Addiction is a serious and growing problem in the United States and the demand for adequately trained addictions professionals has never been greater. The growing need for addiction counselors and the mandate that counselor training is rigorous, competency based, and inclusive of clinical training experiences in the field has implications for training programs. The purpose of this study was to begin to understand the training requirements for addiction counselors across the United States to begin to lay the groundwork needed to move the field forward in the pursuit of uniform licensure laws. A total of 78 programs were

reviewed, examining the course requirements in addiction counseling training. The findings in this study indicate a continued lack of uniformity in educational training across the United States in the area of addiction counseling and a lack of skills based training.

To address these concerns, advocacy for the profession regarding the need for uniform training standards based on accepted accreditation standards is needed.

Keywords: addiction counseling, training, education