The Behavioral Health AAS Degree is an excellent choice for individuals interested in exploring various career paths in Behavioral Health. All of our 100-level courses are open for enrollment without the need for an application. After completing these courses, you will be officially coded into the program, allowing you to take 200-level courses and gain hands-on experience at a practicum site.
You can apply for our post-baccalaureate addiction counselor certification at any time. The National Association of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselors identifies our addiction studies program as an education provider.
What will you learn?
You will have the opportunity to gain the skills and credentials necessary for this caring profession. Instruction takes place in the classroom and in practice with clients. By completing the AAS degree and the ACCP certificate you should be able to –
Describe the nature of human systems: individual, group, organization, community, and society and their major interactions
Describe the conditions that promote or limit optimal functioning in the major human systems
Identify and select interventions that promote client growth and goal attainment
Plan, implement and evaluate interventions
Select interventions that are congruent with the values of ones self, clients, the employing organization, and the human services progression
Use process skills to plan and implement services
Adapt assessment skills and interventions to a variety of settings
Comprehend and recognize the worth and uniqueness of the individual, including race, culture, ethnicity, gender, religion, learning style, abilities, sexual orientation, age, social class and other expressions of diversity
If you complete the Behavioral Health degree and the Addiction Counselor Preparation certificate you will be able to –
Describe, identify, assess and treat substance use disorders
What will you do?
Graduates are employed in occupations such as –
Services to seniors
Department of Human Services
Adult and juvenile corrections
Employment services
Crisis intervention services
Services to people with physical and/or emotional challenges
Addiction studies graduates are prepared to work in public and private agencies treating chemically dependent people and their families
All first level courses in the Behavioral Health program are open for enrollment. Students can work with the advising department to map out an academic plan part-time or full time. Once students finish all the first-level courses, they will be officially enrolled and coded into the Behavioral Health program to progress and complete their second-year courses and practicum.
Students will have the option to designate their focus, determined by their practicum of choice.
The BH program is designed as a two-year program. It combines academic work with twenty-five credits of field work practicum. The Addiction studies pathway requires 15 of the 25 practicum credits to be completed in the addiction field. The Direct Support and Mental Health Services pathway requires 25 practicum credits in the field. Two terms in one agency count as one practicum site. Review your responsibilities as a practicum student.
Completion of the Behavioral Health degree, will allows students:
to qualify for the Qualified Mental Health Associate, (QMHA) credential upon completion of coursework and post-degree supervision
to be eligible to obtain cross credentials in both; Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor and QMHA
Are you ready to go back to school to pursue a career in behavioral health?
If you are interested in completing the Behavioral Health degree at Chemeketa Community College, please navigate to the "Admission" tab at the top of the page to become a student at Chemeketa!
After you have your student ID ("K-number") please return to this page and fill out this google form and someone from our program will reach out to you. Please allow some time for this as this form is checked intermittently.
Involving you as an active member of a helping agency integrates academic and practical experience. Practicum is literally instruction in the field. You will be placed in a Behavioral Health/Human Services agency under the direct supervision of agency personnel. Each practicum placement will reflect your interests, ability and educational goals.
Students with criminal histories may be prevented from obtaining the necessary field experience required for program completion.
Practicum Objectives
System Skills
Develop an awareness of the philosophy, activities, and practices of the agency
Develop a capacity to work with agency staff in establishing and maintaining your place in the agency
Service Skills
Develop and practice the skills necessary to work with clients served by the agency
Personal Skills
Develop, practice, and evaluate the values, attitudes, and skills that you possess and/or acquire as a human service worker
Practicum Sites
We collaborate with the leading agencies in the area. Follow the link and click on an agency’s name for a description of what you can expect from your practicum at each site.
Ask about your responsibilities as a practicum student.
This program does not require background checks or drug screening before entering into the program. However, you will want to familiarize yourself with how future employers might use these procedures. Whether you are hired or promoted for a job may depend on the information revealed in a background check. Job applicants, existing employees, and volunteers may be required to submit to background checks and/or drug screens by federal or state law. For more information, visit privacyrights.org.
