New Hampshire School Counselor Certification

A New Hampshire school counseling certification is required to begin working as a school counselor. The following are the steps needed to be taken in order to satisfy certification requirements.

Step 1: Education Requirements

• Master’s degree or higher in a state board of education approved school counseling program, such as the following programs:

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  or

• Master’s degree or higher in counseling and completion of a counseling internship in a public school setting; or
• Master’s degree or higher in degree for profession closely related to school counseling and experience in comparable positions in school counseling

Step 2: Submit to a Criminal Background Check

Applicants for New Hampshire school counselor certification will not complete criminal background checking as part of the application process. After the Department of Education processes your application and determines you are eligible for certification, a certification specialist will contact you with instructions about the pre-certification background check.

For more information, you can call the certification office during normal business hours at 603-271-3494.

Step 3: Examination Requirements

As of February 2020, there is no examination requirement for the New Hampshire School Counselor certification.

Step 4: Know the Fees

Applicants for a New Hampshire school counselor certificate will submit an application fee for $130, payable using a Visa or MasterCard through the online application portal.

If you are submitting a paper application to the Department of Education, please include a $130 check or money order, payable to the State of New Hampshire Treasury.

Step 5: Organize Your Application Materials

Your application materials include the following:

• Completed profile and application through the myNHDOE portal 
• Official transcripts from all colleges/universities you have attended, including transfer credits that led to earned degree
• $130 application fee

Step 6: Submit Your Application

New Hampshire school counselor license applications are submitted online through the myNHDOE portal.

This includes all supporting documentation and the application fee, payable online with a Visa or MasterCard.

For more information, or for assistance with your myNHDOE account, you can email the help desk at EIS.Helo@doe.nh.gov.

Additional Information

If you would like to speak with a certification specialist about your application for New Hampshire School Counselor, you can contact the educator license department via email at cert.info@doe.nh.gov or by calling 603-271-2409 during normal business hours.

If you are employed under a New Hampshire Professional Development Master Plan, all recommendations for your New Hampshire school counselor certification renewals will be submitted through the online portal by the Superintendents’ office.

If you are not employed under a New Hampshire Professional Development Master Plan, please complete your renewal application online.

For More information on how to renew your certificate, visit the New Hampshire Credentialing HD Knowledge Base

The renewal application fee is $130.

Additional Assistance

If you need assistance with renewing your New Hampshire school counselor certificate, you can contact the certification office at 603-271-2409 or contact a specialist via email at cert.info@doe.nh.gov.

If you are an out-of-state applicant and your current and valid school counselor certificate meets certain requirements, you may be eligible to receive a New Hampshire certificate based on an interstate contract with the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification.

Only applicants with full licenses are eligible for reciprocity certification in New Hampshire. A partial list of the most common types of those licenses, alpha-ordered by state, can be found here.

If you are eligible for a reciprocity license, you can apply via the online portal.

For detailed information about how to apply, visit the New Hampshire Department of Education Experienced Educator License wikispace.

The application fee is $130, payable by Visa or MasterCard via the myNHDOE application portal.

Additional Assistance

If you have questions about your out-of-state application, contact the certification office at 603-271-2409 during normal business hours.