Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor Certification

As a vocational rehabilitation counselor, you may be asked to register with the state. Your professional organization will be a resource when it comes to mandates; so will your school. Vocational counseling is not as heavily regulated as some other branches of counseling, though, so chances are good that you will just need to satisfy the requirements of your future employer. This will likely prove the more difficult task. Many vocational rehab counselors are employed by the Veterans Administration or other federal or state agencies. Governmentally employed vocational rehabilitation counselors do not necessarily have to be certified, but they are required to meet educational requirements that are similar to those required for certification.

National certification is an asset for anyone seeking a job in vocational rehabilitation counseling, whether they are applying to the government or to private organizations. Certification is earned through the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (or CRCC). You can meet prerequisite requirements through some combination of education and work experience. If you have graduated from a master’s level rehabilitation counselor program that is accredited by CORE (or a post-master’s certificate program from a school that has an accredited program), you meet the educational requirement. One important thing to keep in mind is that you can apply to take the certifying exam when you have completed as little as 75% of your master’s program. The exam is given in March, July and October.

In addition to passing the exam, you will need to maintain acceptable ethical and professional standards and renew your certification every five years. This is done through examination or continuing education. A list of continuing education providers is available through the CRCC site.