Counseling Today: Bridging Art, Science, and Practice provides counseling, social work, and counseling psychology students with a comprehensive guide to contemporary counseling practice that emphasizes a combination of theory, practice, art, and wisdom from the field. The text is organized into five distinct parts. Part I introduces readers to the counseling field, as well as the essential foundational knowledge and skills they need to be successful helping professionals. Part II focuses on traditional theories and models, including psychoanalytic and psychodynamic theories, cognitive behavioral theories, humanistic-existential theories, biological approaches, and neurocounseling. In Part III, students learn about postmodern theories, such as discursive, poststructuralist, and social constructionist theories, which respect and celebrate differences and uniqueness. Specific chapters address narrative therapy, collaborative therapy, solution-focused therapy, and integrative counseling. Chapter 10 is a unique chapter focused on postcolonial, feminist, critical race, empowerment, queer, and social justice theories and suggestions for incorporating these into counseling practice. Part IV examines mental disorders and their assessment with the DSM-5-TR , serving as a knowledge base for counselors-to-be.

The final part touches on related practice areas, namely college counseling and student affairs, and career counseling. Satisfying the 2024 CACREP standards and the complete entry-level specialized practice areas criteria for clinical mental health counseling, college counseling and student affairs, and career counseling, Counseling Today is an exemplary textbook for foundational courses in the counseling curriculum.