| Course | COUC 500 Orientation to Counselor Professional Identity and Function (COUC500) |
|---|---|
| Credit hours | 3 |
| Program | MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling |
| Length | 8 Module/Weeks, online |
| Weeks with written work | 6 of 8 |
| Samples on this site | 5 week sample papers |
| Sources | Liberty's 2026-2027 catalog and the published COUC 500 course guide |
| Updated | October 2026 |
What COUC 500 covers
Forums open and close the course in Modules/Weeks 1 and 8, each asking for a thread of 350 to 400 words and one reply of 150 to 200 words, both supported by a scholarly source; the three 100-point papers fall in Modules/Weeks 2, 6 and 7.
Modules/Weeks 3 to 5 are given to recorded video blogs on credentials, skills and social justice, plus a credential worksheet and the program handbook scavenger hunt in Module/Week 3, so these weeks carry no sample paper here.
This course introduces students to concepts regarding the professional functioning of licensed professional counselors, including history, roles, professional organizations, standards, and credentialing. Current issues in the practice of mental health counseling and marriage, couple, and family counseling in a variety of professional settings are explored. Students are also introduced to program policies, graduate level writing, and APA style.
COUC 500 week by week, with the sample for each
| Week | Written work in the course guide | Points | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | DB Forum 1 (checklist, criminal background check and Quizzes 1 and 2 also due) | 75 | Read the Week 1 sample |
| Week 2 | Counselor Identity Paper (Quizzes 3 and 4 also due) | 100 | Read the Week 2 sample |
| Week 3 | Counselor Credential Video Blog, Credential Worksheet and MA Counseling Manual Scavenger Hunt | 200 | Ask for this week free |
| Week 4 | Professional Counseling Skills Video Blog with Quizzes 7 and 8 | No written paper this week | |
| Week 5 | Social Justice Video Blog with Quizzes 9 and 10 | No written paper this week | |
| Week 6 | Counselor Impairment Paper (Quizzes 11 and 12 also due) | 100 | Read the Week 6 sample |
| Week 7 | Wellness Assessment and Plan Paper (Quiz 13 also due) | 100 | Read the Week 7 sample |
| Week 8 | DB Forum 2 (class wrap-up, Quiz 14 and orientation verification also due) | 75 | Read the Week 8 sample |
Where COUC 500 papers lose points
Points in COUC 500 usually go when a thread overshoots its 400-word cap, when an identity paper lists jobs without explaining how the writer now thinks like a counselor, when burnout and impairment are treated as the same thing, and when a wellness plan sets goals the self-assessment scores never pointed to.
Using a COUC 500 sample well
The samples cite Granello and Young, Clinton and Ohlschlager, Norcross and Lambert, Wampold, Elliott and colleagues, Gibson and colleagues, Moss and colleagues, Lent and Schwartz, Thompson and colleagues, Puig and colleagues, Diener and colleagues, Raes and colleagues, Buysse and colleagues, Neff, Gould and colleagues, Hogan and Goldman and McGinty and colleagues.
COUC 500 questions, answered
Which books are assigned in COUC 500?
A Liberty University custom edition of Granello and Young's Counseling Today (2019) and Volume One of Clinton and Ohlschlager's Competent Christian Counseling (2002).
How many forums does COUC 500 have?
Two, in Modules/Weeks 1 and 8, each worth 75 points and each made of a 350-to-400-word thread and a single reply of 150 to 200 words.
What papers are written in COUC 500?
Three papers worth 100 points each: the Counselor Identity Paper in Module/Week 2, the Counselor Impairment Paper in Module/Week 6 and the Wellness Assessment and Plan Paper in Module/Week 7.
Ask for a custom COUC 500 sample
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