Harvard School of Education To Sunset School Counseling Licensure Pathway

The Harvard Graduate School of Education will stop offering its School Counseling Licensure Pathway after this academic year, when the program’s final cohort of 10 students graduates.

In an email to the program’s alumni announcing the decision, obtained by The Crimson, HGSE Academic Dean Martin West wrote that “following the 2026-27 academic year, HGSE will officially sunset the Certificate of Advanced Study (C.A.S.) in Counseling program.”

“This decision comes after thoughtful review and reflection about our academic offerings and how we can best meet the evolving needs of the field, serve our students, and advance HGSE’s mission,” West wrote.

West added that the school’s focus on student and educator mental health would “both remain and intensify,” “including through a new cross-program concentration for master’s students and new professional education offerings,” “to support practicing counselors, particularly at this very complex moment.”

In a statement, HGSE spokesperson Paul Belsito wrote that the school is “fully committed to supporting our current students as they complete their studies and pursue licensure.”

The C.A.S. in Counseling is one of the three licensure programs that the school currently offers and is part of the School Counseling Licensure Pathway. The pathway is structured as a two-year sequence: Students first enroll in HGSE’s Ed.M. program in Human Development and Education program and, after completing the first year, apply to the C.A.S. program for a second year of coursework.

Ben B. Ross, one of the 10 students in the final cohort, said the program prepares students specifically for Massachusetts licensure “but doesn’t necessarily take into account how other states prepare their school counselors.”

Graduates can still work as school counselors in other states, Ross said, but “you’re not guaranteed the same licensure in other states. You have to ask for a panel review.”

HGSE’s website similarly advises that students who plan to work in another state consult with an advisor about that state’s requirements.

Maria Monalisa V. Handoko, another student in the final cohort, said she was drawn to the program in part because of its comprehensive K-12 approach and opportunities for internships at Boston-area schools.

“There was no rumor or anything, and then we saw the email, and our professor addressed it in class, and my reaction was: ‘I’m glad I’m here’,” Handoko said.

“Whenever there’s budget cuts, school counselors are the first to get eliminated,” Handoko added “This is not unique to Harvard. So, it raises a bigger question: if we truly prioritize mental health, where are we investing our money in?”

Belsito wrote that student and educator mental health remain a priority for the school.

“Student and educator mental health and wellness remain a priority for HGSE,” he wrote. We are working on ways to bring this focus to more of our students and to educators in the field.”

In an email to students in the pathway, its director, Josephine M. Kim, wrote that after the Class of 2027 graduates, “there will remain a strong focus at HGSE on mental health and wellbeing through a pivot towards a Concentration.”

“As we look ahead to the next two years, HGSE and SCLP faculty and staff are determined to close out the chapter on a high note, and we’re glad you’re all a part of the SCLP legacy,” she wrote.

—Staff writer Mahpara Faatin can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on X @mahparafaatin.