Counseling Licensure in Kentucky

In Kentucky there are two levels of licensure, both of which require certain educational requirements to have been met. The first level of licensure is known as Licensed Professional Counselor Associate (LPCA) and is a license that grants one the ability to accumulate supervised professional experience in order to attain full licensure. The full license is known as the Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC). The LPCC level requires educational, testing and supervised work experience requirements be fulfilled. A great way to start your exploration of the licensure process is to go to the Kentucky Office of Occupations and Professions website and read about the current laws and statutes here:

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1. Meet the educational requirement of having your Master of Counseling degree from a Council for Accreditation of Counseling accredited university.
2. Pass a criminal background check.
3. Apply to the Kentucky Office of Occupations and Professions to receive your Licensed Professional Counselor Associate (LPCA) title.
4. Accumulate the required hours for your supervised experience requirement.
5. Apply to take your National Counselor Examination (NCE) as administered by the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC).
6. Apply to the state board to receive your Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC) title in the state of Kentucky.

Educational Requirements

Kentucky has the following requirements for those seeking licensure as a Counselor:

• 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.
• Apply to a Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) accredited Master of Counseling program, or a Council on Counseling Rehabilitation (CORE in the case of rehabilitation counselors) program.

Apply for Your LPCA License

Earning your Licensed Professional Counselor Associate (LPCA) is a requirement before you can gain supervised experience.

• You will need to apply with the Kentucky Office of Occupations and Professions to receive your Licensed Professional Counselor Associate (LPCA) title and begin your supervised experience.
• You can find the application form here:

Supervised Experience LPCC

To become a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor you will need to meet the requirements for supervised experience. With your LPCA title, you can now begin the process of accumulating your supervised experience.

• Pass a criminal background check.
• You will need to accrue 4000 hours of supervised experience.
• You must complete all experience after earning your Master of Counseling degree.
• 1600 hours is the minimum requirement for direct counseling work out of the 4000 you will need.
• Kentucky expresses preference for those who put in 10 or more hours of work in a correctional facility during the work experience component.
• 100 hours must be individual face to face supervision by your supervisor who can be licensed as an LPCC, a Clinical Social Worker, Marriage and Family Therapist, Psychologist, Psychiatrist or a nurse who has a Master’s degree and appropriate psychiatric credentialing.

Apply for and Take Your NCE

The next step is to apply for and take your exam:

• Apply to the Kentucky Office of Occupations and Professions to take your National Counselor Examination (NCE) as administered by the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC).
• Pass the NCE with a score acceptable under Kentucky regulations.

Apply for Your LPCC License

Once you have passed your NCE you may apply for your full LPCC license.

• Apply to the Kentucky Office of Occupations and Professions for your LPCC title.
• You can find the appropriate form here: http://lpc.ky.gov/newstatic_Info.aspx?static_ID=458&menuid=136

Continuing Education

Kentucky requires counselors to participate in an ongoing education program. You will need to renew your license every year.

• You must complete 10 hours of Continuing Education credits yearly.

It is a good idea to be aware of any changes that may have occurred to rules and laws around licensure. The best way to stay up to date is to visit the state website every few months which you can find here: http://lpc.ky.gov/newstatic_Info.aspx?static_ID=474&menuid=137