Quote:
Originally Posted by nushi
hi everyone... 
i just moved from egypt to america to start my phd. so now, i'm trying to find a counselor or psychologist to start psychotherapy here. i will have to meet with a counselor in the student health center within my university, 'cause it's affordable, 'cause its cost is already covered by the fees of the university.
after the in-take, they assigned me to a counselor. this counselor has a phd, but she still didn't earn her state license yet. but she told me that she has experience of four or seven years of counseling. her specialties are related to college students, their anxieties & depression (probably all the counselors in this center have only this specialty).
now the problem is that i'm a really complicated person. i'm not young (& i don't like to have a counselor younger than me - i'm not sure if she is or not), i'm 32, & my problems are not just college problems - i've been suffering from OCD, OCPD, Bipolar, MDD, GAD, & other things since my childhood - & these problems are kind of paralyzing my life. so i really think that i'd need a person who's got so much experience - like a "senior" person in the field.
since i'm new to america, i don't know the difference in effective counseling & experience between licensed & unlicensed counselors? & what to do? should i specifically ask for a licensed counselor? or does it not make a difference? or do counselors in the beginning of their profession are better than seniors?
|
reduced cost services like those at your school are often provided by students, or interns- none of whom are licensed. in order to get licensed they do things like work for free at various places to earn hours towards licensure. after graduating they are interns and so are often paid for this work as i suspect your phd therapist is. at the phd level she has been doing therapy for some time as part of her education even if she doesnt have enough hours for licensure yet. seeing an unlicensed therapist, you are essentially getting two therapists in one, because she us supervised by a licensed therapist. but its a trade off for free or reduced cost services.
if you want a licensed therapist you should look outside your school and be prepared to pay 60-75 per hour for an lcsw, 120-180 for a psy.d or phd, more if you are in a ritzy upscale area like beverly hills, pacific palisades etc...
good luck with your search.