How Long Does It Take to Become a Substance Abuse Counselor?

Substance abuse counselors must complete extensive training in order to provide assistance to families, therapy groups and individuals struggling with alcohol or drug addiction. They may also obtain additional training to help gamblers, teens and people with eating disorders.

Education Requirements

In most states, counselors must graduate from a two-year master's degree program in psychology in order to obtain their counseling license.

Licensing Requirements

In addition to meeting the education requirements, most counselors must also complete up to three years (6,000 hours) of work experience under the supervision of a licensed counselor.

Certification

Counselors must have three to five years of supervised experience as well as up to 500 contact hours of alcohol and drug abuse training and education to obtain their national certification from the Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC).

Specialization

Counselors may obtain an additional year of training in order to specialize in treating gamblers or adolescents. Certificate programs for these specialty areas can take up to a year to complete.

Considerations

Some states such as New York accept counselors that only have a high school diploma, so long as they complete 350 hours of training and three years of supervised experience.

References

• education-portal.com-Master of Arts (MA) Counseling Psychology Degree Overview
• naadac.org-Guide to Certification