2027 Most Affordable Counseling Degree Programs Ranking in Scranton

National occupation medians provide a starting benchmark, not a Scranton salary estimate. The figures below refer to occupations rather than graduates of any particular program; local pay will depend on employer, experience, setting, and the position's credential requirements (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 occupational wage data).

These medians describe working occupations with a mix of experience levels. When estimating whether graduate study will pay off, use plausible local starting offers and your current earnings - not a national median as a promised post-degree salary.

The programs below serve different professional goals, so a feature that benefits one applicant may be irrelevant to another. These distinctions come from the universities' program descriptions; confirm current curriculum, accreditation status, costs, and credential alignment directly with each school before enrolling.

• University of Scranton - School Counseling: This is the university's school-focused route rather than one of its clinical counseling routes. It is the more relevant choice for an applicant who wants to investigate school counselor certification, provided the current curriculum meets the Pennsylvania Department of Education requirements applicable to that applicant (University of Scranton, School Counseling program).
• University of Scranton - Clinical Mental Health Counseling: Its emphasis is clinical mental health practice rather than school certification or rehabilitation specialization. Applicants aiming for Pennsylvania professional counselor licensure should ask the program to map its courses and supervised training to the licensing board's current requirements (University of Scranton, Clinical Mental Health Counseling program).
• University of Scranton - Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling: This option brings disability and rehabilitation counseling into the clinical training decision. It merits particular attention from students interested in counseling clients around disability-related needs, rather than assuming a general mental health curriculum will provide the same focus (University of Scranton, Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling program).
• Marywood University - Counselor Education PK-12: The program explicitly identifies the PK-12 school setting, making its intended workplace clear at the outset. Applicants comparing the two local school-focused routes should ask each school how it supports Pennsylvania certification and arranges school placements (Marywood University, Counselor Education PK-12 program).
• Marywood University - Mental Health Counseling: This is Marywood's mental-health-focused alternative to its PK-12 counselor education program. For a prospective clinical counselor, its most useful comparison with Scranton's clinical option is the current course sequence, placement arrangements, total cost, and documented preparation for Pennsylvania licensure - not the degree title alone (Marywood University, Mental Health Counseling program).

None of these descriptions substitutes for a current program audit. In particular, confirm programmatic accreditation in the accreditor's directory rather than assuming that institutional accreditation or a counseling-related title establishes it (Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs; U.S. Department of Education).

A counseling master's commonly takes about two to three years of full-time study; part-time enrollment can take longer. The actual finish date depends on the program's course rotation, required supervised placements, and whether a student can complete those placements while working. Request a term-by-term plan from each Scranton-area program rather than assuming that a published credit total translates into a fixed number of months.

Graduation and full professional licensure are separate milestones. Pennsylvania's professional counselor pathway includes supervised experience and examination requirements beyond the educational requirements; school counselor certification follows a different state process. Ask which steps you can complete during the degree and which begin or continue after graduation (Pennsylvania licensing board; Pennsylvania Department of Education).

Online delivery can reduce commuting for a working student, while campus study may make scheduled classes and in-person connections easier to maintain. Neither format removes the need for supervised practice where the curriculum or intended credential requires it. For a Scranton resident, the decisive question is often whether the program can support an approved placement within a workable travel radius - not whether lectures appear online (Pennsylvania licensing board; Pennsylvania Department of Education).

Check the delivery format of each required course, any campus visits, who secures placements, and whether the program accepts students seeking Pennsylvania credentials. An online school based elsewhere is not automatically a better value if travel, placement coordination, or additional coursework raises the total cost.

There is no single defensible Scranton-wide average for the specific counseling degrees compared here: published prices can represent different credit loads, fees, academic years, and aid assumptions. The University of Scranton and Marywood are private universities, so the usual public-university in-state versus out-of-state tuition comparison is not the main distinction between these options. Compare a program-specific total through graduation instead (University of Scranton; Marywood University).

Ask each financial-aid office for tuition at your expected course load, mandatory fees, likely tuition changes, and the cost of any extra terms. Add books, commuting, and the earnings you may give up to complete supervised fieldwork. A cheaper per-credit quote may not be the cheaper degree if its schedule delays completion; conversely, a faster schedule is not affordable if it requires more borrowing than you can reasonably repay.

Start with the FAFSA and each university's graduate-aid application. Depending on eligibility, funding may include institutional scholarships or assistantships, employer tuition assistance, and federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans. Ask whether an award renews during fieldwork terms and whether part-time enrollment changes eligibility (Federal Student Aid; University of Scranton; Marywood University).

Graduate PLUS rules require particular attention for 2027 entrants: federal changes generally end new Graduate PLUS borrowing beginning July 1, 2026, while a limited transition applies to certain students who previously borrowed for the same program and meet its conditions. A new applicant should not build an affordability plan on presumed Graduate PLUS access. Confirm your individual status and current federal loan limits with the school's aid office and Federal Student Aid before accepting an offer (Federal Student Aid, Graduate PLUS guidance).

If loans are necessary, compare the amount you expect to borrow with a conservative post-degree budget. Aid that lowers tuition is different from a loan that postpones payment.

Applicants typically need a bachelor's degree and must meet the individual program's graduate admissions requirements. Schools may request transcripts, recommendations, a statement of purpose, an interview, or prerequisite coursework; requirements can differ even between counseling programs at the same university. Check the current program admissions page rather than assuming a psychology major is mandatory or sufficient (University of Scranton; Marywood University).

Before paying an application fee, ask admissions to review your transcript for prerequisites and any graduate transfer-credit eligibility. Also ask the program director - not only an admissions representative - whether the curriculum fits your intended Pennsylvania license or school certification. Accepted transfer credits can lower costs, but they may not replace a program's required counseling sequence or supervised training (Pennsylvania licensing board; Pennsylvania Department of Education).

Expect coursework in counseling skills, ethics, human development, assessment, research or evaluation, and supervised practice. Clinical mental health curricula generally add diagnosis and treatment-focused study; school counseling programs emphasize work with students and school systems; rehabilitation-focused study addresses disability and related counseling needs. Exact titles and requirements vary by program (University of Scranton; Marywood University).

Compare course content, not just titles. Ask for the current curriculum and a written explanation of how required courses and field experiences address your target credential. That check is especially important if you plan to work across the Pennsylvania-New York or Pennsylvania-New Jersey border, because another state's requirements should not be assumed to match Pennsylvania's (Pennsylvania licensing board; relevant state licensing board).

The meaningful local choices represented here are school counseling, clinical mental health counseling, and clinical rehabilitation counseling. School counseling fits applicants who want to serve students in educational settings; clinical mental health fits those pursuing mental health counseling roles; clinical rehabilitation fits those especially interested in disability and rehabilitation contexts. These are not interchangeable labels: their curricula and intended credentials can differ (University of Scranton; Marywood University; Pennsylvania Department of Education; Pennsylvania licensing board).

If your goal is marriage and family therapy, social work, or a different licensed profession, do not assume a counseling specialization is the shortest qualifying route. Check that profession's Pennsylvania board requirements before choosing a degree on the basis of overlapping course topics.

Start with the job and credential you want, then compare programs that plausibly lead there. Affordability matters only after that fit check. The best counseling programs comparison can provide another perspective on program quality, but it cannot determine your personal net price or licensing eligibility.

Use this sequence to narrow your shortlist:

1. Identify the exact Pennsylvania license or school certification associated with your target role, and obtain each program's written explanation of how its current curriculum aligns (Pennsylvania licensing board; Pennsylvania Department of Education).
2. Verify institutional and, where relevant to your goal, programmatic accreditation with the recognized accreditor; do not treat an accreditation claim as a substitute for checking its current status (U.S. Department of Education; Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs).
3. Request a personalized cost and completion plan that includes fees, aid, transferred credits, placement travel, and any part-time or extra-term costs.
4. Ask where students secure supervised placements and whether the schedule is feasible alongside your work and family obligations.
5. Compare the likely debt and forgone earnings against a cautious estimate of your career change - not an occupation-wide median presented as a starting salary.

For a fuller value judgment, consider program length, opportunity cost, aid, debt, likelihood of finishing, current earnings, plausible earnings afterward, and how long you expect to use the credential. Avoid the common mistake of selecting the lowest tuition quote before checking placement feasibility and credential fit. The most valuable counseling programs comparison may help frame a separate value-oriented shortlist.

A graduate's path depends on specialization and subsequent credentials. School-focused students can pursue school counselor certification; clinical mental health students may work toward professional counselor licensure; rehabilitation-focused students can explore counseling roles centered on disability and vocational needs. Early post-degree roles may involve supervision or other employer-specific conditions, while independent practice requires the applicable state authorization (Pennsylvania Department of Education; Pennsylvania licensing board).

A master's makes the most sense if the work you want requires or substantially benefits from that graduate preparation. If you want to test your interest in helping professions before committing to graduate debt, compare entry-level behavioral health, education, or disability-service roles first. You can also review the most popular counseling programs, but popularity is not evidence that a pathway matches your career goal.

The national outlook is strongest among the career directions discussed here for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors: BLS projects 18% employment growth from 2025 to 2035. That projection covers the United States, not Scranton, and should not be read as a count of local openings. School and rehabilitation counseling have different occupational outlooks, so choosing a specialization solely on the broad mental health growth figure would be misleading (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025-2035 Employment Projections).

To judge the market you can actually enter, review current postings from area school districts, healthcare systems, and community-service employers. Note the credential requested, whether supervised candidates qualify, the schedule, and the stated pay range. This also reveals whether you are willing to commute or relocate if openings in your preferred specialty are limited locally.

Investing in graduate education is a consequential decision, especially when a lower-priced program may not match the credential a student needs. Research.com developed its counseling rankings to help readers compare cost alongside outcomes and program quality, using multiple datasets and checks intended to improve the rankings' credibility and accuracy.

The ranking draws on these data sources:

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

Research.com evaluates counseling programs using graduate outcomes, applicable licensure-exam results, accreditation indicators, federal Title IV eligibility, and program cost. Its Best ranking first scores completion at 40%, employment or doctoral admission at 20%, applicable licensure-exam pass rates at 20%, CACREP programmatic accreditation at 16%, and Title IV eligibility at 4%; inapplicable criteria are excluded and the remaining shares renormalized. Cost then contributes about 7% of the final Best score. The same approach applies to online and campus programs, while rankings named for another dimension order programs by that dimension. Read more about how Research.com creates its rankings.

An affordability ranking is a useful shortlist, not an individual financial-aid offer or a determination of licensure eligibility. Check each school's current program charges, fieldwork requirements, and outcomes before deciding.

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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
• University of Scranton - M.S. in School Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://gradadmissions.scranton.edu/programs/masters-school-counseling/index.shtml
• University of Scranton - MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://gradadmissions.scranton.edu/programs/masters-clinical-mental-health-counseling/index.shtml
• University of Scranton - Master of Science in Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://gradadmissions.scranton.edu/programs/masters-clinical-rehabilitation-counseling/index.shtml
• Marywood University - Master of Science in School Counseling (MS)
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.marywood.edu/academics/psychology-counseling/programs/counselor-education-pk12
• Marywood University - Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.marywood.edu/academics/psychology-counseling/programs/mental-health-counseling