A 3-Year Administrative Failure: 63 Credits, 4.0 GPA, and No Degree…read more
This school is a SCAM. BEWARE.
I am writing this to provide a factual account of my experience in the Dual Degree Graduate Expressive Therapies program (Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Music Therapy) at Lesley University. I moved from Los Angeles to Boston specifically for this program. Despite maintaining a 4.0+ GPA over three years, completing my thesis, and finishing 63 graduate credits, I was left without a degree due to what I can only describe as a total lack of administrative accountability.
The Learning Environment
While Lesley preaches tolerance and inclusion, the physical and social reality is quite different. Graduate classes are held on the fourth floor of a dilapidated old mall. The facility is poorly maintained, the elevators are frequently delayed for 10+ minutes, and the environment is often unsanitary. As a student with a professional background in the music industry, I felt immediate friction; if you do not fit a very specific "stereotypical" mold, you are marked as an outsider by the faculty and cohort.
The Second Internship: 2Life Communities (Framingham)
During my third year, I was placed at 2Life Communities under supervisor Jennifer Rich.
* The Commute: Despite my transparency about my location, I was forced into a commute that took 2 hours each morning and 3 to 4 hours each evening--a 5-to-8 hour daily round trip.
* The Work: Though this was a clinical internship, I was frequently utilized as unpaid kitchen staff, a waiter, and a busboy.
* Performance: Despite the conditions, I led over 100 groups. I was told by residents that my music therapy sessions were the highlight of their week. I passed my fall evaluation (Val) with a 4/5, meeting the first of two criteria required to pass the internship.
The Administrative Error (Chris Yang)
The primary failure lies with the Field Training Office. My advisor, Chris Yang, realized halfway through my final year that the supervisor the school had vetted and assigned to me did not actually hold the required MT-BC credentials.
* I had spent the semester doing the work of an on-site supervisor named Wendy--who only appeared twice--essentially teaching for her while she was presumably paid.
* I held a 100/100 (A+) in my Clinical Supervision class. Between the 100% grade and the passing fall evaluation, I had met all criteria to move toward graduation.
The "PIP" and The F's
Instead of the university taking responsibility for their vetting error, they issued me a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) the day before winter break. The PIP was triggered because I refused a request to drive an additional 1.5 hours (on top of my 2-hour morning commute) to a different facility to cover their staffing shortages.
While at the site, I contracted COVID three times and a severe flu due to the unsanitary conditions. Because I was ill during the PIP period, the school claimed I "failed" to complete it.
* The Result: Two months before graduation, they flunked me out of my internship. They gave me zero credit for 8 months of work.
* The Transcript: Despite my 100% grade in the class and a completed thesis, they placed two F's on my transcript.
* The "Requirement": They demanded I write seven essays "taking accountability" for their administrative errors and my "defensiveness" before I could return. When I eventually reapplied, they rejected me.
Conclusion
I am a University of Miami alumnus and a seasoned professional who worked my tail off for this program. I am now left with 63 credits of debt and no degree while the rest of my cohort moves into their careers. Lesley University chose to protect its administration rather than support a student who met every academic and clinical requirement. If you value your time, money, and career, look elsewhere.
