South Carolina LPC Requirements

Counselor Licensing Requirements in South Carolina

We want to provide you with helpful tips on gaining your appropriate licensing in South Carolina. Make sure that you have everything in order so that you can practice safely and effectively for years to come.

South Carolina mainly offers a couple of stages of licensing. After finishing your academic and testing criteria, you are eligible to be a Licensed Professional Counselor Intern (LPC/I). Once you complete a monitored training application, you’re able to qualify for licensure as an LPC.

This information is designed to act as a guide to help assist you understand the licensing procedure in South Carolina.

South Carolina Counselor Credential Titles

Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) Professional Counselor Intern (LPC/I) An applicant who has met the education and exam requirements, but not the 2 years supervised experience requirement.

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South Carolina Counselor Educational Requirements

Master’s degree or higher in professional counseling or related discipline from a regionally accredited institution that includes at least 48 graduate hours, coursework in 10 content areas, and a 150-hour supervised counseling practicum.

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South Carolina Counselor Experiential Requirements

Must already possess the 1st-level LPC/I credential; and 2 years/1,500 hours of full-time post-masters supervised clinical experience in the practice of professional counseling. The 1,500 hours must be direct counseling with individuals, couples, families, or groups. A minimum of 150 hours of the 1,500 hours must be clinical supervision provided by a board-approved LPC supervisor (100 hours must be individual supervision).

South Carolina Counseling Exams Required

NCE or NCMHCE

South Carolina Requirements for Clinical Supervisors

Licensed as a professional counselor with 5 years of continuous clinical experience, at least 2 years of which must be supervising clinical casework of certified or licensed counselors, 3 semester hours of graduate study in supervision, and 36 hours of individual supervision of applicant’s supervision of at least 2 LPC interns. 10 CEUs in supervision are required for each licensure renewal period.

South Carolina Requirements for Out of State Applicants

The board may offer licensure by endorsement with any state that credentials professional counselors and marriage and family therapists if the board finds that the state has substantially the same or higher licensure requirements. 1.) The board may license an individual who is currently credentialed or meets the requirements of a licensed professional counselor or a licensed marriage and family therapist in another jurisdiction of the United States if the individual has met the same or higher requirements. 2.) The board shall delineate in regulation procedures for verifying an applicant’s credentials from another jurisdiction. 3.) The board may not license an applicant who is under investigation in this or another jurisdiction for an act that would constitute a violation of this chapter until the investigation is complete. When deciding a case, the board shall determine what, if any, rules or discipline apply. 4.) The board may grant a license to practice professional counseling or marriage and family therapy to an applicant who has completed an educational program in a college or university in a foreign country if the applicant meets all requirements of this article and demonstrates to the satisfaction of the board that the applicant’s experience, command of the English language, and completed academic program meets the standards of a relevant academic program of an accredited educational institution within the United States. If the requirements of this item are met, the applicant must be considered to have received the education from an accredited educational institution as required by this article.

South Carolina Scope of Practice

“PRACTICE OF PROFESSIONAL COUNSELING” means functioning as a psycho-therapist and may include, but is not limited to, providing individual therapy, family counseling, group therapy, marital counseling, play therapy, couples counseling, chemical abuse or dependency counseling, vocational counseling, school counseling, rehabilitation counseling, intervention, human growth, and development counseling, behavioral modification counseling, and hypnotherapy. The practice of professional counseling may include assessment, crisis intervention, guidance and counseling to facilitate normal growth and development, including educational and career development; utilization of functional assessment and counseling for persons requesting assistance in adjustment to a disability or handicapping condition; and consultation and research. The use of specific methods, techniques, or modalities within the practice of licensed professional counseling is restricted to professional counselors appropriately trained in the use of these methods, techniques, or modalities. “ASSESSMENT” in the practice of counseling and therapy means selecting, administering, scoring, and interpreting evaluative or standardized instruments; assessing, diagnosing, and treating, using standard diagnostic nomenclature, a client’s attitudes, abilities, achievements, interests, personal characteristics, disabilities, and mental, emotional, and behavioral problems that are typical of the developmental life cycle; and the use of methods and techniques for understanding human behavior in relation to, coping with, adapting to, or changing life situations. A counselor may assess more serious problems as categorized in standard diagnostic nomenclature but only if the counselor has been specifically trained to assess and treat that particular problem. If a client presents with a problem that is beyond the counselor’s training and competence, the counselor must refer that problem to a licensed professional who has been specifically trained to diagnose and treat the presenting problem. In all cases, ethical guidelines as established by the board must be followed.

Counselor Salaries in South Carolina

In the state of South Carolina, counselors love what they do. Each day they go to work they are actively improving the lives of those around them and and the state rewards them well for it. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a general counselor in the state of South Carolina brings home an average salary between $31,330 and $91,200 per year. Now that you are familiar with the counselor licensing requirements in South Carolina, visit our How to Become a Counselor in South Carolina page for a more detailed look into the steps you will need to take to make your dream of becoming a counselor a reality.

Additional Information about LPC Requirements in South Carolina

SC Board of Examiners for Licensure of Professional Counselors, Marriage & Family Therapists, and Psycho-Educational Specialists P.O. Box 11329 Columbia, SC 29211-1329 803-896-4662 http://www.llr.state.sc.us/pol/counselors/

Source: http://www.scstatehouse.gov/