PCDC | Counselor Education |
Counselor Education Program Area
Department of Human Services
Welcome to the Personal and Career Development Center (PCDC)
General Information
Hours of Operation
Types of Services
Confidentiality
Testing and Assessment
Staff
Mission: The mission of PCDC is to provide excellent counseling and assessment services to clients while simultaneously providing the best possible training to counselors-in-training.
Location: We are located on the campus of the University of Virginia in Ruffner Hall, of the Curry School of Education. You may wish to view a detailed map of the campus to determine our location. You may contact PCDC directly for an appointment or for more information by calling (434) 924-0783.
For additional information about us write to:
Personal and Career Development Center
Dr. Lopez-Baez, Director (RFH#158)
405 Emmet St. South, P.O. Box 400269
Charlottesville, VA 22904
(434-924-0704, FAX)
College of Education
The Personal and Career Development Center is a counseling and assessment center used as a training facility by the Department of Counselor Education. Its mission is two-fold: to provide a training venue for advanced counseling students and to provide assessment and counseling services to individuals from the Central Virginia area, as well as UVA students.
Faculty Director: Sandra I Lopez-Baez, PhD, NCC, LPC
Associate Professor in Counselor Education
Coordinator of the Mental Health Counseling Program
Coordinator: Advanced Level Doctoral Student with a Master's in Counseling
History of the Personal and Career Development Center
Originally called the Center for Personal and Career Development, the Personal and Career Development Center (PCDC) was founded in 1980 with a grant from the Virginia Division of Vocational Education under P.L. 94-482. The first clients were seen in September 1980, and since that time hundreds of people have used the Center's services. The University now provides financial support for the Center.
The Center provides free counseling, consultation and information to assist individuals in self-understanding, career planning and problem solving. The original faculty advisor, Dr. William Van Hoose, made the following comments in 1981 on the philosophy of the center: "Several adult transitions are uncomfortable for many people and for a few persons these life changes create numerous problems. Most people, whether young adults, middle-aged or older adults, handle life changes without major difficulty. But most of us could, at times, profit from learning more about change in our lives and about how to develop better ways of coping with what happens to us."
This is what the Center is all about. Initially founded as a training clinic for doctoral students, who along with faculty provided the Center's counseling services to clients, the Center now provides a practicum experience for doctoral level as well as advanced master's level students. Faculty, or the Center's coordinator supervises PCDC counselors. The Center has four rooms used for counseling and assessment that allow for video recording of all sessions. This capability allows for both direct observations with immediate supervision, as well as delayed supervision. PCDC is designed to provide practical experience for counselors-in-training and to offer counseling services and assessment to UVA students and the local community. Graduate students in counseling are able to observe counseling sessions, practice their own skills, and provide and receive supervision services in the PCDC. Typically, faculty and doctoral students supervise master's students and doctoral supervisors are supervised directly by departmental faculty.
Hours of Operation
PCDC is open from September to December in the Fall semester; from January to May in the Spring semester; and from June until mid-August in the summer. The hours may vary slightly, but the following are typical in Fall and Spring:
Mon 9:00 -5:00
Tues 9:00 -7:00
Wed 9:00 -7:00
Thurs 9:00 -5:00
Fri 9:00 - 12:00 noon
Fees: The professional counseling services offered by PCDC are free.
Confidentiality: Confidentiality is assured to all individuals. Since PCDC is a training facility, all counseling and supervision sessions are videotaped, the videos are used as training tools. Clients who use the PCDC must grant permission for the sessions to be videotaped for training and supervision purposes. The tapes are viewed by students and their supervisors and in practicum or internship classes to review student progress. All videotapes are kept in a locked room and do not leave the building, except to be taken to practicum or internship class meetings. Tapes are erased at the end of each semester unless counseling is continuing the following semester. If counseling sessions continue past one semester, tapes are erased when counseling services are terminated
Exceptions: All information obtained from clients (including tapes) is treated with the strictest confidence. No information will be transferred to any individual or agency without the prior written approval except for the following situations:
> If there is reason to believe that a client will harm herself/himself or
others;
> If there is reasonable suspicion of child or elder abuse or neglect;Â
> If a court of law mandates the release of records or a clinician's
verbal testimony.
Types of Services
The Personal and Career Development Center and the University of Virginia do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, or veteran status. Services are provided to UVA students, as well as individuals from the surrounding community.
People typically seek counseling for personal growth or development, as well as when they experience:
Personal difficulties
Career/Life Planning Process
Work related problems
Dealing with Life Transitions
Family and relationship difficulties
Academic difficulties
Mild Depression
Interpersonal Relationships
Men's and Women's Issues
Decision Making/Problem-Solving
Services include: individual counseling and career as well as personality assessment. Individuals for whom PCDC services are unsuitable will be provided with appropriate referral.
Testing and Assessment: Doctoral or Advanced Master's level students in counseling may assess interests, or personality in adults. Assessment services also include other forms of psychological evaluation. Some assessments are based on diagnostic interviews, while other assessments are based on standardized testing. Individual assessment is confidential, private, and professional. Sessions usually last one hour.
PCDC Staff
Director: S. I. Lopez-Baez, Ph.D., LPC, NCC, CCMHC, ACS
Associate Professor of Counselor Education
Coordinator:Â Elisabeth A. Wilson Pleszkoch NCC, CSAC, LPC
Doctoral Candidate Counselor Education
Counselors: Fall semester- Doctoral Students in the Counselor Education program enrolled in the Advanced Individual Practicum class;
Spring semester - Advanced Master's level students in Mental Health Counseling enrolled in the Mental Health Practicum class;
Summer term - A combination of Doctoral level and Advanced Master's level students.