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By University HQ Staff Writers
Edited by Evelyn Keener
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What is a Mental Health Counselor?

Rhode Island is small. It occupies a coastal corner in New England and has a population that rivals a mid-sized city. However, it's an important part of the New England economy, with some calling it the financial capital of New England. While finance and related industries do rank high in the Rhode Island economy, the leading economic driver is found in real estate leases, rentals, and sales. This sector brings the small state nearly $9 billion in annual revenues.

Close behind real estate is the economic sector that includes educational services, healthcare, and social assistance. These necessary services help the Rhode Island economy with $8 billion in annual revenues. Close behind is the sector known as professional and business services.  This area spans many individual industries such as landscaping, waste removal, property management, management services, and commercial laboratories. Professional and business services brings Rhode Island $7.8 billion in annual revenues and ranks 42nd nationwide.

Interestingly, mental health counseling seems to fit into two of Rhode Island's top industrial sectors. Naturally, it's a significant part of the #2 economic sector, which includes education and healthcare, but it may also be a part of the 3rd on the list, professional and business services. That's because many counselors work for business services such as Employee Assistance Programs; counselors in this type of practice field phone calls from employees who are having a difficult time.

Rhode Island's legislature allocates ample budgets to the state's colleges and universities who train tomorrow's mental health counseling professionals. When the state has a strong mental health safety net, every corner of the state benefits. After all, top mental health results in top employees, parents, and children.

Mental health counselors are healthcare professionals who help their patients or clients achieve a better overall psychological state. They do so by employing the methods of psychotherapy, the talk therapy approach pioneered by Sigmund Freud, along with a variety of other methods, like behavior therapy and more. Naturally, counseling methods and best practices have evolved since Freud's day, but the fundamentals of talk therapy remain.

To be able to legally conduct psychotherapy, mental health counselors need the proper credentials. This means a master’s degree, many hours in practicums, and passage of a rigorous professional examination. Once licensed by Rhode Island, mental health counselors can open independent practices where they are free to work with clients. While most mental health counselors work in this entrepreneurial fashion, many also work as employees of health systems – including in rehabilitation centers or employee assistance programs. Some also join forces with other counselors in situations where they split rent on a suite of offices and collectively pay an administrative support person.

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Mental Health Counseling Education in Rhode Island

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Online Associates (AS)

An associate mental health counseling degree is one that provides a student with the fundamentals of their eventual profession. While the degree is not sufficient to earn state licensure, many do use their associate degree to start work in the mental health field. Addiction counselors in some states only require an associate degree with appropriate coursework and supervised hours. However, they will only be licensed to work with groups, not individuals.

This approach may be highly beneficial for a student. Those who start work in the mental healthcare field with an entry-level credential can gain greater insights into the processes involved. In fact, some may see the realities of the field and decide to shift to another field, such as research psychology. Those who are inspired by their first entry-level positions may use their associate counseling degree to enroll in a bachelor’s counseling program and then a master’s mental health counseling degree thereafter.

Online Bachelors (BS)

A four-year bachelor’s mental health counseling degree is a strong step toward a career in mental healthcare. The degree will not be sufficient to help a student work as an independent mental healthcare professional, nor enough to qualify a person to conduct one-on-one psychotherapy. Nevertheless, a four-year bachelor’s mental health counseling degree is a great step toward full licensure and a credential that can earn you a job in a variety of industries.

In fact, some decide to stop their pursuit of a mental healthcare career and use their bachelor’s degree to start a career in some other field. After all, the psychology courses are good training in statistics, which can help launch a career in analytical marketing. Others may take their knowledge of human behavior into fields such as human resources, sales, or management. Those who retain their passion to work in mental healthcare can use their bachelor’s mental health counseling degree to enroll in a master’s mental health counseling degree program.

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Online Masters (MS)

Counseling careers take off with a master’s clinical mental health counseling degree. This is a required credential for anyone wanting to conduct one-on-one psychotherapy with their clients. Rhode Island has other qualifications for counseling licensure candidates, such as an experience requirement and successful passage of an exam. Nevertheless, a master’s counseling or clinical psychology degree is often considered the major hurdle on the road to licensure.

Once a professional has earned their master’s degree and state licensure, they can then opt to continue on and earn a PhD. They can also use their degree to work as school counselors, though Rhode Island may have more requirements, such as satisfactory scores on a PRAXIS exam. Counselors with a master’s degree can also teach in their local college, though they are unlikely to land a full-time, tenure track position. Furthermore, professionals with a master’s mental health counseling degree can earn additional credentials to bolster their counseling practices. Graduate students can also earn specializations at this level such as clinical mental health counseling, rehabilitation counseling, and related educational programs that can prepare you for clinical practice with your graduate degree.

Read the UniversityHQ National Online Rankings for an MS in mental health counseling

Online Doctorate (PhD)

A doctorate degree is the peak degree for a counseling professional. With a PhD, a counselor can use the title Psychologist. These credentials enable them to charge insurers more per hour. Plus, a PhD is highly regarded in the counseling community and can lead the way to publishing articles and books. Psychologists also are known to conduct lecture series, which can count toward their licensure renewal in addition to providing a bit of extra income.

Counselors with a PhD can also pursue work in academia. A doctorate can qualify a professional for a full-time, tenure track position in a local university or community college. There are also many psychologists who transition from their private practices into administrative positions with mental health hospitals or clinics, including alcohol and drug rehabilitation facilities. Further, each psychologist can form a practice based on the sorts of patients that interest them the most.

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Become a Mental Health Counselor in Rhode Island

Some students in Rhode Island may be interested in working as mental health counselors. They should know that they are in for a lot of hard work, but also that their career path can also bring them many rewards. However, they still need to know how to become a mental health counselor in Rhode Island.

The first step toward a career in mental health counseling is a bachelor’s degree in psychology. This degree will introduce students to the prevailing theories in the field while also introducing them to research methods. Students who are still passionate about becoming counselors should start applying to mental health counseling degree programs in their final year of their undergraduate training.

Their master’s mental health counseling degree program should be fully accredited by CACREP and acknowledged by the Rhode Island Secretary of State. This will ensure that their work will be accepted as part of licensure application. Students will also be instructed by their program leaders as to how to best satisfy the state's other requirements.

Those requirements include 60 semester, or 90 quarter hours, in a graduate-level counseling degree program. During this time, students should complete an internship or practicum in counseling psychology. Students should also be aware that they will need to continue their internship experience after graduation.

Rhode Island requires that students complete 2,000 hours of direct client contact under close supervision by a licensed supervisor. They also need to show 100 hours of casework, spread out over the course of two years. This casework should also be closely supervised by a licensed professional.

Students are also asked to be of high moral character. Those who may have had legal difficulties in the past may be asked to account for those incidents. There may be those whose infractions are simply too much for the Board. However, students with these problems may be able to appeal and perhaps take actions to help prove their reformed character.

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Finally, students will need to pass a professional exam from the National Clinical Mental Health Counselor Examination of the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC). The Board may accept other exam scores, provided the applicant appeals for such consideration.

Careers for Mental Health Counseling Graduates

  • Psychiatric Aides
    This is not often a licensed position, though California requires credentials for its psychiatric aides. These workers assist psychiatric nurses and doctors with vital tasks. For example, they help administer medications, patient transportation, and administer patient restraints.
  • Mental Health Counselor
    A mental health counselor is a licensed professional who conducts psychotherapy with individual clients. They may also work with groups in a therapeutic setting, and this may include family counseling. Licensure requires at least a master’s mental health counseling degree, if not a doctorate.
  • Clinical Supervisor
    This is a licensed position that involves supervising mental health counselors as they work toward licensure. Rhode Island expects that supervisors have completed coursework in supervision or that they have been deemed certified supervisors by the National Clinical Mental Health Counselor Examination of the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC).
  • Social Worker (LCSW)
    Social workers can conduct psychotherapy with individual clients if they are licensed by their state. Criteria for state licensure includes successful passage of a professional examination, a master’s degree, and completion of a period of supervised work in the field. Social workers often go into private practice, but they can also take various administrative or social work positions for government or non-profit social services agencies.
  • Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor
    These psychology professionals have completed at least a master’s mental health counseling degree. Some counselors focus on marriage and family therapy, adolescent counseling, or art therapy, to name a few options. All licensed counselors must renew their credentials using continuing education credits and other required items.
  • Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA)
    This is an entry-level nursing position that has minimal requirements for candidates. CNAs typically help Licensed Practical Nurses, Registered Nurses, and doctors by taking care of patient needs. CNAs often use their experience as a steppingstone to taking more responsibility as a nurse or may move into an education for psychiatric care.
  • Case Manager
    This is a social work profession that seeks to help clients and patients access the resources they need the most. Case managers help their clients stay on track if they are trying to satisfy some legal or other set of criteria. They also coordinate with service providers, such as nurses or mental health counselors, to take care of those on their roster.
  • Registered Nurse
    These healthcare professionals have earned licensure for one of the top nursing positions. RNs may work as generalists or they might earn a special certification to work with specific parts of the healthcare spectrum - such as pediatrics, surgery, or hospice care - to name a few options. RNs who earn a master’s degree can work as nurse practitioners and intensify the scope of their practice.
  • Psychiatrist
    This is a mental healthcare profession that requires full medical training. These doctors work in a psychiatry residency to earn their credentials and practice as psychiatrists. Psychiatrists are licensed to conduct counseling sessions, but they can also prescribe medications to the patients that need such drugs.
    • Mental Health Program Manager
    • Mental Health Technician
    • Director of Outpatient Services
    • Licensed Addiction Counselor
    • Substance Abuse Counselor
    • Rehabilitation Counselor
    • Residential Program Director
    • Psychologist
    • Marriage and Family Therapist
    • School Counselor
    • Career Counselor
    • Chief Operating Officer (Healthcare)
    • CEO
    • Chief Executives
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