Addiction Counseling Degree Program Guide

Do you want to help people overcome and recover from addiction? To get started, you’ll need to earn a bachelor’s degree. Then, if you wish, you can earn a master’s. While a master’s degree is required to work in an independent clinical practice, you can still work in addiction counseling with a bachelor’s degree.

In your addiction counseling program, you’ll take classes that prepare you to help people overcome addiction. Many of these programs also include practicums and internships to give you real-world counseling experience.

Read this page to learn all about bachelor’s in addiction counseling programs and what you can do with the degree.

In an accredited addiction counseling program, you’ll learn about addiction, recovery, prevention, and pharmacology in the context of substance misuse, eating disorders, and gambling.

Addiction counseling curricula include counseling skills and theories, human services, professional ethics, and marriage and family therapy.

Some popular courses include: health psychology, clinical psychology, abnormal psychology, psychopharmacology of alcohol and drugs, and case management in clinical settings.

Your program will give you the counseling and case-management skills to effectively help clients and their families. Addiction counseling degree programs typically last four years, although accelerated options are available.

In the following sections, you’ll learn what jobs you can pursue with a bachelor’s degree in addiction counseling. You’ll also learn how much money you can expect to earn and details about continuing education.

Once you graduate from your bachelor’s in addiction counseling degree program, you can pursue certification as an addiction counselor and work in an outpatient treatment clinic or private practice. You can also pursue a career as a health education specialist or social and community service manager.

Other potential careers include addiction specialist, chemical dependency practitioner, probation officer, and intervention specialist.

You might find work in settings such as hospitals, DUI programs, rehabilitation facilities, opioid replacement centers, and private practice.

You can expect to earn median wages ranging from roughly $44,000 to $77,000 as a counselor in this field.

For example, health education specialists earn a median annual salary of $62,860. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects this role to grow by 7% from 2023-2033. Another role you can pursue with a bachelor’s in addiction counseling is social and community service manager, which can pay more: These professionals earn a median annual salary of $77,000.

Check out the table below to learn more about these roles.

Source: BLS

After graduating from an addiction counseling program, you may choose to pursue a related master’s degree, such as counseling, psychology, or social work. These programs can improve your clinical skills and open up more employment opportunities, including the possibility of opening an independent clinical practice.

You could also pursue further education outside of counseling, such as healthcare administration or public health. And, with a master’s degree, you’ll be eligible for a doctoral program.

If graduate school doesn’t interest you, you can pursue professional certifications in your state, such as Registered Alcohol and Drug Technician (RADT) or Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CADC) in California, to further your education and showcase your expertise.

According to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, a four-year bachelor’s degree in the social sciences, including addiction counseling, costs around $55,000 for in-state students and nearly $119,000 for out-of-state students.

Fortunately, financial aid can reduce these costs by thousands of dollars. With financial aid, in-state students paid around $26,000 for four-year degrees, while out-of-state students paid around $71,000 for tuition and fees in the 2019-20 school year.

However, tuition can vary significantly by program. For example, Southern New Hampshire University charged $330 per credit hour for its 120-credit program in the 2024-25 school year.

In the sections below, you’ll learn how long bachelor’s degree programs in addiction counseling take to complete and how to apply to them.

Bachelor’s degrees usually require four years of study, or around 120 credits. The same goes for bachelor’s in addiction counseling programs. Transferring credits from another institution or enrolling in an accredited program can lessen your time in school.

To give you some real-world examples, the University of Cincinnati’s online substance misuse counseling program requires 60-120 credits, Southern New Hampshire University requires 120 credits, and Purdue Global requires 180 credits.

You’ll need a high school or GED certificate to apply for a bachelor’s in addiction counseling program. Common application materials include:

Some of the biggest factors you should consider before you apply to a bachelor’s in addiction counseling program are degree costs, accreditation, courses and concentrations offered, and program format. Read about these factors below.