University of New Mexico

The University of New Mexico was founded in 1889 as an institute of higher learning that would become a university when New Mexico achieved statehood. The school is ranked by the US News and World Report as #176 of National Universities and #93 of Top Public Schools. Its High School Counselor program ranks #149. There are 20,522 undergraduates in the student body, and the student-to-faculty ratio is 17:1. Most classes have fewer than twenty students. The university awards more than 215 degrees and certifications including 94 baccalaureate degrees, 71 graduate programs and 37 doctoral degrees through 12 colleges.

University of New Mexico Accreditation Details

The university is accredited by the North Central Association of the Higher Learning Commission.

The business programs, including the BBA, the MBA, EMBA, and Masters of Accountancy degree programs are accredited through AACSB.

The Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology is accredited by the American Psychological Association.

The Master’s in Counseling and the Ph.D. in Counseling programs are accredited by CACREP

Engineering programs are accredited by ABET.

NCATE accredits teacher preparation programs.

There are many other special accreditations listed on the university's website.

University of New Mexico Application Requirements

Freshmen applying for the first time may complete the application online or in hard copy. There is a $20 non-refundable application fee as well, although some students may have the fee waived.

Applicants must request that their high schools send their official transcripts to the university. They should also ask the testing agency that administered the SAT or ACT to them to send those results. If students have taken any college courses for credit, they should have those transcripts forwarded to the University of New Mexico too.

Transfer students who have completed less than 24 credit hours of college courses should submit their high school transcripts. All others need only have official transcripts of all college coursework sent to the school. Graduate students applying to the University of New Mexico should have a minimum of a 3.0 GPA in undergraduate work. They must list all colleges they have attended. Most departments require a minimum of 12 credit hours of upper division courses in the area of the major.

Tuition and Financial Aid

Tuition and fees at the University of New Mexico are $6,944 for a full-time undergraduate student residing in New Mexico. Room and board averages $9,472. The school estimates books and supplies will cost $1,168 and personal expenses, travel and other miscellaneous expenses will add $2,040. Graduate tuition is $5,835. With books and supplies figured at $1,168 and personal costs of $3,336, the cost of attendance, adding room and board, is $21,629.

Tuition for non-residents is calculated per credit hour. The rate is $856.22 per credit hour up to 14 hours, and after that block rates apply.

Earning a degree is expensive, and most students receive financial aid. All universities recommend that applicants complete the FAFSA form as soon as they can. This federal aid program uses the student’s financial information, and that of his family, if he is dependent, to award grants, loans and the opportunity to participate in the work-study program. New Mexico uses lottery funds to award a Legislative Lottery Scholarship and has a New Mexico Scholars Scholarship as well as a Vietnam Veteran’s Scholarship and other scholarships and grants. These monies, along with other grants and scholarships, do not have to be repaid.

The University of New Mexico also awards scholarships to select individuals. Some of these are Regent’s, National Scholars, Presidential and American Indian Scholarships. Tribal assistance is available as well, in the form of tuition waivers. Each of these opportunities requires students to complete an individual application form. Student loans are low-interest loans taken out by the student or his parents. The FAFSA program offers these as subsidized, meaning the interest is paid by the government as long as the principle is current, or unsubsidized loans and as direct, meaning the money comes directly from the lending institution, as in governmental direct loans, or indirect. Indirect loans are those that are administered through the university.

Two Schools Offer Psychology and Counseling Programs

Although psychology and counseling are closely related, they are housed in different departments or colleges in most universities. The University of New Mexico offers a baccalaureate degree in psychology in two tracks. Students may opt for the BS in Psychology or the BA in Psychology. The bachelor’s degrees require the same core classes. A BA in Psychology degree contains 36 credits in psychology with a minimum of 18 taken at the school to satisfy the residence requisite. Some of the courses included are Introduction to Psychology, Statistical Principles, Psychological Research Techniques and others. The BS in Psychology contains 35 credits in psychology and classes include Evolutionary Anthropology and others. Both degrees require the student to declare a minor in an unrelated area. The school offers a certification in addiction counseling that can be added to either degree.

The University of New Mexico does not offer any master’s degrees in psychology. They do have a Ph.D. in Clinical Counseling with concentrations in Clinical Counseling; Cognition, Brain and Behavior; Evolution and Development; Health Psychology and Quantitative Psychology. The counseling degrees are housed in the education department. Because licensing for clinical psychologists requires a master’s level degree, there are no undergraduate counseling degrees. The Master of Arts in Counseling is a 60 credit program that is earned in either clinical or school counseling tracks. The school counselor degree requires courses in School Counseling, Counseling Children and Adolescents and Sexuality in Counseling and Psychology. The Clinical track requires Clinical Counseling, Sexuality in Counseling and psychology and Family and Couples Counseling.

The university also offers a Master’s in Educational Psychology degree that may be earned in a thesis or non-thesis track. The thesis track contains 30 credits and the n on-thesis, 33. The degrees are either research-oriented or practice-focused. The other degree available in the counseling department is the Ph.D. in Educational Psychology. This program contains 72 hours in coursework plus an 18-hour dissertation. The minimum GPA acceptable is a B minus, and candidates must declare a minor or have a support, cognate, area. People within this program can expect careers in teaching, research and in program development. With a superior faculty in both the psychology and education departments, the counseling and psychology degree programs at the University of New Mexico will prepare students for careers as counselors or researchers and educators as well as for more advanced study.

Additional Resource: The Top 25 Low-Cost Online Master’s Degrees in School Counseling