How to Apply

M.S. in Early Childhood and Family Clinical Counseling

Important Dates for Fall 2027

Item	Due Date
1. Cal State Apply application (opens August 1 each year)	December 1, 2026
2. Program application	December 15, 2026
3. Official transcripts due	December 15, 2026

NOTE: You apply for fall even though the program starts in the summer.

Application Instructions

Step 1: Submit Cal State Apply Application to SDSU

SDSU uses the California State University common admission application through the Cal State Apply website. Complete the first steps through the SDSU Graduate Admissions Office.

SDSU Graduate Admissions: Steps to Apply

Step 2: Submit Slate Application to Program

Within 72 hours of submitting your Cal State Apply application, you will receive an email containing a personalized link to Slate, where you must complete your program application.

Please ensure that all required program-specific documents listed below are prepared in advance and ready to upload to your Slate application.

Application Guide: Slate Applicant User Guide

Items Requested in Program Application

Resume/CV

Please follow the instructions in this Resume Guidelines document (PDF).

Language Background

Please download and complete this Language Background form (PDF) with your application.

Prerequisite Coursework

Complete the Prerequisite Coursework form (PDF).

Letters of Recommendation

Please provide 3 recommendations from individuals with whom you have interacted professionally (academic, employment, or clinical settings) using the recommendation form (linked below). It is recommended that at least one letter come from a professor or someone who can speak to your academic abilities and one from someone who can directly address your interactions/experiences with children, families, or other groups.

The CFD faculty would like recommenders to use this recommendation form. Please download this form and provide it to your recommenders, as the application system is not able to send this to them.

Please collect the name and email address of your recommenders to enter into the program application and provide them the link to the recommendation form. Recommenders will upload this completed form directly into the program application.

Personal Statement

In a 4-page, double-spaced essay, please explain the following:

Background: Describe what has influenced your decision to pursue a career in the mental health field.
Specialization: Describe your specific interest in the program’s specialization in early childhood mental health and how you plan to use this training in your future career.
Diversity statement: We seek a talented, engaged student body that embodies the wide range of human experience; we believe that the diversity of our students makes our community stronger. What does diversity mean to you and how do you interact within a diverse community? If you'd like to share a perspective you bring or experiences you've had to help us understand you better, perhaps related to your identities and/or communities you belong to such as your culture, race, ethnicity, geographic region, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, and disability differences, we encourage you to do so. Real people are reading your application, and we want to do our best to understand and appreciate the real people applying to our program. (250 word limit)

Step 3: Submit Official Transcripts

After you submit your Cal State Apply application, send Official Transcripts from all postsecondary schools attended to SDSU. Continue to monitor your email account for correspondence from SDSU.

Step 4: Monitor my.SDSU

Be sure to follow all instructions provided by SDSU, particularly those related to setting up your my.SDSU account. Once your account is active, regularly monitor your my.SDSU Application To-Do List for any items or requests issued by Graduate Admissions. Prompt attention to these items is essential to avoid delays in the processing of your application.