The following are portions of an emailed question from Aimee in Philadelphia, PA:
Hi Liz-
I just finished the drexel program (literally, last week finished thesis), and stumbled on your blog today.
Am interested in the art therapy-CA situation- i thought that the ATR was not recognized in CA and/or that it was difficult to get a job there unless also credentialed in marriage & family counseling.Your blog is great, Thanks,
Aimee Pugh (I was in same class as Maureen Vita, who did the workshop w/ boxes at ATAA)
Hi Aimee,
Congratulations on finishing your thesis! Pfew!
The CA art therapy situation is looking much better now that ever. The LPCC license just passed, meaning that CA will now have Licensed Professional Clinical Counselors, which is what most art therapists are licensed as in all other US states. The LPCC will not come into effect until next year (Jan 2011), so there will be no jobs advertising LPCCs until then.
The same governing board will be managing the marriage and family therapists (MFT) , social workers (LCSW) and LPCCs. The name of this group is the Board of Behavioral Sciences. Once you are registered with them as a clinician or as an intern (which means you’re completing your post-graduate hours towards licensure) many more jobs become available to you. For example, if you look on craigslist in San Francisco under jobs and type in MFT or MFTI (the I standing for intern) and then do a search for art therapist, you’ll see a huge difference.
The trick is that our degree may not actually qualify for the LPCC- especially since we earned our degree out of state (PA has different licensing requirements than CA). I can’t tell you for sure if your degree meets all of CA’s requirements, because Drexel’s art therapy program has changed it’s curriculum since I went to school there. You should check the LPCC’s website. They have a list of degree requirements plus you’ll find a list of about 6-8 classes you’ll need to take on top of your degree. The courses are pretty much all available online through Alliant University and through JFK Univeristy under continuing education.
In terms of job prospects without a license, there are some out there…but you have to really look around. I managed to get a job just fine, and have been working full time in a great facility.
I hope this is helpful to you!
Happy holidays,
– Liz