2027 Most Valuable Counseling Degree Programs Ranking in Kansas

The figures below are U.S. occupational medians, not Kansas salaries, starting pay, or earnings attributable to a particular degree. They are useful for comparing career directions, but a prospective student should budget using local job postings and the roles available at their intended credential level (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 wages; 2025-2035 projections).

A higher occupational median does not establish a better return on a degree. Compare the jobs you could realistically qualify for, the time needed to reach independent practice, and the debt required to get there. Occupational categories may also group workers with different employers, experience, and credentials (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics).

The strongest distinction between these options is the professional direction each program makes available. These program-level features can help narrow a shortlist, but applicants should request a current degree plan and written guidance on Kansas credential eligibility before committing.

• Emporia State University - clinical counseling with addictions counseling: This option identifies addictions counseling as the area of focus within clinical counseling. It is worth examining if substance-use treatment is your intended practice area; ask how its courses and placements align with the Kansas credential you plan to seek (Emporia State University).
• Emporia State University - clinical counseling concentrations: The concentrations route offers a way to examine focused study within the clinical counseling program rather than choosing a separately named degree. It suits applicants who want to compare emphasis areas before settling on a clinical career direction; confirm current concentration requirements and placement availability (Emporia State University).
• Wichita State University - M. Ed. counseling, clinical mental health track: The clinical mental health route sits within a Master of Education in counseling. Applicants drawn to this track should check its current course sequence against Kansas clinical-licensure education requirements rather than assuming that an M. Ed. title determines eligibility (Wichita State University; Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board).
• MidAmerica Nazarene University - clinical mental health counseling: This is a separately identified clinical mental health option, making it a direct comparison for students pursuing that practice area. Request its current clinical-training plan and full program price when comparing it with public-university options (MidAmerica Nazarene University).
• MidAmerica Nazarene University - marriage, couple, and family counseling: Its named family-counseling pathway is the more relevant option for applicants whose goal is work with couples and families. Compare its curriculum with Kansas marriage-and-family-therapy credential requirements; do not assume a clinical mental health track serves the same purpose (MidAmerica Nazarene University; Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board).
• MidAmerica Nazarene University - School Counseling Plus: This separately named school-counseling option deserves attention from applicants targeting educational settings rather than independent clinical practice. Ask the university what "Plus" includes and how the current program meets Kansas school-counselor licensure requirements (MidAmerica Nazarene University; Kansas State Department of Education).

A full-time counseling master's commonly takes about two to three years; part-time study can take longer, depending on course sequencing and the timing of supervised placements. A bachelor's degree generally takes about four years of full-time study before any graduate preparation. These are planning ranges, not completion promises: schools set their own credit, fieldwork, and enrollment requirements.

Ask for a term-by-term plan showing when practicum and internship begin. An accelerated schedule may reduce time away from full-time earnings, but it offers little benefit if the required placement hours cannot fit around your job or if a needed course is offered infrequently.

Online delivery changes where much of the coursework happens; it does not remove supervised fieldwork or Kansas credential requirements. Campus study may make scheduled classes and faculty contact easier to structure, while online study can reduce travel for students who live far from a university. Either format may require in-person training or other attendance specified by the program.

The decisive comparison is the placement plan. Ask an online program whether it approves sites near your home, who finds supervisors, what happens if a site falls through, and whether any visits to campus are mandatory. A local campus program may be a better choice if it has workable placement relationships; online delivery may be better if it provides a feasible approved placement without disrupting employment.

There is no single dependable price for a Kansas counseling degree: undergraduate and graduate tuition, resident status, institution, program fees, and required credits can differ substantially. Published average tuition figures are not necessarily the total cost of a counseling master's. For an institution-level benchmark, use the applicable tuition and fee reporting in NCES IPEDS, then obtain a program-specific estimate from each school (National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS).

Compare the most affordable counseling programs using expected total cost to completion, not one semester's tuition. Include mandatory fees, books, travel to placements, and any income lost while completing supervised training. Confirm your residency classification with each public institution; do not assume that an online program charges the in-state rate.

Eligible students can submit the FAFSA to be considered for federal aid and aid administered by their school. Graduate students should ask their financial-aid office which federal loans they can currently receive and under what limits; grants available to undergraduates should not be assumed to cover a master's degree (Federal Student Aid, U.S. Department of Education).

Also request current information on Kansas-administered aid, university scholarships, assistantships, employer tuition support, and any service-linked funding for behavioral-health work (Kansas Board of Regents; individual institutions). Compare net cost after aid, including whether an award lasts through internship terms. Borrowing to cover living costs during unpaid training can materially change the value of an otherwise affordable program.

For a counseling master's, applicants generally need a completed bachelor's degree and must meet the institution's academic and application requirements. Programs may request transcripts, recommendations, a statement of purpose, an interview, or prerequisite coursework; requirements vary by school and track (individual institutions). A psychology major should not be assumed mandatory unless the program says so.

Before applying, distinguish admission requirements from licensure requirements. Ask whether missing prerequisites can be completed before or during the program, whether previous graduate credits transfer into the degree, and whether transferred courses satisfy any required clinical content. Admission alone is not a finding by a Kansas licensing authority that the degree will qualify you for a credential.

Master's curricula commonly address counseling theories, interviewing, human development, ethics, assessment, multicultural practice, research, and supervised practicum or internship. Clinical tracks may add diagnosis and treatment planning; school tracks emphasize counseling in educational settings; addictions tracks focus more directly on substance-use concerns. The exact course titles and requirements depend on the program and intended credential (individual institutions; Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board; Kansas State Department of Education).

Read the degree plan alongside the relevant Kansas credential requirements. A missing required subject area may be harder to fix after graduation than a scheduling inconvenience discovered before enrollment.

Options represented among Kansas programs include clinical mental health, addictions, school counseling, and marriage, couple, and family counseling (Emporia State University; Wichita State University; MidAmerica Nazarene University). These names describe different training emphases, not automatic permissions to practice. Rehabilitation counseling is another career direction to investigate where an appropriately aligned program is available.

Choose a specialization by working backward from the role and credential you want. Someone seeking to counsel students in schools should prioritize school-credential alignment; someone seeking clinical work with substance-use concerns should examine both the clinical curriculum and the addiction-related requirements relevant to that intended role (Kansas State Department of Education; Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board).

Start with the credential you intend to pursue, then compare programs that plausibly support it. The most popular counseling programs can show where students enroll, but popularity is not evidence that a program fits your license, schedule, or budget.

Use these checks to turn a shortlist into an enrollment decision:

1. Identify your intended Kansas license or educator credential and ask the relevant state authority which education rules apply to your situation (Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board; Kansas State Department of Education).
2. Check the institution's current accreditation and the specific program's applicable programmatic accreditation; do not treat the two as identical (U.S. Department of Education; CACREP).
3. Request the current degree plan, placement arrangements, completion information, and a written estimate of tuition and mandatory fees through graduation (individual institutions).
4. Compare net cost, borrowing, likely completion time, forgone earnings, and plausible post-degree opportunities over a realistic time horizon; a lower sticker price alone does not establish better return on investment.

A serious red flag is an assurance that a degree "leads to licensure" without identifying the credential, required supervised experience, examinations, and any steps after graduation. If a school cannot explain how it supports placements where you live, resolve that uncertainty before paying a deposit.

A clinical mental health pathway can lead toward counseling roles in behavioral-health settings; an addictions emphasis can support substance-use-focused work; school counseling targets educational settings; and marriage and family training targets relationship and family-focused practice. Specific duties and independent-practice authority depend on the applicable Kansas credential, not merely on the concentration printed on a transcript (Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board; Kansas State Department of Education).

If you already work in human services, ask employers which credential is needed for the responsibilities you want next. If you want a faster transition into support work rather than a licensed counseling role, compare those jobs with the time and borrowing a master's would require. A degree is most defensible financially when it opens a specific role that your present qualifications do not.

National projections point to substantially different growth rates across counseling occupations: clinical mental health and addiction counseling roles are projected to grow 18% from 2025 to 2035, compared with 3% for school counseling (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). That difference helps frame career exploration, but it does not predict the number of openings in a particular Kansas county or guarantee a job for a graduate.

For a local test of demand, review current postings from Kansas school districts, community mental health providers, hospitals, and other employers in the area where you intend to live. Note the exact credential requested and whether an employer accepts candidates still completing supervised experience. This is particularly important if you cannot relocate: the availability of both an internship site and an eventual employer may determine whether a program's apparent value is attainable for you.

Investing in a counseling degree is a consequential financial and career decision. Research.com developed its rankings to help readers compare programs using documented outcomes, credentials, and costs rather than promotional claims. The team evaluates data quality and applies a consistent scoring approach to online and on-campus programs.

Research.com's counseling rankings consider program completion, employment or doctoral admission, applicable licensure-exam pass rates, CACREP programmatic accreditation, institutional Title IV eligibility, and program cost. For the Best ranking, an outcomes-and-accreditation score weights completion at 40%, employment or doctoral admission at 20%, applicable exam performance at 20%, CACREP accreditation at 16%, and Title IV eligibility at 4%. Inapplicable criteria are renormalized; cost contributes about 7% of the final Best score. Other rankings order programs by the dimension named in the ranking. Readers should still verify current program-level details before applying.

The ranking draws on the following databases to check institutional, program, and student-outcome information:

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

Use the ranking to narrow your shortlist, then compare each program's current tuition, clinical placements, and alignment with your intended Kansas credential. Research.com explains its approach further on its 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/
• O*NET OnLine - Mental Health Counselors (21-1014)
  Verified professional/licensure/career reference.
  https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/21-1014.00
• Emporia State University - M.S. in Clinical Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.emporia.edu/applied-health-sciences/counselor-education-home/graduate-programs/clinical-counseling-home/clinical-counseling-addictions-counseling/
• Emporia State University - MS, Clinical Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.emporia.edu/applied-health-sciences/counselor-education-home/graduate-programs/clinical-counseling-home/concentrations/
• Wichita State University - M. Ed. in Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.wichita.edu/academics/education/cles/med_counseling-clinical-mental-health-track.php
• MidAmerica Nazarene University - M.A. in Counseling - Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.mnu.edu/pgs/mac-clinical-mental-health/
• MidAmerica Nazarene University - Master of Arts in Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.mnu.edu/pgs/mac-marriage-couple-amp-family-counseling/