THIS COURSE IS ONLY OPEN TO GRADUATE STUDENTS
St. Thomas: Diversity Issues in Counseling in Singapore
Program Highlights
Course Description
This course will explore fundamental issues concerning the practice of providing counseling for people from different cultural, ethnic, racial, and national backgrounds, as well as those who have been marginalized in some way. In this special edition of the course, students will travel to and live in the highly diverse country of Singapore. An immersion experience such as this will give students first-hand, lived experience in a country that embraces diversity and has significant expertise in multicultural counseling. Instructional methods will include lectures, audiovisual presentations, guest speakers, site visits, experiential exercises, videotaped cross-cultural role plays, small group exercises, and group discussions.
The Multicultural Counseling and Therapy (MCT) approach to counseling will be utilized as a means of examining and adding to the current theories of counseling and psychotherapy. Current theories of counseling and psychology assume that the values and assumptions of counseling psychotherapy are universally shared by culturally different clients. An important value present in Euro-American cultures is the one placed on individualism and the separate existence of self. Counselors and therapists often fail to recognize that the majority of societies and cultures in the world have a more collective sense of self-identity. Thus, an understanding of how a culturally mediated self affects the counseling process is of paramount importance and this will be experienced first hand in the collectivistic/capitalistic society of Singapore.
Evaluation
Attendance 15 points
"Who Am I" Paper 15 points
Cross-Cultural Interview 10 points
Immersion Paper 30 points
Group Presentation 30 points
Required Texts
Sue, D.W., & Sue, D. - Counseling the culturally diverse.
Bravo-bhasin, M. - Culture Shock! Singapore: A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette
Book Chapters:
Goh, M., & Tan, A. G. (2002). Envisioning the future of psychology in Singapore. In A.G. Tan and M. Goh (Eds.), Psychology in Singapore: Issues of an emerging discipline (pp. 191-202). Singapore: McGraw-Hill.
Lee, B. O. (2002b). Psychotherapy in Chinese medicine: A theoretical review. In A. G. Tan & M. Goh (Eds.), Psychology in Singapore: Issue of an emerging discipline (pp. 124-146). Singapore: McGraw-Hill.
McIntosh, Peggy (2004). White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack. In Rothenberg, P.S.(2004) 6th ed. Race Class and Gender (pp. 188-192). New York: Worth Publishers.
Richert, M. & Wood, J. (2008). Settling in. Living In Singapore, An Expatriate's Guide (pp. 20-47). Singapore: American Association of Singapore.
Tan, E. (2002). Counseling Psychology in Singapore. In A.G. Tan and M. Goh (Eds.), Psychology in Singapore: Issues of an emerging discipline (pp. 83-101). Singapore: McGraw-Hill.
Yeo, A. (2006). Providing effective and quality counseling services in an organisation. Labyrinth of therapeutic encounters: Collected essays on counseling and psychotherapy (pp.263-275). Singapore: Counseling and Care Centre.
Yeo, A. (2006). Spirituality in the care of the dying. Labyrinth of therapeutic encounters: Collected essays on counseling and psychotherapy (pp.251-262). Singapore: Counseling and Care Centre.
Journal Articles:
Jennings, L., Gulden, A., Oien, M. Goh, M., D'Rozario, V., & Skovholt, T.M. (2011). Singaporean Master Therapists Cross-Cultural Encounters. Manuscript in preparation.
Jennings, L., D'Rozario, V., Goh, M., Sovereign, A., Brogger, M. & Skovholt, T. M. (2008). Psychotherapy expertise in Singapore: A qualitative investigation. Psychotherapy Research. 18(5), 508-522.
Lee, B. O. (2002a). Chinese indigenous psychotherapies in Singapore. Counseling and Psychotherapy Research, 2(1), 2-10.
Goh, M. (2005). Cultural competence and master therapists: An inextricable
relationship. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 27, 71-81.
Location and Tentative Dates
December 27, 2022 - Depart U.S.
December 28 - Arrive in Singpoare
January 28, 2023 - Return to U.S.
Application Procedures & Deadline
- Select the Apply Now button at the top to start your online application.
- Log in using your St. Thomas username and password.
- Complete all application materials by the application deadline of October 1.
- Download and read Short-Term Off-Campus Policies and Procedures. You are responsible for reading, understanding and abiding by its content.
Final Application Deadline: October 1, 2022
Financial Aid/Scholarships
Students studying abroad during summer are generally only eligible for additional loans to help finance their study abroad costs. Please review Graduate Financial Aid. Scholarships may also be available from St. Thomas and some Other Approved Programs. Please refer to our Scholarships web page for details and review Short-Term Off-Campus Policies and Procedures for additional financial aid information.
For more information
On course content, contact: Dr. Len Jennings, 651.962.4652, lljennings@stthomas.edu
On application procedures or logistical information, contact:
Office of Study Abroad | University of St. Thomas
Murray-Herrick 212 | 651.962.6450 | studyabroad@stthomas.edu | stthomas.edu/studyabroad