LVC students in psychology seminar with Dr. Rachel Albert

Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Earn your master's in counseling at Lebanon Valley College and prepare to become a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Pennsylvania. Our CACREP-accredited Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling is available online, on campus in Annville, or in a hybrid format, and you can finish full-time in two years or part-time in four.

CACREP Accredited • 100% National Counselor Examination Pass Rate • Pennsylvania LPC Preparation

Online • Hybrid • On Campus • 2 Years Full-Time / 4 Years Part-Time

Applicants with a 3.0 GPA in any bachelor’s degree are eligible to apply. Ask about employer discounts and discounts for PA Commonwealth employees and dependents.

Next start date: August 24, 2026

Request Info Apply Now
The LVC Counseling Master’s at a Glance

Lebanon Valley College’s Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling is a 60-credit, CACREP-accredited graduate degree that prepares you for licensure as a Licensed Professional Counselor in Pennsylvania. It includes a 600-hour supervised internship and runs in 7-week terms. You can complete it online, on campus, or in a hybrid format, full-time in two years or part-time in four. Tuition is $781 per credit for 2026 to 2027, and recent cohorts have posted a 100% pass rate on the National Counselor Examination.

60
credits (includes 600-hour internship)
$781
per credit (2026–27)
7-week
terms
100%
NCE pass rate
How to Become an LPC in Pennsylvania

Becoming a Licensed Professional Counselor in Pennsylvania takes four main steps:

  • Earn a qualifying master’s degree.

    Complete a 60-credit CACREP-accredited master’s in counseling that includes supervised practicum and internship hours. LVC’s program meets this requirement.

  • Pass the National Counselor Examination (NCE).

    The NCE is the standard licensure exam. LVC students prepare for it throughout the program, and recent cohorts have passed at a 100% rate.

  • Complete supervised clinical experience.

    Pennsylvania requires 3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience after your degree. Required hours vary by state.

  • Apply to the state board.

    Submit your application to the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists, and Professional Counselors. If you plan to practice in another state, check that state’s board for its own requirements.

Clinical Mental Health Counseling alum walks on LVC campus

What You’ll Study

The 60-credit curriculum builds counseling skills across areas including grief, trauma, addiction, career, and child and adolescent counseling, and it culminates in a 600-hour supervised practicum and internship.

Featured Courses:

  • Trauma Counseling: Develop a foundation for assessing and treating post-trauma reactions, including an understanding of the personal and systemic impact of crises, disasters, and other trauma-causing events on individuals, families, and communities.
  • Creative Arts in Counseling: The creative arts are adaptive, enriching, and stimulating therapeutic interventions that foster different ways of experiencing the world in the clinical space.
  • Crisis Intervention and Prevention: Counseling techniques surrounding a wide range of crises will be examined including suicide, grief/loss, public acts of violence such as school shootings, domestic violence, natural disasters, and other traumatic events.
Explore All Courses
Clinical Mental Health Counseling Careers

Clinical mental health counselors help individuals, families, and groups work through challenges such as anxiety, depression, grief, trauma, and addiction. Day-to-day, that can mean conducting intake assessments, developing treatment plans, leading individual and group sessions, coordinating care with other providers, and maintaining clinical records.

Graduates of the LVC program work in community mental health agencies, hospitals and health systems, private and group practices, schools and universities, and substance-use treatment centers.

Graduate prepared for counseling and therapy roles in growing areas such as:

  • Clinical child psychology
  • Addiction counseling
  • Trauma-informed counseling
  • Marriage and family counseling

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors is projected to grow faster than average.

Counselor or Therapist: What’s the Difference?

The terms overlap, and in everyday use, people treat them as similar. In practice, “counselor” is often the licensed title (for example, Licensed Professional Counselor), while “therapist” is a broader term for professionals who provide talk therapy, including counselors, social workers, and psychologists. A master’s in clinical mental health counseling prepares you for licensure as a counselor and for the therapy work that title covers.

Why Choose LVC for Your Clinical Mental Health Counseling Master’s Degree?

When you compare clinical mental health counseling programs, four things matter most:

  • CACREP accreditation
  • Alignment with your state’s licensure requirements
  • Format flexibility
  • Career outcomes

LVC’s program is CACREP-accredited, built to meet Pennsylvania LPC requirements, available online or on campus, and backed by a 100% NCE pass rate. Faculty are practicing clinicians in fields including addiction counseling, grief therapy, couples and family counseling, and psychopathology, so what you learn reflects current practice.

Apply for the M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Trauma-informed Counseling Certificate

12-credit standalone or embedded option.

Accelerate your impact and earn our four-course (12-credit) Trauma-Informed Counseling Certificate as a standalone achievement or incorporate it into the full LVC M.S. program—no prior counseling experience needed. Courses offer opportunities to practice, observe, and discuss counseling techniques. The certificate builds trauma-informed care skills and career marketability.

Learn More About the Trauma Certificate
Clinical Counseling Internship/Practicum Sites

The M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling program features an evidence-based curriculum and opportunities to get real-life experience through internships and a practicum. Local sites include:

  • Annville Psychological Services
  • Catholic Charities
  • Center for Hope and Healing
  • Everlasting Wellness Counseling
  • Horizon House Inc.
  • LVC Counseling Center
  • Maryland Treatment Centers – Mountain Manor
  • Milton Hershey School
  • Pennsylvania Counseling Services
  • WellSpan Health – Philhaven

Learn More About the Program

Connect with professors and classmates through online courses that blend live sessions with recorded content. Build expertise in counseling areas such as grief, trauma, addiction, career, and child and adolescent counseling.

Get any graduate program syllabus upon request to see what’s in store. 

Explore Courses
Meet the Faculty
Contact Graduate Admission

Flexible Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program Formats

The curriculum combines flexible learning modalities, including hybrid, online/asynchronous, and online/synchronous courses.

Our hybrid program is perfect for busy professionals balancing their education with other responsibilities. The benefits of each mental health counseling course type include:

  • Hybrid Classes: Coursework is 50 percent in person and 50 percent online. The in-person component includes real-time discussions, activities, and class exercises. For some students, in-person networking with instructors and classmates is extremely valuable. The online component of hybrid classes offers flexibility and accessibility. Courses offered in hybrid format can also be completed 100% online. This option is perfect if you are completing the program from a non-commutable distance to Annville, Pa. You’ll complete practicum and internships at in-person locations. 
  • Online/Asynchronous Courses: You can take your clinical counseling courses online and on your schedule. While there are deadlines each week, you decide when and where to learn.
  • Online/Synchronous Courses: During your 600-hour practicum and internships, and select other courses, you will engage with your classmates and instructors in real time. This is conducive to group supervision, which allows an exchange of feedback and dialogue about clinical-related matters. Simultaneously, the online modality provides flexibility and accessibility.

Students can begin the program in the fall or spring following a course plan outlined by their program advisor.

If you take courses out of sequence, you have a maximum of seven years to complete the M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. 

Handbooks, Reports & Statistics

View Annual Reports & Vital Statistics
View Program Handbooks

This program is designed to meet the educational requirements for Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) licensure in Pennsylvania. Additional state requirements apply.

Our clinical mental health counseling graduate program is designed to meet the educational requirements for licensure as a professional counselor in Pennsylvania. Additional requirements to obtain licensure are mandatory, including passing the state licensure exam and acquiring the requisite supervision hours. You should consult the Pennsylvania State Licensing Board to determine the requirements to become a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC).

If you are interested in licensure outside Pennsylvania, contact the American Counseling Association or the National Board of Certified Counselors to access licensure requirements for other states. You are responsible for contacting the appropriate board for licensing and certification information.

Please consult Dr. Jeremy Goshorn, CMHC Program Director, for additional information.

The Council for Accreditation and Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), a specialized accrediting body recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), has granted accreditation to the Clinical Mental Health Counseling (M.S.) program at Lebanon Valley College.

The words on this certification mark are "CACREP ACCREDITED," incorporated into a design featuring a stylized dark checkmark against a dark horizontally lined background.

In Their Words

Preparation
Throughout the program, I felt encouraged and supported professionally and personally. The faculty are eager to engage with students throughout course planning, in the class setting and internship experience, as well as by fostering conference presentation opportunities. My transition to employment was seamless. I was well-prepared by a top-notch team and I am grateful for my experience.
Dayna Hanlon-Pinkerton M’24, MS, C-IAYT, LAPC, Yoga Therapist, Trauma Counselor, Founder, Unity Yoga Center
Practice
I learned something new every day. We did a lot of role-playing activities to gain feedback from our classmates and teachers, and that was the best thing because I think that was the best way to learn.
Jamie Rothenberger ’20, M’22, Lead Academic Teacher, YMCA of Greater Brandywine
Quality
LVC has a longstanding reputation for being student-centered and providing quality instruction that makes graduates competitive in the workforce.
Dr. Cynthia Vejar, Associate Professor of Clinical Mental Health Counseling
Throughout the program, I felt encouraged and supported professionally and personally. The faculty are eager to engage with students throughout course planning, in the class setting and internship experience, as well as by fostering conference presentation opportunities. My transition to employment was seamless. I was well-prepared by a top-notch team and I am grateful for my experience.
Dayna Hanlon-Pinkerton M’24, MS, C-IAYT, LAPC, Yoga Therapist, Trauma Counselor, Founder, Unity Yoga Center
I learned something new every day. We did a lot of role-playing activities to gain feedback from our classmates and teachers, and that was the best thing because I think that was the best way to learn.
Jamie Rothenberger ’20, M’22, Lead Academic Teacher, YMCA of Greater Brandywine
LVC has a longstanding reputation for being student-centered and providing quality instruction that makes graduates competitive in the workforce.
Dr. Cynthia Vejar, Associate Professor of Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Frequently Asked Questions

Earn a CACREP-accredited master’s in counseling, pass the National Counselor Examination, complete the state’s supervised clinical hours, and apply to the Pennsylvania State Board. LVC’s program is built to meet the educational requirements. Requirements vary by state.

Yes. The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) has accredited LVC’s M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling.

Yes. You can complete the program online, on campus in Annville, or in a hybrid format. Your practicum and internship take place in person at approved sites.

Two years full-time or four years part-time, with up to seven years to finish if you take courses out of sequence.

$781 per credit for 2026 to 2027, about $46,860 for the 60-credit degree before aid or discounts.

LVC admits on a rolling basis with August and January starts. Submit the online graduate application, an official transcript showing at least a 3.0 GPA, a 500-word personal statement on your counseling goals, a current resume, and two professional or academic references who complete an online form. GRE scores are optional. See all admission requirements.

Mental Health Counseling Master’s Program Resources

Graduate Scholarships
Graduate Tuition & Costs
7-week Term Calendar
Graduate Housing Options

Ready to Get Started?

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Upcoming Events

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Graduate Programs Virtual Chat

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Join us July 23 for an information session about graduate study at LVC. Learn more about our programs, the application process, and support for graduate students.
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The Grad School Guide: Building a Strong Resume & CV

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Participants will learn how to create compelling application documents that highlight their strengths and position them for success in graduate school admissions.
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Graduate Programs Virtual Chat

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Join us July 30 for an information session about graduate study at LVC. Learn more about our programs, the application process, and support for graduate students.
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Graduate Counseling Virtual Chat: Balancing Work, Life, and Grad School

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Join Dr. Cindy Vejar, Program Director and Associate Professor, for a virtual chat to learn about balancing work, life, and grad school!

Graduate Programs Virtual Chat

Virtual
Join us July 23 for an information session about graduate study at LVC. Learn more about our programs, the application process, and support for graduate students.
Register

The Grad School Guide: Building a Strong Resume & CV

Virtual
Participants will learn how to create compelling application documents that highlight their strengths and position them for success in graduate school admissions.
Register

Graduate Programs Virtual Chat

Virtual
Join us July 30 for an information session about graduate study at LVC. Learn more about our programs, the application process, and support for graduate students.
Register

Graduate Counseling Virtual Chat: Balancing Work, Life, and Grad School

Virtual
Join Dr. Cindy Vejar, Program Director and Associate Professor, for a virtual chat to learn about balancing work, life, and grad school!

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The words on this certification mark are "CACREP ACCREDITED," incorporated into a design featuring a stylized dark checkmark against a dark horizontally lined background.

The Council for Accreditation and Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), a specialized accrediting body recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), has granted accreditation to the Clinical Mental Health Counseling (M.S.) program at Lebanon Valley College.

 

Online Masters Best Counseling Degree Programs 2026 badge

OnlineMasters.com, a leading authority on accredited online graduate education, has included Lebanon Valley College in its annual rankings, awarding it the Best Online Master’s in Counseling Programs for 2026.