Counseling Degree Programs in West Virginia

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Updated November 30, 2022 · 4 Min Read

This page allows students to explore West Virginia counseling degrees, along with state-specific career information among different counseling specialties.

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Degree-seekers looking to learn more about West Virginia counseling degrees can explore the rankings below. These rankings focus on detailed program information, including tuition rates, course topics, admission requirements, and program length. Readers can refer to the rankings during their search for the program that best suits their individual needs. To practice as a professional counselor in West Virginia, each aspiring candidate must meet state-specific licensing requirements. An eligible applicant must hold a master's or doctoral degree in counseling or a related field. Once candidates complete supervised experience, they can take their exams and apply for their licenses. The counseling field offers several specialty areas, including rehabilitation substance abuse and behavioral disorders; mental health; and educational, vocational, and career-related care. Counseling professions earn varying annual mean wages, depending on their specific discipline, with amounts ranging from $38,670-$44,610.

Career Outlook for Counselors in West Virginia

Counselors can work with many different client populations, depending on their specialty. Virginia reports an employment level of 1,500, with the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projecting a job growth rate of 12% for educational, vocational, and career counselors from 2016-26. These counselors work in elementary and secondary schools to help students reach their educational goals. The educational support services industry offers the highest concentration of jobs in the state for these professionals.

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Substance abuse and behavioral disorder counselors help clients with alcoholism, drug abuse, or behavioral disorders. Virginia employs 660 counselors in the discipline, reporting a projected employment growth rate of 19.7% from the BLS in 2016-26. The state also features 620 mental health counselors with faster-than-average projected job growth of 21% in the same period. Mental health counselors work with clients living with mental disorders and illnesses. These counselors experience the highest concentration of jobs in outpatient care centers and the highest employment levels in the individual and family services industry.

Counseling Degree Program in West Virginia

  • West Virginia University
    Location

    Morgantown, WV

    As an innovative public land-grant institution classified as a research university with high research activity by the prestigious Carnegie Foundation, West Virginia University is home to more than 29,400 students on a vast 2,737-acre suburban campus in the historical small city of Morgantown along the Monongahela River within a short distance from our nation’s capital. Recognized for the sixth most affordable in-state tuition by the College Board, WVU is ranked as the 170th best college, 94th top public school, and 41st top university for veterans in the nation by the U.S. News and World Report. As the country’s 106th best education school, the College of Education and Human Services (CEHS) has an “above and beyond” dedication to mentoring students in professional development activities within their chosen field.

    Ideal for graduate students who are interested in fulfilling counselor positions at mental health clinics, drug treatment facilities, juvenile treatment centers, prisons, and private practices, the M.A. Community Counseling program is focused on developing different intervention strategies that can be utilized in the community or in various mental health settings. As the newest addition to the program in Fall 2014, the Military Counseling track is available within the community counseling curriculum for students interested in offering counseling services to those who are serving or have served in the military, their spouses, and their children. Boasting an examination pass rate of over 90% and a job placement rate of 85 to 90% within six months of graduation, the program fulfills the requirements needed to become a Licensed Professional Counselor in West Virginia.

    Designed to train graduate students in the counseling interventions, theories, techniques, and practices that are needed to successfully work with children, adolescents, teachers, parents, administrators, and other professionals in K-12 schools, the M.A. School Counseling program prepares graduates with the skills to create a total school environment in which students can achieve their maximum personal and academic potential. In an effort to develop the innovative strategies that enable students to become satisfied learners as well as well-educated citizens, coursework will cover individual/group counseling, conflict management, student mentoring, peer mediation, family counseling, school consultation, and vocational counseling. All graduates are well-equipped for receiving certification as school counselors in grade levels K-12 in West Virginia and many other states.

    Accreditations

    • Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP)
    • Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association (NCA)

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