2027 Best Doctorate in Counseling Degree Programs Ranking in Greensboro

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a $75,350 national median annual salary for May 2025 for the counselor-education-and-supervision career category used in this comparison. It is a career benchmark, not a starting salary or an earnings estimate for Greensboro graduates. Faculty rank, contract length, clinical licensure, employer, and prior experience can substantially change an offer.

Compare that benchmark with your current earnings and realistic target jobs, rather than assuming the full amount is a doctoral pay increase. Request recent program-level placement information and, where available, salary information before using projected earnings to justify borrowing.

The two Greensboro options should be compared by the doctoral work you want to do, not simply by institution type. Their published degree descriptions provide different starting points for questions about research fit and supervision training:

• University of North Carolina at Greensboro: UNC Greensboro identifies its degree as a Ph.D. in Counseling and Counselor Education (UNC Greensboro, program description). Its explicit counselor-education framing makes it a starting point for applicants aiming to study how counselors are prepared; ask which faculty advise research in your proposed area and what teaching experience doctoral students complete.
• North Carolina A&T State University: North Carolina A&T identifies its doctorate as Counselor Education and Supervision (North Carolina A&T State University, program description). Applicants interested in supervising counselors-in-training should examine its current supervision coursework and supervised opportunities, then compare those requirements directly with UNC Greensboro's rather than assuming the degree title proves one program offers more supervision experience.

Neither degree title establishes a placement rate, funding package, or licensing outcome. Ask both departments for their current doctoral handbooks and student-outcome disclosures before deciding which distinction matters to you.

Plan for roughly three to five years of full-time doctoral study after a relevant master's degree; part-time enrollment or a longer dissertation process can extend that timeline. This is a planning range, not a published completion-time claim for either Greensboro program. Confirm each program's course rotation, residency expectations, dissertation milestones, and maximum time to degree (UNC Greensboro; North Carolina A&T State University).

For working counselors, the decisive constraint may be when required classes, teaching assignments, or research meetings occur. An apparently faster curriculum can cost more in forgone earnings if it requires leaving full-time work.

An online doctorate can reduce commuting and make continued employment easier, but "online" does not necessarily mean self-paced or free of campus visits. An on-campus program can make faculty collaboration and teaching assignments easier to access, while requiring a more fixed schedule. Verify the actual delivery format, synchronous meeting times, residencies, and where any supervised activities must occur with the Greensboro program you are considering.

If clinical licensure is part of your plan, do not assume an online doctorate resolves educational deficiencies from an earlier degree. Confirm eligibility with the North Carolina Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors before enrolling.

There is no single defensible 2027 average price for these Greensboro counseling doctorates: published graduate tuition may be quoted per credit or term, while doctoral credit loads, fees, and funding vary. IPEDS reports institutional prices, which should not be mistaken for the amount a particular doctoral student will pay (National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS).

Request a written, program-specific estimate from each university covering tuition, mandatory fees, residency classification, required attendance, and the expected time to finish. North Carolina residency can materially affect public-university tuition; an assistantship can change the comparison again. Use most affordable counseling programs to start a price comparison, but rank offers by estimated net total cost, not advertised tuition alone.

Ask each department first about funded teaching or research assistantships, tuition support, and whether an offer lasts beyond the first year. Complete the FAFSA to establish eligibility for applicable federal aid, and check institutional scholarships and employer tuition benefits (Federal Student Aid; UNC Greensboro; North Carolina A&T State University).

Do not build a 2027 financing plan on the assumption that a new doctoral student can use Graduate PLUS loans. Federal rules have changed for new graduate borrowers, with transitional eligibility for some continuing students; verify your own status and current loan options with Federal Student Aid and the university aid office (Federal Student Aid, Graduate PLUS information). Compare any remaining borrowing against expected earnings above your current pay, taking account of interest and time out of work.

Expect programs to examine your graduate counseling preparation, academic record, professional goals, research interests, recommendations, and readiness for doctoral-level writing. Specific requirements - including whether a counseling master's degree or professional license is required - must be checked against each university's current admissions page (UNC Greensboro; North Carolina A&T State University).

Before applying, send your transcripts and any license information to the program and ask which prerequisites you already meet. Also ask whether prior graduate coursework can count toward doctoral requirements; transfer-credit approval is a university decision, not an automatic consequence of holding a master's degree.

Doctoral coursework commonly combines counselor-education pedagogy, advanced supervision, qualitative or quantitative research, leadership, and dissertation preparation. Compare actual course requirements rather than course titles alone: a future faculty member needs chances to teach and publish, while a prospective clinical supervisor should examine how supervision skills are practiced and assessed.

Ask each Greensboro program for its current degree audit and course rotation. A required course offered infrequently can affect completion time more than a modest difference in listed credits (UNC Greensboro; North Carolina A&T State University).

At the doctoral level, specialization may come through faculty mentorship, electives, field experience, and dissertation topic rather than a formally named concentration. Possible research and professional interests include clinical mental health, school counseling, addiction, rehabilitation, and counselor supervision. Confirm which areas each Greensboro program actually supports through current faculty and courses; do not assume every interest has a dedicated track (UNC Greensboro; North Carolina A&T State University).

If your goal is to gain a new clinical or school-counseling credential, check the corresponding qualifying degree and state requirements first. A doctoral research focus is not the same thing as a licensure pathway (North Carolina Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors; North Carolina Department of Public Instruction).

Start with the job you want, then test each program against its requirements and your finances. Popularity is useful context, not evidence that a doctorate fits your research topic or budget; the most popular counseling programs list is best used alongside direct program checks.

These questions will expose differences that a ranking or degree title cannot settle:

1. Which recent faculty projects match the research question I want to pursue, and who could advise it?
2. What teaching and supervised-supervision experience is required, available, and documented?
3. What did recent cohorts take to finish, and what kinds of positions did completers obtain?
4. What is my total net cost under a written funding offer, including fees and income I may forgo?
5. If I need a license, has the appropriate North Carolina board confirmed how my complete education and experience meet its rules?

A common mistake is choosing the lowest advertised tuition without accounting for completion time or funding conditions. For return on investment, compare net cost and likely debt with the incremental career benefit over a realistic time horizon - not with a national median salary treated as guaranteed post-degree income.

A counseling doctorate can support applications for counselor-education faculty roles, research positions, training leadership, and clinical supervision roles. It can also strengthen an existing clinician's expertise, although the authority to provide independently licensed care still comes from the applicable state license (North Carolina Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors).

Choose the path that matches the credential an employer actually requests. If openings of interest primarily require a master's degree and license, the doctorate may offer limited immediate financial return. If they require research, university teaching, or advanced supervision experience, compare each program's documented opportunities to build that record. The most valuable counseling programs comparison can inform a shortlist, but your own funding and career baseline determine value.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 2.5% national growth from 2025 to 2035 for the counselor-education-and-supervision career category used here. That outlook suggests applicants should not equate demand for counseling services with plentiful doctoral faculty openings: a university hiring market is narrower than the market for master's-level clinicians.

Greensboro offers local universities and healthcare employers to investigate, but a doctoral student targeting a tenure-track position should consider whether geographic mobility is realistic. Review actual job postings for required credentials, research record, teaching experience, and license status before selecting a program around an assumed local vacancy.

Investing in a doctorate is a consequential decision, so Research.com evaluates more than a program's name or institutional reputation. The team uses graduate outcomes, accreditation, eligibility for federal aid, and cost to help readers compare programs on factors that could affect both completion and value.

For the Best ranking, the graduate-outcomes-and-accreditation score combines program completion (40%), employment or doctoral admission (20%), licensure exam pass rate (20%, where applicable), CACREP programmatic accreditation (16%), and institutional Title IV eligibility (4%). Weights are renormalized when a criterion does not apply. Program cost contributes about 7% of the final score. The same approach applies to online and on-campus programs; other Research.com rankings order programs by the dimension named in the ranking.

The ranking draws on these data sources, which readers can also use to check institutional information:

• IPEDS database - institutional enrollment, completion, and cost reporting.
• Peterson's database - program and institutional information.
• College Scorecard database - federal institutional and student-outcome information.
• National Center for Education Statistics - federal education data and definitions.

Research.com reviews these inputs to make comparisons more credible, but a ranking cannot establish an individual student's net price, admission prospects, or licensing eligibility. Use it to build a shortlist, then verify current requirements with each program and the relevant licensing board. More detail is available in Research.com's methodology.

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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/
• Counseling Compact - Participating States
  Verified professional/licensure/career reference.
  https://counselingcompact.org/
• University of North Carolina at Greensboro - PhD in Counseling and Counselor Education
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.uncg.edu/degrees/counseling-and-counselor-education-ph-d/
• North Carolina A & T State University - Ph.D. in Counselor Education & Supervision
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.ncat.edu/academics/graduate-programs/ced/counselor-education-and-supervision.php