Wisconsin licenses Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC). Graduates first get a Professional Counselor Training License (PCTL) and practice under an approved supervisor. Everything below comes from the board's own pages and rules, checked October 18, 2026. Fees and rules change, so confirm on the linked pages before you pay.
Check with your board. Counselor Ticket is a study aid. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC), the Center for Credentialing & Education (CCE), the American Counseling Association (ACA), CACREP or any state counseling board; NCE and NCMHCE are NBCC's marks, used here only to name the exams. Laws on confidentiality, duty to warn, reporting and licensing differ by state; follow your state's law, your agency and your supervisor.
Wisconsin at a glance
License
Exam
What it takes
PCTL (Professional Counselor Training License)
None to start
A 60-semester-hour master's in professional counseling (or equivalent) and a board-approved supervisor.
LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor)
NCE, NCMHCE or CRC
3,000 hours of professional counseling practice, 1,000 face to face, while holding the training license.
Wisconsin, step by step
Wisconsin Marriage and Family Therapy, Professional Counseling, and Social Work Examining Board (DSPS)
Degree: since 2018, a master's or doctorate in professional counseling or its equivalent from a program the professional counselor section approves; a master's must total at least 60 semester hours (90 quarter). A doctorate in counselor education and supervision also qualifies.
Training license: apply in LicensE for the Professional Counselor Training License with Form 2456 from a supervisor approved by the board (an LPC with five years of full-time practice or a doctorate, a psychiatrist, a psychologist, or someone approved in advance).
Supervised practice: at least 3,000 hours of professional counseling practice, including at least 1,000 hours of face-to-face client contact, while holding an active training license (with a counseling doctorate: 1,000 hours of full-time practice during or after the program). Each supervisor submits Form 2464. Supervision earned outside Wisconsin is reviewed case by case.
The exam: the NCE, the NCMHCE or the CRC exam, with scores sent by the testing organization. A temporary license is available while you finish the exam.
Renewal: every two years with 30 CE hours, at least 4 in ethics and professional boundaries.
The steps that hold nearly everywhere: a counseling master's degree (usually 60 semester hours, often CACREP-accredited), your board's approval, an NBCC exam, about two years of supervised experience, then the full license. The NCE has 200 questions (160 scored) in 3 hours 45 minutes; the NCMHCE is 11 clinical case studies in the same time; either can be retaken after 30 days (NBCC/CCE candidate handbooks). The full walk-through: How to get your counseling license.