LMHC / LMFT Licensing Question

[Night1234]

Hello -

I want to become a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (i still have to go to school but am trying to think ahead) but it seems like the majority of counseling programs at the various colleges are in Marriage and Family Therapy.

If graduate with a masters in MFT - do i have to obtain the LMFT or can i pursue the LMCH.

Does anyone know if one of the licenses is more preferable than the other?

Thanks!

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[Psy01]

I would assume that to be an LMHC, you have to have done a program in that. Or, maybe not necessarily a program specifically called "mental health counseling", but one that at least fulfills all the requirements of the state in which you want to get licensed.

For example:
http://www.umb.edu/academic_programs/gcoe/programs/counseling/mentalhealth/degrees.html

MFT and MHC have different foci, so one is not necessarily "better." The MHC foci are broader, as the MFT concentrates more on marital and family issues (as the name would suggest). So, if you want to do more than just MF stuff, the MHC would probably be "better."

 

[Night1234]

Thanks! I want do mental health counseling because I want to focus on working with individuals.. but after doing a ton of research on the schools.. the MFT program is much more readily available than mental health programs (which seem to be rather limited)... so thats why i was wondering if I got a masters in MFT, could i purse a LMHC?

 

[Gotaro]

You know, I would look into this more. I was in MHT class today and someone was talking about this very thing, like she was in school for MFT but could do something extra to obtain LMHC.

 

[lookitssara]

The LMHC designation is separate from the LMFT or LPC designation. Being a LMHC requires a certain number of hours of experience (some of which must be in a mental health setting that allows the pursuer to do some diagnoses) and requires you to have taken some specific classes. Each state is likely different but it should be easy to find this out.

What this means is that a masters in mental health counseling likely sets you up to make getting the LMHC designation easier, but you can get your masters in marriage & family therapy and still become an LMHC.

 

[psich]

Check with your state licensing board about requirements for the LMFT and the LMHC and see if you can use your LMFT coursework towards the LMHC. They will probably be able to help you more than we can.

 

[Night1234]

Thanks for your input!

so i was taking a look at the California licensing board and it seems like you can only obtain a license in LCSW, LEP, and LMFT.. so it doesnt seem like california has a license for LMHC.. can anyone confirm if thats true? thanks

 

[pingouin]

many states have an LPC or an LMHC but not both. mine has only an LPC. wouldn't surprise me if you couldn't find the complete set of alphabet soup in Cali.

 

[Night1234]

haha

so i dont know what to do.. i want to focus on mental health issues for individuls... what to do? what to do?

 

[jdawgg]

haha

so i dont know what to do.. i want to focus on mental health issues for individuls... what to do? what to do?

Your problem is that there was no LPC designation in California until a few months ago. California was the last state to license professional counselors, so the support/educational network for them is now in its infancy in the state. If you aren't interested in marital and family therapy and you intend to stay in Cali, you may want to consider social work.

Keep in mind that an (L)MFT can work with individuals... they just typically do so through a family systems lens -- circular causality & intergenerational transmission and whatnot.

 

[Night1234]

thanks so much!! sorry for the million questions.. having said that California is finally recognizing the LPC and its in its infancy, how long do you think it will take before people in california can get their licence in counseling (LPC).. like can people get licensed now, since cali finally accepted it or does the state first need to develop the program, licensing requirements etc before you can get an LPC... if the latter, do you have any idea of how usually it takes before a program is up and running... thanks!!!

 

[psich]

thanks so much!! sorry for the million questions.. having said that California is finally recognizing the LPC and its in its infancy, how long do you think it will take before people in california can get their licence in counseling (LPC).. like can people get licensed now, since cali finally accepted it or does the state first need to develop the program, licensing requirements etc before you can get an LPC... if the latter, do you have any idea of how usually it takes before a program is up and running... thanks!!!

I think the best thing to do in this case would be to contact the state board. Maybe the following links can help:

http://www.bbs.ca.gov/

http://www.bbs.ca.gov/lpcc_program/index.shtml

http://www.caccl.org/

 

[Night1234]

Thanks!

 

[progter]

The LPC requirements are almost identical to the MFT ones in Cali.

My fiance just finished her MFT and the program has been sending the MFT students info on what they need to do on top of the MFT courses in order to qualify to sit for the LPC license if they wish to.

If I remember correctly it was 3 additional classes (that will start being offered in Fall 2010) on top of the 60 units she had to complete for her MFT.

 

[Night1234]

thats great to hear! thanks!

 

[Big Psych]

I couldn't decide if I wanted to specialize in MFT or SA, but I found out that I could get an MA in counseling, then with 12 extra credits (each) I could earn a grad cert in each, thus giving me two specializations. Grad cert programs could be a way to go.

 

[Night1234]

oh thats interesting.. are graduate certificates sufficient for accrediation purposes?

 

[Big Psych]

oh thats interesting.. are graduate certificates sufficient for accrediation purposes?

In an of themselves, no. At least not in Texas. Here you have to have a Master's or Doctorate (40 credit hours) to obtain an LPC, but need only an Associates to get licensed for SA treatment. The MA in counseling will meet the state requirments, the grad certs are just to learn enough to pass the MFT and SA license exams as well as make me more marketable.

 

[Night1234]

i see - thanks for the info!

 

[Big Psych]

i see - thanks for the info!

No sweat. After so long in school, research just comes naturally