MA in Human Services Counseling – Child/Parenting Degree Study Core Counseling Principles

30

Credit Hours

View Courses

100% online,* 8-week courses

Transfer in up to 50% of the degree total

Liberty University’s 100% online Master of Arts (MA) in Human Services Counseling – Dobson Center Parenting and Child/Adolescent Development is designed to train you in essential counseling principles and strategies. The biblical integration in this child and family studies degree can help provide a solid foundation for you to effectively work with adults and adolescents.

Liberty has collaborated with world-renowned psychologist, author, radio show host, and family expert Dr. James C. Dobson to create our James C. Dobson Center for Child Development, Marriage, and Family Studies, which houses this degree program and several others.

The parent and child/adolescent development program can help equip ministry professionals and pastors with the tools they need to guide parents and their children through difficult situations. This online counseling degree also offers essential training for aspiring human services counselors, especially if you’re interested in child and adolescent psychology.

*Some exclusions apply. Please refer to our exclusions page for more information.


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  • Transfer in up to 75% of an Undergrad Degree
  • Transfer in up to 50% of a Grad/Doctoral Degree

If you are looking for an online child counseling degree that can help you guide parents and children through trials, our parent/child development specialization can help you explore parent-child relational problems and identify solutions that create meaningful results. These insights can help you address conflict and poor communication in families and gain the parent counseling skills you need to equip parents and help correct issues in the home.

Unlike a regular Master of Science in Child and Adolescent Development, our degree in child development seamlessly combines 3 closely related areas: Christianity, counseling, and family studies. Our adolescent development counseling degree won’t just help you gain the critical thinking skills needed to work with children and adolescents — it can also help equip you with effective, proven principles endorsed and used by Dr. Dobson himself. Whether you want to work in ministry or a non-licensure private practice, our MA in Human Services Counseling – Parent and Child/Adolescent degree can help you reach your career goals.


Liberty University’s James C. Dobson Center for Child Development, Marriage, and Family Studies gives students in the parent and child/adolescent development area of study advanced training in field-tested, evidence-based family counseling and parenting skills training. The parent and child psychology degree track features lectures and material from world-renowned psychologist, author, radio host, and family expert Dr. James C. Dobson.

If you choose the parenting and child/adolescent development track, you will study important foundational subjects, such as how family issues and environmental factors affect development from childhood to adulthood. You will also be able to select specific child counseling courses such as childhood issues, trauma, and healthy sexuality.

Please note that while the parenting and child/adolescent development track may allow you to apply for some Christian counseling certifications, the online Master of Arts in Human Services Counseling is not designed to fulfill clinical requirements for state-licensed professional counseling. You can view Liberty University’s licensure-track Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling degree for more information about counseling licensure.

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Your success is our success, which is why we are committed to providing quality academics at an affordable tuition rate. While other colleges are increasing their tuition, we have frozen tuition rates for the majority of our undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs for the past 9 years – and counting.

Graduate Full Time $565/Credit
Graduate Part Time $615/Credit
Military Graduate $275/Credit

Tuition rates may change annually. For the most current information, please visit our LU Tuition Cost page.


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Military

Liberty University is dedicated to providing world-class educational experiences to military students across the globe.

Who May Qualify?

  • Active Duty
  • Reserve/National Guard
  • Veterans/Retirees
  • Spouses of Service Members and Veterans/Retirees
  • Current Department of Defense Employees

Available Benefits:

  • Tuition discounts – $275 per credit hour for graduate courses
  • Additional discount for veterans who serve in a civilian capacity as a First Responder (less than $625 per course)*
  • 8-week courses, 8 different start dates each year, and no set login times (may exclude certain courses such as practicums, internships, or field experiences)

*Not applicable to certificates.

Tuition rates may change annually. For the most current information, please visit our LU Tuition Cost page.