Guide to Transgender and Gender Counseling Degrees and Schools
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If you aspire to work with trans and nonbinary people as a mental health professional, there are many trans-positive career paths to explore, depending on your area of focus and level of training and certification.
It is important to select the right academic setting for you to hone your skills. The colleges, universities, and organizations mentioned in this article are just some of the many programs taking progressive steps to help you on your way.
So let’s take a look at the benefits of having an undergraduate degree, a graduate degree focused on gender counseling and some of the available trans-positive continuing education opportunities.
Undergraduate Degrees and Programs
Those with a bachelor’s degree in psychology or a bachelor’s in women’s, gender, and sexuality studies (WGSS) may meet their state requirements to be a social worker, health clinic coordinator, LGBTQ+ ally trainer, or trans rights advocate.
While many undergraduate psych programs may include an elective course about sexuality and gender identity, most classes will focus on the broader strokes of psychology. Because of this, undergraduate psych majors who want to work with transgender populations and undergraduates looking to earn a graduate degree in counseling psychology may want to consider a minor in WGSS, if not complete a double major. This will provide them with a solid psych foundation and the framework necessary to conceptualize the many issues facing trans and nonbinary people.
To accomplish this, research which colleges and universities offer LGBTQ+-inclusive curricula, as well as degrees in psychology and WGSS. It’s also worth looking up where each school lands on the Campus Pride Index, and if there are any LGBTQ+ resource centers on campus. LGBTQ+ resource centers are an excellent place to expand your knowledge, grow your community, and build your resume through volunteer opportunities and workplace scholarships.
Wells College
Location: Aurora, NY
Wells College currently offers both a major and a minor in women’s transgender and queer studies (WTQS). The program takes a deep dive into sociopolitical issues relating to gender, while expanding critical thinking, and communication skills in discussion-based classes. It also offers several internship and study abroad opportunities to help broaden your multicultural understanding of gender through real-world experiences. Well’s College also offers a bachelor’s in psychology, making their WTQS minor an excellent complement.
Portland State University
Location: Portland, OR
Portland State University (PSU) provides both a major and a minor in sexuality, gender, and queer studies. PSU’s integrative approach allows students to incorporate electives from other departments, including psychology, sociology, Black studies, Chicano/Latino studies, Indigenous Nations and Native American studies, as well as history, film studies and public health. As a minor, this program also meshes well with PSU’s bachelor’s degree in psychology.
UC Berkeley
Location: Berkeley, CA
UC Berkeley’s Department of Gender and Women’s Studies has rolled out a unique minor in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) studies. Intertwining psychology, sociology, and anthropology, UC Berkeley’s LGBT studies minor explores the complex living history of the LGBTQ+ community to understand the lived experiences of LGBTQ+ people.
While their coursework emphasizes same-sex relationships, it also delves into ethnicity, gender, and sexuality, alongside electives like gender, sexuality, and culture in the ancient world, language and gender, and special topics in psychology. This minor is an excellent addition for those who enroll in UC Berkley’s bachelor’s in psychology. For additional resources, UC Berkeley is also home to the Gender Equity Resource Center (GenEQ).
Graduate Degrees and Programs
Since the field of gender-affirmative counseling is still evolving, there is no set path, which can be somewhat confusing for aspiring mental health professionals wanting to help gender-diverse people.
An MA, PsyD, or PhD in counseling, clinical social work, or clinical sexology will adequately train you to be a mental health practitioner, yet to fully comprehend the array of issues facing trans and nonbinary people, you may have to go further than the coursework provided. Colleges and universities are not uniform in their coverage of LGBTQ+ mental health, and even progressive campuses that provide whole psych courses on gender identity may not give aspiring counselors the full comprehension they’re looking for.
Currently, there is no diploma in gender-diverse mental health or LGBTQ+ mental health, making it important to augment one’s graduate degree with a concentration or certificate focused on gender diversity. A concentration is for students who want to take a deep dive into a specific area of study, whereas a certificate is available to both students and mental health counselors who want to expand their awareness, knowledge, and skillset.
Additionally, when researching graduate schools, make sure to map potential internship opportunities in the area. Look at how many LGBTQ+ mental health organizations, non-profits, or gender affirmative practitioners are listed around the campus since mentorship will be paramount.
To graduate, most psych programs require students to have an internship experience, creating a great opportunity for aspiring counselors to work in a trans-positive organization. Not only this, but to become a licensed counselor, many states also require a set number of supervision hours and client contact hours. Finding a clinical supervisor with experience and training in gender counseling can take time, making it important to network before you graduate.
Not all gender-affirmative therapists want to provide internships or supervision, meaning there’s competition for those who do.
Southern Oregon University
Location: Ashland, OR
Southern Oregon University has a unique certificate in transgender studies, which centers trans voices, and the lived experiences of gender-diverse people. Focusing on social change efforts, this certification program not only addresses the intersectional forms of inequality, it decolonizes the transgender experience by addressing the broad array of diversity within the trans community.
Southern Oregon University also offers both a bachelor’s in psychology and a master’s in clinical mental health counseling
Goddard College
Location: Plainfield, VT
Goddard College offers an MA In psychology and an MA in clinical mental health counseling, both of which can integrate their sexual orientation concentration. This track focuses on the competencies and guidelines for working with LGBTQ+ clients set out by the ACA’s Association for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues in Counseling and the APA’s Society for the Psychological Study of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues.
Antioch University
Location: New England
Recognizing the need for trans-positive mental healthcare, Antioch University developed a trans-affirmative therapy certificate program for counselors, and those enrolled in an MA counseling track. The course provides training on how best to help trans and gender non-conforming people, as well as their families, given that it’s offered by Antioch University’s couples and family therapy program.
Continuing Education Credits
Having earned your degree and passed your licensure exam, you may need to accrue Continuing Education (CE) credits to maintain your licensure. The number of credit hours needed differs per state and license, so make sure to check in with your local licensure board.
Amazingly, the number of LGBTQ+ mental health courses becoming available has exploded in recent years, providing many opportunities to learn about gender counseling in person and online. These continuing education courses are a great way to stay informed and up to date, not only on the best practices and latest research, but also on the socio-political climate impacting the trans and nonbinary community, the nuances of multicultural gender identity, as well as the ever-evolving expansion of language and terminology.
The Gender U
The Gender U is an online organization partnered with the National Register of Health Service Psychologists. Dedicated to uplifting the skills of mental health counselors, their unique courses include understanding and preventing suicide in the transgender community, supporting patients with intersex traits, and how to use the gender-affirmative supportive surgery evaluation tool to write letters for clients in need of gender-affirmative surgery.
Modern Sex Therapy Institute
The Modern Sex Therapy Institute provides several comprehensive certificates complete with CE credits, including transgender affirmative mental health care, supporting autistic trans and nonbinary clients, sex therapy with trans and gender nonconforming clients, and transgender clients and addiction.
Transgender Training Institute
The Transgender Training Institute is an excellent and affordable resource for mental health practitioners. They provide introductory courses, like their foundation of awareness: an intro for clinicians working with transgender and non-binary clients, to more in-depth courses like working with transgender and non-binary clients: integrating therapeutic models of care, anti-transgender microaggressions and how to intervene, and trans and Black: loving our trans Black fam.
Alex Stitt, LMHC
Writer & Contributing ExpertAlex Stitt is a nonbinary author, queer theorist, and licensed mental health counselor living in Hawaii. As a proud Queer Counselor, they work to educate professionals in the mental health field interested in working with LGBTQ+ populations. Their textbook, ACT for Gender Identity: The Comprehensive Guide, demonstrates how to apply Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to gender self-actualization.