Hospital & Community Mental Health Tech
- AAS - Career Program
- Department of Education and Human Services
Train for a specialized career in mental health and wellness.
MCC’s Hospital & Community Mental Health Tech AAS program offers the skills and knowledge you need to start a rewarding job in a growing field. Mental Health Technicians care for people with mental or emotional challenges. They work in hospitals and community-based mental health care settings, providing essential support for patient treatment. Under the guidance of physicians, nurses and other health care practitioners, they help provide compassionate, quality care and treatment.
In two years, you’ll graduate with the skills, knowledge and confidence to join a team of mental health professionals.
This career path program was developed by leading experts in mental health and is taught by professors who bring real world experience to the classroom. Through coursework and field experience, you’ll have a strong foundation to begin a human services career that specializes in mental health and wellness. The program will cover topics like these:
- Foundations of personal health and wellness
- Understanding of disabilities and related services
- Effective communication in a crisis situation
- Fundamentals of emotional wellness
- How drugs and addiction affect behavior
- Children’s and women’s health and wellness
- How social and multicultural issues relate to mental health
- Computer literacy in medical settings
- Human services fieldwork experience
Employment Outlook
The need for talented, dedicated professionals in this field is expected to grow by 11.7% from 2022-2028. Higher than the national average for all other occupations, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Job placement and opportunities for advancement are excellent at regional organizations and hospitals such as University of Rochester Medical Center.
Get in touch with Monroe Community College’s admissions office to learn more about the opportunities you can create with our Hospital & Community Mental Health Tech A.A.S. degree. Contact us at (585) 292-2200 or email Admissions (admissions@monroecc.edu).
Hospital & Community Mental Health Tech
A.A.S. Degree - Career Program
Department:Education and Human Services
School(s): Community Engagement & Development
MCC Program Code: HC01
Description
This career-focused program is designed to prepare students to work in the field of hospital and community-based mental health settings, providing direct support to people receiving mental health support and services. It will prepare students to work in the field of mental health services, specifically in specialized roles that require an associate's degree. Students will develop the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to effectively support people with mental health needs and to communicate with colleagues in relation to the treatment of their clients through applicable course work and field experiences. The program will prepare students for various responsibilities in settings that provide mental health services through applied educational and experiential opportunities.
Program Learning Outcomes
1. Describe symptoms of frequently encountered behavioral health disorders.
2. Implement and contribute to the formation of treatment plans.
3. Communicate patient/client behaviors, symptoms, and needs to treatment team.
4. Demonstrate appropriate helping skills for mental health settings.
5. Articulate basic concepts for therapeutic interaction with clients/patients in behavioral health settings.
6. Articulate an understanding of the role and boundaries of mental health service providers.
7. Analyze ethical, value, and legal requirements associated with mental health treatment.
8. Describe responses sensitive to members of various cultural, sexual, and religious groups.
Employment Potential
For related jobs: Career Coach
Occupational Resource: https://www.onetonline.org
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Distribution Requirements | Credit Hours |
| FIRST SEMESTER: |  |
| ENG 101 College Composition OR ENG 200 Advanced Composition | 3 |
| HUM 100 Exploring Human Services* | 3 |
| HUM 217 Skills for Mental Health Services | 3 |
| MTH 150 Survey of Mathematics OR ANY SUNY GENERAL EDUCATION MATH (SUNY-MATH) ELECTIVE | 3-4 |
| HED 101 Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Care** | 1 |
| SUNY GENERAL EDUCATION CRITICAL THINKING and REASONING COMPETENCY (SUNY-CTRN) ELECTIVE (HED 115, HED 130, or HED 211 recommended) | 3 |
| Total | 16-17 |
| SECOND SEMESTER: | |
| HUM 109 Introduction to Helping Skills (grade of C- or higher required) | 6 |
| HUM 218 Working with Trauma Informed Care Skills | 3 |
| SPC 141 Interpersonal Speech Communication OR SPC 142 Public Speaking OR SPC 143 Small Group Communication OR SPC 144 Communication and Crisis | 3 |
| SOC 101 – Introduction to Sociology | 3 |
| Total | 15 |
| THIRD SEMESTER: | |
| HUM 119 Case Management and Documentation (grade of C- or higher required) | 6 |
| SUNY GENERAL EDUCATION NATURAL SCIENCES (SUNY-NSCI) ELECTIVE (BIO 132 and BIO 133 recommended) | 3-4 |
| PSY 101 Introduction to Psychological Science (grade of C or higher required) | 3 |
| ACD 140 Alcoholism/Chemical Dependency and the Human Service Worker | 3 |
| Total | 15-16 |
| FOURTH SEMESTER: | |
| HUM 209 Applied Helping Models | 6 |
| PROGRAM ELECTIVE *** | 3 |
| PSY 206 Adult Psychopathology | 3 |
| SUNY GENERAL EDUCATION WORLD LANGUAGES (SUNY-WLNG) ELECTIVE | 3 |
| Total | 15 |
| TOTAL PROGRAM CREDITS | 61-63 |
**Students who have a current CPR/AED certification through the American Health Association (AHA) should contact the department for consideration of a waiver of the HED 101 requirement.
***Program Elective: Choose any ACD or ECE courses, or any of the HUM courses not already required (with the exception of ECE 110 or ACD 246).
Revised 8/5/2026