Pre-Licensed Clinical Therapist Trainee

Pre-Licensed Clinical Therapist Trainee Salary $60,299.20 - $76,980.80 Annually

Location Throughout San Bernardino County, CA

Job Type Full-time

Job Number 26-13142-01

Department Department of Behavioral Health

Opening Date 02/14/2026

Closing Date Continuous

Description Benefits Questions

Are you a soon to be, or recent Masters graduate looking to be an agent of change and make a difference in delivering health and wellness to millions of residents?Join a team who is passionate about the services they provide and is committed to making a difference throughout San Bernardino County.

The San Bernardino County Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) invites qualified professionals to apply for the position of Pre-Licensed Clinical Therapist Trainee*. Pre-Licensed Clinical Therapist Trainees (Marriage and Family Therapy, Master of Social Work, and Professional Clinical Counselor) work in a variety of programs providing rehabilitative mental health/substance abuse services in community mental health clinics, field and institutional settings to children, adolescents, families, and older adults with severe mental or emotional disorders.

Pre-Licensed Clinical Therapist Trainees may obtain supervised clinical experience. Applicants willing to work in forensics, criminal justice, or after-hours positions are encouraged to apply, as well as those seeking traditional schedules.*

Official Title: Clinical Therapist Pre-License - Trainee

For additional details, please refer to the Clinical Therapist Pre-License - Trainee job description.

DBH is also accepting applications for Pre-Licensed Clinical Therapist, Licensed Clinical Therapist I, and Licensed Clinical Therapist II. Please click on a job title to be redirected to the corresponding application. Each position requires its own application.

Hear from current therapists about their experiences within the County below!

The Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) is responsible for providing mental health and substance use disorder services to county residents who are experiencing major mental illness or substance abuse related issues. DBH provides mental health and substance use disorder prevention and treatment services to all age groups, with a primary emphasis on treating children/youth who may be seriously emotionally disturbed, adults who are experiencing a serious and persistent mental illness, and individuals who are experiencing substance use disorders.

DBH also provides an array of outreach/engagement, prevention, and early intervention services. DBHs core values are service, integrity, accountability, and trust.

DBH is a unique County Department comprised of eight (8) direct service areas: Community Outpatient and Transitional Age Youth Services; Youth Collaborative and Justice Involved Services; Substance Use Disorder and Recovery Services; 24 Hour and Specialty Services; Adult Justice Involved and Diversion Services; Medical Services; Community Engagement and Equity Services; Office of Patients Rights and five (5) indirect service areas: Administrative and Fiscal Services; Public Relations and Outreach Services; Program Support Services; Disaster and Safety Unit; and the Office of Compliance.

The Department currently has a workforce in excess of 1500 positions and an approximate $800 million-dollar annual budget.

Benefits

To review job-specific benefits, please refer to:

• Summary of Benefits
• Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
• CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

Pre-Employment Process: Prior to appointment, applicants must pass a background investigation, which includes fingerprinting and medical exam, which may include drug and/or TB testing. Applicants must be a U.S. Citizen or a permanent U.S. resident.

Travel: Travel throughout the County may be required depending on assignment. Employees will be required to make provision for transportation.

Shifts: Some programs offer 24-hour services; some assignments may require employees to work evenings, weekends, holidays, and on-call.

Sponsorship: Please note San Bernardino County is not able to consider candidates who will require visa sponsorship at the time of application or in the future.

Pre-Licensed Clinical Therapist Trainees must become registered with the BBS within twelve (12) months of employment or may be terminated. Upon obtaining registration, employees may be promoted to Pre-Licensed Clinical Therapist ($5,959.20 - $7,605.87 monthly).

Minimum Requirements

Education: Applicants must possess one (1) of the following:

• Pre-Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Trainees: Must have received or be within three (3) months of receiving a Masters degree in Marriage Family Therapy.
• Pre-Licensed Masters of Social Work Trainees: Must have received or be within three (3) months of receiving a Masters degree in Social Work from an accredited institution.
• Pre-Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor Trainee: Must have received or be within three (3) months of receiving a Masters degree that is at least 48 semester (60 quarter) units in a counseling or psychotherapy field of study.

Desired Qualifications

Applicants fluent in American Sign Language, Arabic, Korean, Mandarin, Spanish, Tagalog, and/or Vietnamese are strongly encouraged to apply. Additional compensation is associated with positions requiring the use of bilingual skills. Testing of bilingual skills may be required to receive additional compensation.

Experience in one or more of the following areas is highly desirable, however, not required:

• Government or private inpatient, psychiatric hospital or behavioral health clinics/programs/contract agencies, serving persistently mentally ill clients.
• Experience providing child/adolescent and family therapy.
• Experience in a crisis intervention/brief therapy setting with severely mentally ill adults/children.
• Experience in quality assurance or utilization review activities.
• Experience with intensive care coordination with physical health care providers for severely persistently mentally ill clients.
• Experience with case management for individuals with severe and persistent mental illness.
• Experience with coordinating care for individuals with co-occurring substance disorders.
• Experience in transitional care coordination between inpatient and outpatient levels of care for medical complexity or severely persistently mentally ill adults and children.
• Experience working with detained youth and incarcerated adults in correctional settings, such as institutions/locked detention facilities or with probationers/offenders recently released from a correctional setting.

Selection Process

Application Procedure: There will be a competitive evaluation of qualifications based on the information provided in the Application and the Supplemental Questionnaire. You are encouraged to include detailed descriptions of your qualifying experience, as only the most highly qualified applicants will be referred to the Department. Please ensure all relevant experience is indicated in the Application and responses to the Supplemental Questionnaire, as resumes and other attachments will not be reviewed for the competitive evaluation.

Completing your application with statements such as "see/refer to resume" or "see attached" rather than completing your work history may affect your eligibility or competitive evaluation score. Be sure to clearly describe your experience in meeting the minimum requirements.

Technical Assistance: If you require technical assistance, follow this link to review the Government Jobs online application guide or contact their Toll-Free Applicant Support line at (855) 524-5627. Please note that Human Resources is not responsible for any issues or delays caused by your internet connection, computer, or browser when submitting an application.

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) / Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): San Bernardino County is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant employer, dedicated to ensuring equal employment opportunities for all employees and applicants.

ADA Accommodation: If you have a disability and need accommodations during the testing process, please submit the Special Testing Accommodations Request Form within one week of the recruitment filing deadline.

Veterans' Preference: Eligible veterans and their spouses or widows/widowers who are not current County employees may receive additional Veterans Preference points. For details and instructions on how to request these points, please refer to the Veterans Preference Policy.

Benefits

San Bernardino County offers a range of benefit programs for employees and their eligible dependents. These include health, dental, vision, and life insurance, as well as a variety of other voluntary benefits. Programs and benefit amounts vary and are based on bargaining unit, family size, hire date, plan selection, and number of hours worked. Please review the appropriate Summary of Benefits* for more information.

Refer to the appropriate MOU, contact the County's Employee Benefits and Services Division at (909) 387-5787 or visit the Employee Benefits website for more detailed information.

*Retirement benefits subject to change.

INSTRUCTIONS

The information on the application and your responses to the following supplemental questions will be used in a competitive evaluation of qualifications. Detailed responses should be provided for each question in order to ensure qualifications are properly considered (do not refer to a resume).

1. Select which degree discipline applies: Marriage and Family Therapy Masters in Social Work Professional Clinical Counselor None of the above

2. Masters Degree Graduation Date: Indicate your anticipated graduation date below. Must be within three (3) months of graduation date.

3. Select the appropriate statement below. Note: If you HAVE received your intern registration number, you may not continue with this application. You may apply as a Pre-Licensed Clinical Therapist* at the following link https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/sanbernardino.

I am registered as an AMFT, ASW, or APCC with the BBS. I am NOT registered as an AMFT, ASW, or APCC with the BBS.

4. Indicate the status of your registration with the Board of Behavioral Sciences.

Applied, waiting for registration number Waiting for degree to post to apply Have not applied Have not yet graduated

5. Are you a current MFT, MSW, or PCC Intern with the County of San Bernardino, Department of Behavioral Health Internship Program?

Yes No

6. Pre-Degree Internship/Traineeship Hours: Have you completed all of your hours for internship/traineeship?

Yes No

7. Pre-Degree Internship/Traineeship Hours: How many hours have you completed? Indicate "N/A" in the answer field if you have not completed any pre-degree internship/train