Becoming a Licensed Marriage Family Therapist in Colorado

A marriage family therapist is a person that works with individuals, couples, and families to help better the relationships within the family dynamic. These professionals can work in a variety of settings. The highest percentage of those employed in this field work in individual and family services and in the offices of healthcare practitioners.

In Colorado as in most states you are required to have a graduate degree such as a master’s degree or doctorate degree in order to become a marriage family therapist. There are certain educational requirements as well as experience requirements that must be met in order to become a marriage family therapist in the state as well.

Educational Requirements for Marriage Family Therapists in Colorado

Those that wish to apply for a license in marriage family therapy in Colorado must complete their master’s degree or doctoral degree with a major in marriage family therapy or an equivalent major that has been approved by the commission for accreditation of marriage family therapy education.

The master’s degree or doctoral degree program that is chosen must include a supervised practicum or internship. This internship/practicum must be 300 hours. When applying for a license proof of the internship/practicum must be included. This proof may consist of a letter of completion being written and signed by the practicum supervisor.

Read more about MFT degrees in Colorado.

Experience Requirements for Family Therapy License in Colorado

After completing the master’s degree program you must then complete at least 2000 clock hours of experience over a minimum of two years. Of the 2000 experience hours 1500 of the hours have to be face to face in direct contact with a client. In addition, 1000 of the hours have to be working with couples or families in diagnosing, assessing and intervention.

The supervision requirements for this portion of the licensing are 100 hours over a period of no less than two years. Of the 100 hours fifty have to be face to face individual supervision. The remaining half of the hours can be a combination of group and individual supervision.

For those that have completed a doctoral program the experience requirement is slightly different. A person must complete 1500 clock hours of face to face contact directly with clients over a minimum of one year. At least 1000 of the hours have to be with families and couples for the purpose of diagnosing, assessing, and treatment.

The supervision requirement is 75 hours over the course of one year. One half of the hours have to be face to face individual supervision. The rest of the time can be either group supervision or individual supervision.

In the state of Colorado, once you have received your license in marriage family therapy you are required to participate in continuing professional development courses. A licensee must complete at least 40 hours of professional development activities each year before they are allowed to renew their license.

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Career Outlook In Colorado

The average salary for a marriage family therapist is $63,300 per year. This is higher than the national average salary for mental health counselors in general which was $56,230. These figures are from May of 2022. In the state of Colorado the average salary for marriage family therapists in May of 2022 was $61,490.

In Colorado there were 850 licensed marriage family therapists in May of 2022. The job growth rate is expected to be quite high for this field. It is projected that the number of careers available in the field of marriage family therapy will increase by 14% from 2021 through 2031. Mental health counselor positions are expected to grow by 22%.

Research Additional Psychology Professional Licenses Granted by Colorado:

• Colorado Psychologist Licensing
• Colorado Counselor Licensing
• Colorado Social Work Licensing
• Learn More About The Career of an LMFT

2022 US Bureau of Labor Statistics job market trends and salary figures for marriage and family therapists and substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors are based on national data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. Data accessed August 2023.

Schools with MFT Degree Programs Accepting Students from Colorado