Program Description
School of Psychology, Family, and Community Faculty
School of Psychology, Family, and Community Graduate Programs Website
The SPU graduate Medical Family Therapy (MDFT) Certificate program is a welcoming 2-3 year graduate certificate program. It welcomes students to just take a class or to enroll in the Certificate. The courses range from foundational to cutting edge and include: biopsychosocial-spiritual care and interviewing, motivational interviewing, trauma informed care, neuropsychology related to trauma, spirituality and health, grief and family process, and collaboration roles for MDFTs. We also rotate specialty care courses like gerontology, moral injury and provider resilience, and acceptance and commitment therapy. The whole person and spirit of the therapist/chaplain is important and attended to in this program, including in supervision during the practicum year. For those who formally enroll, the MDFT Certificate provides interns with a minimum of 11-months of supervised professional experience providing mental health or chaplaincy care in a medical setting.
The medical field has developed integrated health care teams in medical settings and collaborative care networks with behavioral health providers to address the physical, emotional, spiritual, and relational needs of patients. Seattle Pacific University’s Medical Family Therapy (MDFT) Certificate program trains professionals in relationally focused mental and spiritual health so our graduates can support individuals and families as they face and navigate illness and its implications. Mental health providers can expand their scope of practice, learn how to collaborate, ensure their work is trauma-informed, and enhance their marketing skills to healthcare providers and clergy. The Medical Family Therapy Certificate is also open to graduates/graduate students in Mental Health fields and to Chaplains who wish to expand their knowledge of mental health and family systems.
Most MDFT courses are open to graduates/graduate students in Mental Health, Psychology, Theology, Medicine, Nursing, Nutrition, Education and any other SPU graduate students matriculated in a degree program and none need pre-enrollment permission. Check with your program director to determine if you may receive elective credit. Graduated professional/non-matriculated graduate students - please ask permission to enroll from the faculty teaching the course. We will very likely welcome you and your real-world experience!
You can complete the Certificate program if you have completed your graduate degree in mental health or theology. You many also complete the Certificate if you are currently enrolled in the SPU Marriage and Family Therapy program, another MFT or Mental Health graduate degree program, or are enrolled in the SPU or another Theology graduate degree program. Completing the SPU MDFT Certificate program will require you to successfully complete 14 MDFT credits (6 seminar and 8 internship). Check class delivery and the graduate schedule to ensure you can attend the class date. Seminar classes are usually only delivered in-person on campus in Seattle. Only persons enrolled in the Certificate can enroll in practicum/internship courses. Internship will require a weekly practicum/supervision group meeting during all four quarters of internship.
- To earn the Certificate, everyone must take the two required MDFT courses (MDFT 6633 & MDFT 6652) and four more MDFT courses - courses offered will be listed under SPU Graduate Time Schedule
- MFT/Mental Health graduates and master's students will complete four quarters (8 quarter credits) of MDFT clinical practicum/internship in medical family therapy. The internship requires attendance at weekly practicum for group supervision every week
- Chaplains and theology students will complete 8 quarter credits of MDFT-related research, a medical Chaplaincy experience, extra MDFT courses -- or a combination to arrive at the 8 quarter credits needed. This personalized internship year plan must be pre-approved by the MDFT Program Director.
- MDFT Practicum/Internship/MDFT Research/MDFT Independent Study may only be taken by students enrolled in the MDFT Certificate.
- If you have received graduate training in social work, behavioral science, theology, nursing, medicine, or theology you will need to review your prior classes. Depending upon past coursework, additional credits may be needed as program pre-requisites (for instance, in narrative therapy, family systems therapy, couple therapy, or family therapy).
For most students, the Certificate can be completed over a two-year period. For specific admissions information for professional/post-grad students, visit our MDFT website for post-grad admissions.
Admission Requirements
For current graduate students and professionals with a graduate degree in a mental health discipline or theology
- Online application and $50 application fee
- Academic Transcript demonstrating either current enrollment in or completion of a graduate degree in Clinical Mental Health discipline or Theology - or international equivalent of a graduate degree (required to qualify for the internship year)
- Two letters of professional recommendation
- Please include name, title, phone number, and email for each reference.
- References should speak to your clinical readiness, clinical and/or chaplaincy skills and awareness, and personal character.
- Only one reference can be from an SPU MFT faculty.
- Current MFT graduate students can opt to use references from their MFT application.
- Résumé
- A current vita or résumé showing your education, relevant work or volunteer experiences, and names of references. Your experiences should be Clinical/MDiv related
- Personal statement three to four pages, typed, and double-spaced. It should address:
- Your career goals related to mental health, or patient & family care related to health, illness, infertility, aging, grief, and/or death.
- Personal interest in the Medical Family Therapy program.
- Your professional and personal strengths as they apply to working with people related to mental health, resiliency, family collaboration, community resilience related to health/grief, or spiritual care and health, grief, and death.
- Related volunteer or work experiences.
- Personal and professional life experiences and how they have converged to motivate your application to the Medical Family Therapy Certificate program at this time.
Application deadlines
Autumn Quarter Admission: Submit Completed Application by September 20th
Winter Quarter Admission: Submit Completed Application by October 30th
Spring Quarter Admission: Submit Completed Application by January 15th
International students
In addition to the SPU general and the Medical Family Therapy Certificate program’s admission requirements, international students must also submit:
- An official, confidential affidavit of financial support covering the first year of intended enrollment. Without this document, SPU cannot issue an I-20 immigration form. Note: Enrolling ONLY in the MDFT Certificate program cannot qualify for an I-20 immigration form.
- Students holding undergraduate or graduate degrees from colleges, universities and/or seminaries located outside the U.S. are expected to have their transcripts evaluated by a professional credential agency. Such an evaluation is required before an application for admission to the SPFC can be granted and before any graduate credits taken elsewhere can be applied to a SPFC degree.
- If you earned an undergraduate degree in a country other than the United States, or your degree is in progress, an official course-by-course credential evaluation must be submitted from a NACES member-recognized credential service. Acceptable credential services include, but are not limited to, World Education Services (WES) and Foundation for International Services (FIS).
- In addition to the evaluation report, we also require official transcripts and diplomas to be submitted in English. International applicants are responsible for all costs associated with this service.
- English language proficiency: If you do not speak English as your first language, you must also submit scores on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). A minimum score of 600 on the TOEFL paper, 250 on the TOEFL-CBT, or 100 on the TOEFL-iBT is required. ACE scores will not be accepted.
Questions
Clinical Practicum Supervision and Internship
Completing the MDFT Certificate in the MDFT clinical track requires a four quarter internship (8 graduate credits): MDFT 6930, MDFT 6931, MDFT 6932, and MDFT 6937. They can be taken in any order allowing the intern to start in any quarter. Most internship sites require MDFT Interns to plan for 10-15 hours a week. Some require 20-24 hours per week. All are in outpatient medical clinics or mental health clinics with a medical specialty referral contract. Interns will have a chance to discuss internship placement possibilities prior to placement. Clinic specialties include family medicine, oncology, women’s health, pediatrics, naturopathic medicine, integrated behavioral health, and spiritually-informed mental health. Interns will collaborate with many medical providers, which can include physicians, nurses, social workers, psychologists, nutritionists, physical therapists, occupational therapists, care coordinators, and other staff. MDFT interns provide on-site psychosocial care or telebehavioral health. Interns will be actively involved in charting, consulting with the medical team, program development, and clinical treatment; and may get the opportunity to have specialty training or provide training and presentations to colleagues.
Some sites require vaccinations and hospital trainings for electronic medical record documentation, ethics, and patient safety. All sites require a new background check and for the intern to carry liability insurance. Some sites require the intern to already have at least an Associate license in a mental health field (e.g., an LMFT-A). All sites will have a clinical mentor or supervisor assigned to the intern. During the internship year, interns will also be enrolled in the MDFT practicum with supervision. This course meets weekly for small group supervision with an AAMFT Approved Supervisor or Candidate and is qualified to supervise for the LMFT license in Washington State.
Chaplain track interns will work with the MDFT Program Director to personalize a Chaplaincy track internship experience (e.g., MDFT 6940). This will involve collaboration with the intern's home theology department or religious organization to personalize an appropriate and meaningful MDFT-related 8 credit experience.
