© 2013 Laureate Education, Inc. Page 1 of 4 Introduction to School Counseling Final Project Overview: The Role of a Professional School Counselor Books, television, and movies are full of stories revealing the day-to-day realities of various professions. These stories provide a behind-the-scenes look at the often unknown stress, joy, and effort involved in being a doctor, a law enforcement agent, or even a chef. What do you think the day-to-day life of a professional school counselor is like? What constitutes a typical day for a school counselor, or is there no such thing? For the Final Project in this course, you uncover the hidden realities of the daily life of a professional school counselor. The Final Project requires you to interview (in person) a licensed or certified school counselor who works with the age group that interests you. For example, if you are interested in working as an elementary counselor, interview a school counselor at this level. You then apply the information from this course, as well as in an interview you conduct, to your understanding of what it means to be a professional school counselor. Please note that it is not acceptable to interview a school social worker, a school psychologist, a school-based mental health counselor, or any other mental health provider for this Assignment. Although the Final Project includes interview material, this is not the only component of this Assignment. Please make sure to review the full project description below. The Final Project is a 7- to 10-page paper that consists of a summation of an interview, a story, and a reflection. Final Project Due Date Day 7 of Week 10: Although the Final Project is not to be submitted until Week 10, you should become familiar with the project requirements and have them in mind as you proceed through this course. The Final Project requires you to prepare and complete your project throughout the course, including an Assignment due in Week 6. A suggested time frame and tasks for completing the project are at the end of this document. Final Project Criteria 1. Using the Final Project Template located in the Week 10 resources, include all three project components explained below in the Overview of Final Project Components section. 2. Demonstrate both breadth and depth of knowledge and critical thinking appropriate to graduate-level scholarship. © 2013 Laureate Education, Inc. Page 2 of 4 3. Follow APA Publication Manual guidelines; avoid typographical, spelling, and grammatical errors; and adhere to Walden’s Academic Integrity guidelines. (Information on scholarly writing may be found in the APA Publication Manual and at the Walden Writing Center website.) 4. The paper should be 7 to 10 pages in length (double-spaced), not including the title and reference pages. 5. Support your points with specific references to the Learning Resources from the course and the i.

1. © 2013 Laureate Education, Inc. Page 1 of 4
Introduction to School Counseling
Final Project Overview:
The Role of a Professional School Counselor
Books, television, and movies are full of stories revealing the
day-to-day realities of
various professions. These stories provide a behind-the-scenes
look at the often
unknown stress, joy, and effort involved in being a doctor, a
law enforcement agent, or
even a chef. What do you think the day-to-day life of a
professional school counselor is
like? What constitutes a typical day for a school counselor, or is
there no such thing?
For the Final Project in this course, you uncover the hidden
realities of the daily life of a
professional school counselor.
The Final Project requires you to interview (in person) a
licensed or certified school
counselor who works with the age group that interests you. For
example, if you are
interested in working as an elementary counselor, interview a
school counselor at this
level. You then apply the information from this course, as well

2. as in an interview you
conduct, to your understanding of what it means to be a
professional school counselor.
Please note that it is not acceptable to interview a school social
worker, a school
psychologist, a school-based mental health counselor, or any
other mental health
provider for this Assignment.
Although the Final Project includes interview material, this is
not the only component of
this Assignment. Please make sure to review the full project
description below.
The Final Project is a 7- to 10-page paper that consists of a
summation of an interview,
a story, and a reflection.
Final Project Due Date
Day 7 of Week 10: Although the Final Project is not to be
submitted until Week 10, you
should become familiar with the project requirements and have
them in mind as you
proceed through this course. The Final Project requires you to
prepare and complete
your project throughout the course, including an Assignment
due in Week 6. A
suggested time frame and tasks for completing the project are at
the end of this
document.
Final Project Criteria

3. 1. Using the Final Project Template located in the Week 10
resources, include all
three project components explained below in the Overview of
Final Project
Components section.
2. Demonstrate both breadth and depth of knowledge and
critical thinking
appropriate to graduate-level scholarship.
© 2013 Laureate Education, Inc. Page 2 of 4
3. Follow APA Publication Manual guidelines; avoid
typographical, spelling, and
grammatical errors; and adhere to Walden’s Academic Integrity
guidelines.
(Information on scholarly writing may be found in the APA
Publication Manual
and at the Walden Writing Center website.)
4. The paper should be 7 to 10 pages in length (double-spaced),
not including the
title and reference pages.
5. Support your points with specific references to the Learning
Resources from the
course and the interview.

4. Final Project Grading
It is graded on a 135-point scale according to the specifications
identified in the Final
Project Rubric located in the Course Information area of the
course navigation menu.
Overview of Final Project Components
Component I: Narrative Summation of Interview
Your summation should be presented as a narrative rather than a
list of questions and
answers. It is recommended that you audiotape the interview so
that you can review it
as you complete the Final Project.
For the interview, use the following questions. Several
questions relate to topics
covered in this course in order for you to gain an understanding
of how the course
topics apply to the life of a school counselor. If a question is
related to a weekly topic,
the week number is in parentheses after the question.
During the interview you may add additional questions of your
own that are prompted by
the conversation:
1. When someone asks you how being a school counselor is
different from being a
mental health counselor, a social worker, or a school
psychologist, what do you
tell that person? (Week 1)
2. Please explain what counseling credential you have (e.g.,
license or certificate)

5. and what the qualifications are for this in your state. What
examinations, if any,
are required (e.g., Praxis)?
3. Please describe what a typical day looks like for you as you
do your job? (Week
1)
4. What ethical and legal issues do you have to keep in mind
each day? (Week 5)
5. How does understanding and respecting multiculturalism help
you as a school
counselor? (Week 4)
6. How do you use assessments to help you with your work as a
school counselor?
(Week 9)
7. How do you partner with a student’s family and other
stakeholder when
addressing a student’s issue? (Week 6)
8. Talk about your experiences with referring students to
outside mental health
counseling. Do you have a protocol to follow? (Week 7)
9. Does your school have a crisis plan for use in case of an
emergency? Talk about
a time when you had to respond to a critical situation in your
school or district on
© 2013 Laureate Education, Inc. Page 3 of 4

6. either an individual basis (e.g., death of a student or a student’s
family member,
a house fire, etc.) or on a larger basis (e.g., community crisis or
natural disaster).
(Week 8)
10. What is the role of accountability for a school counselor?
In what ways are you
accountable and how do you address that accountability? (Week
9)
11. How have you engaged in advocacy (for students or for the
profession)? If so,
what did that involve and how did it go? (Week 6)
12. What do you do to maintain self-care and wellness? (Week
10)
13. What is your personal view about the future of the school
counseling profession?
(Week 11)
14. What are the most significant personal development issues
you face as a school
counselor? How have you addressed personal and professional
growth and
development?
Component II: A Day in the Life of a Professional School
Counselor
Using the information from the interview, the course Learning
Resources, and course
assignments, create the story of a day in the life of the school
counselor you

7. interviewed. Embed in your story the significant information
from both the course and
the interview. Be specific, use examples, and include what you
believe to be the most
significant topics, even if they might not come up in a typical
day.
The purpose of this project component is for you to demonstrate
your understanding of
what day-to-day life is like for a school counselor, related to
and referencing the material
in the course as well as information gleaned elsewhere. It also
is to demonstrate how a
counselor might address/handle issues and/or situations that are
the most important
and/or challenging.
Component III: Reflection
In this section you reflect on what you have learned in both the
interview and the course
regarding a balanced approach to the professional duties and
responsibilities of a
school counselor and about self-care. Describe how you see
your future role as a
school counselor. In your reflection, respond to the questions
below. Your reflection
should be presented as a narrative rather than a listing of
questions and answers.
1. What did you learn from the interview that you did not learn
in the course?
2. What, if anything, did you learn from the interview that
contrasted with what you

8. learned in the course?
3. What do you understand better from the course as a result of
doing the
interview?
4. What came to life in the interview so that the information you
gained in the
course is more meaningful and relevant now?
5. What do you anticipate the impact of being a school
counselor may be on who
you are personally?
© 2013 Laureate Education, Inc. Page 4 of 4
Time Frame and Tasks for Completing the Final Project
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Suggested Tasks
• Determine the age and school setting to focus on for the

9. project.
• Identify potential counselors to interview.
Week 6
Required Tasks
• Submit by Day 7 a brief (1- to 2-page) paper in which you
identify
your selected interview subject and explain why you have
selected
that person.
• Schedule an interview.
Week 7
Week 8
Week 9
Suggested Tasks
• Confirm scheduled interview
• Prepare for interview
• Interview counselor
• Draft Final Project
• Make appointment with Walden Writing Center Tutor to
review draft
• Incorporate tutor’s suggestions into final version of project
Week 10 Required Task
• Submit by Day 7 your completed 7- to 10-page Final Project.