Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs

The Council for Accreditation of Counseling & Related Educational Programs (CACREP) is a programmatic accreditor of counseling education programs at colleges and universities in the United States. It is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).^[2][3][4]

Council for Accreditation of Counseling & Related Educational Programs

Abbreviation	CACREP
Formation	1981
Type	United States higher education programmatic accreditor
Headquarters	Alexandria, Virginia, U.S.
Chair	Sonja Sutherland[1]
President	Sylvia Fernandez
Website	www.cacrep.org

History

The Council was established in 1981 in order to set standards for counselor training.^[5][6] The first national conference was held from 7 to 10 October 1988 in St. Louis.^[7] The Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (ACES) and the American Personnel and Guidance Association (a precursor to the American Counselor Association) discussed cooperative accreditation efforts for counseling programs. This ultimately led to CACREP's establishment.^[8][9]

CACREP serves as one of the four major entities of the counseling profession in the United States; the other three entities are the American Counseling Association, the National Board of Certified Counselors, and the American Mental Health Counselors Association.^[10]

Accreditation

CACREP accredits both master's and doctoral degree counseling programs. Current types of programs that can be accredited are:

Master's degree programs

• Addiction Counseling
• Career Counseling
• Clinical Mental Health Counseling
• Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling
• College Counseling and Student Affairs
• Marriage, Couple and Family Counseling
• Rehabilitation Counseling
• School Counseling

Doctoral degree programs

• Counselor Education and Supervision

Accreditation can no longer be sought for programs under the following titles:

• Community Counseling
• College Counseling
• Gerontological Counseling
• Marriage & Family Therapy
• Mental Health Counseling
• Student Affairs
• Student Affairs and College Counseling ^[11]

See also

• List of recognized accreditation associations of higher learning

References

1. "Board Members". CACREP. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
2. "CACREP Recognition". CACREP. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
3. "Council For Higher Education Accreditation Summary of Recognition Status of the Council For Accreditiation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP)" (PDF). CHEA. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
4. "Programmatic Accrediting Organizations". CHEA. Archived from the original on 23 September 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
5. "Accreditation Information". Minnesota State University Mankato Counseling Department. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
6. David Capuzzi & Douglas R. Gross. "Introduction to the Counseling Profession: Sixth Edition". Taylor & Francis. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
7. "ACES, charting the future : ACES first national conference, October 7-10, 1988, in St. Louis". OCLC 19525950.
8. "About CACREP". CACREP. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
9. Carol Bobby (2013). "The Evolution of Specialties in the CACREP Standards: CACREP's Role in Unifying the Profession". Journal of Counseling & Development. 91: 35–43. doi:10.1002/j.1556-6676.2013.00068.x.
10. Joel F. Diambra; Melinda M. Gibbons; Jeff L. Cochran; Shawn Spurgeon; Whitney L. Jarnagin & Porche’ Wynn. "The Symbiotic Relationships of the Counseling Profession's Accrediting Body, American Counseling Association, Flagship Journal and National Certification Agency" (PDF). National Board of Certified Counselors. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
11. "For Students". CACREP. Retrieved 10 September 2014.