2027 Best Master's in Counseling Degree Programs Ranking in Montana

Salary depends on occupation, employer, location, experience, and licensure - not the degree title alone. The table uses national U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational figures: wages refer to May 2025, while growth is a projection for 2025-2035. These are occupational medians and projections, not Montana graduate outcomes or starting salaries.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook and Employment Projections. Use the figures to compare career directions, then seek Montana-specific postings with stated pay and credential requirements. A higher national median should not override a mismatch between a program's curriculum and your intended role.

The programs below point toward different kinds of preparation. Their most useful distinction is not a claim of prestige but the match between the named degree pathway and your intended work. Confirm current credits, fieldwork requirements, delivery format, outcomes, and accreditation with each program before using any highlight as a final comparison.

• The University of Montana: Its counseling department identifies a mental health program, making it a direct option to investigate for applicants aiming at clinical mental health work. Compared with a rehabilitation-named option, the immediate question is how its current curriculum and supervised placements align with Montana clinical licensure requirements (University of Montana, counseling department).
• University of Providence: The university specifically offers a clinical mental health counseling program. For applicants comparing it with the University of Montana's mental health pathway, the meaningful next comparison is the current total price, scheduling, placement support, and documented licensure alignment - not an assumption that similar degree names mean identical training (University of Providence, program information).
• Montana State University Billings: Its graduate catalog identifies a clinical rehabilitation and mental health counseling degree with a rehabilitation counseling option. That named option merits particular attention from students interested in disability and rehabilitation services; applicants focused solely on clinical mental health practice should verify which option and coursework meet their intended licensing requirements (Montana State University Billings, graduate catalog).

A counseling master's commonly takes about two to three years of full-time study; part-time enrollment can take longer. Treat that as planning guidance, not a promised completion date. Required course sequencing, when practicum and internship can begin, placement availability, and whether summer enrollment is possible may matter more than the number of credits printed in a catalog.

Working applicants should request a term-by-term plan showing when fieldwork occurs and whether it conflicts with employment hours. An accelerated schedule may reduce time away from a higher-paying post-degree role, but it is not cheaper if its workload forces you to cut paid hours unexpectedly or delays placement completion.

Online study can reduce routine travel for students outside Montana's campus communities. It does not remove supervised practice: applicants still need an appropriate site, qualified supervision, and a schedule that accommodates client contact. Campus study may make regular faculty interaction easier, but the better format is the one in which you can actually complete required training.

Compare formats using three questions: Where can I complete fieldwork? Who approves and helps secure the site? Will this particular curriculum meet the educational requirements of the state where I expect to seek a credential? An out-of-state online degree should never be assumed to qualify automatically for Montana licensure; verify directly with the Montana Board of Behavioral Health or, for school roles, the Office of Public Instruction.

There is no single reliable price for a Montana counseling master's: public and private nonprofit programs can have different tuition schedules, and residency, enrollment pace, and required credits affect the bill. Published graduate tuition is not necessarily the price of this specific degree. Compare each program's current tuition and mandatory fees for the entire curriculum, then add books, clinical travel, background checks where required, and living expenses. NCES IPEDS institutional figures can provide context but may not capture a program-specific total.

For a cost-first search, compare the most affordable counseling programs, then obtain an itemized estimate from each school. A lower tuition rate may not save money if extra terms, relocation, or unpaid placement time increase the total. To judge value, weigh aid and expected borrowing alongside completion likelihood, foregone earnings, your current pay, plausible post-degree earnings, and how long you expect to work in the field.

Start with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid and each university's graduate aid office. Depending on eligibility and availability, a student may consider federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans, institutional scholarships, assistantships, employer tuition support, or service-linked opportunities. Federal aid rules and loan limits can change; confirm current eligibility and borrowing options with Federal Student Aid rather than budgeting around an assumed loan award.

Ask departments whether assistantships include tuition support, whether part-time students qualify, and whether an award continues during internship terms. Also check Montana-specific scholarship or workforce opportunities with the institution administering them; availability and service obligations can vary. Compare net cost and repayment risk, not just the size of an aid package: a loan covers a bill now but still raises the degree's eventual cost.

Applicants generally need a bachelor's degree and must meet the selected program's graduate admissions rules. Programs may request transcripts, recommendations, a statement of purpose, interviews, or evidence of preparation for counseling study; requirements differ by school and application cycle (University of Montana; University of Providence; Montana State University Billings).

Before applying, send admissions staff your transcript and ask whether prerequisite courses are missing. If you have prior graduate credits, obtain a written transfer-credit evaluation and a revised completion plan. Credit acceptance does not necessarily waive a program's clinical sequencing, and neither admission nor graduation by itself establishes eligibility for a Montana professional credential.

Expect foundations such as counseling theories, professional ethics, assessment, lifespan development, research, and supervised practicum and internship. Clinical pathways also emphasize mental health assessment and treatment; school-focused study addresses student development and educational settings; rehabilitation-oriented curricula emphasize disability and access. Exact titles and requirements belong to the current program catalog, not a generic course list.

Read course sequences alongside fieldwork rules. If your goal is clinical licensure, ask the Montana Board of Behavioral Health whether the proposed education meets its requirements and ask the program to explain any gaps. If your goal is school counseling, check the Office of Public Instruction's credential requirements instead. This is more useful than counting counseling electives without knowing their purpose.

The main choices to distinguish are clinical mental health, school counseling, addiction-related practice, and rehabilitation counseling. Availability varies by university: a concentration, degree option, or elective cluster is not automatically a separate credential. For example, Montana State University Billings names a rehabilitation counseling option within its clinical rehabilitation and mental health counseling degree (Montana State University Billings, graduate catalog).

Choose based on the clients and setting you want to serve, then trace backward from that role's credential requirements. Someone committed to school employment should not select a clinical program solely because it contains courses about adolescents. Likewise, an interest in addiction treatment does not establish that an elective alone meets every employer or licensing requirement.

The best choice is the program that fits your intended credential, finances, and realistic fieldwork schedule - not necessarily the first program in any ranking. Use these checks to turn a shortlist into a decision:

1. Identify the exact job and state where you intend to practice; confirm the relevant education, supervised-experience, and examination rules with its licensing or credentialing authority.
2. Check current institutional accreditation and any claimed programmatic accreditation in the accreditor's directory; confirm how the program addresses your intended credential's requirements.
3. Request a complete cost estimate, aid terms, credit-transfer decision, and term-by-term plan that includes internship logistics.
4. Ask for recent program-specific completion, examination, and employment information with reporting periods and denominators; do not substitute institution-wide outcomes.

Research.com's most valuable counseling programs can add a comparison lens, but test any apparent value against your own likely borrowing and completion path. Red flags include unclear placement responsibility, an unsupported claim of automatic licensure, and a price quote that omits required clinical terms.

A graduate might pursue supervised clinical counseling, school counseling, rehabilitation counseling, or work related to substance-use treatment, subject to the qualifications of each position. The first role after graduation may be supervised rather than independent clinical practice. Additional experience and credentials can change the range of roles available, but a master's should not be treated as a shortcut past Montana's licensing process (Montana Board of Behavioral Health; Montana Office of Public Instruction).

If you are changing careers, compare the proposed role with your current earnings and work conditions. The degree is easier to justify when its required training clearly leads toward work you want and when you can finance the transition without relying on a national median wage as your personal starting offer. Readers exploring where other applicants are looking can consult the most popular counseling programs; popularity alone does not establish career fit.

National projections suggest different demand patterns across counseling specialties: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 18% growth for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors from 2025 to 2035, compared with 3% for school and career counselors. These projections describe national occupations, not Montana vacancies or guaranteed local hiring. They make specialization a consequential choice, but cannot tell you whether a particular town has an opening when you graduate.

For a Montana-specific test, review current postings in the communities where you would actually live. Record the required credential, supervision offered, pay range, and whether the employer accepts new graduates. Then ask prospective programs where students complete placements and whether those sites match your target employers. That combination is more decision-useful than extrapolating national growth to a small local market.

Investing in a master's degree can affect your finances and career for years. Research.com created its counseling rankings to make program comparisons more transparent, using education datasets alongside measures of graduate outcomes, accreditation, and cost. The team's approach is intended to help readers look beyond a school's name and assess factors that could affect completion and professional preparation.

For the Best ranking, Research.com first combines program completion (40%), employment or doctoral admission (20%), licensure exam pass rates where applicable (20%), CACREP programmatic accreditation (16%), and institutional Title IV eligibility (4%). Inapplicable criteria are excluded and the remaining shares renormalized. Program cost then contributes a smaller component - about 7% of the final score. Online and campus programs use the same method; rankings described as affordable, valuable, or popular order programs by the dimension in their names. A ranking is a starting point, not a determination that a particular curriculum meets your licensing goal.

Research.com used the following data sources to build the ranking:

• IPEDS database: institutional reporting on education characteristics and costs.
• Peterson's database: program and institutional information.
• College Scorecard database: federal institutional data, including student outcomes and aid-related measures.
• National Center for Education Statistics: federal education data and definitions.

These sources support comparison, but applicants should confirm current tuition, accreditation status, clinical placements, and licensure eligibility directly with each program and the relevant board. Read more about Research.com's ranking 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/
• O*NET OnLine - Mental Health Counselors (21-1014)
  Verified professional/licensure/career reference.
  https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/21-1014.00
• The University of Montana - Clinical Mental Health Counseling MA
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.umt.edu/education/departments/counsed/programs/mental_health.php
• University of Providence - Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.uprovidence.edu/academics/explore-programs/clinical-mental-health-counseling/
• Montana State University Billings - Master of Science in Clinical Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling - Rehabilitation Counseling Option
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://catalog.msubillings.edu/graduate/college-health-professions-science/department-rehabilitation-human-services/ms-clinical-rehabilitation-mental-health-counseling-rehabilitation-counseling-option/