Mental Health Continuing Education Pricing and Costs

Get the scoop on the cost of mental health counselor training

As a licensed mental health professional, you're required to get counseling continuing education annually or biennially, as required by your state. You may be worried that these classes will cost you a pretty penny, but mental health continuing education pricing and costs are generally reasonable.

Mental health online courses are convenient because you can do them instantly from wherever you are. Mental health home study courses are also convenient, yet require you to wait for the CEU package to be shipped to your home. Live courses can be very expensive, but provide hands-on learning. Also, think about which might best suit you and your profession:

1. Social work CEUs are for those in the social work field, be it a supervisor or LCSW. These are often geared toward learning to work with different age or client groups.

2. Psychologists can get mental health CE in a their own and related fields. A lateral move can greatly expand a client base.

3. Mental health counselor training is best for those registered as an LMHC, although the lines are a bit blurry and these can sometimes be used for psychology and social work CEUs.

 

Earn mental health continuing education credits in social work

Many social workers take mental health CE classes to learn more about dealing with issues they come across when assessing and dealing with clients. These classes typically range from about $25 per credit hour, although you can find them much cheaper, up to 14 credits for $100. Try to find big packages to combine the courses and reduce your cost.
Try: Find the state in which you practice social work at ContinuingEdCourses.Net and take classes about addiction and difficult clients. You can find a great selection of courses for social work at Western Schools, which is approved by both California and Florida state boards.

Take a mental health online course in psychology

APA-approved courses run anywhere from $10 to $20 per credit hour. Sometimes, large organizations will host a speaker and give education credit for attending, but these seminars are usually very expensive. Whether you see a live speaker or just take an online or home study course, you should focus on what you want to bring into your practice and expand on your existing knowledge. You can find discounted packages of classes that are geared toward certain psychological areas or disorders.
Try: The online CEUs from the American Psychological Association are in the $20 per credit range. Vista Continuing Education offers courses that are a bit less expensive.

Obtain continuing education training for mental health counselors

Online courses range from $10 to $65, depending on how many credits they're worth and if they include a DVD for home study. Home study courses cost more, and an entire package of CEUs can cost hundreds of dollars. Some classes for social work are okay for mental health counselors, so check into those as well, as they can be quite inexpensive.
Try: Check out the online courses at Affect Plus. The courses at Peachtree Professional Education are a bit more expensive as they include DVDs for home study.

 

• Continuing education for mental health professionals often includes ethics and law classes. Check with your state to see what's required before you buy CEU packages. Ethics and law courses tend to be much cheaper than other courses since the information stays basically the same from year to year; it's often included as part of a larger package.

Copyright © 2011 Business.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

---