ABSTRACT
Individuals who attain a doctorate in counselor education have achieved the highest level of formal preparation in counseling (Zimpfer & DeTrude, 1990). The primary focus of this terminal degree is to prepare graduates to advance knowledge and understanding of the counseling profession. The Preamble of the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) Doctoral Standards describes what is expected of counselor education programs. It reads:
Doctoral degree programs in Counselor Education and Supervision are intended to prepare students to work as counselor educators, supervisors, and advanced practitioners in academic and clinical settings. Doctoral programs accept as a primary obligation extending the knowledge base of the counseling profession in a climate of scholarly inquiry. Doctoral programs prepare students to generate new knowledge for the counseling profession through research that results in dissertations that are appropriate to the field of counselor education or supervision. This extension of knowledge should take into account the societal changes of the 21st century and prepare graduates to be leaders and advocates for change.
(CACREP, 2001, p. 48)