2027 Best Clinical Mental Health Counseling Degree Programs Ranking in Louisiana

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a $59,350 national median annual wage for May 2025 for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors, the occupational grouping relevant to clinical mental health counseling. That midpoint covers workers across experience levels, credentials, and settings; it is not a starting salary or a Louisiana-only estimate. Use it as a career benchmark, then compare local job postings that specify the license, supervision status, and experience you expect to have.

Pay also needs to be read against the cost of qualifying for the role. A graduate weighing a lower-cost program against a faster one should account for tuition, foregone work hours during internship, debt payments, and the time between graduation and independent licensure - not just the highest advertised salary.

The programs below differ in degree framing, academic setting, and the clinical interest they make visible to applicants. These are comparison points, not claims that a particular format or school automatically meets licensure requirements. Readers who want another view of program demand can also consult the most popular clinical mental health counseling programs.

• Southeastern Louisiana University: Its M.S. in Counseling identifies clinical mental health counseling as a concentration, rather than using that phrase as the degree title (Southeastern Louisiana University). This distinction matters if you are comparing concentrations: request the clinical concentration's course plan, not just the general counseling catalog description.
• University of Louisiana at Lafayette: Its counselor education program presents mental health counseling as a defined program option (University of Louisiana at Lafayette). Lafayette-area applicants can use that focus to compare its clinical course sequence and placement arrangements with programs whose counseling degree has a broader title.
• Northwestern State University of Louisiana: The advertised credential is a Master of Arts in Counseling (Northwestern State University of Louisiana). Because that title does not itself specify a clinical mental health concentration, prospective LPC applicants should obtain the precise track and course plan before treating it as equivalent to a degree explicitly titled clinical mental health counseling.
• Southern University and A&M College: This Baton Rouge institution gives capital-area applicants another program to examine without assuming that schools in the same city offer identical clinical preparation (Southern University and A&M College). Ask the department to identify its current counseling degree or track, required fieldwork, and Louisiana LPC educational alignment in writing.
• Louisiana State University Shreveport: Its degree is explicitly an M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling (Louisiana State University Shreveport). For applicants in northwest Louisiana, that clear degree focus makes it a useful comparison against broader counseling master's programs; confirm current delivery and local placement requirements before deciding it is the more workable option.
• New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary: Its catalog identifies a Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling within a seminary setting (New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary). Students who value that educational environment should compare its clinical curriculum and professional outcomes with those of other programs, while students who do not want a seminary setting can screen for fit early.
• Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center-New Orleans: Its counseling offering is housed in clinical rehabilitation and counseling, a more specific disciplinary frame than a general mental health counseling degree (LSU Health Sciences Center-New Orleans). It merits particular attention from applicants interested in disability and rehabilitation-related practice; verify the exact degree pathway against the license or certification sought.
• Xavier University of Louisiana: Xavier publishes its counseling program requirements in its academic catalog, making the current catalog entry an important starting point for checking the actual credential and curriculum (Xavier University of Louisiana). Applicants should compare that documented course plan - not an assumed specialization - with Louisiana's LPC education requirements.
• Loyola University New Orleans: Its clinical mental health counseling offering sits within Loyola's health-focused academic structure (Loyola University New Orleans). Applicants interested in that setting should ask how counseling students obtain clinical placements and whether its schedule and total cost work better for them than other New Orleans options.
• Nicholls State University: Nicholls presents a degree specifically titled Clinical Mental Health Counseling, designated MCMH (Nicholls State University). That named credential offers a direct point of comparison for applicants outside the state's largest cities: examine its current course sequence, fieldwork locations, and attendance demands rather than assuming the distinctive degree abbreviation changes licensure rules.

Plan on roughly two to three years full time for a clinical counseling master's; part-time enrollment commonly takes longer. The decisive variables are course rotation, when practicum can start, internship scheduling, and whether required courses are available when you need them. CACREP's counseling standards include supervised practicum and internship requirements, so an "accelerated" academic calendar does not eliminate clinical training (Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs).

Ask for a term-by-term plan showing the earliest realistic graduation date with your intended work schedule. Then plan separately for Louisiana's post-degree supervised experience and examination requirements. A short master's and a short path to independent practice are not the same thing (Louisiana Licensed Professional Counselors Board of Examiners).

Online delivery can reduce trips to class, but it does not make clinical training virtual or remove Louisiana licensure checks. This comparison focuses on the practical differences that can determine whether a student can finish the program while working.

For an employed or rural student, the better format is the one that makes both coursework and supervised placement feasible. Ask the program to identify any required in-person visits and explain who is responsible for finding, approving, and supervising a placement in your community.

There is no single trustworthy statewide average price for a Louisiana clinical mental health counseling master's that captures every program's credits, graduate tuition, fees, and clinical costs. An institution-wide or undergraduate tuition average would be a misleading substitute for a program-level graduate quote (National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS). For a usable comparison, ask each school for the total price of the complete clinical degree, not just a per-credit rate.

That quote should account for residency-based tuition where applicable, mandatory fees, clinical-site travel, books, and any terms added by part-time study. A public program may have a different resident price from its nonresident price; a private nonprofit program may offset a higher published price with aid. Neither institution type settles the net-cost question. The most affordable clinical mental health counseling programs offer a useful shortlist, but verify current graduate charges directly before committing.

Start with the FAFSA and each school's graduate aid office. Depending on eligibility and funding, options may include federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans, university scholarships, graduate assistantships, employer tuition assistance, and aid offered by the institution. Ask whether an assistantship's work commitment can coexist with practicum and internship; an award that extends your time to graduation may be less valuable than it first appears (Federal Student Aid; individual institutions).

Do not build a new graduate financing plan around Grad PLUS without checking eligibility. Under federal changes effective for new graduate borrowing beginning July 2026, Grad PLUS is generally unavailable to new graduate borrowers; limited transition eligibility may apply to students who meet the prior-enrollment and borrowing conditions. Confirm your own status and current loan limits with Federal Student Aid and the school's financial aid office before accepting an offer (Federal Student Aid). For Louisiana-specific awards, check current eligibility rules rather than assuming that an undergraduate state scholarship funds a counseling master's.

Applicants generally need a bachelor's degree and the materials required by the individual graduate program, which may include transcripts, recommendations, a statement of purpose, and an interview. A psychology bachelor's is not necessarily required: what matters is whether the program accepts your preparation and whether you can complete any prerequisite coursework it specifies (individual university admissions offices).

Career changers should ask two separate questions before applying: "What do I need for admission?" and "Which courses and supervised experiences will this exact degree provide for Louisiana LPC eligibility?" Also ask how transfer credit is evaluated. A school may accept previous graduate coursework without accepting it toward every required clinical course or field experience (individual institutions; Louisiana Licensed Professional Counselors Board of Examiners).

Clinical counseling curricula typically cover counseling theories and techniques, assessment, diagnosis, ethics, human development, group counseling, research, and supervised clinical practice. CACREP standards provide a programmatic framework, but each school's actual course sequence - not a generic subject list - is what an applicant should compare with Louisiana board rules (Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs; Louisiana Licensed Professional Counselors Board of Examiners).

Read the catalog for the year you would enroll, then identify when clinical courses and fieldwork are offered. A course available only in a particular term can affect graduation timing as much as the total credit requirement. If you hope to work with a specific population, check whether that interest appears in coursework and approved placement opportunities rather than relying on an elective title alone.

Clinical mental health counseling is itself a professional focus within the broader counseling field. Programs may also let students pursue interests such as addiction, trauma-informed practice, children and adolescents, or rehabilitation through electives and placements. Those experiences can shape early career opportunities, but an elective emphasis is not automatically a separate license or certification (individual institutions; Louisiana Licensed Professional Counselors Board of Examiners).

The clearest local comparison is between a general counseling degree with a clinical concentration, a degree explicitly titled clinical mental health counseling, and a rehabilitation-and-counseling pathway. Choose based on the curriculum and population you want to serve. If your actual goal is school counseling or marriage and family therapy, check that profession's separate credential rules before assuming a clinical mental health degree is the most direct route.

The best choice is the program you can afford and complete that also prepares you for your intended credential and work. Ranking position can narrow a search, but it cannot determine whether your placement site, class schedule, and educational record will meet your needs. Use the most valuable clinical mental health counseling programs as another comparison point, then test value against your own likely net cost and completion plan.

Before paying an enrollment deposit, get written answers to these questions:

1. Which current degree track and course plan does the program recommend for a prospective Louisiana LPC, and how does it address the board's education rules?
2. What is the full estimated cost through graduation after realistic aid, including fees and required campus visits?
3. Who finds and approves practicum and internship sites, and can placements work with my job and location?
4. What is a realistic graduation schedule for my enrollment pace, and which prior graduate credits would actually count?

A common mistake is to treat accreditation, eligibility for federal aid, or a school's ranking as interchangeable proof of licensure eligibility. Check institutional standing, programmatic CACREP status where relevant, and Louisiana board requirements separately. To judge return on investment, weigh aid and borrowing against time to completion, lost work time, your current earnings, plausible post-degree work, and the uncertainty in all of those estimates.

A graduate may seek supervised counseling work while progressing toward an LPC, then consider roles with greater clinical independence once licensed. Potential settings include community agencies, outpatient behavioral health, hospitals, and private practices, subject to employer requirements and the scope allowed by the Louisiana board. Clinical supervision, management, or doctoral study may become later options, but they involve additional experience or education rather than an automatic promotion from the master's (Louisiana Licensed Professional Counselors Board of Examiners; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics).

This degree is a strong fit for someone who wants direct mental health counseling and is willing to complete supervised training after graduation. Someone seeking a quicker, nonclinical helping role - or a credential in school counseling or marriage and family therapy - should compare those education paths before taking on clinical master's debt.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 18% U.S. employment growth from 2025 to 2035 for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors. That national occupational projection indicates substantial demand for the broader role, but it does not establish the number of openings near a Louisiana campus or promise employment to a new graduate.

For a more realistic local search, look at vacancies in the communities where you could live and separate postings open to provisionally licensed or supervised clinicians from those requiring an LPC. Compare the employers' required credentials with each program's placement and licensure preparation. That exercise can reveal whether a program's clinical network fits your intended first job better than its ranking or enrollment popularity does.

Investing in graduate education is a consequential decision. Research.com developed this ranking to help readers compare counseling programs using documented outcomes, accreditation, and cost rather than reputation alone. The team draws on multiple education databases and applies the same scoring approach to online and on-campus programs.

The Best ranking starts with a graduate-outcomes-and-accreditation score: program completion accounts for 40%, employment or doctoral admission for 20%, applicable licensure-exam pass rates for 20%, CACREP programmatic accreditation for 16%, and federal Title IV institutional eligibility for 4%. When a criterion does not apply, the remaining weights are renormalized. Program cost then contributes a smaller component - about 7% of the final score. Other Research.com counseling rankings order programs by the dimension named in their titles.

These sources were used to create the ranking; consulting more than one helps check program and institutional information:

• IPEDS database: institutional reporting on education programs and related characteristics.
• Peterson's database: program and institution information for comparison.
• College Scorecard database: federal institutional data, including available cost and outcomes measures.
• National Center for Education Statistics: federal education data and definitions.

A score is a starting point, not a finding that every graduate qualifies for Louisiana licensure. Compare the current curriculum, placement arrangements, and your own net cost before enrolling. Read more about the approach on the Research.com methodology page.

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• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics - Counselors
  Used to verify salary, employment outlook, and typical education requirements.
  https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/
• CACREP - Directory of Accredited Programs
  Used to verify CACREP accreditation status of specific programs.
  https://www.cacrep.org/directory/
• NBCC - NCE / NCMHCE
  Verified professional/licensure/career reference.
  https://www.nbcc.org/exams
• Southeastern Louisiana University - Counseling, MS - Clinical Mental Health Counseling Concentration
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.southeastern.edu/majors-and-minors/counseling-ms-clinical-mental-health-counseling-concentration/
• University of Louisiana at Lafayette - M.S. in Counselor Education - Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://counselor.louisiana.edu/programs/mental-health-counseling
• Northwestern State University of Louisiana - Master of Arts in Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.nsula.edu/program/master-of-arts-in-counseling/
• Southern University and A & M College - M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.subr.edu/subhome/102
• Louisiana State University-Shreveport - M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.lsus.edu/academics/graduate-studies/master-of-science-in-clinical-mental-health-counseling