The Washington State Department of Health, Mental Health Credentialing issues the main credential that you must acquire if you want to work as a professional counselor in the state: the Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC).
If you want to become an LMHC you’ll need to first become a Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associate (LMHCA), which allows you to gain the experience you need to apply for full licensure as an LMHC.
You’ll need to complete three basic steps and start out as an LMHCA on your way to becoming fully licensed as an LMHC:
Application Requirements:
Renewing your LMHCA license:
You must renew your license every year, and it expires one year after its date of issue. The renewal fee is $25. You can renew the LMHCA license a maximum of six times, after which point you must become fully licensed as an LMHC. To be eligible for renewal you must complete 18 hours of continuing education each year.
Application Requirements:
Your LMHC license expires every year on your birthday. There is a $106 renewal fee. You must complete 36 hours of continuing education every two years to be eligible to renew your license. Six hours must be in ethics and law.
Once you’ve earned the LMHC license you can choose to become an approved supervisor for LMHCAs in training. To qualify you need to have been an LMHC in good standing for at least two years and meet the following conditions:
The core content of your program must be related to counseling philosophy and theories. Mental Health Credentialing defines 17 core content areas, and your degree program must include at least seven of these. Five must be from the following eight core content areas:
The core content of your program must also include a counseling internship, practicum, or both.
The Council on the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) specializes in accrediting graduate counseling programs of exceptional quality. In recognition of this, when it comes to fulfilling the supervised work experience requirement for LMHC licensure, Mental Health Credentialing will award you 50 hours of supervision and 500 hours of post-graduate work experience if you earn your qualifying graduate degree from a CACREP-accredited program.
Right now in Washington there are eight schools offering 15 CACREP-accredited graduate programs, including:
You can expect to invest at least six years into fulfilling the education requirement to become licensed as an LMHCA and subsequently as an LMHC: four years in a bachelor’s program and two additional years for a master’s degree in Counseling. Beyond that you’ll need to invest either 36 months or 3,000 hours into qualifying supervised work experience to become an LMHC, adding around three more years to your time investment for a total of nine years. With two additional years of experience as an LMHC you can qualify to become a supervisor.
The Washington State Department of Health, Mental Health Credentialing can work with you to establish an LMHC path towards licensure via reciprocity if you’ve held an active mental health counselor license that’s in good standing (no disciplinary record and disqualifying criminal history) in another state within the past 12 months. Your license needs to have an LMHC scope of practice that’s similar to Washington’s. Based on this you can immediately qualify for a probationary license.
FIND SCHOOLS Sponsored ContentWashington Mental Health Credentialing will review your record and qualifications and determine if there’s anything lacking that you can supplement with further education, supervised experience, or examination. If you’ve held a qualifying out-of-state mental health counselor license for the past five consecutive years then Mental Health Credentialing considers that as fulfilling Washington’s supervised experience requirement.
You can start this process by submitting an application for LMHC licensure as detailed in the step-by-step process above. You’ll need to have your out-of-state Board of Counseling submit a Credential Verification Form to Washington Mental Health Credentialing at a cost of $25.
The core content of your program must include a counseling internship, practicum, or both.
To fulfill the exam requirement for LMHC licensure you must pass one of the following exams sponsored by the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC):
Both exams are computer-based. The NCE is multiple choice and more basic, while the NCMHCE is more advanced and evaluates your responses to questions about simulations of clinical situations.
Both exams are administered by the NBCC’s partner organization, the Center for Credentialing and Education (CCE). The CCE manages the online ProCounselor portal that you can use to register for either of these exams.
The US Department of Labor reported the following average annual salaries for a range of counselor positions, specifically in Washington:
From the careers detailed above the US Department of Labor reports a total of 21,920 professionals employed throughout Washington. Of those:
Washington Mental Health Counselors Association (WMHCA) – A proud local representative of its national affiliate, this organization strives to promote quality mental health services, influence public policy accordingly, and to work with other professional counseling organizations in the fulfillment of its objectives.
American Counseling Association (ACA) of Washington State – This not-for-profit organization represents professional counselors and students-in-training throughout the state. It stands on a tradition of excellence as the local representative of its national parent organization.
Seattle Counselors Association (SCA) – This vibrant non-profit community of mental health professionals has strategically positioned itself to be the leading organization of its kind in the greater Puget Sound region. In addition to connecting counselors with clients, this organization maintains an events calendar including its popular “cheers with peers” social occasions.
Washington Professional Counselors Association (WAPROCA) – This organization offers exam preparation help, professional events and training, and the latest updates regarding this field. It strives to set a high mark for the ethical standards of its members, and it assists members in attaining the highest levels of qualifications possible.
Washington School Counselor Association (WSCA) – This organization is proud to represent school counselors who work throughout the state in public and private settings. Members enjoy professional development and leadership opportunities, which together promote student outcomes and enhance their success.
Washington State Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) – Perhaps more than all other state-level organizations in Washington, counselors are most familiar with DSHS. That’s because there’s a significant overlap between the clients counselors serve and those the DSHS serves. Of particular note is the DSHS’s focus on mental health and addiction services.
King County Department of Community and Human Services – As the largest county in the state, this department is locally responsible for the largest number of Washingtonians in need of vital services addressing a wide range of issues. Its Behavioral Health and Recovery division helps residents tackle subjects like substance abuse, mental health, employment, and crises.
Cascade Behavioral Health – With a whole-person individualized approach, this organization offers of range of programs including detox for various addictive substances, mental health services, senior services, outpatient services, and options for people with dual-diagnoses like mental health and substance abuse issues.
Frontier Behavioral Health – This Spokane-based non-profit trauma-informed care organization provides culturally-appropriate clinically-based behavioral healthcare services to its clients. In addition to offering clients meeting opportunities for a range of specific issues, FBH also hosts walk-in services and community education.
Kaiser Permanente – One of the largest non-profit healthcare providers in the nation, Washington is home to numerous clinics, offices, and other care providers who are proud to fly the KP banner. Its mental health and wellness services offer whole-person mind-body care, and include treatments for things like depression, anxiety, ADHD, substance use, OCD, postpartum depression, and more.
FIND SCHOOLS Sponsored ContentWashington State is unique in providing opportunities for entry-level professionals who are interested in the counseling field but who have not yet invested themselves into earning a related graduate education. The Washington State Department of Health, Mental Health Credentialing offers opportunities for aspiring counselors who’ve earned an associate’s-level or bachelor’s-level of education to become credentialed as follows:
While these certifications allow for limited scopes of practice at the entry-level, they nevertheless provide aspiring professionals who are counselor-curious with opportunities to gain real-life on-the-ground experience in this profession; something many states do not. You can find out more about becoming certified through the applications linked to above.
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