There is no COAMFTE-accredited marriage and family therapy program in San Jose or anywhere in its metro, even though California has more accredited programs than any other state. Every one of them is in Southern California except Alliant University's two programs in Sacramento. And San Jose pays marriage and family therapists one of the highest medians in the country.
Where are the nearest accredited MFT programs to San Jose?
The nearest accredited MFT programs to San Jose are Alliant University's master's and PsyD in Sacramento. Every other accredited program in California is in the Los Angeles, Orange County, Inland Empire or San Diego areas.
| State | Programs | Where | Top score |
|---|---|---|---|
| California 17 master's, 8 doctoral | 25 | Alhambra, Anaheim, Fullerton, Irvine, Loma Linda, Los Alamitos, Los Angeles, Northridge, Orange, Sacramento, San Diego | 91.2 |
| Nevada 1 master's | 1 | Las Vegas | 14.3 |
| Oregon 2 master's | 2 | Eugene, Portland | 91.7 |
Can you earn an accredited MFT degree online from San Jose?
Yes. 29 of the 127 COAMFTE-accredited programs are delivered online or as a hybrid of online coursework and short residencies, and they can be studied from San Jose. The clinical practicum is the part that cannot move online: it is supervised, face-to-face work with clients, and the program arranges it, or approves one you find, near where you live.
Before enrolling in a program based in another state, ask it directly whether it places students in California and whether its graduates have been licensed here. A program that has done it before will know the answer.
Best online master's in marriage and family therapy programs. Online and hybrid doctoral MFT programs.
What do marriage and family therapists earn in the San Jose area?
Marriage and family therapists in the San Jose metro area earn a median of $95,110, which is 42% above the national median and 41% above the California statewide figure, 8th of the 131 metros with a published figure.
This is also a metro with a lot of the work. It counts 1,180 marriage and family therapists, and its location quotient of 2.42 means the occupation is about that many times more concentrated in the local workforce than it is nationally. The top tenth earn above $164,360.
How do you get licensed as a marriage and family therapist in California?
You get licensed as a marriage and family therapist in California through the Board of Behavioral Sciences, by registering as an associate after your degree, completing supervised hours and passing two exams. The board requires 3,000 total supervised hours, over 104 weeks at minimum, and you cannot count post-degree hours in California without first registering with the board as an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist, apart from a 90-day window.
The two exams are the California Law and Ethics Exam and the LMFT Clinical Exam. The degree itself has to meet the requirements the board sets out by reference to the Business and Professions Code, so check a program against the board's page before you enroll, whether it is in Sacramento, Southern California or online.
Common questions about MFT programs near San Jose
Is there an accredited MFT program in San Jose?
Which other large cities have no accredited MFT program?
Where do these figures come from?
The program list and every score come from the COAMFTE directory and each program's own published Graduate Achievement Data, scored as the methodology describes. Wage figures are the Bureau of Labor Statistics' May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics for SOC 21-1013, marriage and family therapists.
- California Board of Behavioral Sciences, LMFT requirements : supervised hours, exams and AMFT registration, read 2026-10-05
- BLS OEWS, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara metro : metro wage and employment figures for SOC 21-1013, May 2025