Licensure in Psychology
NMHU Psychology Department
The student successfully completing the Clinical/Counseling Psychology track will have met the educational and training requirements (including the clinical practicum hours) to qualify for licensure as a counselor in the state of New Mexico (LMHC) and other states.
There are state-by-state differences in licensure requirements, and the requirements for licensure described in some states have some ambiguity. In many states, the Board that licenses master’s- level counselors has been influenced by CACREP accreditation language. Our M.S. in Clinical/Counseling Psychology is accredited by MPCAC, which itself is CHEA-accredited. Our MPCAC-accredited program meets the 8 core educational requirements of CACREP.
However, there is a level of uncertainty that is introduced depending on the extent to which state licensing Boards require applicants graduate only from CACREP-accredited programs, or because of the way the Boards interpret CACREP standards or impose additional educational requirements on applicants.
States typically require that applicants for licensure also pass the NCE (National Counselor Examination), and, for licensure as an independent (unsupervised) clinician, require additional hours of supervised work experience following completion of a master’s degree. Because the NCE and post-degree supervised clinical work are beyond the scope of what a master’s degree can provide, this information only covers whether our program meets the educational criteria needed for state-level licensure.
The table below shows the likelihood that the M.S. program in Clinical/Counseling Psychology fully meets each state’s licensure requirements. The M.S. program in Clinical/Counseling Psychology meets the licensure requirements for 24 states, does not meet requirements for 21 states, and we are unable to determine whether our program meets requirements for 5 states.
State | Meets educational requirements for licensing? | Licensing Agency |
Alabama | Meets | Alabama Board of Examiners in Counseling |
Alaska | Does Not Meet | Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development |
Arizona | Does Not Meet | Arizona State Board of Behavioral Health Examiners |
Arkansas | Does Not Meet | Arkansas Board of Examiners in Counseling and Marriage & Family Therapy |
California | Does Not Meet | Board of Behavioral Sciences |
Colorado | Meets | Colorado Licensed Professional Counselor Board |
Connecticut | Does Not Meet | Department of Public Health |
Delaware |
Meets |
Board of Mental Health and Chemical Dependency Professionals |
Florida |
Meets |
Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling |
Georgia |
Meets |
Georgia Composite Board of Professional Counselors, Social Workers and Marriage & Family Therapists |
Hawaii |
Meets |
Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Professional & Vocational Licensing Division |
Idaho |
Meets |
Idaho Licensing Board of Professional Counselors and Marriage and Family Therapists |
Illinois |
Does Not Meet |
Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation |
Indiana | Unable to Determine | Indiana Professional Licensing Agency |
Iowa | Unable to Determine | Iowa Dept. of Public Health-Board of Behavioral science |
Kansas | Unable to Determine | Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board |
Kentucky | Does Not Meet | Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services |
Louisiana |
Meets |
Louisiana State Board of Licensed Professional Counselors |
Maine | Does Not Meet | Board of Counseling Professionals Licensure |
Maryland | Does Not Meet | Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists |
Massachusetts |
Meets |
Board of Registration of Allied Mental Health and Human Services Professions |
Michigan | Unable to Determine | Dept. Of Licensing And Regulatory Affairs |
Minnesota | Does Not Meet | Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy |
Mississippi |
Does Not Meet |
Mississippi State Board of Examiners for Licensed Professional Counselors |
Missouri | Meets | Missouri Division of Professional Registration |
Montana | Meets | Montana Board of Behavioral Health |
Nebraska |
Meets |
Nebraska Dpt. Of Health and Human Services – Mental Health and Social Work Practice |
Nevada |
Does Not Meet |
State of Nevada Board of Examiners for Marriage and Family Therapists & Clinical Professional Counselors |
New Hampshire |
Does Not Meet |
NH Office of Professional Licensure and Certification |
New Jersey | Meets | NJ Division of Consumer Affairs |
New Mexico | Meets | New Mexico Licensing & Regulation Dept. |
New York | Unable to Determine | NYSED – Office of the Professions |
North Carolina |
Does Not Meet |
North Carolina Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors (NCBLCMHC) |
North Dakota | Meets | North Dakota Board of Counselor Examiners |
Ohio |
Does Not Meet |
Ohio Counselor, Social Worker and Marriage and Family Therapist Board |
Oklahoma | Meets | State Board of Behavioral Health |
Oregon |
Meets |
Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists |
Pennsylvania |
Meets |
PA DOS – State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors |
Rhode Island | Meets | RI Department of Health |
South Carolina |
Meets |
South Carolina Board of Examiners for Licensure of Professional Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, Addiction Counselors and Psycho- Educational Specialists |
South Dakota | Meets | South Dakota Department of Social Services |
Tennessee |
Meets |
Dept. Of Health – Board for Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Marital and Family Therapists, and Licensed Clinical Pastoral Therapists |
Texas |
Does Not Meet |
Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors/Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council |
Utah |
Does Not Meet |
Utah Department of Commerce Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing |
Vermont | Does Not Meet | Vermont Board of Allied Mental Health Professionals |
Virginia | Does Not Meet | Virginia Board of Counseling |
Washington | Meets | Washington State Department of Health |
West Virginia | Does Not Meet | West Virginia Board of Examiners in Counseling |
Wisconsin |
Does Not Meet |
State of Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services |
Wyoming | Meets | Wyoming Mental Health Professions Licensing Board |
Explanation of determinations for whether M.S. in Clinical/Counseling Psychology program meets educational requirements for state licensure as master’s-level counselor.
Meets: Indicates our program appears to fully meet the state’s described educational criteria (including pre-master’s clinical practicum/internship requirements).
Does Not Meet: Indicates that there is evidence our program does not meet the state’s educational criteria. The two common reasons for our program not meeting a state’s educational criteria include:
- the state will only license applicants from CACREP-accredited programs, or
- our program lacks a specific course requirement for licensure (most commonly: Addictions Counseling and/or Marriage and Family Counseling).
Unable to Determine: Insufficient information about whether the coursework required by the state is met by our program’s coursework, or applicants from non-CACREP-accredited master’s programs need to undergo an evaluation by the Board or an outside agency, and that evaluation alone will determine whether the applicant’s graduate program meets licensing standards for that state.