Counseling vs. Clinical Mental Health Counseling?

[kma001]

Hey guys,

I recently got into a Professional Counseling program and a Clinical Mental Health Counseling program. Does anyone know any real difference between the two?

[dancedementia]

Professional Counseling (sometimes Community Counseling) was the designation that CACREP used to use, so a lot of program called it that for a time. They recently passed some legislature (2009, I think?) that requires all CACREP approved programs to switch to the "Clinical Mental Health Counseling" moniker. Some accredited programs have been slow to switch, and unaccredited programs don't NEED to switch, so that's where you see the disparity. The coursework is largely the same, although the perspective might be different (CMHC programs might emphasize pathology more).