Counseling Degrees & Licenses in Oregon

Oregon licenses both Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC) and Registered Interns.

To become a Registered Intern in Oregon, candidates must:

• Graduate from a CACREP or CORE accredited master’s program or from a regionally accredited master’s program that meets programmatic requirements. Two semester hours (or three quarter hours) must be in the diagnosis of mental disorder.
• Submit a completed application and associated forms
• Pass either the NCE, NCMHCE, or the CRC exam
• Pass the Oregon Law and Rules Examination
• Submit a Professional Disclosure Statement
• Complete a criminal background check
• Submit a Supervised Clinical Experience Plan Form
• Pay a $175 application fee and $125 initial license fee

To become an LPC, candidates must meet the above requirements as well as:

• Complete three years of supervised work experience, including 2,400 hours of supervised direct client contact. These hours must be completed in an approved internship. They must be finished within five years of becoming a registered intern. Also, 400 hours may be completed as part of a degree program.
• Report supervised work experience hours every six months

Renewals in Oregon for LPCs and Registered Interns are required annually.

For LPCs, renewals are due by the last date of the applicant’s birth month. For Interns, renewals happen on the first day of the month of their initial licensure.

To renew, counselors must:

• Apply online
• Pay the $167 fee for LPCs and $120 for registered interns
• Update the Professional Disclosure Statement
• Complete the Health Care Workforce Data Questionnaire
• Complete 40 hours of continuing education, including six hours of ethics and four hours of cultural competency

The Oregon Teaching Standards and Practices Commission issues Preliminary School Counselor and Professional School Counselor licenses.

The requirements for a preliminary license are:

• Have a master’s degree or higher in counseling, education, or related behavioral sciences from a regionally accredited institution
• Complete an initial graduate program in school counseling at an institution approved by the commission
• Pay $182 application fee
• Submit a completed application
• Pass a test of knowledge of U.S. and Oregon civil rights laws and professional ethics
• Pass a background check

Candidates for a professional license must meet the requirement for a preliminary license, as well as:

• Have five years of experience as a school counselor
• Demonstrate minimum competencies by either completing an advanced program in counseling of at least six semester credits (including a practicum) or undergoing a formal validation of all advanced counseling competencies through assessment by an approved professional development program or completing a doctoral degree in counseling or a related field

Preliminary School Counselor licenses issued in Oregon must be renewed every three years, while Professional Licenses must be renewed every five. Both licenses cost $182 to renew.

Preliminary licensees must complete 75 hours of professional development units and professional licensees must complete 125.

School counselors must report on professional development completed related to suicide prevention, treatment, and management.

Mental Health & Addiction Certification Board of Oregon (MHACBO)

The Mental Health & Addiction Certification Board of Oregon (MHACBO) certifies Certified Alcohol Drug Counselors (CADC) at three levels.

CADC I candidates must:

• Graduate from high school or have an equivalency
• Complete 150 education hours in specific topic areas including ethics, group counseling, alcohol and drugs of abuse pharmacology, and HIV/AIDS
• Complete 1,000 hours of supervised work experience in addiction counselor competencies
• Sign and date the code of conduct
• Pass the NCAC I exam from NAADAC
• Submit a completed application
• Pay the $50 application fee and $220 testing fee

If the applicant has had a substance abuse disorder, they must submit a letter verifying they have been in recovery for two years or more.

CADC II candidates must:

• Have a bachelor’s degree
• Complete 300 education hours in specific topic areas including ethics, group counseling, alcohol and drugs of abuse pharmacology, and HIV/AIDS
• Complete 4,000 hours of supervised work experience in addiction counselor competencies
• Sign and date the code of conduct
• Pass the NCAC II exam from NAADAC
• Submit a completed application
• Pay the $50 application fee and $220 testing fee
• Pass the written jurisprudence ethics exam

If the applicant has had a substance abuse disorder, they must submit a letter verifying they have been in recovery for three years or more.

CADC III candidates must:

• Have a master’s degree
• Complete 300 education hours in specific topic areas including ethics, group counseling, alcohol and drugs of abuse pharmacology, and HIV/AIDS
• Complete 6,000 hours of supervised work experience in addiction counselor competencies
• Sign and date the code of conduct
• Pass the MAC exam from NAADAC
• Submit a completed application
• Pay the $50 application fee and $220 testing fee
• Pass the written jurisprudence ethics exam

If the applicant has had a substance abuse disorder, they must submit a letter verifying they have been in recovery for three years or more.

Renewals of CADC certifications in Oregon are due every two years. Renewal applications must be submitted two weeks before the certificate’s expiration date and must be accompanied by a $175 fee.

CADCs are required to complete 40 hours of continuing education per renewal cycle. Six of those hours must be in ethics and at least 20 must be in alcohol and drug counseling.

Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists

Rehabilitation counselors in Oregon are licensed as Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC) or Registered Interns.

To become a Registered Intern in Oregon, candidates must:

• Graduate from a CACREP or CORE accredited master’s program or from a regionally accredited master’s program that meets programmatic requirements. Two semester hours (or three quarter hours) must be in the diagnosis of mental disorder.
• Submit a completed application and associated forms
• Pass either the NCE, NCMHCE, or the CRC exam
• Pass the Oregon Law and Rules Examination
• Submit a Professional Disclosure Statement
• Complete a criminal background check
• Submit a Supervised Clinical Experience Plan Form
• Pay a $175 application fee and $125 initial license fee

To become an LPC, candidates must meet the above requirements as well as:

• Complete three years of supervised work experience, including 2,400 hours of supervised direct client contact. These hours must be completed in an approved internship. They must be finished within five years of becoming a registered intern. Also, 400 hours may be completed as part of a degree program.
• Report supervised work experience hours every six months

Renewals in Oregon for LPCs and Registered Interns are required annually.

For LPCs, renewals are due by the last date of the applicant’s birth month. For Interns, renewals happen on the first day of the month of their initial licensure.

To renew, counselors must:

• Apply online
• Pay the $167 fee for LPCs and $120 for registered interns
• Update the Professional Disclosure Statement
• Complete the Health Care Workforce Data Questionnaire
• Complete 40 hours of continuing education, including six hours of ethics and four hours of cultural competency

The Behavior Analysis Regulatory Board (BARB) in Oregon licenses Behavior Analysts and Assistant Behavior Analysts.

Requirements for licensure include

• A completed application
• BCBA or BCaBA certification
• A $150 application fee for a Behavior Analyst license (and $125 fee for an assistant license)
• Proof of supervision if the applicant holds a BCaBA
• Two forms of ID
• A fingerprint criminal records check
• A $200 license fee for a Behavior Analyst license (and $175 fee for an assistant license)

The BARB requires analysts to renew their licenses annually. To renew, applicants must pay a $200 license renewal fee for a Behavior Analyst license and a $175 renewal fee for an assistant license.

Behavior analysts are required to complete 16 hours of continuing education per renewal cycle; one of those hours must be in ethics. Assistants are required to complete 10 hours, and similarly, one of those hours must be in ethics.

The Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists credentials both Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFT) and LMFT Registered Interns.

To become an LMFT registered intern in Oregon, candidates must:

• Graduate from a COAMFTE-accredited master’s program or from a regionally accredited master’s program that meets programmatic requirements
• Submit a completed application and associated forms
• Pass either the AMFTRB exam or the State of California Board of Behavioral Sciences’ Marriage and Family Therapist Written Clinical Examination.
• Pass the Oregon Law and Rules Examination
• Submit a Professional Disclosure Statement
• Complete a criminal background check
• Submit a Supervised Clinical Experience Plan Form
• Pay a $175 application fee and $125 initial license fee

To become a full LMFT, candidates must meet the above requirements, as well as:

• Complete three years of supervised work experience, including 2,400 hours of supervised direct client contact, completed within five years of becoming a registered intern (400 hours may be completed as part of a degree program)
• Report supervised work experience hours every six months

Renewals in Oregon for LMFTs and Registered Interns are required annually. For LMFTs, renewals are due by the last date of the applicant’s birth month. For interns, renewals happen on the first day of the month of their initial licensure.

To renew, counselors must:

• Apply online
• Pay the $167 fee for LMFTs and $120 for registered interns
• Update the Professional Disclosure Statement
• Complete the Health Care Workforce Data Questionnaire
• Complete 40 hours of continuing education, including six hours of ethics and four hours of cultural competency

Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists

Child therapists in Oregon are licensed as Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC) or Registered Interns.

To become a Registered Intern in Oregon, candidates must:

• Graduate from a CACREP or CORE accredited master’s program or from a regionally accredited master’s program that meets programmatic requirements. Two semester hours (or three quarter hours) must be in the diagnosis of mental disorder.
• Submit a completed application and associated forms
• Pass either the NCE, NCMHCE, or the CRC exam
• Pass the Oregon Law and Rules Examination
• Submit a Professional Disclosure Statement
• Complete a criminal background check
• Submit a Supervised Clinical Experience Plan Form
• Pay a $175 application fee and $125 initial license fee

To become an LPC, candidates must meet the above requirements as well as:

• Complete three years of supervised work experience, including 2,400 hours of supervised direct client contact. These hours must be completed in an approved internship. They must be finished within five years of becoming a registered intern. Also, 400 hours may be completed as part of a degree program.
• Report supervised work experience hours every six months

Renewals in Oregon for LPCs and Registered Interns are required annually.

For LPCs, renewals are due by the last date of the applicant’s birth month. For Interns, renewals happen on the first day of the month of their initial licensure.

To renew, counselors must:

• Apply online
• Pay the $167 fee for LPCs and $120 for registered interns
• Update the Professional Disclosure Statement
• Complete the Health Care Workforce Data Questionnaire
• Complete 40 hours of continuing education, including six hours of ethics and four hours of cultural competency