Rate My Professor Thomas Field

Thomas Field, PhD, is Professor and Department Head of the Counseling and Adult and Higher Education academic unit in the College of Education at Oregon State University, where he was promoted to full Professor in 2025. He holds a PhD in Counseling and Supervision from James Madison University. Field is licensed as a professional counselor in Massachusetts, Oregon, South Dakota, Virginia, and Washington, and holds national certifications as a Nationally Certified Counselor, Certified Clinical Mental Health Counselor, and Approved Clinical Supervisor. He has taught graduate counseling students at Oregon State University since 2011, previously served as faculty at Boston University School of Medicine, and currently directs the Counseling program. Field maintains a clinical private practice in Beaverton, Oregon, where he has counseled over 1,000 clients since 2006 across settings including outpatient, inpatient psychiatric units, community agencies, and schools, addressing issues such as anxiety, depression, relationship conflict, grief, self-esteem, and affective and sexual identity.

Field's research focuses on integrating neuroscience into counseling practice, substance use disorders, professional advocacy, and social justice in counseling. He has published more than 30 peer-reviewed articles, including 'The new ABCs: A practitioner’s guide to neuroscience-informed cognitive-behavior therapy' (Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 2015), 'Neuroscience and the magic of play therapy' (International Journal of Play Therapy, 2016), and 'Recruiting, Retaining, and Supporting Students From Underrepresented Racial Minority Backgrounds in Doctoral Counselor Education' (The Professional Counselor, 2020). He co-authored the book Neurocounseling: Brain-based clinical approaches (2017) and co-edited Neuroscience-Informed Counseling: Brain-Based Clinical Approaches, Second Edition (2024). Field has secured grant funding from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, received the Counselor Educator of the Year award from the American Mental Health Counselors Association in 2019, and served as keynote speaker at their 2025 conference. He is a member of the standards revision committee for the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs.