A formative evaluation of pre-service suicide prevention training in CACREP accredited school counseling programs

Graduation date: 2003Suicide is currently the third leading cause of death for adolescents ages 15-\ud 24. While much attention has been given to this topic, no research has examined what\ud specific information is being taught to pre-service school counselors. The purpose of\ud this descriptive study was to evaluate the pre-service suicide prevention training in\ud CACREP accredited school counseling programs. Fifteen areas of suicide prevention\ud were assessed. The participants were 89 CACREP accredited programs.\ud The instrument utilized was entitled Suicide Prevention Survey, and included\ud fifteen areas of suicide prevention that could be included in program curriculum. The\ud results were analyzed using frequencies and measures of central tendency.\ud Respondents to the survey indicated that no CACREP programs offer a required\ud course in suicide prevention. However, the issues of suicide were reported as being\ud addressed in 39 different required and elective courses. Four percent (n=9) of the\ud programs reported covering all fifteen categories included in the survey. One program\ud reported coverage in area of suicide was non-existent.\ud Implications for CACREP accredited programs as well as recommendations\ud for future research is given