Medical Family Therapy/Therapist Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Medical Family Therapy/Therapist maps to BLS occupations averaging about $61,432, with roughly 901,610 workers nationwide in those roles. Median in-state published tuition is about $5,545; common paths include Home Health Aides and Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists.
Key Statistics
Medical Family Therapy/Therapist: what the data shows
Common questions about medical family therapy/therapist degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a medical family therapy/therapist degree?
A Medical Family Therapy/Therapist program is classified under NCES CIP 51.1511 in the Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions field family (51.15).
A program that prepares individuals to work with patients and their families who are experiencing emotional, physical, relational and spiritual difficulties related to acute and chronic illnesses. Includes instruction in cultural context, ethics, family dynamics, family therapy, gender, human development, marriage counseling, psychopathology, research design and methods, sexuality, and systems thinking
Types of medical family therapy/therapist degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 51.15 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Clinical Pastoral Counseling/Patient Counseling (CIP 51.1506)
- Clinical/Medical Social Work (CIP 51.1503)
- Community Health Services/Liaison/Counseling (CIP 51.1504)
- Genetic Counseling/Counselor (CIP 51.1509)
- Hospice and Palliative Care (CIP 51.1512)
- Infant/Toddler Mental Health Services (CIP 51.1510)
- Marriage and Family Therapy/Counseling (CIP 51.1505)
- Mental Health Counseling/Counselor (CIP 51.1508)
- Psychiatric/Mental Health Services Technician (CIP 51.1502)
- Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy (CIP 51.1507)
- Substance Abuse/Addiction Counseling (CIP 51.1501)
- Trauma Counseling (CIP 51.1513)
What degree do you need?
For Home Health Aides (top mapped occupation), O*NET incumbent surveys in our career profile report these education credentials most often: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a medical family therapy/therapist degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links Medical Family Therapy/Therapist to the BLS roles below. Employment is U.S. OEWS; median wage is national May 2024 where published in our extract.
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Home Health Aides | — | — |
| Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists | — | — |
| Mental Health Counselors | — | — |
| Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health | 84,930 | $80,060 |
| Medical Assistants | 793,460 | $44,200 |
| Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors | 23,220 | $109,660 |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Is a medical family therapy/therapist degree worth it?
College Scorecard national medians for the Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions bachelor's program family: median debt $24,199, median earnings $52,119 four years after enrollment. Debt-to-earnings proxy: 0.61.
About 5.3% of graduates in this field family were not working and not enrolled one year after completion in Scorecard's national program medians.
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $5,545 and median net price is $13,381.
We do not score "worth" on opinion—compare debt, earnings, wages for mapped occupations, and completion data above against your cost and career target.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Medical Family Therapy/Therapist and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$5,545 Median In-State Public
$35,056 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Medical Family Therapy/Therapist majors are, on average, $5,545 for in-state public colleges, and $35,056 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Medical Family Therapy/Therapist programs.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
100,000 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Medical Family Therapy/Therapist from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Medical Family Therapy/Therapist.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 163,164 |
| 2 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 163,164 |
| 3 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 163,164 |
| 4 | University of Phoenix-Arizona | AZ | 85,991 |
| 5 | Grand Canyon University | AZ | 73,371 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Medical Family Therapy/Therapist programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tohono O'odham Community College | AZ | $932 |
| 2 | Antelope Valley Community College District | CA | $1,124 |
| 3 | Woodland Community College | CA | $1,124 |
| 4 | Woodland Community College | CA | $1,124 |
| 5 | Yuba College | CA | $1,128 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Medical Family Therapy/Therapist programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Mexico State University-Grants | NM | $68 |
| 2 | Fort Peck Community College | MT | $400 |
| 3 | College of San Mateo | CA | $536 |
| 4 | College of San Mateo | CA | $536 |
| 5 | Piedmont Community College | NC | $1,095 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Medical Family Therapy/Therapist programs.
Graduation Rates
Graduation rate data is not available for this degree program.
Graduation/completion rates for Medical Family Therapy/Therapist programs across institutions.
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 51.15 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Clinical Pastoral Counseling/Patient Counseling CIP 51.1506
- Clinical/Medical Social Work CIP 51.1503
- Community Health Services/Liaison/Counseling CIP 51.1504
- Genetic Counseling/Counselor CIP 51.1509
- Hospice and Palliative Care CIP 51.1512
- Infant/Toddler Mental Health Services CIP 51.1510
- Marriage and Family Therapy/Counseling CIP 51.1505
- Mental Health Counseling/Counselor CIP 51.1508
- Psychiatric/Mental Health Services Technician CIP 51.1502
- Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy CIP 51.1507
- Substance Abuse/Addiction Counseling CIP 51.1501
- Trauma Counseling CIP 51.1513
Careers & Jobs
Occupations linked to this major in our degree→career mapping, with wages and employment from processed BLS career profiles in this repo.
Across these BLS occupations, employment-weighted mean pay is about $61,432. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of Medical Family Therapy/Therapist graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| Home Health Aides | — | — |
| Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists | — | — |
| Mental Health Counselors | — | — |
| Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health | $110,339 | 84,930 |
| Medical Assistants | $54,270 | 793,460 |
| Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors | $127,278 | 23,220 |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Program outcomes (College Scorecard)
National medians across bachelor's programs in the Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions CIP family (18 programs reporting debt). Not specific to every Medical Family Therapy/Therapist graduate.
- $24,199 median federal loan debt among completers
- $52,119 median earnings four years after enrollment (national program median)
- 0.61 debt-to-earnings ratio (Scorecard proxy)
- 5.3% of graduates not working and not enrolled one year out (program cohort)
Source: College Scorecard program-level outcomes aggregated by 4-digit CIP family.
Employment
Wages and industry mix below use BLS OEWS data for occupations linked to this major in our mapping—not a graduate earnings survey.
Yearly Income for Common Jobs
$61,432 Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Medical Family Therapy/Therapist majors is $61,432.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Medical Family Therapy/Therapist majors.
Occupations by Share
901,610 2023 Workforce
The number of Medical Family Therapy/Therapist graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Medical Family Therapy/Therapist by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Medical Family Therapy/Therapist in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Medical Family Therapy/Therapist.
Age distribution for Medical Family Therapy/Therapist degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
6 Total Degrees Awarded
3 Male (50.00%)
3 Female (50.00%)
Gender distribution of Medical Family Therapy/Therapist degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
5 White (83.33%)
1 Black or African American (16.67%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Medical Family Therapy/Therapist degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Medical Family Therapy/Therapist are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Medical Family Therapy/Therapist.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Medical Family Therapy/Therapist field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Medical Family Therapy/Therapist majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Medical Family Therapy/Therapist majors.
Skills Bar Chart
This bar chart shows the same information as the radar chart, displaying the importance of each skill.
Skill importance ratings for Medical Family Therapy/Therapist majors.
About
A program that prepares individuals to work with patients and their families who are experiencing emotional, physical, relational and spiritual difficulties related to acute and chronic illnesses. Includes instruction in cultural context, ethics, family dynamics, family therapy, gender, human development, marriage counseling, psychopathology, research design and methods, sexuality, and systems thinking
In 2023, 100,000 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Medical Family Therapy/Therapist.
CIP Code
51.1511 - Medical Family Therapy/Therapist
What the data shows
At the program-family level, College Scorecard reports median debt of $24,199 for bachelor's completers and median earnings near $52,119, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.61. Those figures describe national program cohorts in this CIP family—not every individual Medical Family Therapy/Therapist graduate.
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about $61,432. The largest mapped role by headcount is Home Health Aides (N/A U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $5,545 in-state at public colleges and $35,056 at private institutions for programs in this field.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard dataset, IPEDS completion data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data.
All financial figures are adjusted for inflation and represent the most recent available data. Employment and wage data are from the most recent Census Bureau ACS PUMS estimates.