Bachelor’s Program in Behavioral Health Counseling

Online BS in Behavioral Health Counseling

***The BS in Behavioral Health Counseling program will not be accepting new students for the Academic Year 2023-2024. More information to follow.***

Drexel University’s online Bachelor of Science in Behavioral Health Counseling program offers an innovative curriculum for those interested in helping people with psychiatric and/or substance use disorders. Featuring a competency-based curriculum that addresses the growing need for skilled, direct service providers, you'll learn a broad range of evidence-based practices associated with individual and group counseling, person-centered assessment and treatment planning, psychiatric rehabilitation, recovery-oriented treatment of substance-use disorders, child and family-focused interventions, and other essential clinical skills in demand by behavioral health care employers. You will graduate with a behavioral health degree with both a comprehensive understanding of the bio-psychosocial origins and impact of behavioral disorders, and the skills needed to promote wellness.

Program Features

• Faculty, who are experienced behavioral health professionals, bring a wealth of knowledge and skill to the classroom, and are renowned for their research and clinical practice experience
• Access to stimulating learning environments, interdisciplinary health care scenarios, and active learning activities that go beyond conventional readings and lectures
• A skills-based curriculum and innovative hands-on training
• No on-campus requirements

You'll Learn How To:

• Establish rapport with people with disabilities and assess for strengths and deficits
• Develop service plans, promote shared-decision making, and facilitate motivation for change
• Form partnerships with family caregivers, navigate systems of care, and advocate for people with disabilities

What Can You Do With A Behavioral Health Degree?

Graduates of a behavioral health degree program typically find employment in areas such as:

• Addictions Counseling
• Psychiatric Rehabilitation
• Family and Child Support Services
• Residential Services
• Case Management and Services Coordination
• Crisis Intervention
• Forensic Mental Health Services

What Does Behavioral Health Mean?

Behavioral health is a broad term that encompasses both mental and physical health. This field looks at the way our behaviors or habits can impact our mental and physical wellbeing. Behavioral health providers may go on to additional training as direct service providers. The goal of behavioral health is to treat larger issues, like substance abuse or mental illness, in part by identifying and changing the underlying behaviors that allow these conditions to grow.

Why Should I Major in Behavioral Health?

Behavioral health practitioners are skilled to work with persons across the life span from children to older adults with mental health and addiction disorders. Students, upon graduation, are educated in the disciplines of group counseling, forensics, psychopharmacology, and psychiatric rehabilitation. Behavioral health is a recovery-oriented approach to supporting the ability to have clients, patients, and families function in the community. If you have dreamed of working directly with the identified population, i.e. adolescents with substance misuse concerns, adults with serious and persistent mental health disorders, or families coping with a traumatic event; majoring in behavioral health is for you.

Archived Webinar

• Online Open House: BS in Behavioral Health Counseling

Drexel's 10,000 Hours Podcast: To Pakistan With Love

Things to know about Drexel professor and behavioral health expert Veronica Carey: she went to the same high school as Kobe Bryant; she’s tall; and she’s spent her career traveling the world implementing psychiatric rehabilitation as a recovery-oriented inclusion to existing mental health services and, the area she finds most interesting, working with psychiatric rehabilitation services. The premise of the 10,000 Hours podcast is that once a professional has dedicated this much time and attention to a subject they can be regaled as an expert.

Related Programs

• BS in Psychology
• MS in Addictions Counseling

State restrictions may apply to some programs.