The USA College of Education and Professional Studies is nationally accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education and our educator preparation programs in elementary education, secondary education, educational leadership, physical education, as well as graduate degrees leading to certification as a library media specialist and as a school counselor. All of these programs are approved by the Alabama State Department of Education, and lead to certification. In addition the College has a number of programs that are not in the areas of teacher education or educating academic support personnel. These programs represent a wide variety of professions and include: instructional design, educational technology, leisure studies, mental health counseling, recreational therapy, and sports management. Our school counseling and clinical mental health counseling master's degrees are accredited by the Council on the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Programs (CACREP). Of additional note, the College offers three doctoral programs. Our program in Educational Leadership has emphases in both K-12 and higher education and is housed in the Dept. of Leadership & Teacher Education. Our doctoral program in Clinical and Counseling Psychology is delivered in collaboration between the Dept. of Counseling & Instructional Sciences and the Dept. of Psychology within the College of Arts and Sciences. This program is accredited by the American Psychological Association. Moreover, we are the only college in Alabama to offer any degrees in the field of Instructional Design, and we offer a bachelor's, master's and doctorate in this field all housed within the Department of Counseling & Instructional Sciences.
