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Curriculum,
Degree, and Experience
Requirements
for Washington State Licensure Compared
Mental Health Counselor License compared to Marriage and Family
Therapist License
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Licensed Mental Health Counselor |
Licensed Marriage and Family
Therapist |
Requirement:
A masters or doctoral degree in mental health counseling or a related field
with the substantial equivalent in subject area.
Subject content includes a core of study relating to counseling theories, counseling
philosophy, counseling practicum, counseling internship, and should incorporate content in
professional ethics and law and shall include at least five content areas (a) through (h)
of this subsection and at least two additional content areas from the entire list.
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For Graduates of Non-COAMFTE Accredited Programs
You must have a masters degree in marriage
and family therapy or equivalent course work to
apply. If a course listed does not have a clear
title describing the content, provide an
official syllabus, official course outline or
statement from the professor.
The equivalent graduate study course must
include courses in marital and family therapy,
individual development,
psychopathology, human sexuality, research,
professional ethics and law, supervised clinical
practice, and electives. A total of 45 semester
credits or 60 quarter credits are required.
A minimum of 27 semester credits or 36 quarter credits are required in the first
five areas of study: Marital and Family Systems, Marital and Family Therapy, Individual
Development, Psychopathology, Human Sexuality and Research.
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a) Assessment / diagnosis
c) Counseling individuals
b) Ethics / Law
d) Counseling groups
e) Counseling couples and families
f) Developmental psychology (may be child,
adolescent, adult or life span)
g) Abnormal psychology/psychopathology
h) Research and evaluation
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j) Multicultural concerns
n) Mental health consultation
m) Organizational psychology
l) Physiological psychology
k) Substance / chemical abuse
i) Career development counseling
o) Developmentally disabled persons
p) Abusive relationships
q) Chronically mentally ill
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1. Marital and Family Systems (2 courses) minimum 6 semester credits or 8 quarter credits.
2. Marital and Family Therapy (2 courses) minimum 6 semester credits or 8 quarter credits
3. Individual Development (1 course) minimum 2 semester credits or 3 quarter credits
4. Psychopathology (1 course) minimum 2 semester credits or 3 quarter credits
5. Human Sexuality (1 course) minimum 2 semester credits or 3 quarter credits
6. Research (1 course) minimum 3 semester credits or 4 quarter credits
7. Professional Ethics and Law (1 course) minimum 3 semester credits or 4 quarter credits
8. Supervised Clinical Practice 9 semester credits or 12 quarter credits
9. Electives (1 course) minimum 3 semester credits or 4 quarter credits
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Experience Requirement
A minimum of thirty-six months
of full-time counseling or three thousand hours
of postgraduate mental health counseling under
the supervision of an approved licensed mental
health practitioner or equally qualified
licensed mental health practitioner.
The Verification of Mental Health Supervised
Postgraduate Experience Forms must be sent to
approved supervisors that can verify a minimum
of 36 months of full-time counseling or 3000
hours of postgraduate supervised work
experience:
• 1200 of the 3000 hours must be direct
counseling with individuals, couples, families,
or groups and
• 100 hours must be spent in immediate
supervision with a qualified licensed mental
health counselor.
• If you had more than one supervisor, a
separate form must be used for each supervisor.
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Council for Accreditation of
Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP)
Policy: Practitioners who have graduated from a CACREP
accredited program at a master’s or doctoral
level will be granted credit for 50 hours of
postgraduate supervision and 500 hours towards
postgraduate experience.
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Supervision and Experience
Experience Requirement
Minimum of two calendar years of full-time
marriage and family therapy:
a. 100 hours must be with a licensed marriage
and family therapist with at least five years
clinical experience.
b. 100 hours can be with an equally qualified
licensed mental health practitioner.
Total experience requirements include:
a. A minimum of 3000 hours of experience.
b. 1000 hours must be direct client contact.
c. A minimum of 500 hours must be gained in
diagnosing and treating couples and families.
d. A minimum of 200 hours of qualified
supervision with a supervisor:
• 100 hours must be one-on-one supervision.
• 100 can be one-on-one or group supervision.
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COAMFTE Accredited Program:
If you have completed a master’s program
accredited by the Commission on Accreditation
for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE)
of the American Association for Marriage and
Family Therapy, you can be credited with the
following:
a. 500 hours of direct patient contact.
b. 100 hours of formal meetings with an approved
supervisor.
If you are not sure whether your university was
COAMFTE approved, contact your university.
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Source:
http://www.doh.wa.gov/hsqa/professions/mentalhealth/documents/MHappWeb.pdf
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Source:
http://www.doh.wa.gov/hsqa/professions/mft/documents/MFTapp.pdf
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Washington Licensure
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