Counseling Degrees & Licenses in Colorado
Counseling Schools Search
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“The opportunity to be alongside and support someone through their suffering is an honorable and sacred role. However, it is important to know that we work with the deepest of pain and suffering and need to be ready to lean into the hard work of how we can best serve others and do the work of our own counseling and therapy.”
Thomas Doroff, PhD, Clinical Mental Health Counseling Professor, Regis University
Counseling degrees and licenses in Colorado will be in high demand in the coming years, as the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts strong growth in all careers related to counseling. According to Mental Health America, Colorado is among the worst states to provide mental health help to those who need it, especially kids. The group compared all 50 states and Washington, D.C., and ranked Colorado 41st.
Also, data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration show that 19.55 percent of Colorado residents are living with some kind of mental illness—the third-highest rate in the country. The 2024 Colorado Health Foundation Pulse Poll also showed that 59 percent of Coloradans reported having experienced mental health strain in the past year, up slightly from 2023.
Despite those dour-sounding statistics, there is access to care in the state: The Mental Health America report ranked Colorado 14th for access overall.
Colorado is not the only state with a need for mental health services. There’s a strong need for all types of counselors in every state, as the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that this career field will grow 13 percent from 2024 to 2034, much faster than the average for all occupations in the same period. The need for counselors, in general, will grow as a growing population seeks mental health counseling. The BLS predicts the job outlook for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors to grow at an even higher rate: 17 percent. Demand for rehabilitation counselors is expected to grow at a rate of 1 percent from 2024 to 2034. On the other hand, the job outlook for marriage and family therapists is expected to grow at a rate of 13 percent in the same period.
In order to earn a counseling license in Colorado, the Colorado State Board of Licensed Professional Counselor Examiners requires that licensees have a master’s degree or higher in professional counseling from a program accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). CACREP certifies programs when they consist of a minimum of 48 graduate semester-hours (or 72 graduate quarter-hours). The Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies has separate boards that certify counselors in the fields of LPC (Licensed Professional Counselors), substance abuse counseling, and marriage and family therapy.
Read on for a few of the many accredited schools offering programs for counseling degrees and licenses in Colorado.
Online Counseling Programs Based in Colorado
Browse a complete listing of online counseling programs in Colorado, ranked by in-state (resident) tuition, from most affordable to least. Out-of-state students should refer to the non-resident tuition numbers.
These numbers reflect the estimated tuition cost of the entire program, calculated by multiplying the published per-credit tuition rate (for the latest academic year) by the total number of credits that must be completed.
Please click on any school of interest for a full-page school profile containing complete program details.
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Meet the Expert: Thomas Doroff, PhD
Dr. Thomas Doroff is a counselor educator and supervisor, licensed professional counselor, somatic experiencing practitioner, and field traumatic. He is a clinical mental health counseling professor at Regis University in Denver, Colorado.
Dr. Doroff’s passion and research focus on somatic trauma recovery and integrative trauma theory. As a private practitioner specializing in trauma recovery and healing and who provides clinical supervision and consultation, he is assisted by Jones, a certified professional therapy dog.
Counselingschools.com: What do you wish the public understood about mental health counselors in Colorado?
Dr. Doroff: Clinical mental health counselors are rigorously trained in accredited programs to serve the public with a wide range of mental health needs. We have one of the largest numbers of mental health providers in the state of Colorado.
Synonymous with therapist, or the term psychotherapy, counseling is an established practice to help individuals, couples, and families to restore health, reduce stressors, recover from, and manage a variety of mental health diagnoses such as depression, anxiety, as well as trauma and loss.
Counselingschools.com: What advice would you give to aspiring mental health counseling students in Colorado?
Dr. Doroff: It is important to come into this field for the right reasons. The opportunity to be alongside and support someone through their suffering is an honorable and sacred role. However, it is important to know that we work with the deepest of pain and suffering and need to be ready to lean into the hard work of how we can best serve others and do the work of our own counseling and therapy. We cannot take others into places we are unwilling to go. Counselor, heal thyself.
Traditional Counseling Degree Programs in Colorado
Adams State University – Department of Counselor Education
Adams State University is a public university that was founded in 1921 as a teacher’s college. Adams State’s Department of Counselor Education offers a master of arts in counseling with a focus on clinical mental health and school counseling. Both programs are offered online and on campus. The online program requires two weeklong summer residencies on campus, which take place in June. The MA degree in counseling meets the state academic requirements for licensure as a school counselor and/or a Licensed Professional Counselor in Colorado.
- Location: Alamosa, Colorado
- Duration: 60 credits
- Accreditation: CACREP
Colorado Christian University – School of Counseling
Colorado Christian University is a private Christian university that dates back to 1914. CCU’s master of arts in clinical mental health counseling is nationally accredited by CACREP. Its curriculum is based on a Christian worldview that integrates Christian values into counseling principles.
Students can choose to emphasize their studies in either marriage and family therapy or substance use disorders. Each emphasis adds nine credits to the program requirements.
Upon completion of the program, students will be prepared to take the National Counselor Exam, which is the clinical mental health licensure exam for the state of Colorado and many other states. For counseling program core coursework, students may enroll in either the online or on-campus program; all specialization courses are 100 percent online. There is a required residency for online students.
CCU also offers a master’s in school counseling as a dual track combining clinical mental health counseling and school counseling. Additionally, CCU provides a bachelor’s to master’s dual degree option, where students can begin taking master’s level counseling courses while completing their bachelor’s degree in psychology.
- Location: Lakewood, Colorado
- Duration: 60 credits, clinical mental health counseling and school counseling; 69 credits for either specialization in marriage and family therapy or substance use disorders
- Accreditation: CACREP
Colorado State University – Department of Psychology
Colorado State University is a public university that is highly active in research programs. The school’s psychology department offers a master of arts in 60-credit counseling program that includes 48 core counseling curriculum credits, a clinical practicum (100 hours), an internship (600 hours), and specialization-specific courses.
Students choose from a counseling, clinical mental health counseling, or school counseling concentration, each comprising 60 semester credit-hours. Upon graduation, students will be eligible for licensure and eligible to become a National Certified Counselor (NCC).
- Location: Fort Collins, Colorado
- Duration: 60 credits
- Accreditation: CACREP
Denver Seminary – Counseling Department
Denver Seminary is a private, Evangelical Christian seminary with a campus in Littleton, Colorado, and an online global campus for several of its degree programs (but not counseling at this time). The school’s master of arts in counseling allows for a counseling degree with a concentration in clinical mental health counseling or school counseling, or a dual concentration in clinical mental health and school counseling. The school also offers a counseling ministries degree which is not a licensure track program.
The MA in counseling (clinical mental health concentration) degree is CACREP-accredited and prepares students for counseling licensure in the state of Colorado as well as for the National Counselor Exam. The school counseling degree is designed to train school counselors to integrate Christian faith and school counseling education in K-12 school settings, as well as prepare them to meet requirements for licensure and endorsement in the state of Colorado.
The dual concentration degree is designed to train counselors to integrate Christian faith, clinical mental health training, and school counseling education in various clinical and school-based settings. The dual concentration prepares students for counseling licensure and school counseling licensure and endorsement in the state of Colorado. Denver Seminary was the first seminary to receive Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Education Programs (CACREP) accreditation for its counseling program, which the school received in 1997.
- Location: Littleton, Colorado, with an extension campus in Washington, D.C.
- Duration: Clinical mental health counseling and school counseling: 64 credits total with 60 credits of counseling; clinical mental health and school counseling (dual concentration): 76 credits total
- Accreditation: CACREP
Regis University – Counseling Department
Regis University is a private Jesuit university that was founded in 1877. The school’s master of arts in clinical mental health counseling combines theoretical knowledge, practical counseling skills, and professional leadership abilities. Specialized certifications are offered in areas such as counseling children and adolescents, marriage and family therapy, and depth psychotherapy, which refers to the process of bringing to light parts of the self that are unconscious and may be understood through dreams and archetypes.
Completion of the program qualifies students to meet the requirements for Colorado Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC). Evening classes are taught at the Thornton (Denver) campus, with select courses offered on weekends.
In addition to the certificate, Regis also offers a 60-credit master of arts in marriage and family therapy, designed to help students develop a strong foundational knowledge of best practices and therapeutic skills in marriage and family therapy. The program meets Colorado’s academic requirements for licensure as an MFT.
- Location: Denver, Colorado
- Duration: 60 credits
- Accreditation: CACREP; the marriage and family therapy program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE)
University of Colorado at Colorado Springs – College of Education
The University of Colorado Colorado Springs is a public research university founded in 1902. It is one of four campuses that make up the University of Colorado system. The school offers two 60-credit counseling degree programs through its College of Education: clinical mental health counseling and school counseling.
The clinical mental health counseling program meets the academic requirements for licensure as a professional counselor (LPC) in Colorado to practice psychotherapy. In addition to completing the master’s degree, applicants for the professional counselor license must complete appropriate post-master’s degree supervised experiences and pass a written examination.
Students graduating from the CMHC degree program will be eligible to take the National Certified Counselor exam during their last semester in the program. The school counselor program meets the licensure requirements of the Colorado Department of Education (CDE). School counselor students will complete the same foundational coursework as the CMHC students and may be eligible for licensure as a Colorado LPC. Teaching experience is not a requirement for the Colorado school counselor license.
- Location: Colorado Springs, Colorado
- Duration: 60 semester-hours
- Accreditation: CACREP
University of Colorado at Denver – School of Education & Human Development
The University of Colorado at Denver offers three master of arts in counseling degrees through its School of Education & Human Development: couple and family counseling/therapy, clinical mental health, and school counseling.
All programs offer on-campus classes with some online options. The admission process requires students to attend a half-day interview virtually or at the Denver campus. During this interview, applicants will be oriented to the program and participate in small and large group interviews and activities. The final selection of the applicants will be based on their performance in the interview.
- Location: Denver, Colorado
- Duration: 63 credits for clinical mental health and school counseling; 54 credits for couple and family therapy
- Accreditation: CACREP, Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE)
University of Northern Colorado – College of Education and Behavioral Sciences
The University of Northern Colorado is a public university that was founded in 1889. It has a long history in teacher education.
The school’s rehabilitation counseling master of arts is considered one of the top programs of its kind in the United States. The U.S. Department of Education recently awarded UNC a five-year, $938,705 federal grant to train rehabilitation counselors at the master’s level. Students in this program will take part in a supervised practicum in the school’s own Rehabilitation Counseling Clinic. Students will complete 600 clock hours of internship, including 240 hours in direct service to people with disabilities. The rehabilitation counseling MA is designed for working students, with about half of the courses available online, with the other half offered on campus in the late afternoon and evening. On-campus courses are presented in three-hour blocks, so students need only come to campus once a week. Elective courses can be taken either online or on campus.
The school’s master of arts in clinical mental health counseling offers school counseling or marriage, couple, and family counseling specializations. The Greeley Campus includes the school’s state-of-the-art Psychological Services Clinic, which provides a more traditional graduate school experience in a semester-long format. This program is also offered at the school’s Denver Center, where classes are delivered in an intensive weekend format designed for working professionals.
The master’s degree in marriage, couples, and family counseling/therapy program meets the educational requirements for licensure as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT).
- Location: Greeley, Colorado
- Duration: Rehabilitation counseling, 60 credits; the clinical mental health counseling degree requires 60 to 72 credits; school counseling requires 63 to 75 credits; marriage, couple, and family counseling requires 66 to 75 credits
- Accreditation: CACREP
How Much Do Counselors Make in Colorado?
These numbers represent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics from May 2024—the latest data available as of December 2025.
Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors
| United States | Colorado | |
|---|---|---|
| Number employed | 342,350 | 6,220 |
| Average annual salary (mean) | $71,520 | $68,400 |
| 10th percentile | $43,580 | $48,440 |
| 50th percentile (median) | $65,140 | $63,900 |
| 90th percentile | $105,870 | $96,610 |
Marriage and Family Therapists
| United States | Colorado | |
|---|---|---|
| Number employed | 65,870 | 810 |
| Average annual salary (mean) | $72,720 | $89,280 |
| 10th percentile | $42,610 | $43,750 |
| 50th percentile (median) | $63,780 | $69,990 |
| 90th percentile | $111,610 | $126,700 |
Rehabilitation Counselors
| United States | Colorado | |
|---|---|---|
| Number employed | 88,930 | 930 |
| Average annual salary (mean) | $51,260 | $54,840 |
| 10th percentile | $34,480 | $37,960 |
| 50th percentile (median) | $46,110 | $50,290 |
| 90th percentile | $77,200 | $78,160 |
Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors
| United States | Colorado | |
|---|---|---|
| Number employed | 440,380 | 13,670 |
| Average annual salary (mean) | $65,100 | $66,280 |
| 10th percentile | $39,090 | $40,570 |
| 50th percentile (median) | $59,190 | $59,190 |
| 90th percentile | $98,210 | $98,030 |
All Other Counselors
| United States | Colorado | |
|---|---|---|
| Number employed | 33,340 | 360 |
| Average annual salary (mean) | $58,070 | $70,260 |
| 10th percentile | $36,160 | $48,270 |
| 50th percentile (median) | $49,830 | $68,310 |
| 90th percentile | $91,420 | $94,370 |
Counseling Professional Associations & Resources in Colorado
- Colorado Counseling Association (CCA)
- Colorado School Counselor Association (CSCA)
- Colorado Career Development Association (CCDA)
- Colorado Psychological Association (CPA)
- Colorado Association of Addiction Professionals (CAAP)
- Colorado Association for Play Therapy (CAPT)
- Occupational Therapy Association of Colorado (OTAC)
- Colorado Association of Psychotherapists (CAP)
- Colorado Health Network (CHN)
- Transgender Center of the Rockies (TCR)
- Animal Assisted Therapy Programs of Colorado (CAAT)
- Colorado Deaf Counseling Center (CDCC)
- Denver Health LGBTQ+ Health Services
- Jewish Family Services (JFS) of Colorado
Mental Health Counseling Licenses in Colorado
| Licensing Authority | Eligibility & Details | Renewal Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Colorado State Board of Licensed Professional Counselor Examiners |
Colorado credentials Licensed Professional Counselor Candidates (LPCCs) and Licensed Professional Counselors (LPCs). The LPCC is a temporary license, and the requirements are:
The LPCC license is good for four years. To apply for the LPC licensure, candidates must:
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Counseling licenses in Colorado are valid for two years, and can be renewed online. Licenses expire on August 31st of odd-numbered years. LPCs are required to demonstrate Continuing Professional Competency (CPC) by:
Renewal applications and applicable fees must be submitted online. |
Kimmy Gustafson
WriterAt CounselingSchools.com, Kimmy Gustafson’s expertly crafted articles delve into the world of counseling and mental health, providing valuable insights and guidance to readers since 2020. In addition to feature pieces and interviews, she keeps the state licensing tables current. Kimmy has been a freelance writer for more than a decade, writing hundreds of articles on a wide variety of topics such as startups, nonprofits, healthcare, kiteboarding, the outdoors, and higher education. She is passionate about seeing the world and has traveled to over 27 countries. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Oregon. When not working, she can be found outdoors, parenting, kiteboarding, or cooking.
Vanessa Salvia
WriterVanessa Salvia is an Oregon-based freelance writer and editor with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry. As fun as rigorous studies in math and science were, Vanessa took an independent path and developed a prolific career covering lifestyle and healthcare topics for magazines and newspapers, important industries such as concrete construction and building waterproofing, and even hard science. You can get in touch at Sage Media and Marketing.