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Best Schools for Mental Health & Counseling in 2026

48 schools ranked by DegreeWorth Score · Updated 2026

These are the top schools offering Mental Health & Counseling, ranked by DegreeWorth Score. The score combines graduate earnings, AI automation resilience, job market demand, and return on tuition investment. The average Mental Health & Counseling graduate earns $38,857/yr across 48 schools.

Programs Ranked

Avg Earnings

$38,857/yr

Avg DW Score

66/100

AI Risk

Moderate

40% task exposure

All Mental Health & Counseling Programs Ranked

Click any row for full AI scenario analysis, earnings projections, and career path breakdown.

#	Program	DW Score	Earnings	AI Risk	ROI
1	Mental Health & Counseling Metropolitan State University · Saint Paul, MN	80 78–77	$56,516/yr	Moderate	14.0x
2	Mental Health & Counseling Saint Cloud State University · Saint Cloud, MN	77 75–76	$50,058/yr	Moderate	13.9x
3	Mental Health & Counseling Ohio University-Eastern Campus · Saint Clairsville, OH	76 72–76	$40,516/yr	Moderate	21.5x
4	Mental Health & Counseling Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus · Chillicothe, OH	76 72–76	$40,516/yr	Moderate	21.5x
5	Mental Health & Counseling Ohio University-Southern Campus · Ironton, OH	76 72–76	$40,516/yr	Moderate	21.5x
6	Mental Health & Counseling Ohio University-Lancaster Campus · Lancaster, OH	76 72–76	$40,516/yr	Moderate	21.5x
7	Mental Health & Counseling Ohio University-Zanesville Campus · Zanesville, OH	76 72–76	$40,516/yr	Moderate	21.5x
8	Mental Health & Counseling Minnesota State University-Mankato · Mankato, MN	75 73–72	$46,691/yr	Moderate	12.5x
9	Mental Health & Counseling Eastern New Mexico University-Main Campus · Portales, NM	74 71–73	$40,645/yr	Moderate	16.6x
10	Mental Health & Counseling Columbia Southern University · Orange Beach, AL	74 70–73	$38,439/yr	Moderate	18.2x
11	Mental Health & Counseling University of Kansas · Lawrence, KS	72 67–73	$42,480/yr	Moderate	13.8x
12	Mental Health & Counseling Western Washington University · Bellingham, WA	76 74–73	$46,770/yr	Moderate	11.6x
13	Mental Health & Counseling Indiana Wesleyan University-National & Global · Marion, IN	72 70–70	$40,426/yr	Moderate	13.3x
14	Mental Health & Counseling New Mexico Highlands University · Las Vegas, NM	69 65–68	$34,750/yr	Moderate	15.4x
15	Mental Health & Counseling University of South Dakota · Vermillion, SD	70 69–67	$41,191/yr	Moderate	11.1x
16	Mental Health & Counseling Northern Illinois University · Dekalb, IL	67 64–67	$41,139/yr	Moderate	10.4x
17	Mental Health & Counseling Washburn University · Topeka, KS	70 69–66	$41,632/yr	Moderate	10.0x
18	Mental Health & Counseling University of Maine at Augusta · Augusta, ME	69 68–66	$39,109/yr	Moderate	11.1x
19	Mental Health & Counseling Worcester State University · Worcester, MA	66 62–66	$37,345/yr	Moderate	11.2x
20	Mental Health & Counseling University of Cincinnati-Main Campus · Cincinnati, OH	69 68–67	$46,270/yr	Moderate	7.5x
21	Mental Health & Counseling Ohio University-Main Campus · Athens, OH	65 63–65	$40,516/yr	Moderate	9.1x
22	Mental Health & Counseling Indiana State University · Terre Haute, IN	65 64–63	$37,268/yr	Moderate	9.8x
23	Mental Health & Counseling University of Pennsylvania · Philadelphia, PA	63 59–64	$58,269/yr	Moderate	2.4x
24	Mental Health & Counseling California State University-Fresno · Fresno, CA	63 57–65	$27,228/yr	Moderate	16.6x
25	Mental Health & Counseling Central Michigan University · Mount Pleasant, MI	64 62–64	$40,333/yr	Moderate	8.1x
26	Mental Health & Counseling Southern New Hampshire University · Manchester, NH	65 63–64	$43,886/yr	Moderate	5.7x
27	Mental Health & Counseling William Paterson University of New Jersey · Wayne, NJ	63 60–64	$39,228/yr	Moderate	8.6x
28	Mental Health & Counseling James Madison University · Harrisonburg, VA	62 55–65	$33,971/yr	Moderate	11.4x
29	Mental Health & Counseling University of Central Arkansas · Conway, AR	62 58–63	$32,618/yr	Moderate	11.4x
30	Mental Health & Counseling Western Connecticut State University · Danbury, CT	62 59–62	$36,070/yr	Moderate	9.2x
31	Mental Health & Counseling Purdue University Fort Wayne · Fort Wayne, IN	64 62–62	$34,603/yr	Moderate	10.6x
32	Mental Health & Counseling Rhode Island College · Providence, RI	64 62–62	$37,320/yr	Moderate	8.7x
33	Mental Health & Counseling Old Dominion University · Norfolk, VA	63 61–62	$37,645/yr	Moderate	8.2x
34	Mental Health & Counseling University of Arizona · Tucson, AZ	62 60–61	$37,992/yr	Moderate	7.6x
35	Mental Health & Counseling Ashford University · San Diego, CA	64 62–62	$39,676/yr	Moderate	6.4x
36	Mental Health & Counseling Grand Canyon University · Phoenix, AZ	59 57–60	$37,693/yr	Moderate	5.8x
37	Mental Health & Counseling Davenport University · Grand Rapids, MI	60 57–60	$41,225/yr	Moderate	3.4x
38	Mental Health & Counseling Northern Michigan University · Marquette, MI	59 57–59	$35,196/yr	Moderate	7.6x
39	Mental Health & Counseling Northwestern State University of Louisiana · Natchitoches, LA	56 50–60	$24,340/yr	Moderate	12.0x
40	Mental Health & Counseling Lackawanna College · Scranton, PA	59 57–59	$37,845/yr	Moderate	4.3x
41	Mental Health & Counseling Purdue University Global · West Lafayette, IN	61 59–59	$33,954/yr	Moderate	7.4x
42	Mental Health & Counseling Indiana Wesleyan University-Marion · Marion, IN	58 55–57	$40,426/yr	Moderate	2.8x
43	Mental Health & Counseling Texas A & M University-College Station · College Station, TX	58 57–58	$34,671/yr	Moderate	5.6x
44	Mental Health & Counseling Alvernia University · Reading, PA	56 53–55	$41,115/yr	Moderate	1.7x
45	Mental Health & Counseling Drexel University · Philadelphia, PA	55 52–55	$41,891/yr	Moderate	1.4x
46	Mental Health & Counseling New Mexico State University-Main Campus · Las Cruces, NM	54 53–53	$25,631/yr	Moderate	6.9x
47	Mental Health & Counseling University of Maine at Farmington · Farmington, ME	53 51–52	$27,344/yr	Moderate	5.2x
48	Mental Health & Counseling University of the Cumberlands · Williamsburg, KY	49 47–49	$21,137/yr	Moderate	4.4x

Methodology

Programs are ranked by DegreeWorth Score, which combines four equally weighted factors: graduate earnings (Year 1 after graduation), AI automation resilience (based on OpenAI and academic research), job market size (BLS annual openings), and earnings-to-tuition multiple (10-year projected earnings vs. 4-year tuition).

Earnings data comes from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, which reports actual median earnings of graduates — not self-reported surveys.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best school for Mental Health & Counseling?

Based on our DegreeWorth Score, Metropolitan State University ranks #1 for Mental Health & Counseling with a score of 80/100 and graduate earnings of $56,516/yr.

How much do Mental Health & Counseling graduates earn?

Across 48 schools, Mental Health & Counseling graduates earn an average of $38,857/yr in their first year. The highest-earning program reports $58,269/yr.

Is Mental Health & Counseling a good major for AI resistance?

Mental Health & Counseling has an average AI task exposure of 40%, rated "Moderate". This field has moderate AI exposure — some career paths are more resilient than others.

Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024–2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Last updated 2025.