualified applicants will be invited to campus for a half day (generally from 8:30 a.m. until 1 p.m.). There are no make-up interview dates, and applicants are required to be in attendance for the entire process, which includes:
- A small-group interview with other applicants, a faculty member and a doctoral student. As part of the interview, applicants will be asked to read their Professional Goal Statement to the group and field questions from the interviewers, both about their Professional Goal Statement and other topics. The process is designed to assess each applicant’s professionalism, career maturity, emotional maturity, awareness of others and awareness of self.
- A question-and-answer seminar with current students, where applicants can ask about their experiences as graduate students, program expectations, etc.
- A tour of the UCF campus.
MA/MEd Interview Dates
Incoming Fall 2026: March 6, 2026
Incoming Spring 2027: October 17, 2026
How We Rate Candidates
When deciding on applicants, we factor the following three items equally:
- Strong evidence of prior experiences
- An undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or better in your final 60 hours
(Easily calculate your final 60 hours here) - A successful interview
The top applicants will be offered admission with the remaining competitive applicants being placed on a wait list. Applicants being offered admission will be notified by email within two weeks of the interview with an offer of admittance. Applicants will be given two weeks to accept the offer of admission (by following the steps outlined in the offer email). Applicants who choose not to accept the offer, or who take longer than two weeks to respond, will be removed from the offer list, and others on wait list will be considered with the same two-week turn-around.