Counseling Licensure in Idaho

Idaho has fairly straight forward requirements to become a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC). The requirements are however fairly intensive in terms of time and work that you will need to do, so it is good to plan both your education and your supervised professional experience in advance. Idaho has three levels of licensure one of which the Registered Counselor Intern is a stepping stone requirement to log supervised experience en route to becoming a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and eventually a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC). A good starting place to understand the requirements is the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses website which you can find here:

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1. Meet the educational requirement of a Master’s in Counseling from a Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) or Council on Counseling Rehabilitation (CORE in the case of rehabilitation counselors) accredited university.
2. Complete a practicum as you are working on your Master’s in Counseling.
3. Pass a criminal background check.
4. Apply with the Idaho state board to become a Registered Counselor Intern.
5. Accumulate the required hours for your supervised experience element.
6. Apply to take your National Counselor Examination (NCE) as administered by the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC).
7. Apply to the state board to receive your Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) or Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC) title in the state of Idaho.

Educational Requirements

• Idaho requires prospective Counselors to complete the following educational steps.
• The first step is to earn your Bachelor’s degree in Counseling as the best option, or a highly related Social or Behavioral Science field such as Psychology, Social Work or Human Services.
• The next step is to apply to and get accepted into a Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) accredited Master of Counseling or Council on Counseling Rehabilitation (CORE in the case of rehabilitation counselors) program.
• The Master’s program must have certain core elements as described on the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses website:

Practicum

Idaho has a stipulation that those who apply to become Licensed Professional Counselors must have completed a practicum during their graduate program.

• The practicum must include six semester hours of supervised experience in a mental health setting.

Apply to Become a Registered Counselor Intern

In order to begin logging supervised experience you will need a special title.

• Apply with the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses for the title of Registered Counselor Intern.
• You can find the form here:

Supervised Experience LPC

After completing your practicum and being awarded your Master of Counseling diploma, you can begin the supervised experience step of the process:

• Idaho requires that you have a 1,000 hour internship period where you have supervised professional practice.
• This can be completed during your practicum if you have 1,000 hours of real time supervised experience during the practicum.
• You must have one hour of face-to-face supervision per ten hours of supervised experience logged if you earn these hours during a practicum.
• You will need only one hour of face-to-face supervision per 20 hours of experience if you earn your supervised work experience in a professional paid setting.
• 400 hours of your supervised experience must be in direct client contact
• You must accumulate this experience in a two year period.
• Your supervisor must be approved by the board you can find a list of approved supervisors here:

Apply for and Take Your LPC Exam

You are now ready to take your exam.

• Apply with the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses to take the National Counselor Examination (NCE) as administered by the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC).
  • You can find the form here:
• Pass the exam with a score acceptable to the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses.

Apply for Your LPC License

You can now apply to the board for your LPC title.

• Apply with the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses for your LPC title.
  • You can find the form here:

Supervised Experience LCPC

If you want to attain the highest level of licensure, the Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC) title, then you will need to gain post-licensure experience as follows:

• Once you have your LPC title you will need 2,000 additional hours of client contact within a two year period.
• 1,000 hours of this experience can be earned in states other than Idaho.
• 1,000 of the hours have to be under the supervision of a LCPC.
• 1,000 hours can be under a licensed: Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Marriage and Family Therapist or a Clinical Social Worker.
• You must have one hour of direct face-to-face supervision with your supervisor for every 30 hours of experience you acquire.
• Of this supervision only have can be group supervision.

Apply for and Take Your LCPC Exam

Once you have your supervised experience under your belt, you can apply for and take your exam.

• Apply with the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses to take the National Clinical Mental Health Counselor Examination (NCMHCE) as administered by the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC).
• You can find the form here: http://ibol.idaho.gov/IBOL/BoardAdditional.aspx?Bureau=COU&BureauLinkID=930
• Pass the exam with a score acceptable to the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses.

Apply for Your LCPC License

You are now ready to fill out your application and send it in to receive your LCPC title.

• Apply with the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses for your LCPC title.
  • You can find the form here:

Continuing Education

Idaho requires that you renew your license every year. Regardless of your licensure level (LPC or LCPC), you are required to complete the following continuing education to maintain licensure:

• You must complete 20 continuing education hours each year.
• Three of the hours must be in ethics.

You will want to make sure that you are up to date on current Idaho law surrounding licensure and you can do this by making sure you make a point of making quarterly visits to the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses website which you can find here: