How to become a Counselor in Maine

Below are basic guidelines for those wishing to earn their counseling certification in Maine. Most of these requirements, such as earning your Master’s degree, completing 3200 hours of supervised experience and passing the NCE examination, are likely to continue to be mandatory in the Maine counseling licensure process. However, it is wise to contact the Maine Professional and Financial Regulation Office of Licensing and Registration at (207) 624-8674 to make sure you are on the right track.

I’m a High School Graduate

As a high school graduate, this is a great time for you to be doing research on Maine counseling licensure. If you’re serious about becoming a counselor, it’s important to learn how you can enroll in an associate degree program or bachelor’s degree program to earn your undergraduate degree in psychology, counseling or a related field. As you advance your formal education over the next handful of years, you have ample opportunity to learn about the process of earning a position in a counseling career.

Click on the links below to browse schools offering programs in psychology or counseling.

Once you have enrolled in a program, take advantage of your school’s career services department and learn how you can find employment or volunteer opportunities that are related to the counseling career path.

Already Received Bachelor’s Degree

Once you have your bachelor’s degree, start looking for schools that offer a master’s or doctoral degree program in counseling. You can request information from Counseling schools in Maine to learn more about how you can acquire the necessary educational qualifications.

Step One:

Earn a conditional licensure, which requires you to take and pass the National Counselor Examination administered by the National Board for Certified Counselors.

You can find information on the examination contents, dates, locations and registration on the following NBCC webpage.

Step Two:

After you have passed the Maine counseling licensure examination, you can download and submit your application to the Maine Board of Counseling Professionals Licensure. In addition to the application you also need to develop a plan for supervised work experience.

You can download the application for Maine counseling licensure and find more information regarding experience requirements on the Maine Board of Counseling Professional’s website.

Step Three:

Once the Maine Board of Professional Counselors has approved you for a conditional license, you can begin the supervised work experience. This requires 2000 hours of experience over at least 2 years.

More details on hourly requirements and supervisor qualifications is available for download off the following webpage.

Step Four:

When your work experience has been completed, submit another application for a full Maine professional counselor licensure.

You may download the application here.

Earn your Maine Clinical Professional Counseling License

These steps outline the basics of how to acquire your Clinical Professional Counseling Licensure, which is necessary to practice as a clinical professional counselor in Maine. Please remember to doublecheck the details of this checklist with an official source so you can be informed of the most up-to-date requirements for the process.

Step One:

Complete a master’s degree program at an accredited school.

Step Two:

Earn a conditional licensure by taking and passing the National Counselor Examination provided by the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC). Information about the exam can be found on the NBCC website.

Step Three:

After passing the National Counselor Examination, submit an application to the Maine Board of Counseling Professionals Licensure. In this application, include a plan for how you intend to obtain the necessary work experience once you have your conditional license.

You can download the Maine Clinical Professional Counseling licensure application here.

Step Four:

Once the Board has approved your conditional licensure, you can begin working towards completing your 3000 hours of supervised experience in no less than 2 years.

More details about the hourly requirements and qualifying supervisors can be found in the documents available for download from this website.

Step Five:

Take and pass the National Clinical Mental Health Counseling Examination through the NBCC. Information about this clinical exam is available on their website.

Step Six:

When you have passed the clinical level exam and completed all of the supervised work experience, submit another application for full licensure as a clinical professional counselor. The Maine Board of Counseling Professionals Licensure should notify you when your application and supporting documents have been approved.

You can download the Maine Clinical Professional Counseling application here.

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