TPC Journal-Vol 9 Issue 3-FULL

254 The Professional Counselor | Volume 9, Issue 3 state. The exact definitions of these terms differ from state to state, further highlighing the lack of clarity and consistency counselors encounter when navigating this process. The counseling profession continues to be divided on the topics of educational requirements for number of credit hours, accreditation, number of supervised experience hours, number of supervision hours, and examinations. Even though there has been work toward solidifying a professional identity and addressing licensing issues, jurisdiction of issuing a counseling license resides within each state. Consistency between state licensure requirements would facilitate counselor mobility to support career and family options and increase client access to care. Specific Issues in Licensure Portability Each state is responsible for determining its own licensure laws, and as a result of this differentiation significant differences exist (ACA, 2016). A licensed counselor’s move from one state to another is often met with difficulties. Kaplan (2012) stated, “We have a real crisis in counseling licensure. Counselors are trapped in their own states” (p. 1). There remains a wide range of educational requirements, accreditation, number of hours of supervised experience, number of hours of supervision, and examinations. For example, a majority of states in the United States ( n = 37) require 60 educational credit hours (ACA, 2016). However, some states require specific coursework, such as family counseling, human sexuality, and addictions. Therefore, counselors who graduate from an accredited program still may not meet the educational requirements for licensure in a second state. Regarding accreditation, 29 states explicitly identify CACREP, CACREP/Council on Rehabilitation Education (CORE), or NCC certification for licensure. Other states do not specify accreditation or simply use the word “accredited.” Across the United States, there are vastly different requirements for supervision, specifically who can supervise, types of supervisor, frequency of supervision, number of supervisees per supervisor, and supervisor requirements (Henriksen, Henderson, Liang, Watts, & Marks, 2019). Henriksen et al. (2019) conducted an analysis of supervision rules and laws. The number of clinical hours of experience required for master’s-level prelicensure counselors varied from 500 to 7,000 if the program of study did not meet CACREP (2015) standards. There are differences in the frequency of prelicensure supervision and variations in how requirements are described (e.g., not defined, based on client hours, a specific number of hours or sessions, weekly and special rules). Sometimes additional postgraduate supervision hours are required. These range from not specified to 200, with many states ( n = 28) requiring 100 hours of supervision. The minimum exam requirements for the majority of states ( n = 42) is a passing score on the National Counselor Examination (NCE). Other states require the National Clinical Mental Health Counseling Examination (NCMHCE) or Certified Rehabilitation Counselor Exam (CRCE). Alternatively, a state may require more than one exam, a higher minimum score, or a different or additional exam (ACA, 2016). In addition to the burden of already possessing a license and having to complete another application in a different state with varied requirements, there are logistical and economic barriers as well. Finding a clinical supervisor, syllabi to support coursework verification, and a clinical agency that will hire a professional counselor without a valid state license are just a few of the issues that need to be navigated. Many of the state licensing differences can result in financial stress, with practitioners having to wait extended periods of time without income, as well as possibly incurring extra costs related to taking another exam, obtaining licensure documentation, additional coursework, supervision, and unpaid client contact hours. The counseling profession will clearly