Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Treatment

Psychosocial rehabilitation (PSR) is a comprehensive treatment strategy for meeting the needs of people with severe mental illnesses. PSR practitioners assist people in obtaining the skills, support and resources they will need to achieve success and satisfaction in their social, vocational, educational and independent living environments. The overall goals of this field are promotion of recovery, community integration, and improved quality of life for people coping with psychiatric disabilities. There are ample career opportunities for PSR practitioners in a variety of rehabilitation programs and community mental health settings. The knowledge and skills of the PSR practitioner qualify him/her to provide supportive counseling, case management services, and vocational rehabilitation interventions. The practitioner is also prepared to facilitate skills training groups as well as psycho-education and support groups.

UMDNJ-SHRP’s Program

The UMDNJ School of Health Related Professions had the first undergraduate degree-granting program in this field in New Jersey. It is one of the few model programs of this type throughout the nation. Students in this program will complete two clinical placements at sites such as UMDNJ-UBHC, Bridgeway, Collaborative Support Programs of NJ, Project Live, and others.

Degree Requirements:

Requirements for admission to the UCC general education phase of the program are: High School graduation or equivalent diploma (GED); English as a Second Language (ESL) placement test if required and completion of ESL courses if necessary; and completion of any necessary remedial courses as determined by the New Jersey Basic Skills Test.To qualify for admission to the professional phase of the program offered by UMDNJ, students must complete 21 credits of their UCC general education requirements (including ENG 101, ENG 102) and UPR 101. A minimum GPA of 2.5 is also required.In order to successfully complete this program, the student will be required to take the following courses. BE SURE TO CONFER WITH A UCC OR UMDNJ COUNSELOR WHEN PLANNING YOUR COURSE SCHEDULE.

General Education Requirements – 32 credits

ENG 101 English Composition IPSY 101 General PsychologyCIS 100 Intro to Computer ApplicationsMAT 119 AlgebraSOC 101 Principles of SociologyBIO 102 Human BiologyENG 102 English Composition IIPSY 207 Social PsychologyPHI 205 Intro to PhilosophyENG 128 Dynamics of Communication or ENG 129 Public Speaking

UMDNJ Requirements – 3 credits

UPR 101 Intro to Psychosocial Rehabilitation – taken prior to entering professional phase