Accreditation
PNW’s Couple and Family Therapy Program has been accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education since 1994.
You can verify our accreditation status via the COAMFTE website.
Mission Statement
The mission of the Couple and Family Therapy Program at Purdue University Northwest is to prepare students to provide ethical, research-informed, culturally competent relational mental health services to a diverse range of clients. The program trains students to accomplish this mission by embracing a scholar and practitioner model of systemic family therapy training that is informed by the land grant mission of learning, discovery, and engagement.
Program Goals & Student Learning Outcomes
Updated April of 2022 to align with COAMFTE Accreditation Standards 12.5.
Program Goal 1: Knowledge
Students will demonstrate understanding of a wide range of systemic/relational theories and treatment techniques.
- Student Learning Outcome #1
Student will demonstrate knowledge of Couple & Family Therapy specific models, theories, and techniques.
Program Goal 2: Practice & Professionalism
Students will demonstrate competency in their clinical work as professionals in systemic therapy practice.
- Student Learning Outcome #2
Students will have demonstrated entry-level skills and abilities needed to practice couple and family therapy. - Student Learning Outcome #3
Students will demonstrate professionalism through knowledge of self and competence in professional spaces.
Program Goal 3: Ethics
Students will demonstrate an understanding and application of ethics in their clinical work.
- Student Learning Outcome #4
Students will demonstrate ethical adherence and problem solving in their clinical practice.
Program Goal 4: Diversity
Students will demonstrate cultural competence in their work with diverse clients.
- Student Learning Outcome #5
Students will be culturally competent to work with a diversity of individuals, couples, and families.
Program Goal 5: Research
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the important role that research provides in the field of systemic therapy.
Graduate Achievement Data Disclosure Table
Original accreditation was on October 1, 1994. The most recent re-accreditation was on November 1, 2017. The PNW CFT Program has only full-time students. Download a copy of the Graduate Achievement Data Disclosure Table as a PDF.
| Cohort Year Students Entered Program | Advertised Program Length in Years | # of Students in Cohort | Graduation Rate in Advertised Time (%)* | Job Placement Rate (%)** | Licensure Rate*** (% who were successful in pursuing license) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-2016 | 3 | 9 | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| 2016-2017 | 3 | 9 | 89% | 100% | 88.89% |
| 2017-2018 | 3 | 8 | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| 2018-2019 | 2.5 | 9 | 55% | 100% | 100% |
| 2019-2020 | 2.5 | 9 | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| 2020-2021 | 2.5 | 9 | 100% | 100% | IP |
| 2021-2022 | 2.5 | 7 | IP (exp. 12/2023) | IP | IP |
| 2022-2023 | 2.5 | 7 | IP (Exp. 12/2024) | IP | IP |
| 2023-2024 | 2.5 | 9 | IP (Exp. 12/2025) | IP | IP |
| Average, Calculated with Available Data: | 8.44 | 90.64% | 100% | 97.8% |
NOTE: Programs are only required to provide data on the past 8 years/cohort or since the program was initially accredited, whichever is shorter. IP = In Process: Students from the cohort listed have yet to graduate from the cohort year listed, or are within 6 months of graduation.
* Graduation Rate is the program’s Advertised Length of Completion which is how long the program is designed to complete as written. The PNW CFT Program Adjusted it’s advertised program length in 2017 to be 2.5 years instead of 3 years. This began with the entering 2018 cohort.
** Job Placement Rate is the percentage of graduates from the cohort year that are employed utilizing skills learned in the COAMFTE accredited program.
*** Licensure rate is the percentage of graduates from the cohort year that have achieved ANY level of MFT licensure. For Master’s programs only, COAMFTE has established a benchmark of 70% licensure rate for each cohort. Licensure is reported after 6 months post-graduation. We added in a column to explain how there is the overall (grand-total) Licensure Rate, which is calculated by the total number of those licensed who started the program in that particular year, and then a second column to account for those who are licensed from that year – who pursued and/or attempted licensure in some capacity (as some students chose career paths without need for license immediately).
Program Diversity Statement
The Couple and Family Therapy Program at Purdue University Northwest is committed to the promotion of diversity among all human beings.
This is more than a statement, but our foundational principle is that not only are all individuals entitled to love, understanding, and equal rights, but that family therapists must learn to understand and support individuals whose sex, gender identity and expression, age, race, color, ethnicity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, veteran status, marital status, parental status, religion, spirituality, disability, health status, political beliefs, national origin or ancestry, genetic information, immigration status, or language might be different than their own.
Further, our experience and commitment to this principle has shown that diversity cannot be achieved solely through the reading of textbooks, but must be accomplished through one-on-one discussions between diverse individuals. This is not always easy, but it is a process that bears the most fruit.
To ensure that students receive strong training in diversity, the faculty are committed to discussing diversity issues in all courses, providing readings that address diversity issues, providing a practicum experience in which students are exposed to a diverse client population, including discussion of diversity in clinical supervision, and developing a diverse faculty and student body. We expect students to adhere to our diversity standards and be able to work with all clients whom they may encounter in their clinical training while in the program.
We view clients as being the most vulnerable group in the therapeutic system; therefore, our first consideration is protecting clients and their right to receive non-discriminatory services. The client’s right to these non-discriminatory services supersedes students’ rights not to treat clients for any discriminatory reason. If our statement on diversity conflicts with a student’s or prospective student’s beliefs, we advise that student or prospective student to seek training at another program.
Our commitment to the promotion of diversity is also consistent with the AAMFT’s (2015) Ethical Standard 1: Responsibility to Clients—in particular, Standard 1.1, Nondiscrimination, which provides: “Marriage and family therapists provide professional assistance to persons without discrimination on the basis of race, age, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, disability, gender, health status, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or relationship status.”
Accordingly, the Couple and Family Therapy program at Purdue University Northwest does not condone and will not tolerate any form of discrimination which conflicts with this statement and/or our commitment to the promotion of diversity within the program.