Students in the Master of Arts Counselling Psychology Program at Yorkville University have been working diligently to obtain the necessary 200 Direct Client Contact hours required for successful completion of their practicum.  While this has not been an issue for all students, many of us are struggling to meet this requirement within the prescribed deadlines.  COVID-19 has placed significant barriers on practicum students.  Many of us are putting our own safety at risk  in order to meet the required hours. 

The MACP program requires students to get 200 Direct Client Contact hours, 120 of which must be individual counseling. While other institutions have reduced this requirement because of COVID-19, Yorkville has not.  Given the cost of tuition and the personal costs acquired by many students (reduced work hours, cost of paying for supervision, etc.), extending practicum into a third term is not feasible. 

Given that all students will need to continue to collect DCC hours post graduation (in order to meet registration requirements of various colleges), Yorkville should allow students who have accumulated 80% of the required DCC hours to graduate.