Becoming a Substance Abuse Counselor in Georgia
Find Programs for Substance Abuse Counseling Degrees in Georgia
If you have ever considered using your interest in psychology to become a certified addictions counselor, this may be the time to explore your training options. With different addiction issues affecting every state in the country, each state needs counselors uniquely trained to meet the needs of their community.
In Georgia, one of the biggest issues is the use of synthetic heroin, which could be ordered online until very recently (Northwest Georgia News). Now that this drug has been added to the Schedule I drug list, legislators and health care professionals are looking for ways to help addicts get the treatment and support they need.
Learn more about Georgia addiction counselor programs by checking out the list of schools below.
Substance Abuse Counselor Training in Georgia
If you currently have an Associate’s degree or you have not yet completed any postsecondary education, consider beginning your career in counseling with a Bachelor’s degree. This undergraduate program is designed to be completed in four years, and it requires that students earn no fewer than 120 credits prior to graduation.
Clinical practice is required at this level of education, but many schools only require a few hundred hours of training for graduation.
Bachelor‘s-Level Substance Abuse Counseling Courses
- Addiction Treatment Options
- Crisis Intervention and Relapse Prevention
- Substance Use Disorders
- Case Management in Substance Abuse Cases
- Interventions in Substance Use Disorders
- Advanced Counseling Theories for Substance Abuse Disorders
Master’s in Substance Abuse Counseling—Georgia Requirements
You can also use a Master’s degree to earn your substance abuse counselor certification. Georgia schools generally require 35 to 45 credits beyond your undergraduate degree. This means you may be able to complete your Master’s degree in two years of full-time study.
At this level of education, you may apply for certification that allows you to work more independently and with less supervision. Once you meet your coursework requirements, you must get a specific amount of clinical experience. The average for a Georgia program is over 500 hours of clinical work.
Addiction Counselor Georgia Graduate Courses
- Assessment of Addiction and Substance Abuse
- Research in Human Development for Addiction Professionals
- Legal Issues in Addiction Treatment
- Interventions in Substance Abuse Treatment
- Supervision of Substance Abuse Treatment Programs
- Group Therapy in Addiction Treatment
Substance Abuse Counselor Careers in Georgia
With your accredited counseling degree and enough supervised work experience, you may apply for licensure through the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Certification Board of Georgia.
Georgia CAC training programs and degrees prepare you for three levels of licensure.
- The first is CADC-I, which only requires 4000 hours of supervised work experience.
- Those applying for CADC-II certification need a Bachelor’s degree and 4000 hours of supervised work experience.
- To become a CAADC, you must earn a Master’s degree and complete 4000 hours of work experience.
Over the next several years, statewide demand for addiction professionals may continue to grow. O*Net predicts a 24% boost in job openings for substance abuse counselors by the year 2024 (2016). During this period, they hope to see job openings for substance abuse social workers increase 11% (O*Net, 2016).
Currently, substance abuse counselors earn an average of $42,580 per year, while substance abuse social workers report an average salary of $52,460 annually (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016).
Substance abuse counseling is a psychological specialty in desperate need of licensed professionals who really believe in their patients’ ability to overcome addiction and change their lives for good. By tackling drug addiction rates, counselors can contribute to public health efforts in Georgia while helping each patient find hope.
Begin the path to a substance abuse counseling career by requesting information from Georgia schools below.
