The U.S. is in the midst of a mental health crisis. An ongoing exodus of health care professionals from the industry is straining available resources as demand for counselors continues to grow. In fact, jobs for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors are projected to grow 22% by 2031, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The primary qualification you need for licensure for those types of counseling roles is only a master’s degree. And unless you want to stay in academia or be able to conduct psychological assessments, like for personality disorders, you don’t need a Ph.D.—which is good news for an industry in need of qualified candidates.
CACREP-Accredited Online Master’s in Counseling from Northwestern
Earn Your MA in Counseling Online on the Schedule That Fits Your Lifestyle.
Prepare to pursue licensure in as few as 18 months with Northwestern University's online master's in counseling program; no GRE required. This CACREP-accredited program has full-time, part-time, and accelerated track options available. Bachelor's required.
“All of us are eager to have competent students graduate and be in the field. There continues to be an enormous need for practitioners,” says Kristina Hallett, director of clinical training and an associate professor at Bay Path University. Massachusetts, where Bay Path is based, has the third highest employment rate for counselors.
What’s more, graduates of counseling programs are landing jobs—and quickly. All fall 2021, spring 2022 and summer 2022 grads of the Arizona State University program who sought employment found a job within six months.
“Levels of acuity are up everywhere and this has been the trend for a while,” notes Jamie Bludworth, director of the counselor training center and a clinical assistant professor at Arizona State. “Mental health professionals at all levels are needed.”
A master’s degree is quicker, less expensive than a Ph.D. program
Most counselor roles don’t require a Ph.D., which eliminates some of the expense of both time and money for people interested in pursuing this career path. A master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling typically takes two years to complete and after graduation, most states require candidates to work for about two years in the field under supervision. Once they accrue enough hours, these counselors can apply for full independent licensure.
In stark contrast, a doctoral degree program requires at least four years of school, in addition to a dissertation, a full year internship, and two additional years of work under supervision.
“For many people, the shorter, faster, less expensive route is getting a master’s,” Hallett says.
And master’s degree candidates may still get a breadth of experience. At Bay Path, students may choose from three concentrations: school adjustment counseling, advanced trauma-informed counseling, or alcohol and drug use counseling. About one-third of Bay Path’s students are in the general program, while the remainder pursue a concentration.
How to prepare for a master’s degree program in counseling
While some career-minded people will focus on fulfilling all of the necessary requirements to apply to a master’s degree program, there’s a more basic way to prepare—both for school and a career in counseling. “It’s helpful to go out and live some life first,” Bludworth recommends.
“Life experiences can teach us to be open, to be vulnerable, to be curious,” echoes Ayşe Çiftçi, faculty head and professor of counseling at Arizona State. “Our field is all about vulnerabilities and taking risks and ambiguity.”
Before enrolling, Hallett recommends talking to practitioners who are licensed in the field and asking them about their career path. Gather as much information as possible about different graduate programs and evaluate them based on your interests.
Because licensure requirements vary state to state, Bludworth suggests checking the requirements of the licensing board in your state—or the state where you plan to live after graduation. Then, check that those requirements align with the offerings of a given graduate program. Candidates should be mindful of program outcomes, and programs that make that data public are of higher quality, Çiftçi notes.
Bay Path is looking for master’s candidates who have at least a 3.0 undergraduate GPA. Standardized test scores are not a requirement, though references are.
Similarly, Arizona State wants to see that candidates can excel academically. An academic reference is a good choice to speak to those abilities, Bludworth says. If a candidate doesn’t have any work or internship experience, they should have volunteer experience—demonstrating they have an interest in giving back to their community.
Essays are also weighed heavily at ASU. “It’s really important for us to have as much perspective as possible about that person,” Çiftçi says.
Check out all of Fortune’s rankings of degree programs, and learn more about specific career paths.
Earn a Master's in School Counseling online at USC Rossier. No GRE req'd.
Earn your master's degree in school counseling online in just 18 months with USC Rossier's program.
Gain the skills to create positive change in children’s lives. Earn your master’s in school counseling online from USC Rossier. Bachelor’s required.
