Counseling Degrees & Licenses in Alabama

Alabama credentials Associate Licensed Counselors (ALCs) and Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC).

To be licensed as an ALC, candidates must:

• Have completed a master’s degree from a CACREP or CORE accredited school of at least 48 semester hours or 72 quarter hours. The program must include a 100-hour practicum, 40 of those hours must be direct client contact as well as one hour of direct supervision and 1.5 hours of group supervision per week, and a 600-hour internship with 240 hours of direct client contact along with 2.5 hours of supervision a week and at least one hour of individual supervision per week.
• Submit three letters of recommendation, two of which must be from supervisors.
• Provide official school transcripts to the ABEC board.
• Submit a proposed plan of supervision for work experience including names of supervising counselors, goals for the supervision, and strategies to meet those goals.
• Complete an application for an ALC license.
• Pay the $200 application fee.

In order to progress from an ALC to LPC, candidates must:

• Complete 3,000 hours of supervised work experience, Of those 3,000 hours, 2,250 hours must be direct service hours and 750 of indirect service hours. All hours must be under the supervision of a supervising counselor.
• Pass a national counselor exam such as the NCE.
• Submit three recommendations, two from supervisors from the work experience.
• Complete and submit an application to the ABEC board.
• Pay $200 application fee

If graduate coursework beyond the master’s is completed, candidates may subtract 1,000 hours of supervised work experience for every 15 graduate semester hours or 22.5 quarter hours of coursework directly related to counseling. (A minimum of 1,000 hours of work experience is required, regardless of the number of credits earned.)

In Alabama, ALC or LPC licenses expire every two years. In order to renew a license, counselors must:

• Complete continuing education units through approved providers such as the NBCC or CRCC. ALCs must complete 10 hours, two of which must be in ethics, and LPCs must complete 40, six of which must be in ethics.
• Pay a $300 renewal fee

There are three primary methods of obtaining certification as a school counselor in Alabama.

The first is through an Interim Employment Certificate (IEC). Prospective counselors who hold an Alabama Professional Educator or Professional Leadership Certificate may apply through this route. The IEC eligibility requirements of this pathway include:

• An FBI background check
• Unconditional enrollment in a CACREP-accredited program
• A work assignment and a mentor
• A completed application
• $30 application fee
• Passing score on relevant Praxis exams

Once the degree program has been completed while holding an IEC and the candidate has passed the NEC exam, they will be issued a certification as a school counselor.

The second path is for those who already hold a degree from a CACREP-accredited program. These candidates must:

• Submit a complete application
• Pay $30 application fee
• Provide official transcripts demonstrating a master’s degree or higher in school counseling from a CACREP-accredited program
• Pass an FBI background check
• Pass the NCE exam
• Pass the relevant Praxis exams

The third path is for candidates who hold a School Counseling National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) certificate. These applicants must:

• Hold the Early Childhood through Young Adulthood School Counseling certificate and provide verification
• Submit a complete application
• Pay $30 application fee
• Provide official transcripts demonstrating a master’s degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution
• Pass an FBI background check
• Two years of full-time work experience as a school counselor
• Pass the relevant Praxis exams

IECs are valid for one year. To renew candidates must provide proof of working towards degree completion, submit an application, and pay a $30 renewal fee.

All other teaching licenses issued in Alabama are valid for five years. To renew, counselors must complete a renewal application, pay a $30 application fee, and meet one of the following requirements:

• Three years of full-time professional educational work experience and 50 hours of allowable professional development
• Three years of full-time professional educational work experience and three semester hours of allowable credit
• Three semester hours of allowable credit and 50 hours of allowable professional development
• Six semester hours of allowable credit
• 100 hours of allowable professional development
• Earn a Certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS)

Alabama Alcohol & Drug Abuse Association (AADAA)

Alabama Association of Addiction Counselor Certification Board (AAAC)

There are two certification bodies for substance abuse counselors in Alabama: the Alabama Alcohol & Drug Abuse Association (AADAA) and the Alabama Association of Addiction Counselor Certification Board (AAACCB).

Credentials issued by the AADAA include: Associate Addiction Professional (AAP), Certified Adolescent Alcohol & Drug Abuse Professional (CAADP), Alcohol Drug Counselor (ADC), Advanced Alcohol Drug Counselor (AADC). Additional certification in criminal justice, prevention, and supervision can be earned through IC&RC examinations and relevant work experience.

Eligibility requirements for an AAP certification include:

• 2,000 hours of work experience, including 150 supervision hours
• 140 hours of education related to the four domains of substance abuse counseling, including four hours of HIV/AIDS and six hours of ethics
• Passing score on state written exam
• Signed code of ethics
• Completed supervision form and three colleague forms
• A completed application
• $175 exam fee, $95 Counselor Certification Kit, and $250 application fee

CAADP certification candidates must:

• Submit a portfolio of work experience
• Have 6,000 hours of work experience (a bachelor’s can substitute for 2,000 hours of experience and a master’s can substitute for 4,000)
• Complete 300 hours of supervision in four different domains
• Complete 300 hours of education and training (six hours must be in ethics and four in HIV/AIDS)
• Send three colleague evaluations
• Complete supervisor evaluation
• Pass state-level written exam
• Pay $350 exam fee, $95 Counselor Certification Kit, and $250 application fee
• Submit a completed application

ADC certification candidates must:

• Submit a portfolio of work experience
• Have 6,000 hours of work experience (a bachelor’s can substitute for 2,000 hours of experience and a master’s can substitute for 4,000)
• Complete 300 hours of supervision in four different domains
• Complete 300 hours of education and training (six hours must be in ethics and four in HIV/AIDS)
• Send three colleague evaluations
• Complete supervisor evaluation
• Pass IC&RC written exam
• Pay $350 exam fee, $95 Counselor Certification Kit, and $250 application fee
• Submit a completed application

AADC certification candidates must:

• Have 2,000 hours of AADC related supervised work experience
• Have a master’s degree in a related field and 180 hours of education specific to AADC (six hours must be in ethics)
• Pass the IC&RC AADC exam
• Pay $350 exam fee, $95 Counselor Certification Kit, and $250 application fee
• Submit a completed application

The AAAC certifies both Alcohol and Drug Counselors (ADC) and Senior Alcohol and Drug Counselors (SADC).

Certification for ADC requires:

• Current NAADAC membership
• Two years of work experience in the Substance Use Disorder field
• 60 hours of continuing education units in Substance Use Disorder field
• Four qualifying application points through education or work experience
• Six hours of continuing education units in ethics and HIV/AIDS in the past five years
• A completed application
• Three competency evaluation forms from supervisors or references
• Passing score on the NCAC Level I exam
• A$150 fee

For SADC certification requirements, contact the AAAC board.

The AADAA requires annual membership renewals.

In addition to an application and fee, certificate holders must submit 20 hours of continuing education units.

The AAACCB requires it’s certification-holders to renew every two years.

Renewals must include 50 hours of continuing education, a $100 recertification fee, and current NAADAC membership.

Alabama Board of Examiners in Counseling (ABEC)

Rehabilitation counselors in Alabama must fulfill the requirements to become Associate Licensed Counselors (ALCs) or Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC).

To be licensed as an ALC, candidates must:

• Have completed a master’s degree from a CACREP or CORE accredited school of at least 48 semester hours or 72 quarter hours. The program must include a 100-hour practicum, 40 of those hours must be direct client contact as well as one hour of direct supervision and 1.5 hours of group supervision per week, and a 600-hour internship with 240 hours of direct client contact along with 2.5 hours of supervision a week and at least one hour of individual supervision per week.
• Submit three letters of recommendation, two of which must be from supervisors.
• Provide official school transcripts to the ABEC board.
• Submit a proposed plan of supervision for work experience including names of supervising counselors, goals for the supervision, and strategies to meet those goals.
• Complete an application for an ALC license.
• Pay the $200 application fee.

In order to progress from an ALC to LPC, candidates must:

• Complete 3,000 hours of supervised work experience, Of those 3,000 hours, 2,250 hours must be direct service hours and 750 of indirect service hours. All hours must be under the supervision of a supervising counselor.
• Pass a national counselor exam such as the NCE.
• Submit three recommendations, two from supervisors from the work experience.
• Complete and submit an application to the ABEC board.
• Pay $200 application fee

If graduate coursework beyond the master’s is completed, candidates may subtract 1,000 hours of supervised work experience for every 15 graduate semester hours or 22.5 quarter hours of coursework directly related to counseling. (A minimum of 1,000 hours of work experience is required, regardless of the number of credits earned.)

In Alabama, ALC or LPC licenses expire every two years. In order to renew a license, counselors must:

• Complete continuing education units through approved providers such as the NBCC or CRCC. ALCs must complete 10 hours, two of which must be in ethics, and LPCs must complete 40, six of which must be in ethics.
• Pay a $300 renewal fee

ABA therapists in Alabama must obtain either a Licensed Behavior Analyst or Licensed Assistant Behavior Analyst license.

The requirements to earn a Licensed Assistant Behavior Analyst license include:

• Submitting a completed and notarized application
• Completing proof of supervision form
• Paying $25 application fee, $43.50 background check fee, and $100 licensure fee
• Completing a background check
• Holding BCaBA (Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analyst) certification

Candidates for a Licensed Behavior Analyst license must:

• Submit a completed and notarized application
• Pay $25 application fee, $43.50 background check fee, and $150 licensure fee
• Complete a background check
• Hold BCBA certification

Renewals for ABA therapists in Alabama are required every two years. Licenses expire during the second year on December 31st.

To renew, therapists must:

• Submit a completed application
• Provide proof of current BACB certification
• Pay $150 renewal fee for Licensed Behavior Analysts and $100 fee for Assistants

The Alabama Board of Examiners in Marriage and Family Therapy issues Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT), Marriage and Family Therapy Intern (MFT Intern), and Marriage and Family Therapy Associate (MFTA) licenses.

MFT Intern licenses are for students who have yet to graduate or graduates who have not completed their internship or practicum. These candidates must:

• Submit a completed application
• Pay $150 application fee
• Be a current student of a marriage and family therapy graduate program or graduate of a marriage and family therapy graduate program
• Provide proof of student status or official transcripts (if already graduated)
• Submit a Supervision Agreement Form for the supervised clinical practicum or internship
• Provide two references from most recent MFT supervisors

MFTAs must meet the requirements for MFT intern licenses, as well as do the following:

• Complete a master’s or doctorate in marriage and family therapy that included at least a 12-month internship (graduates of a COAMFTE or CACREP-MCFC accredited programs do not have to supply coursework verification)
• Pay $150 application fee and $200 license fee
• Submit a completed application
• Complete the Supervision Agreement Form and attach a supervisory contract

LMFTs must meet all the requirements for MFTAs, as well as:

• Pay $150 application fee and $325 license fee
• Submit a completed application
• Complete the Professional Employment form
• Pass the AMFTRB Exam
• Complete two years of supervised work experience, including 1,000 hours of direct client contact and 200 hours of supervision, of which 100 hours must be individual supervision

All marriage and family therapist licenses issued in Alabama must be renewed every two years. Intern licenses cost $150 to renew; associate licenses cost $200; and full LMFT licenses cost $325.

Continuing education hours are required for all licenses, as well. Interns must complete ten hours per renewal cycle with three hours being in clinical workshops, three hours in diagnosis and treatment, and three hours in ethics. Current enrollment in a COAMFTE or CACREP-MCFC accredited program meets continuing education requirements for interns.

Associates must complete 20 hours of continuing education with five hours being in clinical workshops, three hours in diagnosis and treatment, and three hours in ethics.

LMFTs must complete 40 hours of continuing education with ten hours being in clinical workshops, six hours in diagnosis and treatment, and six hours in ethics.

Child therapists in Alabama must fulfill the requirements to become Associate Licensed Counselors (ALCs) or Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC).

To be licensed as an ALC, candidates must:

• Have completed a master’s degree from a CACREP or CORE accredited school of at least 48 semester hours or 72 quarter hours. The program must include a 100-hour practicum, 40 of those hours must be direct client contact as well as one hour of direct supervision and 1.5 hours of group supervision per week, and a 600-hour internship with 240 hours of direct client contact along with 2.5 hours of supervision a week and at least one hour of individual supervision per week.
• Submit three letters of recommendation, two of which must be from supervisors.
• Provide official school transcripts to the ABEC board.
• Submit a proposed plan of supervision for work experience including names of supervising counselors, goals for the supervision, and strategies to meet those goals.
• Complete an application for an ALC license.
• Pay the $200 application fee.

In order to progress from an ALC to LPC, candidates must:

• Complete 3,000 hours of supervised work experience, Of those 3,000 hours, 2,250 hours must be direct service hours and 750 of indirect service hours. All hours must be under the supervision of a supervising counselor.
• Pass a national counselor exam such as the NCE.
• Submit three recommendations, two from supervisors from the work experience.
• Complete and submit an application to the ABEC board.
• Pay $200 application fee

If graduate coursework beyond the master’s is completed, candidates may subtract 1,000 hours of supervised work experience for every 15 graduate semester hours or 22.5 quarter hours of coursework directly related to counseling. (A minimum of 1,000 hours of work experience is required, regardless of the number of credits earned.)

In Alabama, ALC or LPC licenses expire every two years. In order to renew a license, counselors must:

• Complete continuing education units through approved providers such as the NBCC or CRCC. ALCs must complete 10 hours, two of which must be in ethics, and LPCs must complete 40, six of which must be in ethics.
• Pay a $300 renewal fee