Educational Requirements

PURPOSE: This rule defines the educational requirements to be licensed as a marital and family therapist. (1) To apply for licensure or supervision, an applicant shall have received a graduate degree at the master, specialist, or doctoral level with either a major in marriage and family therapy or an equivalent graduate course of study in a mental health disci pline from a regionally accredited institution acceptable to the United States Department of Education. (A) For the purpose of this rule, a master’s or doctoral degree in marital and family therapy from a program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE) or its successor organization meets the educational requirements for licensure. A master or doctoral degree awarded prior to COAMFTE accreditation meets the educational requirement for licensure if the degree was awarded within two (2) years of the program receiving accreditation. (B) For the purpose of this rule, a master’s or doctoral degree from a program in marriage, couple, and family counseling accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) or its successor organi zation meets the education requirements for licensure. A mas ter’s or doctoral degree awarded prior to CACREP accreditation meets the educational requirement for licensure if the degree was awarded within two (2) years of the program receiving accreditation. (C) Applicants from a non-accredited program must request the program to directly submit documentation as defined in 20 CSR 2233-2.010(5)(A)–(F) regarding all hours to the committee at the time of application. Applicants must also meet one (1) of the following graduate requirements: 1. A graduate program in marriage and family therapy that is not COAMFTE or CACREP accredited shall consist of at least forty-five (45) semester hours or sixty (60) quarter hours of study in the area of marriage and family therapy; or 2. An equivalent graduate course of study in a mental health discipline shall consist of at least forty-five (45) semester hours or sixty (60) quarter hours of study. The applicant shall have completed graduate or postgraduate course work in each core area as defined in 20 CSR 2233-2.010(5)(A)–(G). (2) When evaluating transcripts based on a quarter hour sys tem, the state committee shall consider a quarter hour of aca demic credit as two-thirds (2/3) of a semester hour. A semester hour of credit shall be defined as fifteen (15) clock hours of regularly scheduled classroom study. (3) An applicant for licensure or supervision shall have com pleted the following: (A) Three (3) semester hours or five (5) quarter hours of study in the area of theoretical foundations of marriage and family therapy; (B) Twelve (12) semester hours or twenty (20) quarter hours of study in the area of the practice of marriage and family therapy; (C) Six (6) semester hours or ten (10) quarter hours of study in the area of human development and family studies; (D) Three (3) semester hours or five (5) quarter hours of study in the area of ethics and professional studies; (E) Three (3) semester hours or five (5) quarter hours of study in the area of research methodology; (F) Six (6) semester hours or ten (10) quarter hours of practi cum in marital and family therapy, including the minimum number of client contact hours as set forth by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE) standards; and (G) Three (3) semester hours or five (5) quarter hours of study in the area of diagnostic systems either within the curriculum leading to a master, doctoral, or specialist degree, or post master’s graduate level course work prior to the issuance of a license. (4) Graduate course work in marriage and family therapy or a course of study in a mental health discipline from a school, college or university, or other institution of higher learning outside the United States may be considered in compliance with these rules if, at the time the applicant was enrolled and graduated, the school, college, university, or other insti tution of higher learning maintained a standard of training substantially equivalent to the standards of training of those institutions accredited by one (1) of the regional accrediting commissions recognized by the United States Department of Education. An official transcript from the college, university, or other institution of higher learning outside of the United States must be sent to the committee. If the applicant’s offi cial transcript is not in English, the applicant shall obtain a credential evaluation from a nationally recognized translation service that compares the courses listed on the transcript with U.S. standards, in order to determine content and equivalency in terms of U.S. education. The applicant shall authorize the re lease of the translation to the committee. Any costs associated with the translation are the applicant’s responsibility. (A) A graduate program in marriage and family therapy shall consist of at least forty-five (45) semester hours or sixty (60) quarter hours of study in the area of marriage and family therapy; or (B) An equivalent graduate course of study in a mental health discipline shall consist of at least forty-five (45) semester hours or sixty (60) quarter hours of study comprised of gradu ate or postgraduate course work in each core area as defined in 20 CSR 2233-2.010(8)(A)–(G). (5) A course shall be counted once in granting credit for a core area and be an in-depth study solely devoted to a particular core area. No core area credit shall be given for courses which contain only a component or some aspects of a core area. The core areas are defined as follows: (A) Theoretical Foundations of Marriage and Family Therapy—Courses in this area cover the development, theo retical foundations, contemporary conceptual directions, and critical philosophical issues of marriage and family therapy; (B) The Practice of Marriage and Family Therapy—Courses in this area cover the historical development, theoretical founda tions, contemporary conceptual directions, and critical phil osophical issues of marriage and family therapy and applied marriage and family therapy practice. Within the context of systems theory and marriage and family therapy, courses will cover assessment, evaluation, and treatment of dysfunctional relationship patterns and mental disorders consistent with the scope of practice as defined in section 337.700(7), RSMo, and include marriage and family therapy assessment methods and AND INSURANCE instruments; (C) Human Development and Family Studies—Courses in this area cover the life cycle of individuals, couples, and families and the modification of relationship dynamics over time from a systems perspective. Courses shall address issues of relation ships, normal development and dysfunctional patterns, as well as issues of sexuality, gender, ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, religion, culture, and other issues of diversity which emerge in a pluralistic society; (D) Ethics and Professional Studies—Courses in this area cover the development of professional commitment, identity, and accountability. Studies include professional socialization and professional organizations, licensure and credentials, legal responsibilities and liabilities of clinical practice and research, business ethics in professional practice, family law, confidenti ality, professional marital and family therapy codes of ethics, and cooperation with members of other mental health profes sions specific to the practice and profession of marriage and family therapy; (E) Research Methodology—Courses in this area cover an un derstanding of research methodology and data analysis with the ability to evaluate research. Course content shall include both qualitative and quantitative research; (F) Practicum in Marriage and Family Therapy—The practi cum or internship consists of direct, face-to-face client con tact and/or telehealth to include couple and family formats. Telehealth is defined as visually and verbally interactive and synchronized on a HIPAA compliant platform. Individual su pervision with one (1) or two (2) students in face-to-face and/ or telehealth consultation with a supervisor shall be provided. Students shall be trained to make relevant assessments of cli ent systems; and (G) Diagnostic Systems—Courses in this area provide an un derstanding and a working knowledge of psychodiagnostics using classification systems with an emphasis on the current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Course content regarding the DSM must in clude understanding the organizational structure, professional terminology used in the manual, and competence in its appli cation as it is used in the assessment process and subsequent treatment planning relative to the practice of marital and family therapy. (6) Distance learning includes cyber/distance (electronic) learn ing/education and must be a formal education process in which instruction occurs when the student and the instructor are not located in the same place and uses technology such as online learning tools, email, video conferencing, and other related technologies. (A) Any course or graduate program offered primarily via distance learning shall be evaluated by the state committee in the same manner as onsite graduate programs or course work as defined in 20 CSR 2233-2.010. (7) Independent studies, courses listed on the transcript as a seminar, and readings courses shall be clearly delineated on the transcript and shall be submitted to the state committee for review and approval. It is the applicant’s responsibility to document that the course work is in compliance with the core course requirements defined in 20 CSR 2233-2.010(8)(A)–(G). The applicant may submit course descriptions from course catalogs, syllabi, bulletins, or through written documentation from an appropriate school official stating that the course was an in-depth study of a particular core area. (8) Undergraduate level course work is in compliance with core requirements as defined in this rule if the applicant’s official transcript clearly shows that the course was awarded graduate credit by the school. (9) Courses provided by a post-degree institute accredited by an accrediting body which has been approved by the United States Department of Education may be acceptable as meeting core course requirements defined in 20 CSR 2233-2.010. It is the applicant’s responsibility to document that the course work is in compliance with the core course requirements defined in this rule. The applicant may submit course descriptions from course catalogs, syllabi, bulletins, or through written docu mentation from an appropriate official stating that the course was an in-depth study of a particular core area. (10) The applicant has the burden of demonstrating that the academic course work and training constituted a program of study in marriage and family therapy or a mental health disci pline. A final determination of whether the program of study which formed the basis of the applicant’s degree was marriage and family therapy or a mental health discipline is within the discretion of the state committee. (11) The state committee shall review an applicant’s educa tional credentials upon request from an applicant and upon receipt of official educational transcripts received directly from the university or post-degree institute accredited by an accrediting body which has been approved by the United States Department of Education and upon payment of the fee as defined in 20 CSR 2233-1.040(1)(H). All information shall be submitted to the state committee no later than thirty (30) days prior to a regularly scheduled state committee meeting to be reviewed at that meeting. (12) The state committee shall review an applicant’s proposed plan for obtaining an appropriate educational degree and/ or course work upon receiving a request from an individual, receipt of the photocopies of official school documents, such as course syllabi or catalog descriptions of course work and degree programs, and upon payment of the fee as defined in 20 CSR 2233-1.040(1)(H). All information shall be submitted to the state committee no later than thirty (30) days prior to a regularly scheduled state committee meeting to be reviewed at that meeting. AUTHORITY: sections 337.715 and 337.727, RSMo Supp. 2025.* This rule originally filed as 4 CSR 233-2.010. Original rule filed Dec. 31, 1997, effective July 30, 1998. Amended: Filed May 22, 2001, effective Nov. 30, 2001. Moved to 20 CSR 2233-2.010, effective Aug. 28, 2006. Amended: Filed Nov. 15, 2007, effective May 30, 2008. Amended: Filed Sept. 5, 2019, effective March 30, 2020. Amended: Filed June 22, 2022, effective Dec. 30, 2022. Amended: Filed Jan. 7, 2026, ef fective July 30, 2026. *Original authority: 337.715, RSMo 1995, amended 2004, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2020, and 337.727, RSMo 1995, amended 2009, 2010, 2018.