ADCN 521 Assessment Techniques in Counseling

For information regarding prerequisites for this course, please refer to the Academic Course Catalog.

The ability to use assessments in clinical practice is an integral part of the counseling process. Counselors must be able to competently and ethically assess clients’ presenting issues, conceptualize and define these issues, evaluate and select the appropriate intervention, and evaluate the effectiveness of the interventions on alleviating the clients’ distress. Thus, regardless of the setting, counselors will administer and interpret a variety of assessments throughout the process of counseling. Therefore, it is essential to acquire the basic assessment skills needed to help clients gain deeper insight into themselves and their issues.

Textbook readings and lecture presentations

No details available.

Course Requirement Checklist

After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview.

Discussions (8)

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, the student will participate in eight (8) Discussions. The student will provide a discussion thread in response to the provided prompt in each discussion. For the Discussion Thread: Self Reflection specifically, the student is required to provide a response that is at least 350 words in the initial thread. The student must then post 2 replies of at least 150 words. For each thread, students must add religious or spiritual integration.

Substance Use and Co-Occurring Assessment: Client 6 Assignment

In this assignment, the student will complete and synthesize a comprehensive substance use and mental health assessment for Client 6, using standardized tools. This exercise mirrors what addiction counselors are required to do in clinical practice, gathering data from multiple screening instruments, interpreting results, and documenting the client’s presentation in a clear and integrated report.

Comprehensive Intake Interview & Assessment Assignment

An important part of the student’s education and training to be a future addiction counselor is practicing the skills of the field. This assignment is designed to start the student’s practice and skill development in giving a comprehensive intake interview and assessment. The student will also have the important experience of playing the role of the client in a classmate’s interview. The student will submit both a video and a self-reflection paper.

Quizzes (8)

After completing the assigned reading in the Sheperis, Drummond, and Jones (2020) text, the student completes the chapter quizzes, consisting of 10 questions per chapter (20 items total per quiz). These questions are multiple-choice, open-book, and similar to the content found on state licensing examinations that cover the core competency of assessment and evaluation. The student will have one (1) hour to complete each quiz.

Quiz: Dispositions Reflection

The student will rate him/herself on the nine dispositions required for this program. The quiz will contain 9 multiple-choice questions and 1 essay question and is limited to 60 minutes. The student is allowed 1 attempt to complete the quiz.

Quiz: Group Assignments

Students will organize themselves into groups of two or three via the Collaboration and Community discussion. It is the student’s responsibility to connect with classmates and schedule a time to complete these interviews in Microsoft Teams. The student should be flexible and professional with classmates. The instructor will not make accommodations for any student who fails to complete this part of the assignment. These will be the student’s groups for the Quiz: Intake Interview: Video Submission and Intake Interview: Self-Reflection Paper Assignment.

This quiz will cover the Textbook material for the assigned module: week. This quiz will be open-book/open-notes, contain 1 true/false and 1 short answer question, and will have a 1-hour time limit.