Master in Clinical Mental Health (MA)

Purpose

• Prepares you to provide counseling services to individuals, families, couples, and groups
• Graduates are able to help clients work through a wide variety of issues, including depression, anxiety, and grief

Program Length

• MA in Clinical Mental Health programs typically take 2-3 years to complete
• Some schools may offer online or hybrid formats of these programs
• Requires additional post-graduation hours of supervised clinical work

Licensure

• Most states require two years (104 weeks) of supervision and 3,000 hours of post-master supervised work experience
• Pass the state-specific licensure exam (e.g., National Clinical Mental Health Counselor Exam and the California LPCC Law and Ethics Exam)

Program Specialization Examples

• Some programs may offer areas of emphasis, like marriage and family

Work Settings

• Examples of work settings include mental health counseling, private practice, addiction counseling, school-based counseling, rehabilitation counseling, and community-based agency practice

Graduate admissions requirements (in addition to general requirements)

• Programs recommend applicants to have related volunteer or work experience in the mental health field
• GRE scores may be required for certain programs

Example Programs and Tuition Costs

Palo Alto University’s Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health

San Francisco State University’s Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health
          Tuition Cost

West Coast University’s Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health
          Tuition Cost