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It's all about the good, the bad, and the "challenging" about being an art therapist in the 21st century, starting with art therapy education. Read More
Art Therapy Education
Nicely done, Cathy. Hopefully this series will go a long way toward answering many questions (and clearing up misinformation).
Art Therapy Education
There are so, so many questions to be answered as you know. We need to be more honest with prospective students and those who are trying to work in this field called "art therapy." For some, education is a long and expensive road and at the end of it, a graduate may or may not really find that proverbial job as an art therapist. I totally believe in "art therapy;" it's what prospective grads are told or sold, that is something that needs to be seriously clarified.
This topic is so important,
This topic is so important, yet can be so unclear to many. I really appreciate how you address so many important questions that many propesctive students may not even consider or know to ask.
Thanks!
Dear Jonna,
This is a complicated topic and yes, there are so many questions that prospective students must ask and think about. I am hoping that more art therapy educators/professors/academic advisers begin to also understand what they should discuss with students who are interested in their programs. In order to educate the best generations of art therapists, graduate programs in particular must be honest and forthright with applicants who stand to invest a lot money and time and not to mention, dreams of being an art therapist.
Art Therapy Programs
Thank you for your honesty, Cathy! Most of the art therapists I've known (including myself) have had to pick another area of mental health to specialize in, such as mental health counseling. One thing that I've noticed is that it's often helpful to get a master's degree in art therapy from the state that you plan to practice in. Some art therapy education programs have outlined the additional courses that are necessary for state licensing (and a student can be taking those courses during the program). However, several art therapists I've known have had a really difficult time transitioning to a different state that has a different licensing structure... So, I think it's beneficial for prospective students to (at the very least) know where they want to end up, so that they can find out what additional course work they will need in order to get licensed.
Thank you for writing on this much needed topic!
Art Therapy Programs
Thanks, Rachel!
I guess the challenge is this-- some individuals are pretty certain they will stay in one state, close to family perhaps. But so many people make a number of moves, including retirement years when they still might want to practice part-time; if one has a degree in art therapy, it might not be accepted in some states due to the degree title [must be counseling, no matter what courses have been taken]. Which makes me wonder if art therapy degrees will survive or will they become counseling master's degrees? I think that will be a big loss for the field and profession if that happens.
Art Therapy Programs
You're right, Cathy... We can't all depend on being able to stay in one state for the rest of our lives- especially in this economy! And yes, I wonder what will happen to our degrees and the state of our profession over time! I know that if I were to start an art therapy program someday, I would push for it to be called something like "Art Therapy and Counseling."
In the meantime... a good project might be for someone to collect information from all of the 50 states and outline the criteria that art therapists need to practice in each state. Maybe it could even be a collaborative effort... I don't have time to do it all, but I would definitely help out with something like that!
thank you so much! as
thank you so much! as someone who is just begining their education in psychology, it is good to be informed on areas of the field. i have been looking into directions in which i can go, and art therapy was one that i was looking into. thanks for help in that direction!
Thanks for writing!
Hi Stephanie,
Thanks for writing! I hope that your "art therapy" search is a good one!
Cathy
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