Accreditation: why "is it APA accredited?" is the wrong question here
For doctoral study, APA accreditation is the question. For a master's it mostly is not, and
the numbers say why. The APA Commission on Accreditation currently lists:
| Programme type | Accredited |
|---|
| Doctoral programmes | 440 |
| Doctoral internships | 705 |
| Postdoctoral residencies | 169 |
| Master's programmes | 6 |
Master's accreditation is new and barely begun — six programmes against 440 at doctoral
level. So a master's without APA accreditation is the norm, not a warning sign, and a programme
page that stays quiet about accreditation is not necessarily hiding anything.
Ask this instead: does this programme meet the educational requirements of the
licensing board in the state where I intend to practise? For counselling routes that usually
means CACREP accreditation, and for marriage and family therapy COAMFTE — and the board's
own rules are the authority, not the university's prospectus. Boards differ, and a programme that
qualifies you in one state may leave you short of hours or coursework in another.
Pay, and how to read it
The BLS reports a median annual wage for psychologists of
$99,110 as of May 2025, with employment projected to grow 6% from 2025
to 2035 — faster than the average for all occupations. It says psychologists
“typically need at least a master's degree to enter the occupation”.
Be careful with that figure on this page. It covers the licensed occupation, which at the
clinical end is mostly doctorate-holders, so it is not what a fresh master's graduate earns.
Counsellors and therapists are counted by the BLS as separate occupations with their own, lower,
medians. A master's in psychology is a route towards several different jobs and the honest answer
is that pay depends on which one.
One more thing the BLS notes: every state requires continuing education to keep a licence.
The degree is the start of the obligation, not the end of it.
Applying from outside the United States
If your aim is to practise in the US, understand the licensure question before you pay
anything: licensure is granted by a state board, boards set their own coursework and supervised
hours, and a foreign degree usually needs a course-by-course evaluation before a board will even
assess it. A programme that leads to licensure for a domestic student does not automatically do so
for you, because supervised hours have to be completed somewhere you are authorised to work.
If your aim is a doctorate, research or non-clinical work, the path is much simpler and
psychology master's programmes are well used to international applicants.
The usual requirements: a credential evaluation, English proficiency (TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo,
normally within two years and often waived if your degree was taught in English), and for an F-1
visa, financial evidence in English. The I-20 is not issued until every prerequisite is met.
Ask the school two specific questions in writing: does this programme meet the licensure
requirements of the state it sits in, and does it sponsor F-1 students on this particular
programme. Answers differ by programme, not just by university.
Common questions
Can I practise as a psychologist with a master's degree?
In most states, no. The BLS states that practising psychology or using the title "psychologist" requires licensure in most states, that every state requires a licence for independent practice, and that clinical and counseling psychologists typically need a PhD or PsyD. A master's can lead to a different licence — LPC, LMHC, LMFT, school counsellor — which permits therapy under that title instead.
Should I only apply to APA-accredited master's programmes?
That would leave you almost no choice. The APA Commission on Accreditation lists six accredited master's programmes against 440 doctoral ones — master's accreditation is very new. For a counselling route, CACREP (or COAMFTE for marriage and family therapy) is the accreditation that licensing boards usually look for.
What is the difference between a psychology master's and a counselling master's?
Purpose. A counselling master's is built to satisfy a state licensing board so you can practise as a counsellor or therapist. A general or research psychology master's is built as preparation for doctoral study or for non-clinical work. They can look similar in a prospectus and lead to completely different places.
Why does this list not show tuition?
A recorded fee exists for only about 2% of the programmes in our database, so a fee column would be blank on most rows and invite comparisons that were never valid. Duration, intake and study mode are shown because those are on the record.
I want to practise in the US but studied abroad. Where do I start?
With the licensing board of the state you intend to work in, not with a university. The board sets the coursework and supervised hours it will accept and will normally want a course-by-course evaluation of your existing degree. Only once you know what that board requires can you tell whether a given programme gets you there.
How to use the list above
The order is by the research standing of the university teaching each programme — QS World
position where it has one, then research citations recorded by OpenAlex — one programme per
university. For psychology that measure leans towards research-strong departments, which is useful
if you are heading for a doctorate and much less useful if you want a licensable counselling
qualification.
So use it as a shortlist, then check on each programme's own pages: which of the two routes it
is, what licence (if any) it leads to, whether it holds CACREP or COAMFTE where that matters, and
the total cost in credits rather than in years.