Students in the Lindenwood University School Counseling Program must complete two semesters of School Counseling Field Placement. During the Field Placement experiences, students will engage in the activities of school counseling in a school setting. They must complete their field placement hours under the supervision of a certified school counselor (must be certified minimally at the Master’s level in School Counseling with at least three years school counseling experience) and a Lindenwood University faculty member in a group supervision class (IPC 62100, 62400). Field Placement 1 requires a minimum of 150 clock hours (350 in Illinois) and must include a minimum of 60 hours (140 in Illinois) engaged in the provision of direct service to school counseling clients. Field Placement 2 requires a minimum of 300 clock hours (350 in Illinois) and must include a minimum of 120 hours (140 in Illinois) engaged in the provision of direct service to school counseling clients.

The Field Placement experiences have been designed to meet the requirements for Missouri School Counselor certification. The combination of Field Placement 1 and Field Placement 2 determines eligibility for Missouri certification as a School Counselor in grades K-12.

Field Placement 1 consists of 200 clock hours. The purpose of the first field experience is to provide students with knowledge of various school counseling work environments. It provides students the opportunity to apply knowledge gained in the classroom and through the practice of School Counseling.

Field Placement 2 consists of 200 clock hours in which 100 must be in a different grade level. The purpose of the second field experience is to allow the process of changing roles from school counselor candidate to a professional school counselor to occur. This complex transition takes place over a period of time in small increments. The candidate is provided an intensive exposure to a school counseling setting.

Candidates enrolled in FP1, FP2, or in both semesters, must accrue 100 hours in an alternative grade level building. For example, candidates may choose an elementary and middle school building, a middle and high school building, or an elementary and high school building. Candidates who are pursuing Missouri Licensure requirements in addition to school counseling certification, must complete 300 hours each semester for a total of 600 hours to be eligible for the PLPC and LPC. 

Should a student be unable to complete the required hours of Field Placement within the semester, he or she may receive an Incomplete for a grade. If the student receiving an Incomplete is in Field Placement 1 and has completed more than half the required hours of Field Placement 1, the student should enroll in Field Placement 2 the following term. Any student unable to complete the required hours of Field Placement 2 must enroll in a section of Field Placement Extension the following term. Enrolling in the Field Placement Extension course will allow students to continue to receive supervision from Lindenwood University faculty by attending the Field Placement class as they complete their Field Placement hours. All other coursework for Field Placement must be completed prior to enrolling in Field Placement Extension. Field Placement Extension is a zero credit hour course. A $50.00 fee is charged for each extension.

All applications for field placement must be completed and submitted through Foliotek. No experiences may begin until confirmation from the Office of Field and Clinical Experiences is received.

Field Placement deadlines

February 1 for Fall Field Placements – MO

August 1 for Spring Field Placements – MO

Field Placement Requests will not be accepted beyond the deadline.

Placement Process

1. The Office of Field and Clinical Experiences staff will request placement for students through the school representative. This representative will send the request to the chosen school administration and subsequently to the requested educator (if designated). The request will either be accepted or denied. This information is submitted back to the school administration and then back to Lindenwood University. The Office of Field and Clinical Experiences staff will try his/her best to place students in the indicated location of choice; however, due to circumstances beyond his/her control, this is sometimes not possible.  If the request is denied, the staff member will send a request out to the next choice of schools made by the student.
2. Once the placement has been arranged, the Office of Field and Clinical staff will send a confirmation email with the placement assignment to the student.
3. Upon receiving the placement assignment confirmation, the student is then ready to begin accruing field placement hours.  Students may NOT begin field placement until notified by the Office of Field and Clinical Experiences and until their Field Placement 1 or Field Placement 2 class has been officially added to their schedule by their advisor via a paper enrollment form.

Field Placement Request Documentation

The following is a list of the documentation that must be included in each field placement request:

1. Acknowledgement of Field Placement Application Instructions
2. Request for Field Placement (Form)
3. Field Placement Preparation Form
4. Philosophy of Counseling
5. Field Placement Pre-Hours Contract – if applicable
6. Family Care Safety Registry (background check results)
7. TB test results*
8. Professional Liability Insurance – (preferred insurance purchased through the American School Counseling Association available at www.schoolcounselor.org)
9. Substitute Certificate (In the state where Field Placement 1 and Field Placement 2 will be completed)
10. Confidentiality Agreement
11. Travel Waiver

* Expires after one year and must be valid for the entire semester in which the field experience will be completed.

Students will not be allowed to enroll in Field Placement until the completed Field Placement Request has been submitted, approved, and a placement has been secured. School districts vary with respect to the requirements for accepting students for Field Placement. Some districts may require additional documentation. Students applying to such school districts will be informed of any additional requirements.