Five Tamkang graduates from the Graduate Institute of Educational Psychology and Counseling have passed the 2007 state exam for counseling earning them the license to practice as counselors. This number, which makes the passing rate 100%, is the best so far for the institute. This six years old institute has produced a number of graduates in the past three years; however, the passing rates for the state exam were 80% two years ago and 60% for last year. Therefore, this year’s result with every graduate having passed “the exam” is a proud moment for the Chair, Dr. Ko Chih-en, of the institute. He pointed out that passing the state exam is the same as a law student passing his/her bar exam should they wish to practice and secure good employment. Once having obtained the license, practitioners can work for the government agencies and at various community health centers. In order to take the exam, the candidate must have a master’s degree in counseling and one year practicum with good grades.

The five graduates that passed this year exam are Jiang Chi-bing, Chao Shao-chuan, Chung Yi-ling, Zhien Yi-ren, and Huang Xang-er. Their new status will allow them to find better work such as working at educational institutes and community health authorities. They will of course, Dr. Ke stressed, return to TKU occasionally to offer their tips of preparing for and passing the state exam to junior students. Chao Shao-chuan, for example, said that passing the exam was relatively easy for her as she had already been working in counseling field for a period of time prior to the exam. Through her work, she had received a great deal of on-the-job training, which could help her tremendously at exam. Because of this, her preparation time was very short. She nonetheless advised student to spend time doing the mock exams—the more, the better.

On the other hand, Jiang Yi-ren didn’t have it that easy. She was working at the Student Learning Support Section (SLSS) of TKU when she was preparing for the exam. As this job is not related to counseling, she felt she had to put in extra efforts preparing for the exam. It wasn’t easy, she said. She had spent five months studying hard and apparently her hard work paid off. She advised students to have a good and workable studying plan at the outset. She still works for the SLSS but will try to seek employment in counseling field as that is what she has always wanted to do. ( ~Ying-hsueh Hu )