Purpose
The purpose of the Counselor Preparation Comprehensive Exam (CPCE) is to assess counseling student’s knowledge of counseling information viewed as important by counselor preparation programs, and to ensure that the student is academically prepared for clinical work. The CPCE will also provide collective feedback that can be used by the program in developing/adapting the curriculum.
Content
The content of the exam covers information from all classes in the degree plan. The CPCE will cover the eight common-core areas as defined by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Program (CACREP) in their Standards for Preparation:
• Professional Identity: Students will demonstrate an understanding of professional functioning including history, roles, technological competence, organizations, credentialing, advocacy process, and ethical standards in professional counseling.
• Social and Cultural Diversity: Students will demonstrate an understanding of the cultural context of relationships, issues, and trends in a multicultural and diverse society as they relate to factors such as age, ethnicity, nationality, culture, gender, sexual orientation, physical characteristics, education, family values, spiritual values, socioeconomic status, and other unique characteristics.
• Human Growth and Development: Students will demonstrate an understanding of individuals at all developmental levels, including theories of development across the life span, theories of learning and personality development, human behavior including environmental factors effecting both normal and abnormal behavior, ethical and legal considerations, and strategies for facilitating development over the life span.
• Career Development: Students will demonstrate an understanding of career development and related life factors including theories and developmental modes, career development program planning, educational and occupation information as well as computer-based career information systems, diversity issues in career development, career planning, placement and evaluation including assessment instruments, ethical and legal considerations, and career counseling techniques.
• Helping Relationships: Students will demonstrate an understanding of counseling and consultation processes including basic interviewing and counseling skills as well as knowledge and application of counseling theories. An understanding of family and other systems theories in family assessment and counseling is included. Other helping considerations include knowledge of self, consultation and ethical and legal considerations.
• Group Work: Students will demonstrate an understanding of group development, dynamics, counseling theories, group counseling methods, and skills and other group work approaches.
• Assessment: The program will expect the student to demonstrate an understanding of individual and group approaches to assessment and evaluation.
• Research and Program Evaluation: Students will demonstrate an understanding of research, statistical analysis, needs assessment, and program evaluation.
Format
The CPCE will consist of 160 items with 20 items per CACREP area and is taken at an official Pearson VUE Testing Site of the student’s choosing. Accommodation for testing is handled by Pearson VUE directly upon registration. Students should be prepared to be in the testing room for approximately 4 hours.
Scoring/Passing
The CPCE consists of eight sections with 20 multiple-choice questions in each section, for a total of 160 questions. Because each section includes three unscored field-test questions, there are 136 questions scored. A candidate answering every single question correctly would have a score of 136 points.
The minimum passing score on the exam is a raw score of 82 points. Students taking the CPCE will receive a raw score report after they have completed the exam usually given at the testing site. The raw score report will also be uploaded to their Pearson Vue account within 24-48 hours (about 4 days) after taking the exam.
Registration and Fees
Every candidate for the M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling degree must apply for and pass a comprehensive examination to apply for graduation. The CPCE is taken in the first semester of clinical coursework (CNSL 5397 Practicum) with an early summer due date. Students in Pre-Practicum in the Spring semester will receive an email with instructions from the testing coordinator about steps for exam registration. The exam fee is $150 dollars.
Students are, however, responsible for checking their emails for registration deadlines, information regarding the examination and arranging to take it as scheduled. Registration for the Departmental Comprehensive Exam (CPCE) is a multistep process, and students are encouraged to take the exam seriously as it is expensive, and failure will delay graduation.
Other information on the CPCE can be found in your counseling department student handbook. Please note CPCE is NOT a licensure exam. If you would like more information about the licensure exam for the state of Texas you can find out more for the National Counselor Examination: NCE
Study Resources
Students should begin to study for the CPCE by participating in classes and studying class notes. Students can also use a study guide for the National Counselor Exam (NCE) to study for the CPCE, in addition to practicing CPCE exams found online. It is recommended that students begin reviewing their course materials and studying for the exam at least two months or more before they plan to take the exam. Students that study at the last minute traditionally do not score well on the exam.
The candidate handbook for the CPCE is a useful tool to locate answers to questions. The link for that is here: https://www.cce-global.org/assets/exams/handbooks/CPCE.pdf. The CPCE does not publish a specific study guide, but a text guide is available here: https://www.cce-global.org/Assets/CPCE_Textbook_List.pdf. Other resources to consider are study guides and practice tests for purchase, in addition to study.com, which has videos you can watch with a subscription to the service.
Contact the Department of Counseling testing coordinator, Dr. Crystal Hughes, chughes1@tarleton.edu, to ask questions about completing the registration process.