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I want to become a marriage and family therapist. Are there any tips or advice I should know, or anything helpful?

I am doing a high school project, and any information would be very helpful and appreciated.

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Annah’s Answer

Raegan, you will need a masters in marriage and family therapy; this will provide you with an MFT credential. However, if you get a master's in social work or counseling that is not marriage/family focused you can still continue post-grad to gain the trainings needed. But since you already know- it makes sense to jump right in! This just to say there is not one single way to go about this. Another certification to consider is sex therapy- you can add this on to your MA (if it is offered) or take the required courses later. You will be training your entire career so don't worry about having to do it all at once. Going for the MFT program will mean your academic coursework and internships will all revolve around working with couples and families. This will make going from graduation into working specifically with this population easy. Something to know about yourself and your personality- you will need to want to work with groups vs individuals. This can be exciting; it also means you need to be comfortable with conflict within the therapy room. You will need to learn how to be in charge and direct the session, so things stay on track. Having strong boundaries and communication skills while also having the ability to follow different threads simultaneously will come in handy. It is more of a juggling act than individual work- but the therapists that choose this work tend to love this. Being a therapist does not mean you have to be an expert in your own relationships, but you will need to be working on your own personal and relational growth. This is really powerful work, and it allows for change to occur quickly. Individual therapy may seem slower in contrast. I may be incorrect, but I believe family work is typically more time-dependent (meets for shorter duration than individual therapy), sessions might be longer (90-minutes), and homework outside of session is critical. You are truly working with each personality within the group to bridge understanding and improve functioning. Marriage and family therapists will always be in high demand so you will be entering a field with no shortage of patients!
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