Who Accredits Psychology and Counseling Programs?

Specially accredited programs meet high academic quality standards and lead to preferred learning outcomes. In psychology, counseling, social work, and other human services fields, accredited programs can also play an important role in state-level licensing processes.

Many states require psychologists, mental health counselors, social workers, and other human services professionals to complete specially accredited degree programs. You must satisfy accredited education requirements in these states to qualify for an initial license.

This complete guide explores psychology accreditation, counseling accreditation, and similar initiatives in social work and other human services fields. Use it to identify quality educators and shape your career plans.

Psychology accreditation agencies evaluate programs based on academic content, professional standards training, graduate outcome data, and other related criteria. They share a goal of ensuring that students who complete the schools’ programs meet professional effectiveness and ethical standards.

The subsections below profile three leading accreditors of psychology programs at various degree levels.

The APA identifies academic quality and consistency as the primary goals of its accreditation program. In the APA’s view, the organization’s standards have broad, positive impacts on students, educational institutions, the public, and psychology in general.

Programs seeking APA accreditation undergo a rigorous evaluation process, which includes:

The APA mainly accredits doctoral programs but also endorses some psychology master’s programs, doctoral internships, and postdoctoral residencies. All states require psychology licensure candidates to complete at least 1,500 hours of experiential training, and internship and residency accreditation ensures those experiences meet the necessary standards.

An APA-accredited doctoral degree is a firm licensure requirement in Georgia, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Maryland, Mississippi, and Pennsylvania. Most other states either prefer APA accreditation, mandate that you earn your degree at an accredited institution, or maintain highly specific content area guidelines for your doctoral education.

Some states, such as Georgia, also require that you complete an APA-accredited internship program as part of your experiential training.

PCSAS exclusively accredits clinical psychology doctoral programs leading to Ph.D. degrees. It does not accredit doctor of psychology (Psy.D.) programs or any other specialist or postgraduate degrees.

The PCSAS mission focuses on:

PCSAS accredits emerging and established Ph.D. programs, using different processes for each type. In both cases, the processes focus on a comprehensive analytical review of program content and alignment with PCSAS standards.

As of April 2025, no states explicitly require psychology licensure candidates to hold PCSAS-accredited Ph.D. degrees. However, a growing number of states recognize PCSAS accreditation in their psychology licensure policies and accept PCSAS-backed programs as fulfilling their educational requirements for licensure.

Through its school psychology program accreditation, approval, and certification processes, NASP strives to ensure that K-12 students throughout the United States have access to confidential, high-quality mental health resources. NASP also maintains formal ties to the Council for Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP), functioning as one of CAEP’s specialized professional associations.

NASP both “accredits” and “approves” programs — and you should know the difference between these credentials. NASP accreditations are formally recognized by CHEA but apply exclusively to programs not already covered by CAEP, while NASP approvals only extend to CAEP-accredited providers.

Formal NASP accreditation is available for specialist-level and doctoral programs only.

NASP accreditation is not generally required to qualify for licensure as a school psychologist. However, graduates of NASP-approved programs may enjoy advantages when going through licensing processes.

For example, you can bypass certain licensure requirements by holding a Nationally Certified School Psychology (NCSP) credential. NCSP certifications are exclusively available through the NASP-aligned National School Psychology Certification Board. Graduating from a program accredited or approved by NASP makes the NCSP credential easier to acquire.

Counseling accreditation plays an important role in establishing and maintaining high standards for counselor education. As with psychology, some states explicitly require counseling licensure candidates to hold specially accredited degrees. In many others, state laws closely align educational requirements with the academic standards endorsed by leading accreditors of counseling programs.

Widely considered the leading provider of counseling accreditation, CACREP endorses graduate-level licensure-track programs. Two values define CACREP’s mission: First, the organization works to promote and improve high-quality counseling education. Second, it strives to equip emerging counselors with the knowledge and tools needed to optimize the growth and development of their clients.

CACREP’s accreditation process includes site visits and comprehensive reviews of candidate programs’ academic content. It then reports findings to applicant institutions and offers them an opportunity to respond before making a final accreditation decision.

In addition, CACREP conducts regular reviews of its counseling accreditation standards and policies, revising them as needed in keeping with its mission of providing the public with access to reliable and effective mental health services.

According to CACREP, 27 states include explicit references to CACREP accreditation in their counseling licensure regulations. Fifteen of the remaining 23 states require counseling license applicants to qualify through education that meets CACREP’s core area standards, even though these states do not specifically cite accreditation requirements.

In short, CACREP-accredited programs are highly recommended for licensure-track counseling students.

Initially an accreditor only of psychology programs, MPCAC expanded its mandate in 2011 to include counseling accreditation. Today, MPCAC recognizes terminal master’s degrees in counseling and counseling psychology. It is the only CHEA-recognized accreditor that accredits programs only at the master’s level.

The January 2024 update to MPCAC’s accreditation manual identified eight specific standards. These cover the candidate program’s mission, academic content, counseling and clinical instruction methods, host institution, faculty credentials, administration processes, evaluation standards, and record-keeping practices.

Within academia, MPCAC is sometimes viewed as a CACREP alternative. MPCAC recognizes some programs that are not eligible for CACREP accreditation, such as those offered through an institution’s psychology department.

As of April 2025, no states specifically mandate that counseling or counseling psychology license-seekers hold an MPCAC-accredited degree. However, MPCAC requires that licensure-track academic programs meet state-level educational requirements as a precondition for accreditation. From this perspective, MPCAC accreditation aligns programs with the licensing standards used in those jurisdictions.

COAMFTE works to ensure that licensure-track programs in marriage and family therapy (MFT) meet high standards. In carrying out its mission, COAMFTE recognizes three program types: master’s degrees, doctoral degrees, and postgraduate clinical training programs. As of 2025, COAMFTE is the only CHEA-recognized organization to accredit graduate MFT programs specifically.

COAMFTE follows a seven-step accreditation process, which begins with institutional preparation and a formal letter of intent. Programs then review their eligibility and perform a self-study before COAMFTE officials conduct a site visit. COAMFTE then makes an accreditation decision. Successful candidates must take annual action to maintain their COAMFTE credential.

Most states identify COAMFTE accreditation in their MFT licensing requirements. However, many jurisdictions accept either COAMFTE accreditation, CACREP accreditation, or academic credentials judged to be “substantially equivalent” to either.

Some states also use COAMFTE accreditation standards as guidelines for their academic program content requirements without specifically requiring license-seekers to hold a COAMFTE-accredited degree.

Numerous other accreditors work in the social and human services field, identifying and promoting programs that do an exceptional job of preparing students for the rigors of professional licensure. These agencies work in fields including but not limited to social work, behavior analysis, social and human services, and addiction treatment.

Widely recognized as the leading accreditor of social work degree programs, CSWE views social work as one of the bedrocks of community health. Its core mission is to ensure that emerging social workers have the training, skills, and cultural sensitivities required to advance social work as a source of public good.

To that end, CSWE accredits programs at the bachelor’s, master’s (MSW), and doctoral levels. Its accreditation process maintains a strong focus on program outcomes and is designed to ensure that accredited programs promote consistent standards that align with CSWE’s views on the effective professional practice of social work.

Emerging social workers must pass a licensing examination to advance through their state’s credentialing process. A CSWE-accredited degree is required to take these state-level exams in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

Though it was established in 1974, ABAI began accrediting academic programs in 1993. It does so through the ABAI Accreditation Board, which accredits programs with behavioral analysis coursework concentrations. ABAI recognizes programs at the bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels. As of April 2025, most ABAI-accredited programs lead to master’s degrees.

ABAI’s accreditation process emphasizes academic depth and rigor. In addition to its accreditation credentialing program, ABAI also operates a multitier recognition program that offers limited endorsement of both degree and nondegree academic programs in behavior analysis.

ABAI operates globally, but the majority of schools with ABAI-accredited programs are located in the United States.

Licensing regimes for behavior analysts have emerged quickly since 2009 and continue to evolve at rapid rates. As of April 2025, 39 states have licensing requirements, which frequently include a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) credential.

You can follow multiple pathways to meet the educational requirements for BCBA certification, one of which includes graduating from a program accredited or recognized by ABAI.

CSHSE’s mission centers on quality assurance and consistency in human services education. Its peer-reviewed credentialing program applies evidence-based practices and involves three steps: a membership application, an accreditation review, and a self-study program. Degree programs at the associate, bachelor’s, and master’s levels are eligible.

In evaluating candidate programs, CSHSE applies specific national standards, which differ slightly for each degree level. However, the standards all share a cohesive set of program objectives, knowledge base and content area requirements, and evaluation standards.

CSHSE also requires all of its accredited programs to conduct periodic internal evaluations with the goal of identifying areas for improvement.

Human services professions include social workers, marriage and family therapists, and mental health counselors. CSHSE accreditation is not required to pursue licensure in these areas. Instead, state licensing agencies often mandate that license-seekers hold degrees recognized by accreditors such as CACREP and CSWE.

However, CSHSE accreditation can help to establish a program’s “substantial equivalence” to these requirements. It may therefore offer a path to licensure in jurisdictions that recognize substantial equivalence in their educational requirements.

NASAC accredits programs at all levels, including pre- and post-degree counseling certificate programs and associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees. However, NASAC mainly focuses on undergraduate programs since addiction counselors do not usually require a graduate degree to practice.

Notably, NASAC accreditation can extend to both academic majors and minors. Accredited programs with an addiction studies minor must have an accompanying major in a mental health field.

When evaluating candidate programs, NASAC primarily considers academic content, institutional resources, and faculty credentials. It also ensures that accredited programs cover not only addiction treatment and recovery but also prevention, post-recovery support, and addiction research.

Some states require that addiction counselors hold a NASAC-accredited degree to qualify for licensure. However, these requirements are generally not rigid. Instead, candidates with non-NASAC degrees can still become licensed if the state licensing board conducts a review of every course listed in the applicant’s academic transcript and deems them to meet the required standards.

From this perspective, NASAC accreditation is strongly preferred even if states offer alternative paths to licensure.