Accreditation and Counselor Licensure

Recently, the American Counseling Association (ACA) has issued more guidelines about their policies regarding the accreditation of counselor training programs. The accrediting body, Council for the Accreditation of Counseling & Related Educational Programs (CACREP) is the organ along with its rehabilitation arm, Council on Rehabilitation Education, for professional counselor training program accreditation.

ACA indicates that CACREP represents the “gold standard” for the training of professional counselors and those standards help unify the profession and define it for other professionals in related fields as well as the general public.

ACA and CACREP influence the licensure process of professional counselors around the country. Some states are already moving to the licensure of “CACREP-only trained counselors.”

Non-CACREP counselors can still become licensed although ACA recommends that non-CACREP graduates complete their post-degree requirements by 2020 in order to be licensed. That is potentially the time by which many states will require CACREP graduation for licensure.

For more information about ACA’s licensure policies, visit the ACA website and read their long section titled: FAQs: Licensure Policies. You do not need to be an ACA member to access this info. Go to the ACA website (www.counseling.org). On their Home page, go to Spotlight. In Spotlight, find a new information page. Then go to: FAQS for ACA Licensure Policies.