A certified drug and alcohol counselor meets stringent national qualifications.
The National Association for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors (NAADAC) was founded in 1972 under a different name but became the agency it is today in 1982. Developing professional standards and working with a wide variety of addiction specialists in the areas of prevention, counseling and intervention, among others, are just some of the goals of the NAADAC. Certification provides the public with a standardized measurement of professional qualifications for NAADAC members, with three increasingly difficult levels of competency.
Instructions
Level I
1. Obtain state license. Check with the specific state as each state has different requirements. Generally, minimum requirements are: documentation of high school diploma or GED, official transcripts of any accredited college or university coursework in addiction counseling, affidavit that you are taking at least one college class if you do not already possess a college degree, work supervision agreement by certified alcohol or substance abuse counselor, completed application and any applicable fees ($225.00 in the State of Nevada as of June 2010).
2. Receive 270 hours of supervised training and education in addiction treatment and counseling. Training may consist of formal classroom training including: college/university, workshops, seminars, in-services or professional development.
3. Receive three years or 6,000 hours of volunteer or paid supervised work experience in addiction counseling by a certified alcohol or drug addiction (AODA) counselor. Related areas may include but are not limited to: intake, screening, intervention and education.
4. Download and sign code of ethics agreement from the Professional Testing Corporation website and mail it with the completed packet. (See References)
5. Send completed packet with application and fee ($205.00 for NAADAC members and $305.00 for NAADAC non-members) to the Professional Testing Corporation at:
1350 Broadway-17th Floor
New York, NY 10018
(212) 356-0660
6. Take and pass certification test. (See References)
7. Receive final approval from the Commission in the mail after they review completed packet and test results. (See References)
Level II
8. Obtain state license just like in Section 1.
9. Obtain bachelor's degree with a specialty in addiction counseling.
10. Receive 10,000 hours or five years of volunteer or paid work experience in alcoholism and/or addiction counseling supervised by a certified AODA counselor. Related areas may include but are not limited to: intake, professional collaboration, case management and record keeping.
11. Document 450 hours of education or training in addiction counseling or in a related field. Training may consist of formal classroom training including: college/university, workshops, seminars, in-services or professional development.
12. Sign the code of ethics found on the Professional Testing Corporation website as part of the application packet to be mailed for certification.
13. Send in the completed application, found on the Professional Testing Corporation website, the code of ethics and the fee ($205.00 for NAADAC members and $305.00 for NAADAC non-members) to the Professional Testing Corporation at:
1350 Broadway-17th Floor
New York, NY 10018
(212) 356-0660
14. Take and pass the certification examination.
15. Receive final approval from the Commission in the mail after they review completed packet and test results.
Master's of Addiction Counseling
16. Receive a master's degree in a healing or helping profession from an accredited college or university. Mail an offical transcript directly to the NAADAC Certification Commission at:
NAADAC
1001 N. Fairfax St. Suite 201
Alexandria, VA 22314
17.Obtain current state license or certification just like in Section 1.
18. Receive 6,000 hours or three years of volunteer or paid work experience, two years at the post-graduate level, in alcoholism and/or addiction counseling supervised by a certified AODA counselor. Related areas may include but are not limited to: screening, treatment, referral and professional collaboration.
19. Complete a total of 500 education hours related to addiction counseling. Formal classroom training such as college or university classes, workshops, or seminars qualify.
20. Sign the code of ethics found on the Professional Testing Center website as part of the application packet to be mailed for certification.
21. Download the application and handbook from the Professional Testing Corporation website and mail it in along with all required materials including the fee ($235.00 for members and $335.00 for non-members) to the Professional Testing Corporation at:
1350 Broadway-17th Floor
New York, NY 10018
(212) 356-0660
22. Take and pass the master's certifcation exam.
23. Receive final approval from the Commission in the mail after they review completed packet and test results.
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