{"id":1396,"date":"2026-02-03T19:25:03","date_gmt":"2026-02-03T19:25:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/?p=1396"},"modified":"2026-02-03T19:26:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T19:26:07","slug":"mental-health-counseling-program-ranked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/2026\/02\/03\/mental-health-counseling-program-ranked\/","title":{"rendered":"Tarleton State\u2019s Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program Ranked by Counseling Degree Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/programs.tarleton.edu\/clinical-mental-health-counseling-ms\/\">Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling<\/a> at Tarleton State University has been ranked fifth on Counseling Degree Guide\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.counselingdegreeguide.org\/degrees\/mental-health-counseling\/texas\/#comparison:~:text=Most%20Affordable%20Mental%20Health%20Counseling%20Programs%20in%20Texas\"><em>Most Affordable Mental Health Counseling Programs in Texas<\/em><\/a> list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This ranking highlights not-for-profit institutions that provide cost-effective pathways for students pursuing careers in mental health counseling. It was developed to help prospective students compare programs based on affordability and program outcomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAffordability is central to our mission of increasing access and opportunity for students while addressing critical needs for mental health professionals across Texas,\u201d said Dr. Lesley Leach, dean of the College of Education. \u201cBeing named one of the most affordable Clinical Mental Health Counseling programs affirms our focus on preparing well-qualified counselors who are ready to serve individuals, families, and communities where they are needed most.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Ryan Foster, interim head of the Department of Counseling, emphasized the commitment required to pursue a career in counseling. \u201cTraining to become a professional counselor requires a significant investment of time, energy, and emotion. I\u2019m proud that we are able to offer counseling programs that reduce financial burdens for students while providing gold-standard preparation for their post-graduate careers in mental health.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tarleton State\u2019s Clinical Mental Health Counseling program emphasizes ethical practice, clinical skill development, and real-world application to prepare graduates who enter the mental health workforce equipped to meet the growing needs of communities.<a id=\"_msocom_1\"><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ranked among Texas&#8217; most affordable mental health counseling programs, Tarleton State&#8217;s M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling reflects a responsible approach to meeting workforce needs through rigorous, cost-conscious graduate education.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":138,"featured_media":1397,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","wds_primary_category":19,"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-the-news"],"acf":[],"author_meta":{"display_name":"heard","author_link":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/author\/heard-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/214\/2026\/02\/Counseling-300x157.png","coauthors":[],"tax_additional":{"categories":{"linked":["<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/category\/in-the-news\/\" class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">In the News<\/a>"],"unlinked":["<span class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">In the News<\/span>"]}},"comment_count":0,"relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 2 months ago","modified":"Updated 2 months ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on February 3, 2026","modified":"Updated on February 3, 2026"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on February 3, 2026 7:25 pm","modified":"Updated on February 3, 2026 7:26 pm"},"featured_img_caption":"","series_order":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/138"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1396"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1396\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1399,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1396\/revisions\/1399"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/coe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}