Rehabilitation Counseling Programs – Student Assessment
A continuous improvement process is used in both the Master’s of Rehabilitation Counseling (MRC) and Rehabilitation Counselor Education and Supervision (RCES) specialization in the Disability Disciplines (DD) doctoral program at Utah State University (USU). Formative and summative assessments are regularly given to evaluate students’ progress and their development of knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions. The USU MRC program is nationally accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) as a Rehabilitation Counseling program and the assessment process adheres to the guidelines/expectations of CACREP. Presently, the program is seeking accreditation as a Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling program at the master’s level, and as a Counselor Education and Supervision program at the doctoral level.Students are observed and evaluated by faculty and instructors at all times within individual courses and other program-related activities. If any concerns regarding interpersonal and professional behavior are identified, instructors are encouraged to address areas of concern, need, and/or deficits at that time by providing students with feedback and suggestions for improvement. If necessary, instructors will contact the student’s designated faculty advisor for more structured consultation. Course evaluations include formal evaluation through grades and written and verbal feedback on assignments.
Students are also systematically evaluated at designated points during their program of study. The faculty of the Rehabilitation Counseling programs use the following independent sources of information in the student assessment process:- Direct: Student coursework (homework, exams, projects/written papers, field-based experiences, reports, etc.)
- Indirect: Evaluation and assessment scores from Site Supervisors in Practicum and Internship.
- Summative: Students are required to sit for and pass the Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) Exam or National Counselor Exam (National Certified Counselor credential). These pass rates help to inform our decision-making processes in regard to curriculum and instructors.
Evaluation of the assessment process is conducted by the USU MRC Assessment Committee (consisting of all program faculty and staff), which meets annually mid-way through the Spring Academic Semester (February) to review all assessment data. Results are also reviewed during the annual fall department meeting (August) and at the Advisory Board meeting (typically November). If outcomes needing improvement are identified during that review, recommendations for improvement will be made by the Committee (and/or course instructors) and that outcome will be reevaluated the following year during the annual review.
Program Outcomes
A detailed review of program objectives, outcomes, and the review of instructional quality for both the MRC and Doctoral RCES programs can be found in the Annual Report submitted each year by the Rehabilitation Counseling Program Faculty to their external accreditation body, the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).
Assessment Planning
The program learning outcomes for the MRC and RCES programs are addressed throughout the respective programs in various classes, as summarized by the following curriculum matrices.MRC program:
Program Learning Outcomes
Doctoral RCES Program:
DD RCES Assessment
Data Collection Procedures
The implementation cycle of our program assessment process is described fully in our accreditation self-report. The cycle for the masters and doctoral programs are briefly outlined below.
MRC Program
MRC Program Evaluation and Student Assessment Plan
- Evaluation of students at the time of their application based on the results of a faculty interview and application materials.
- Students’ self-assessment of personal dispositions at three points over the course of their program of study:
- REH 6100 Professional Counseling Orientation: Typically, their first course in the program and serves as a baseline.
- REH 6140 Counseling Practicum: Often the midpoint of their program and the start of their field-based coursework.
- REH 6175 Counseling Internship II: Typically, at the end of their program of study and at the completion of their field-based coursework.
- General review of each student by the USU MRC faculty prior to the student enrolling in REH 6140 Counseling Internship.
- Student evaluations of courses and instructors at both Mid-Semester (program level) and End-of-Semester (university level).
- Students’ evaluation of Site Supervisors at the end of:
- Site Supervisor evaluation of students at the end of
- Faculty review of student annual pass rata data provided by the Commission for Rehabilitation Counseling Certification on the Certified Rehabilitation Counselor examination.
Doctoral RCES Program Assessment Plan
RCES Assessment Plan- Evaluation of students at the time of their application based on the results of a faculty interview/campus visit and application materials.
- Students’ self-assessment of personal dispositions at three points over the course of their program of study:
- REH 7050 Professional Issues
- REH 7010 Doctoral Practicum
- REH 7350 Counseling Internship
- General review of each student by the doctoral faculty prior to the student enrolling in REH 7350 Counseling Internship.
- Student evaluations of courses and instructors at End-of-Semester (university level).
- Students’ evaluation of Site Supervisors at the end of practicum and internship experiences
- Site Supervisor evaluation of students at the end of practicum and internship
Use of Results to Inform Program Changes
Potential program changes in terms of curriculum updates and faculty teaching assignments are reviewed using the data collected through the aforementioned data collection process. These data points are reviewed prior to the fall of each semester in the USU MRC Rehabilitation Counseling Program Retreat and in monthly team meetings. The Annual Report is completed each summer and submitted to our accreditation body summarizing program changes (if any) from year to year.
Annual Feedback from USU ODA, Alumni and Key Stakeholders
- USU Office of ODA: The department head and program director for the USU MRC program met with Sarah Mckay Strobel (Institutional Effectiveness Officer) from the USU Office of Data & Analytics (ODA) on September 12th, 2025 to review the feedback from the ODA Office. Based on that feedback, this assessment page has been reformatted to clarify the planning, implementation, assessment, and use of the assessment results on our program learning outcomes. Specifically, recommendations were provided on targeting specific populations served by our program to better assess/understand their needs. The Annual Report was updated to reflect these changes, and these groups (e.g., First Generation Scholars, Non-Traditional Students, Veterans, etc.) will be discussed in future REH Team Retreats. Discussion was also had on how to find and include aggregate course evaluation ratings and aggregate data for the past four years has been added to the program’s Annual Report. This data will help guide future discussions on curriculum.
- Alumni: Alumni are contacted on an annual basis via the USU Alumni Survey (sent each May, ~ two weeks after graduation to the newly graduated alumni). Results can be found in the Annual Reports submitted to CACREP.
- Key Stakeholders: Employers and other key stakeholders are contacted from time to time to review the USU MRC program of study and provide feedback on general program delivery. At times, this feedback informs changes to curriculum and course delivery options. The 2025 Advisory board meetings will be held in November of 2025. Data current RCES doctoral students was collected in October 2025 and feedback from the Advisory Board and RCES doctoral students will be included in the 2026 Annual Report.
External Accreditation
The USU Master’s of Rehabilitation Counseling is Accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs
Program Review
Year in Review - Fall 2024 to Summer 2025
Year in Review - Fall 2023 to Summer 2024
Year in Review - Fall 2022 to Summer 2023
Year in Review – Fall 2020 to Summer 2021
Year in Review – Fall 2019 to Summer 2020
USU Pass Rates on the CRC Exam
|
Year |
National Pass Rate |
USU Pass Rate |
|
2024 |
60% |
87% |
|
2023 |
61% |
100% |
|
2022 |
71% |
89% |
|
2021 |
58% |
85% |
|
2020 |
Not available* |
Not available** |
|
2019 |
Not available* |
Not available** |
|
2018 |
58% |
62% |
|
2017 |
72% |
97% |
|
2016 |
69% |
100% |
|
2015 |
72% |
95% |
|
2014 |
73% |
96% |
|
2013 |
74% |
100% |
|
2012 |
66% |
93% |
|
2011 |
70% |
91% |
|
2010 |
69% |
95% |
|
* - Data were not provided at that time |
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