Substance Abuse Counseling in Alabama

In the state of Alabama, graduates who've earned a traditional or online substance abuse counseling degree have a number of career options. Some may require additional education, and most require licensure or certification.

One of the most common choices is to become a substance abuse or behavioral health counselor. Under Alabama state counseling requirements, bachelor's degree holders can practice as long as they're supervised by licensed counselors. To practice independently, you must earn a master's degree in substance use counseling or general counseling and meet several other requirements for licensure.

Other ways to serve the public include becoming a community health worker or health education specialist. With several years of work experience, you may also qualify for a management role in social services or health services.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the 3,090 substance use counselors practicing in Alabama as of May 2022 had a mean annual wage of $47,490. Demand for counseling professionals in this state is expected to grow by 16.9% through 2030.

As in many states, entering the field of substance use counseling in Alabama is a multi-step process with several variations. 

The first step in becoming a substance use counselor is education. Many professionals start off by earning a traditional or online substance abuse counseling bachelor's degree. In Alabama, if you hold this degree, you can find employment as an addiction counselor, but only if you work in supervised settings, such as community service agencies. 

To work as a supervised substance use counselor, you will also need to earn some type of voluntary state-issued or national credential, which is likely to involve accruing hundreds of hours of related training and passing an exam. Many of the most common credentials are available through the Alabama Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association (AADAA), the Alabama Association of Addiction Counselors (AAAC), the Alabama Department of Mental Health (ADMH), and the Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC).

If you want to work as a private, unsupervised substance use counselor, you'll need to become a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) through the Alabama Board of Examiners in Counseling (ABEC). To begin, you'll need to earn a master's degree in counseling from a college or university that has been accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). 

As a new graduate, you'll need to become an Associate Licensed Counselor (ALC) first so you can accrue the required 2,000-4,000 hours of supervised clinical experience and pass the National Counselor Examination (NCE) to advance to the LPC level.

Like many credentials, your LPC license needs to be renewed every two years. During each two-year renewal period, you'll need to complete a minimum of 40 hours of professional continuing education in your field.

Alabama does not currently have reciprocity agreements with other states for substance use counselors, but that may be changing soon. In 2022, the state joined the Interstate Counseling Compact, a nationwide agreement that will enable many types of counselors to work with clients in other states and vice versa. For example, licensed practitioners in Alabama will be allowed to provide online substance abuse counseling to people in Florida, Mississippi, and other compact member-states. The compact will go into effect when 10 states have joined, which lawmakers hope to see in 2024.