Resources for Marriage and Family Therapy Students

MFT Faculty and current students would like to extend a warm welcome to our new Fall 2012 incoming class. The Class of 2010 and the MFT faculty have put together the following web-guide to help you get from where you are living now to your first day of graduate classes and beyond. In this guide, we will help you figure out how to get books and parking passes, forms, where to find the health center and the library, places to live, places to eat, and places to shop. We hope this helps make your transition to VSU’s MFT program as smooth as possible.

In addition to the information found below, the Graduate School has prepared an excellent online Graduate School Orientation for new graduate students. You'll find helpful information about everything from parking permits to registration.

MFT Program Forms, Manuals, Handbooks, and Evaluation Tools for Academic Assignments and Exams

Family Therapy Student Handbook	FamilyWorks Policy & Procedure Manual	FamilyWorks Practicum & Internship Handbook
Practicum Evaluation Form	MFT Clinical Training & Personal Disclosure Policy	MFT Graduation Checklist - 500 Hour Requirement
MFT Individual Coursework Form	MFT Graduation Plan	MFT Graduation Checklist - 600 Hour Requirement
Academic Assignment Evaluation Tool	Exam Evaluation Tool	Student Caseload Form
Client & Supervision Tracking Form - excel Client & Supervision Tracking Form - pdf	Client & Supervision Worksheet - excel Client & Supervision Worksheet - pdf	Grand Total Sheet - excel Grand Total Sheet - pdf

 

Comprehensive Exam I, Useful Websites, and Evaluation Rubric

Comprehensive Exam Part I - Application to Clinical Practicum	Comprehensive Exam I Evaluation Rubric
AAMFT Core Competencies	AMFTRB State Licensure Comparison Chart
AMFTRB Domains, Task and Knowledge Statements	AAMFT

 

Grievance and Appellate Forms and Websites

VSU Final Course Grade Appeal Form	Graduate School Appellate Procedures
VSU Graduate Student Handbook

 

Campus Resources for MFT Students

• Conflict Resolution
• Bookstore
• Farber Health Center
• Housing (campus)
• How do I . . .
  • Access My Blazenet Email Account
  • Access the VSU Web Registration System
    
  • Establish Swipe Card Access to FamilyWorks
  • Get MFT Business Cards
  • Get My FamilyWorks Name Badge
  • Use Banner (check my grades, register for classes, look up my VSU ID number and much more)
• MFT Class Schedules
• New MFT Student Orientation
• Odum Library
• One Card
• Parking
• Recommended reading for MFT students
• Student Recreation Center
• Valdosta City Maps
• VSU Maps
• VSU Campus Phone Numbers
• VSU Student Success Center

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Academic and Professional MFT Career Resources

• American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy
  • Liability Insurance
  • Code of Ethics
• Georgia Association of Marriage and Family Therapy
• Licensure in the State of Georgia
  • APA Writing Style Resources
    www.apastyle.org/elecref.html - the APA site; purchase a manual, tips
    www.vanguard.edu/faculty/ddegelman/index.cfm?doc_id=796 - APA Style Essentials
    www.liunet.edu/cwis/cwp/library/workshop/citapa.htm - APA Citation Style
    www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/DocAPA.html - U. Of Wisconsin-Madison Writing Center

Resources for Living in Valdosta

• Local Community Housing Information
• Places to Eat
• Shopping
• Things to Do
  
• Cable, Satellite TV, and Utilities
  

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New MFT Student Orientation

• New Student Orientation will be held in the MFT Classroom the Friday before classes start in the Fall.
• We keep you busy most of the day, so plan on a “working lunch” with faculty and your new classmates.
• As part of the orientation session, we will register you for Fall classes. Because the registration system is not open before this date, this will be your first chance to register. Our classes are never closed to our students, so you don’t have to worry about getting blocked out of a course because it is full. We will also be talking about program requirements, answering your questions about the program, and discussing additional learning opportunities, like Study Abroad and Immersion Learning programs.
• To get a preview of what your Fall schedule will likely look like, see the “Where to View MFT Class Schedules” section below.
• It is important that you print out a copy of the MFT Clinical Training and Personal Disclosure Policy. Please read the document and note any questions. We will review the policy during our orientations session and you must turn in a signed copy during the orientation meeting.
• Bring your student ID (found under your name on your acceptance letter from the Graduate Dean), your personal calendar, your VSU email (Blazenet), and Registration log-in information (see the “How to Access Your Blazenet Email Account” and “How to Access the VSU Web Registration System” sections below).
• Before you arrive for Orientation, learn how to access your Blazenet account and be sure you can successfully log into the VSU web registration system (the system will not likely let you register, but you should make sure you have the ability to log in). See the “How to Access Your Blazenet Email Account” and “How to Access the VSU Web Registration System” sections below. You will need to be able to log into your accounts to register during the orientation session, so it is important that you have successfully accessed these accounts before you arrive for orientation. Contact the good and helpful folks at the Information Technology Helpdesk if you have difficulties.
• It is strongly recommended that you complete the online Graduate School Orientation before the MFT Orientation meeting. You are responsible to know all the information included in this online orientation, and we will not re-cover that same material in the MFT orientation session.

How to Access Your Blazenet Email Account

• Your student ID is your user ID in the university computer system
• Your student ID/User ID is the nine-digit number that begins with the number 8. It can be found at the bottom of the acceptance letter you received from the Dean of the Graduate School.
• Your initial password is always your date of birth in six digit format. You can change your password after your account has been established.
• Next, follow the instructions at the Logging into Blazenet Guide, and you will be whizzing around your account in no time.
• If you have difficulties, you can contact the Information Technology Helpdesk at 245-4357.

How to Access the VSU Web Registration System

• Go to the Registrar’s Login Page.
• Select the “Login” icon.
• Enter your social security number or student ID number and PIN (which is your 6-digit birth date, unless you’ve changed it).
• The menu options will guide you through the online registration process.

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How to Establish Swipe Card Access to FamilyWorks

All new students need to request door access to FamilyWorks. You will find the electronic door access request form online at: http://services.valdosta.edu/access/door_access_form.aspx. This application tells the Key Shop to enable your 1Card to act as a swipe key that will allow you to access the clinic 24/7/365.

Here is assistance to help you fill out all of the required fields on the form:

• First Name =
• Last Name =
• VSU ID# = (this will be your 9 digit number that starts with 870)
• Department = Marriage and Family Therapy
• Job Title = Student VSU Email= yourname@valdosta.edu
• The building is the Continuing Education Building Family Therapy Program Program
• Door Access Location = FamilyWorks and MFT Therapy Program, Swipe entry for Gordon Street door, Break Room door, & the end of the classroom hallway door.
• When you want acess = You want access 24/7.
• Expiration = your anticipated date of graduation
• Reason for Request = access to clinical and MFT program work space.
• Status = Student or Graduate Assistant
• Dean or Dept. Head VSU Email = kwarner@valdosta.edu

Don't forget to enter the security code at the bottom of the form!

Business Cards For New MFT Students

You will need business cards during your time in this program. During your first year, you will be doing service learning, some of which involves handing out business cards. When you reach your clinical year, you are going to be using business/appointment cards for a variety of reasons—you will most certainly be giving them to clients so that they know the date and time of their next appointment.

Take a look at this picture of an VSU MFT student business card. All student cards are uniform, exactly the same, with the exception of your name. On the front, each card shows the clinic address, phone, and fax. On the back are blank slots for your client’s name, date, and time of next appointment.

You can purchase your cards wherever you wish. You have the option of using the VSU Printing Office, which is directly across the street from the University Center. The door to the printing office is on the side of the building, just off a small, narrow parking lot. If you’re unsure how to get there, pull down a VSU campus map online.

Here’s how to purchase your cards at the VSU print shop: 

• Introduce yourself to a second year student, and ask for one of his or her cards. Cross out that person’s name and print your own. DO NOT CHANGE--ADD or DELETE—OTHER INFORMATION ON THE CARD, PARTICULARLY, do not add EMAIL ADDRESSES OF ANY SORT. (There are particular legal and ethical complexities with giving clients email addresses).
• Then, pair up with another student in your first year class who needs cards. Go to the print office, hand them your two cards, and tell them that the two of you wish to buy a box of 500 cards (the minimum that can be ordered). This will cost around $32 (last year’s price), which means that you’ll each get 250 cards with your name on them for $16. You must pay cash for these cards at the Printing office at the time that you place the order.
• Make sure you leave a phone number and/or email address so the print office can contact you when your cards are ready for pickup.  

Get Your FamilyWorks Name Badge

Order yourself a FamilyWorks name badge by contacting the VSU Bookstore. They'll tell you what you need to do. Like the business cards, everyone's name tag is the same: black print on a white background. Notice other students' name badges (maybe even borrow one), take it to the bookstore and order one with your name on it. They cost less than $10.00

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Recommended Reading for MFT Students
In the past, students have found it helpful to begin reading about the field of Family Therapy before they begin classes. Some of the books may be used in your classes—but faculty are notorious for tinkering with their syllabi and changing texts from year to year, and since faculty often make text decisions only a short time before classes start, there is no predicting if any of these texts will show up in one of your classes or not! The following books are all worth reading before you arrive:

Becvar, D., & Becvar, R. (1982) Systems theory and family therapy: A primer. Boston, MA: University Press of America.

• This book is an introduction to systemic thinking. The authors provide the reader with the basic concepts of systems theory and its application in a clear and concise manner. They use many case examples and illustrations.

Coombs, G., & Freedman, J. (1990). Symbol, story, & ceremony: Using metaphor in individual and family therapy. New York: W. W. Norton.

• In this book, Coombs and Freedman invite us to learn how to use and apply metaphors in therapy as well as give us examples of a wide variety of metaphors.

Flemons, D. (2002). Of one mind: The logic of hypnosis, the practice of therapy. New York: W. W. Norton.

• A simply marvelous book that draws epistemological parallels between the logic that drives both hypnosis and family therapy. The book is chock-a-block full of fascinating case examples and stories about how to think and practice relationally.

Hoffman, L. (2002). Family therapy: An intimate history. New York: W. W. Norton.

• A personal account of the history of family therapy from the very first exciting days of its inception by an independent band of systems-thinkers to the present day. Using personal examples, case stories, and discussions of theory, Hoffman takes us with her as she takes a personal historical journey through the family therapy field.

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Miller, S., Duncan B., & Hubble, M. (1997). Escape from Babel: Toward a unifying language for psychotherapy practice. New York: W. W. Norton.

• This book helps the reader become aware that while there are many different models of therapy, the magic is not in the model, but in a mix of factors. The authors have researched many models of therapy and identified underlying themes and characteristics common to all therapy, regardless of model.

Treadway, D. (2004). Intimacy, change, and other therapeutic mysteries: Stories of clinicians and clients. New York: Guildford.

• In his fictional book, Treadway–a therapist himself–explores situations which therapists and clients may encounter. He explores day-to-day examples of therapy as well as what occurs beyond the therapy room to show the effects of therapy on both the therapist and client.

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Local Community Housing Information