Where You Can Get a Post Master's in Art Therapy
Where You Can Get a Post Master’s in Art Therapy
If you’re a social worker (LMSW, LCSW), counselor (LPC, LPCC, etc), LMFT, or any other psychotherapist in the U.S. and you are interested in doing art therapy in addition to the therapy work you already do, but wondering where to get your art therapy training/education… then this is the blog post for you!
You don’t have to start all over and get a whole another master’s degree. Nope.
You can do what’s called a “post master’s” study in art therapy. That means you go to an art therapy post-master’s certificate program. These programs are designed for you to obtain all those art therapy courses that you need in order to help you officially become an art therapist - i.e., qualify for American Art Therapy Credential Board’s “Registered and/or Board Certified Art Therapist” designation.
Since you already have all the psychology, psychotherapy, and/or counseling-related master’s level courses under your belt, you are only taking the art therapy-specific courses you would have missed while you were in your counseling/social work/family therapy master’s program.
Usually these post master’s art therapy programs are 30-35 credit hours long. So it’s usually not a full-length master’s program, which is often at least 60 credits.
Continue reading below to find out the programs available for you in the U.S.
**Note: I’m mostly covering what pertains to the U.S.**
* And pssst… if you’re curious what type of art therapist career path fits you the best, you can take my assessment/quiz here.
Post Master’s Art Therapy Programs
The following colleges and universities offer post-master’s certificate programs in art therapy.
Adler Graduate School https://alfredadler.edu/programs/post-masters/credential-only-art-therapy
based in Minnetonka, MN
36 credits
Edinboro University https://www.edinboro.edu/_resources/documents/academics/post_masters_art_therapy_fact_sheet.pdf#search=art%20therapy%20certificate%20program
located in Edinboro, PA
31 credits
Southwestern College & New Earth Institute https://www.swc.edu/atcp/
located in Santa Fe, NM
also offered as part-time distance program (for 2022) — this includes 1 residency during mid-program
if you take the residential program, it may take full-time 1.5 years or longer to complete
Caldwell University (NJ) https://www.caldwell.edu/programs/post-graduate-ma-art-therapy/
located in Caldwell, NJ
36 credits
Ursuline College https://www.ursuline.edu/academics/graduate/programs/counseling-and-art-therapy
located in Pepper Pike, OH
they say on their website “If you already possess a master’s degree in a related field, we can design a course sequence to meet the educational standards for registration and certification as an art therapist” — so I’d suggest you contact their office to get more details
University of Indianapolis https://www.uindy.edu/applied-behavioral-sciences/master-of-arts-in-mental-health-counseling/art-therapy-certificate
located in Indianapolis, IN
(8/2021 update: program is not found on its website anymore; my guess is that they ended the certificate program)
Notre Dame de Namur University https://www.ndnu.edu/education-and-psychology/graduate/art-therapy/
located in Belmont, CA
(8/2021 update: program is not found on its website anymore; my guess is that they ended it. I suggest you call their admissions office to inquire directly).
Note: These college’s and universities’ full art therapy mastere’s programs are known to be either American Art Therapy Association (AATA) -approved or CAAHEP (Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs) - accredited. A few of them might be also CACREP accredited, but please check their program website or call their office directly to find up-to-date information on their accreditation status. With that said, I am not sure whether their post-graduate programs per se receive such accreditation or approvals.
Did this help you out? Let me know in the comments!
p.s. If you want to instead incorporate expressive art into your own services, but not go the route of the full training and credentialing in art therapy, I can help you with that as well :) In my Therapeutic Art Facilitation School course, I help creative healers and facilitators start learning how to facilitate and incorporate non-clinical therapeutic art into their work. It’s the perfect mix of practical steps, theoretical framework, & real-life tips I’ve gained through the years as an art therapist & a facilitator doing therapeutic art work. Check it out here.
With that said, I really hope that this post was helpful for you. Thanks and see you next time!
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