I am writing to request permission to forgo the "Theories of Marriage and Family Therapy" course written requirements. Essentially, as a doctoral student, I am exercising the option you offered to arrange an alternative option to the course requirements. My decision to make this request stems from my desire to invest ample time and effort in my preparation for the presentation of the Clinical Qualifying Exam, as well as my remaining classes. In order to fulfill the requirements for these classes, I will be engrossed in preparing for class presentations, papers and exams, as well as preparing a field interview. In order to complete these requirements to the best of my ability, I believe that an alternative option for the aforementioned course will enable me to participate more fully in the other classes.
Furthermore, I am anxious to complete my course requirements promptly so that I can begin my one-year internship in Winter 2005. Thus, by forgoing the several course papers and replacing them with an alternative option (described below), I will be able to move steadily forward in my plans to become a marital and family therapist.
Ultimately, my request for this modification of my course requirement is an effort to ensure that I fulfill all my course requirements, while allowing me to achieve my goals in a timely fashion. Most importantly, I believe that my alternative option will serve as an appropriate substitute for the course requirements.
In lieu of writing a series of small papers, I strongly believe that I will be able to sufficiently cover the course requirements by preparing an 18- to 20-page paper. In this proposed paper, I will compare and contrast two major theories of marital and family therapy: Narrative therapy and solution-focused therapy. This comprehensive paper will address the following issues:
Brief discussion of the originators of the theories;
Comparison and contrast of the major conc
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