Master Of Social Work Degree Online

Q: i was enrolled at ashworth but recently found that they are not apa accred. that would make it nearly impossible to use that degree or to build on it. i wanted to obtain this degree to go into counciling and crises intervention. I was wondering if anybody knew of a school that could help meet my needs. i'm looking for a school that is a.p.a. accred. I need to work toward my degree via distance learning. (The issue isn't time and effort, but travel and scheduling.) I would need a school that offers financial assistance toward obtaining a degree the honest way. I'm not looking for a degree mill, i want to work for this, because it's the only way i can obtain the knowledge and tools to be able help people in this area. does anybody have any advice on if i'm heading down the right path with this, or can reccomend a good school that would it my needs?

A:Well I have an MS in clinical psychology via DL and it was not APA approved since the APA only accredits Ph.D. programs. With a masters you can do counseling and crisis intervention. I am employed as a crisis intervention clinician in Tennessee with a local community mental health center. It is possible to get licensed at the masters level in most states as a professional counselor/therapist. A DL degree should be sufficient if you have the required credit hours. However you can not qualify for licensure as a clinical psychologist with only a masters degree. I am planning on going for a Ph.D. next year via DL at the Fielding Institute. It is APA approved and regionally accredited. With a Ph.D. from them one should be able to be licensed in most states as a clinical psychologist. They do not require the GRE!!!! after speaking with a job coun. again, she told me that the assoc. would be worthless even in the field i want to go into.She said i would not even be able to work on any level doing any counciling without a masters. She mentioned certificates in counciling from eating disorder to drug addiction. ect. if the associates would be worthless in this field, would the certs. be even more worthless? and if not, does anybody know of any programs to earn any of these counciling certificates dl? Could a Social Work type degree work for this case also? I wasn't sure, just curious... In many states an MSW is THE degree to have when going into the counseling field. The license LCSW is the license that insurance companies prefer for third party reimbursement. Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists as well as Mental Health Counselors work in community mental health agencies. But, it is the MSW, LCSW who is sought after in many, many states due to the insurance companies' preferences. Also, many states allow someone without a college degree to work in addictions as long as he or she has a state certification such as CADC, etc. There is a move, however, in these states to require licensure. Passing a test and having experience is all that is needed in these states as of this posting. Before one can be certified as a CADC, however, one must work under a supervisor. While under supervision one is an ACIT (Addictions Counselor in Training). As Mr. Nixon indicated, check with your state professional regulatory board. Most have web sites with this information.

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