Subd. 1. General requirements.

1. (a) To be licensed as a licensed professional counselor (LPC), an applicant must provide evidence satisfactory to the board that the applicant:

   1. (1) is at least 18 years of age;
   2. (2) is of good moral character;
   3. (3) has completed a master's degree program in counseling that includes a minimum of 48 semester hours and a supervised field experience of not fewer than 700 hours that is counseling in nature;
   4. (4) has submitted to the board a plan for supervision during the first 2,000 hours of professional practice;
   5. (5) has demonstrated competence in professional counseling by passing the National Counseling Exam (NCE) administered by the National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc. (NBCC) including obtaining a passing score on the examination accepted by the board based on the determinations made by the NBCC and oral and situational examinations if prescribed by the board;
   6. (6) will conduct all professional activities as a licensed professional counselor in accordance with standards for professional conduct established by the rules of the board; and
   7. (7) has declared to the board and agrees to continue to declare areas of professional competencies through a statement of professional disclosure, describing the intended use of the license and the population to be served.

2. (b) The degree described in paragraph (a), clause (3), must be from a counseling program recognized by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Education Programs (CACREP) or from an institution of higher education that is accredited by a regional accrediting organization recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). Specific academic course content and training must meet standards established by the CACREP, including course work in the following subject areas:

   1. (1) the helping relationship, including counseling theory and practice;
   2. (2) human growth and development;
   3. (3) lifestyle and career development;
   4. (4) group dynamics, processes, counseling, and consulting;
   5. (5) assessment and appraisal;
   6. (6) social and cultural foundations, including multicultural issues;
   7. (7) principles of etiology, treatment planning, and prevention of mental and emotional disorders and dysfunctional behavior;
   8. (8) family counseling and therapy;
   9. (9) research and evaluation; and
   10. (10) professional counseling orientation and ethics.
3. (c) To be licensed as a professional counselor, a psychological practitioner licensed under section 148.908 need only show evidence of licensure under that section and is not required to comply with paragraph (a) or (b).

Subd. 2. Minimum hour effective date.

The minimum semester hour requirement imposed by subdivision 1, paragraph (a), clause (3), is not effective until July 1, 2004. This subdivision expires July 1, 2005.

Subd. 3. Fee.

Each applicant shall pay a nonrefundable fee set by the board.