This concentration is part of the B.S. in Vocational Rehabilitation with a Substance Use Disorder Emphasis, a 124 semester credit hour undergraduate program approved by Wisconsin Department of Regulation and Licensing as training that leads to Substance Abuse Counselor licensure in Wisconsin. Graduates complete state and national exams and the requisite 4000 post‐graduate supervised work hours for licensure. This degree counts as 1000 of those supervised work hours. In addition to working in treatment programs, graduates with this concentration may work in a variety of criminal justice, residential or community-based settings. Graduates may serve a specialized caseload or apply these skills with a more general population for individuals experiencing adjustment and chemical health concerns.
Substance Abuse Counselor Objectives:
- Apply knowledge of addiction, psychopharmacology and affects on person to educate and support prevention, treatment and recovery.
- Use assessment skills to identify and collect relevant person and environment information to make decisions regarding treatment and referral including recognition and differentiation of co-occurring medical and psychological disabilities.
- Apply case management skills to develop, prioritize goals, monitor and record progress and coordinate services with person, family, other services, agencies and resources.
- Identify and implement culturally appropriate treatment/intervention methods to respond to unique bio-psycho‐social needs of person in recovery.
- Apply counseling skill to facilitate progress toward mutually determined goals.
- Use psycho-educational, motivational and behavioral interventions to promote readiness, healthy lifestyle and recovery.
- Develop, initiate and maintain skill building and educational groups for individuals, families, community members and others to prevent substance abuse as well as to reduce barriers and promote recovery success.
- Integrate and demonstrate competence in professional responsibility including: understanding legal and ethical issues specific to substance use disorder practice, need for ongoing professional development and supervision, self-care, establishing and maintaining boundaries, and relationships with other professionals and systems.
- Apply theory and practice through an approved field placement.