UNLV Marriage and Family Therapy Program
MFT 750: CLINICAL PORTFOLIO CAPSTONE
Objectives
1. To appropriately reflect on one’s learning process
2. To demonstrate an ability to evaluate one’s own work
3. To demonstrate comprehensive clinical competency through collective coursework and/or
related clinical examples
4. To articulate one’s clinical philosophy and theory of change in written, oral, and digital
formats.
General Description of the Clinical Portfolio
As your capstone experience in the program, you will compile a portfolio which demonstrates
your journey as a developing therapist. The clinical portfolio provides an opportunity to describe
your personal growth and transformation. It requires you to articulate your knowledge of
professional skills, values, and expected competencies in a way that showcases your therapeutic
self, your belief system, and what you do as a therapist.
Although there is not a specific page requirement for the written portion of this portfolio, the
general rule is that you are to prepare a well-referenced, well-written portfolio, which
addresses the content areas outlined in this syllabus, and then present the salient elements of your
portfolio to your advisor and committee member. Any student who does not complete a Clinical
Portfolio, Research Portfolio, or Thesis WILL NOT earn his/her degree.
Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)
Students completing the Clinical Portfolio will be able to demonstrate the following SLOs:
#3: Maintain respect for differences and honor factors that reflect diversity in our community,
including age, culture, environment, ethnicity, gender, health/ability, nationality, race, religion,
sexual orientation, spirituality, and socioeconomic status.
#4. Identify the foundations and contemporary conceptual directions of the field of marriage and
family therapy.
#5: Interpret and apply the major theories and models of marriage, couple, and family therapy.
#6. Analyze a wide variety of presenting clinical problems in the treatment of individuals,
couples, and families from a relational/systemic perspective.
#7. Address contemporary individuals, couples and families as pertaining to gender, ethnicity,
sexuality, religion, etc; comprehend therapeutic strategies with diverse/multicultural populations.
#10. Diagnose mental health, considering major psychopharmacological interventions, physical
health issues, using traditional psycho diagnostic and relational categories.
#11. Examine individual and family development across the lifespan.
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#12. Maintain a professional identity, engage in professional socialization, and understand the
MFT scope of practice, professional organizations, licensure, and certification.
#13. Define ethical issues related to the profession of marriage and family therapy and the
practice of individual, couple, and family therapy, including: responsibility to clients, students
and supervisees, research participants and the profession; issues of confidentiality; professional
competence and integrity; the appropriateness of advertising and financial arrangements.
#14. Identify the legal responsibilities and liabilities of clinical practice and research, including
record keeping, reimbursement, the business aspects of practice, and familiarity with regional
and federal laws as they relate to the practice of individual, couple and family therapy.
#16. Complete a substantive clinical experience in which students integrate and apply theoretical
and practical knowledge from all didactic coursework in the treatment of individual, couple and
family problems.
Process of Completing the Clinical Portfolio
 Be mindful of collecting and retaining materials for inclusion throughout the program.
 Work closely with your advisor and practicum supervisors to organize and prepare your
clinical portfolio and to select examples that best represent your work.
 Register for a total of 6 credit hours of Clinical Portfolio (MFT 750) under your
advisor’s section in BOTH summer II and fall of your second year in the MFT
program.
 Summer II will focus on the paper portion of your Clinical Portfolio. By the end of the
summer, you will have close to a final draft of your Clinical Philosophy/Personal Model
Paper (Option 1) or Clinical Innovation Paper (Option 2).
 You will complete the remaining materials for your Clinical Portfolio early fall semester
(table of contents, two representative writing samples/papers from your MFT courses,
self-assessment of your clinical strengths and weaknesses and plan for continuing
professional development; and curriculum vita). You will have a complete draft of your
Clinical Portfolio by late-September/early-October
 You will orally present your completed Clinical Portfolio to your advisor and a
committee member early to mid-October during a specified day and time slot. Your
committee will consist of two members of the faculty; one is your advisor and the advisor
or faculty selects the second committee member.
 You may be required to submit some final edits to your Clinical Portfolio after the oral
presentation. The final Clinical Portfolio must be submitted to your committee members
early to mid-November.
Schedule/Deadlines
You will have approximately 15 weeks from the beginning of summer II through lateSeptember/early-October to complete your entire Clinical Portfolio. This includes the time in
between the end of summer II session and the beginning of fall semester. It is assumed you will
continue to work on the project during summer III. Be advised that the personal model paper
usually requires 3-5 edits with a turnaround of 1-2 weeks. Therefore, it is imperative to start on
schedule or earlier in order to have an acceptable paper ready. Work submitted at the last
minute will not be accepted. You should follow the recommended deadlines below in order to
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ensure the timely completion of your Clinical Portfolio. Please note all of these deadlines on
your calendar.
Summer II
 Week 2 (by last day of week 2): submit 1st draft of Clinical Philosophy/Personal Model
Paper or Clinical Innovation Paper to your advisor via email. You will receive feedback
by the last day of week 3 and you will need to quickly make revisions.
 Week 4 (by last day of week 4): submit 2nd draft of Clinical Philosophy/Personal
Model Paper or Clinical Innovation Paper due to your advisor. Your edits should be
highlighted in some way in order to see what is new (bold or color the new text). You
will receive feedback by the last day of week 5 and you will need to make revisions by
the end of the week 1, fall semester. For ALL subsequent revisions continue to highlight
changes until you submit your entire portfolio for your defense.
Note: if you do not submit anything during the summer, you will automatically receive a
grade of F. The final grade given in the fall semester is based on having a good quality
draft of your Clinical Philosophy/Personal Model paper.
Fall Semester
 Week 1 (by last day of week 1): submit 1st draft of ENTIRE Clinical Portfolio to your
advisor. This should include the revisions of the Clinical Philosophy/Personal Model
Paper or Clinical Innovation Paper based on the latest feedback from summer II. You will
receive feedback within 1-2 weeks after submission.
 Mid-September: submit 2nd draft of your ENTIRE Clinical Portfolio to your advisor.
You will receive feedback within 1-2 weeks after submission.
 Late-September/early-October: submit final draft of your ENTIRE Clinical Portfolio
to your advisor (e-copy or hard copy depending on advisor preference). About this time
you will be given a date and time for the oral defense. It will be on a Friday around
the second or third week of October. You will have 20 to absolutely no more than 30
minutes to make your presentation and answer questions.
Note: you may be required to make some final edits, which will be due to your committee
members 2 weeks after your oral defense.
There are two accepted formats for the clinical portfolio: one including a clinical
philosophy/model paper, and another including a clinical innovation paper. The requirements for
each format are described below. Students are asked to work with their advisor to determine
which format is best suited to your capabilities, professional interests, and goals.
Option 1: Clinical Philosophy/Personal Model
The following components must be included in your Clinical Portfolio (in order of presentation
for all elements described below for the Capstone Project).
1. Title Page (title of your portfolio, your name, degree for which you are applying, etc.)
2. Table of Contents
3. Clinical Philosophy/Personal Model Paper (please follow the outline of the paper closely)
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A. Introduction
B. Discussion of individual/family problems
i. Change: How does change occur; what brings about change
ii. Ideas about healthy individuals and families
iii. Integration: Discuss theoretical integration, if applicable (i.e., the integration
of ideas from multiple theories/approaches)
C. Clinical application of your model. Please include:
i. Treatment goals
ii. Role of the therapist
iii. Assessment
iv. Preferred interventions
v. Expected changes/outcome
D. Integration
i. Discuss clinical integration, if applicable (i.e., the integration of interventions
from multiple theories/approaches)
ii. Sample case that best represents your work and who you are as a therapist
a.
Briefly describe the case
b.
Describe your theoretical approach
E. Person-of-the therapist discussion that reflects what has most influenced you in your
development as a therapist and in the development of your personal model
F. Strengths and limitations of your model
G. References
4. Two representative writing samples (i.e., papers) from your MFT courses that represent your
best written work and/or areas of clinical expertise
5. Self-assessment of your clinical strengths and weaknesses and plan for continuing
professional development
6. Curriculum Vita (ask advisor for examples or look for examples on your advisors web page,
you may use other models depending on your work and academic experience)
Elements in the Oral Presentation
1. Have video clips prepared that demonstrate relevant points discussed within your personal
model paper (clips should already be cued up and ready to go). The total running time for the
clips would be 5-7 minutes. The video clips must reflect parts of your personal model and
you should be prepared to show the link between your personal model and the video you
show.
2. Be prepared to answer questions the committee might pose with regard to your oral
presentation or total Clinical Portfolio, especially questions related to your personal model.
Option 2: Clinical Innovation Required Components (in order of presentation)
1. Title Page (Title of your portfolio, your name, degree for which you are applying, etc.)
2. Table of Contents
3. Clinical Innovation Paper (Please follow the outline of the paper closely)
A. Introduction
B. Critique of research/methodology and of the existent literature base
C. Theoretical/philosophical assumptions of your clinical innovation
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i. Discussion of individual/family problems
ii. Change: How does change occur; what brings about change
iii. Integration: Discuss theoretical integration, if applicable (i.e., the integration
of ideas from multiple theories/approaches); connection to an MFT
framework or larger systemic perspective
D. Clinical application of your innovation. Please include:
i. Treatment goals
ii. Role of the therapist
iii. Assessment
iv. Preferred interventions
v. Expected changes/outcome
E. Relevance to ethical/professional identity practices
F. Application to diverse populations
G. Clinical implications/contraindications
H. Recommendations for training
I. References
4. Two representative writing samples (i.e., papers) from your MFT courses that represent your
best written work and/or areas of clinical expertise
5. Self-assessment of your clinical strengths and weaknesses and plan for continuing
professional development
6. Curriculum Vita (ask advisor for examples)
Elements in the Oral Presentation
Same as specified above.
Optional Supplemental Materials
1. Certificates or other verification from each of the clinical trainings and/or conferences you
may have attended, participated in, or presented at during your graduate training.
2. Certificates or other verification from any awards, special recognition, honors, and/or grants
you may have received during your graduate training.
3. Clinically-relevant publications you may have completed during your graduate training
(please include a sample of the article as well as a description of its important and relevance
to your approach).
Evaluation and Approval Process of Clinical Portfolio
There are two main elements of the portfolio evaluation: the written/submitted portion of the
portfolio and the presentation to the committee. The written portion includes evaluating the
accuracy of typing and spelling; predominant use of active voice; correct use of tenses;
agreement of subjects and verbs; no misplaced or dangling modifiers; parallel construction; nonsexist and non-ethnically-biased language; correct use of punctuation; complete sentences;
appropriate introduction of quotes; correct use of references; concise, and well-constructed, and
flowing sentences; concise, well-constructed, and coherent paragraphs. During the oral
presentation, the committee will have an opportunity to ask you anything that seems relevant to
your clinical work, as well as anything that may have been covered in the course of your
training. Your discussion about the video clips and how they reflect your personal model will
also be evaluated.
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Students can receive a grade of “S” (satisfactory) or “F” (fail) in this course. Portfolios are
evaluated for their quality and completeness. A description of the grading scale is below:
S: All of the parts of the portfolio that are listed in the table of contents are included and
are presented in an organized manner, including all elements of the Personal Model
paper. The personal model paper is clearly written and well organized. The written
presentation is consistent with the most recent APA style. The personal model of the
clinical capstone portfolio should be cogent in nature (e.g., the assessment and treatment
should be internally consistent) and clearly articulated. There should be ample references
to support your model and the references should be to primary sources—not just the
references used in your classes. The personal model should demonstrate a level of
understanding and clinical skills that is commensurate with program expectations for
graduates from the program. These skills would include the items on the Practicum
Evaluation of Students Form.
F: The items listed in the table of contents of the portfolio are not included in totality or
are unorganized and in disarray. The written review and summary of your clinical work
is either not included, not clearly written nor well-organized, or it is incomplete in terms
of content areas to be included. The oral presentation component of the clinical capstone
portfolio must be linked to your personal model. The Personal Model paper is the core of
the Clinical Capstone projects and should meet the criteria above.
It is important to note that the MFT committee must approve the Clinical Portfolio prior to
graduation. In some cases, the MFT committee might suggest that the Clinical Portfolio
undergo revision before awarding final approval. In this event, students will work closely with
their advisor to make the necessary changes.
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