How to Select the Ideal Mental Health Counseling Master’s Degree 

Licensed Mental Health Counselors use their expertise in counseling theory, psychological development across the lifespan, psychological research, and more to help individuals and communities achieve optimal mental health and well-being. 

These professionals have met certain criteria to use the term “Licensed Mental Health Counselor” or “LMHC” with their names and on their resumes. 

In New York State, these criteria include a specific educational program, at least 3,000 post-graduate hours of supervised practice, and a passing score on the National Clinical Mental Health Counselor Examination administered by the National Board for Certified Counselors.

If you want to become a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, this blog post will help you understand what you should consider when you are selecting a mental health counseling master’s degree that will prepare you for New York State licensing and your own career goals. 

A degree from an accredited academic program is one of the first steps required to become a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in New York State.

Russell Sage College’s Mental Health Counseling master’s programs prepare students for work as Licensed Mental Health Counselors in accordance with the best practices in education and training recognized by the Master’s in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council (MPCAC). Graduates have a foundation in ethical practices, understand intersectionality of multiple identities, and respect multicultural perspectives.

Licensed Mental Health Counselors can specialize in working with specific populations or addressing specific mental health concerns — and different mental health counseling master’s programs have different options for concentrations that will prepare you for specialized practice. 

For example, Sage’s Mental Health Counseling and Community Psychology Master’s programs offers optional concentrations in Trauma and Acute Care, Couples and Family Counseling, or Substance Abuse and Addiction Counseling. Students who choose to concentrate in Substance Abuse and Addiction Counseling will also complete the requirements for obtaining Credentialed Alcohol and Substance Abuse Counselor Trainee (CASAC-T) certification from the New York State Office of Substance Abuse Services. The certification is for those who provide direct clinical care services and substance use disorder counseling.

Counseling master’s degree candidates who want to work in the criminal justice field may also add a certificate in Forensic Mental Health (on-campus program only). 

Any of these program tracks or certificates can help your resume stand out!

Your work and family obligations or personal preferences may cause you to seek an online mental health counseling master’s degree program or an in-person program, or a program that you can attend part-time. 

In Russell Sage College’s Online Mental Health Counseling and Community Psychology Master’s Degree program, courses are a mix of live online meetings in the evenings and asynchronous courses that you complete on your own schedule. 

Sage also offers an in-person Master’s in Mental Health Counseling and Community Psychology in Albany, New York, that is primarily an evening program, with some weekend and online courses. 

In either RSC program, you’ll be able to complete your mental health counseling master’s degree in three to four years while you work full or part-time.

Here are some other factors you will want to consider when selecting a mental health counseling master’s program:

At Russell Sage, all of the core faculty who teach in the mental health counseling master’s program have a doctorate in counseling psychology, clinical psychology, or community psychology and there is an internship coordinator who can help you identify fieldwork placements. 

Sage’s cost per credit is low compared to other private institutions. Plus, if your employer is a member of our Workforce Development Partnership, you can receive a 10% discount off of tuition for the on-campus program. 

Finally, Sage makes it very easy to apply: You do not have to take the GRE, and only two letters of recommendation are needed (many programs require three).

An admissions counselor or faculty member at the schools you are considering can help you decide if a particular master’s program is a good fit for you.

If you’d like to learn more about the mental health counseling master’s programs at Russell Sage College, reach out to a graduate admission counselor at RSC or the director of graduate psychology programs today!