For Everyone: Sorting through Helper Credentials - what do those letters mean?
Posted by Jamie at 11/30/2007 10:51 AM and is filed under For Everyone,For Investigators,For the Haunted 
Often investigators will recommend that their clients seek ongoing help to deal with whatever may be happening in their lives, including their paranormal experiences. However, sorting through the various types of professionals that are out there can be daunting, so here is a basic description of each type of "helper" and what their credentials mean:
Psychiatrist (M.D.): Psychiatrists are medical doctors who went to medical school and specialized in psychiatry. They specialize in diagnosing and treating mental illness and can provide psychotherapy services as well as prescribing medications.
Psychologist (PhD or PsyD): Psychologists are licensed professionals who have obtained a doctorate degree in Psychology or a related field and can provide counseling and psychotherapy, but cannot always prescribe medication; however some can if they have taken special courses in psychopharmacology.
Licensed Professional Counselor or Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LPC or LMHC): Licensed Professional Counselors or Licensed Mental Health Counselors have at least a master's degree in Counseling or a related field and have obtained a license in the state in which they are practicing. They can provide independent counseling services but cannot prescribe medication.
Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW): LCSW's have a master's degree in Social Work and must then obtain a license to practice Social Work in their state of practice to provide independent counseling services. They cannot prescribe medication.
Licensed Marital and Family Therapist (LMFT or MFCC): Must have a minimum of a master's degree in Marriage and Family Therapy or a curriculum which included a specific number of courses on marriage and family counseling and theory. These therapists specifically focus on couples and family systems as a unit, instead of each person individually.
Occupational licensing boards were established to provide clients with a standard of excellence, since applicants are required to complete a minimum amount of education and supervised clinical hours before obtaining their license.
Certification: You will often come across therapists who are certified in specific areas. Some examples are Certified Grief Counselors (GC-C), Certified School Counselors, Certified Rehabilitation Counselors (CRC), Certified Addictions Counselors, and there are many others. If you ever see an acronym you don't recognize, it is usually easy to find out what it means by typing it into a search engine online. Most certified counselors work in agencies or schools providing counseling services related to their specialty. Certified counselors can and do sometimes provide independent therapy services, but they cannot process third-party payments (accept insurance). Therefore, you will usually have to pay out-of-pocket to see a certified but not licensed therapist.
Educational Credentials: Other educational credentials include (most commonly) B.A. or B.S. (Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science) and M.A., M.S., M.S.W. (Master of Arts or Master of Science or Master of Social Work). This tells you the educational level that the therapist has achieved and is not indicative of whether they are licensed or certified.
Research shows that the relationship between the client and the therapist is far more important in determining how successful therapy will be than any type of specific credential that the therapist has obtained. Therefore, don't get too hung up on the letters, but shop around for someone with whom you feel comfortable. You also want to make sure that the therapist is legit. If they are licensed, you can do so by verifying their license with the state licensing board. I've listed each state's verification website below. Usually you can type in their name or license number (which they must provide for you) and their credentials will come up. For certification or other credentials, ask the therapist how you can verify and they should always be happy to provide you with a number you can call or an official copy of their credentials.
The best way to find a therapist is through your insurance company. Once you find one in your area, you can use the state website below to verify their license status:
Alabama:
http://www.psychology.state.al.us/
Alaska:
http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/occ/search3.htm
Arizona:
http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/occ/search3.htm
http://www.psychboard.az.gov/directory.htm (for psychologists only)
Arkansas:
http://www.arkansas.gov/abep/License_Verification.htm#Licensees (charges $10 per verification)
California:
http://www.psychboard.ca.gov/ (for psychologists only)
http://www.bbs.ca.gov/
Colorado:
http://www.dora.state.co.us/mental-health/psy/licensing.htm
Connecticut:
http://www.dir.ct.gov/dph/Scripts/hlthprof.asp
Delaware:
http://dpr.delaware.gov/boards/psychology/index.shtml
District of Columbia:
http://app.hpla.doh.dc.gov/weblookup/
Florida:
https://ww2.doh.state.fl.us/irm00praes/praslist.asp
Georgia:
http://sos.georgia.gov/myverification/
Hawaii:
http://pvl.ehawaii.gov/pvlsearch/app
Idaho:
http://www.ibol.idaho.gov/psy.htm (charges $10 per verification)
Illinois:
https://www.idfpr.com/DPR/licenselookup/default.asp
Indiana:
http://www.in.gov/pla/
Iowa:
http://www.idph.state.ia.us/licensure/board_home.asp?board=psy
Kansas:
http://www.ksbsrb.org/verification.html
Kentucky:
https://web1.ky.gov/OnPPub/Verification.aspx
Louisiana:
http://www.onesimuswebs.com/lsbep_db.asp (psychologists only)
Maine:
http://pfr.informe.org/almsonline/almsquery/SearchIndividual.aspx?c=1
Maryland:
http://www.dhmh.state.md.us/health/licpract.htm
Massachusetts:
http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=ocahomepage&L=1&L0=Home&sid=Eoca
Michigan:
http://www.cis.state.mi.us/free/default.asp
Minnesota:
http://www.psychologyboard.state.mn.us/licforms.asp?docid=36 (by mail only)
Mississippi:
http://www.psychologyboard.state.ms.us/msbp/msbp.nsf/Search?OpenForm (psychologists only)
http://www.msboeswmft.com/ (social workers and marriage and family therapists only)
http://www.lpc.state.ms.us/html/search.html (professional counselors only)
Missouri:
http://pr.mo.gov/licensee-search.asp
Montana:
http://app.mt.gov/lookup/
Nebraska:
https://www.nebraska.gov/hhs/lists/
Nevada:
http://psyexam.state.nv.us/
(site under construction as of blog entry on 12/4/07 - use e-mail address on page to find out how to verify license)
New Hampshire:
http://nhlicenses.nh.gov/WebLookUp/
New Jersey:
http://www.state.nj.us/cgi-bin/consumeraffairs/search/searchentry.pl
New Mexico:
http://www.rld.state.nm.us/OS/BoardsCommissions.html
New York:
http://www.op.nysed.gov/opsearches.htm
North Carolina:
http://www.ncpsychologyboard.org/search.htm (psychologists only)
http://24.199.170.182/certsmenu.asp (social workers only)
http://www.ncblpc.org/verify.php (licensed professional counselors only)
http://www.nclmft.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=licenseVerify.home (marriage and family therapists only)
North Dakota:
http://www.psychologyinfo.com/directory/ND/board.html (psychologists only - no online verification, contact state board)
http://www.ndbce.org/LPCC.shtml (licensed professional counselors only)
https://secure.ebigpicture.com/ndbswe/live/public.asp (social workers only)
Ohio:
https://license.ohio.gov/lookup/default.asp
Oklahoma:
http://ok.gov/OSBEP/ (psychologists only)
http://www.osblsw.state.ok.us/licensee_search.php (social workers only)
http://www.health.state.ok.us/program/lpc/index.html (licensed professional counselors and marriage and family therapists only - charges $10 per verification)
Oregon:
http://obpe.alcsoftware.com/liclookup.php (psychologists only)
http://bcsw.oregonlookups.com/ (social workers only)
http://www.oregon.gov/OBLPCT/licensee_info.shtml (licensed professional counselors and marriage and family therapists only)
Pennsylvania:
http://www.licensepa.state.pa.us/default.asp
Rhode Island:
https://healthri.mylicense.com/Verification/
South Carolina:
https://verify.llronline.com/LicLookup/LookupMain.aspx
South Dakota:
http://dhs.sd.gov/brd/
Tennessee:
http://health.state.tn.us/licensure/index.htm
Texas:
http://www.texasonline.state.tx.us/NASApp/txops/ProfilingSearchManager?AGENCY=tsbep (psychologists only)
http://legateway.dshs.state.tx.us/datamart/selLicType.do?type=city
Utah:
http://www.dopl.utah.gov/
Vermont:
http://www.sec.state.vt.us/seek/opr_data.html
Virginia:
http://www2.vipnet.org/dhp/cgi-bin/search_publicdb.cgi
Washington State:
https://fortress.wa.gov/doh/hpqa1/Application/Credential_Search/profile.asp
West Virginia:
http://www.wvpsychbd.org/license_verification.htm (psychologist only)
http://www.wvbec.org/ (licensed professional counselors only)
http://www.wvsocialworkboard.org/licenseverification/licenseverification.asp (social workers only)
Wisconsin:
https://ice.wi.gov/LicenseLookup/individual.do
Wyoming:
http://plboards.state.wy.us/psychology/index.asp
Psychiatrist (M.D.): Psychiatrists are medical doctors who went to medical school and specialized in psychiatry. They specialize in diagnosing and treating mental illness and can provide psychotherapy services as well as prescribing medications.
Psychologist (PhD or PsyD): Psychologists are licensed professionals who have obtained a doctorate degree in Psychology or a related field and can provide counseling and psychotherapy, but cannot always prescribe medication; however some can if they have taken special courses in psychopharmacology.
Licensed Professional Counselor or Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LPC or LMHC): Licensed Professional Counselors or Licensed Mental Health Counselors have at least a master's degree in Counseling or a related field and have obtained a license in the state in which they are practicing. They can provide independent counseling services but cannot prescribe medication.
Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW): LCSW's have a master's degree in Social Work and must then obtain a license to practice Social Work in their state of practice to provide independent counseling services. They cannot prescribe medication.
Licensed Marital and Family Therapist (LMFT or MFCC): Must have a minimum of a master's degree in Marriage and Family Therapy or a curriculum which included a specific number of courses on marriage and family counseling and theory. These therapists specifically focus on couples and family systems as a unit, instead of each person individually.
Occupational licensing boards were established to provide clients with a standard of excellence, since applicants are required to complete a minimum amount of education and supervised clinical hours before obtaining their license.
Certification: You will often come across therapists who are certified in specific areas. Some examples are Certified Grief Counselors (GC-C), Certified School Counselors, Certified Rehabilitation Counselors (CRC), Certified Addictions Counselors, and there are many others. If you ever see an acronym you don't recognize, it is usually easy to find out what it means by typing it into a search engine online. Most certified counselors work in agencies or schools providing counseling services related to their specialty. Certified counselors can and do sometimes provide independent therapy services, but they cannot process third-party payments (accept insurance). Therefore, you will usually have to pay out-of-pocket to see a certified but not licensed therapist.
Educational Credentials: Other educational credentials include (most commonly) B.A. or B.S. (Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science) and M.A., M.S., M.S.W. (Master of Arts or Master of Science or Master of Social Work). This tells you the educational level that the therapist has achieved and is not indicative of whether they are licensed or certified.
Research shows that the relationship between the client and the therapist is far more important in determining how successful therapy will be than any type of specific credential that the therapist has obtained. Therefore, don't get too hung up on the letters, but shop around for someone with whom you feel comfortable. You also want to make sure that the therapist is legit. If they are licensed, you can do so by verifying their license with the state licensing board. I've listed each state's verification website below. Usually you can type in their name or license number (which they must provide for you) and their credentials will come up. For certification or other credentials, ask the therapist how you can verify and they should always be happy to provide you with a number you can call or an official copy of their credentials.
The best way to find a therapist is through your insurance company. Once you find one in your area, you can use the state website below to verify their license status:
Alabama:
http://www.psychology.state.al.us/
Alaska:
http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/occ/search3.htm
Arizona:
http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/occ/search3.htm
http://www.psychboard.az.gov/directory.htm (for psychologists only)
Arkansas:
http://www.arkansas.gov/abep/License_Verification.htm#Licensees (charges $10 per verification)
California:
http://www.psychboard.ca.gov/ (for psychologists only)
http://www.bbs.ca.gov/
Colorado:
http://www.dora.state.co.us/mental-health/psy/licensing.htm
Connecticut:
http://www.dir.ct.gov/dph/Scripts/hlthprof.asp
Delaware:
http://dpr.delaware.gov/boards/psychology/index.shtml
District of Columbia:
http://app.hpla.doh.dc.gov/weblookup/
Florida:
https://ww2.doh.state.fl.us/irm00praes/praslist.asp
Georgia:
http://sos.georgia.gov/myverification/
Hawaii:
http://pvl.ehawaii.gov/pvlsearch/app
Idaho:
http://www.ibol.idaho.gov/psy.htm (charges $10 per verification)
Illinois:
https://www.idfpr.com/DPR/licenselookup/default.asp
Indiana:
http://www.in.gov/pla/
Iowa:
http://www.idph.state.ia.us/licensure/board_home.asp?board=psy
Kansas:
http://www.ksbsrb.org/verification.html
Kentucky:
https://web1.ky.gov/OnPPub/Verification.aspx
Louisiana:
http://www.onesimuswebs.com/lsbep_db.asp (psychologists only)
Maine:
http://pfr.informe.org/almsonline/almsquery/SearchIndividual.aspx?c=1
Maryland:
http://www.dhmh.state.md.us/health/licpract.htm
Massachusetts:
http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=ocahomepage&L=1&L0=Home&sid=Eoca
Michigan:
http://www.cis.state.mi.us/free/default.asp
Minnesota:
http://www.psychologyboard.state.mn.us/licforms.asp?docid=36 (by mail only)
Mississippi:
http://www.psychologyboard.state.ms.us/msbp/msbp.nsf/Search?OpenForm (psychologists only)
http://www.msboeswmft.com/ (social workers and marriage and family therapists only)
http://www.lpc.state.ms.us/html/search.html (professional counselors only)
Missouri:
http://pr.mo.gov/licensee-search.asp
Montana:
http://app.mt.gov/lookup/
Nebraska:
https://www.nebraska.gov/hhs/lists/
Nevada:
http://psyexam.state.nv.us/
(site under construction as of blog entry on 12/4/07 - use e-mail address on page to find out how to verify license)
New Hampshire:
http://nhlicenses.nh.gov/WebLookUp/
New Jersey:
http://www.state.nj.us/cgi-bin/consumeraffairs/search/searchentry.pl
New Mexico:
http://www.rld.state.nm.us/OS/BoardsCommissions.html
New York:
http://www.op.nysed.gov/opsearches.htm
North Carolina:
http://www.ncpsychologyboard.org/search.htm (psychologists only)
http://24.199.170.182/certsmenu.asp (social workers only)
http://www.ncblpc.org/verify.php (licensed professional counselors only)
http://www.nclmft.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=licenseVerify.home (marriage and family therapists only)
North Dakota:
http://www.psychologyinfo.com/directory/ND/board.html (psychologists only - no online verification, contact state board)
http://www.ndbce.org/LPCC.shtml (licensed professional counselors only)
https://secure.ebigpicture.com/ndbswe/live/public.asp (social workers only)
Ohio:
https://license.ohio.gov/lookup/default.asp
Oklahoma:
http://ok.gov/OSBEP/ (psychologists only)
http://www.osblsw.state.ok.us/licensee_search.php (social workers only)
http://www.health.state.ok.us/program/lpc/index.html (licensed professional counselors and marriage and family therapists only - charges $10 per verification)
Oregon:
http://obpe.alcsoftware.com/liclookup.php (psychologists only)
http://bcsw.oregonlookups.com/ (social workers only)
http://www.oregon.gov/OBLPCT/licensee_info.shtml (licensed professional counselors and marriage and family therapists only)
Pennsylvania:
http://www.licensepa.state.pa.us/default.asp
Rhode Island:
https://healthri.mylicense.com/Verification/
South Carolina:
https://verify.llronline.com/LicLookup/LookupMain.aspx
South Dakota:
http://dhs.sd.gov/brd/
Tennessee:
http://health.state.tn.us/licensure/index.htm
Texas:
http://www.texasonline.state.tx.us/NASApp/txops/ProfilingSearchManager?AGENCY=tsbep (psychologists only)
http://legateway.dshs.state.tx.us/datamart/selLicType.do?type=city
Utah:
http://www.dopl.utah.gov/
Vermont:
http://www.sec.state.vt.us/seek/opr_data.html
Virginia:
http://www2.vipnet.org/dhp/cgi-bin/search_publicdb.cgi
Washington State:
https://fortress.wa.gov/doh/hpqa1/Application/Credential_Search/profile.asp
West Virginia:
http://www.wvpsychbd.org/license_verification.htm (psychologist only)
http://www.wvbec.org/ (licensed professional counselors only)
http://www.wvsocialworkboard.org/licenseverification/licenseverification.asp (social workers only)
Wisconsin:
https://ice.wi.gov/LicenseLookup/individual.do
Wyoming:
http://plboards.state.wy.us/psychology/index.asp
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