The National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc. and Affiliates (NBCC) and NBCC International (NBCC-I) have established a new field office in Mexico. Dr. M. Sylvia Fernandez, chair of the NBCC Board of Directors, and Dr. Tom Clawson, NBCC president and CEO, signed agreements establishing NBCC-Mexico in January.

Located in Mexico City, this office and its staff will work to promote the counseling profession in Mexico. Counseling is a relatively unfamiliar profession in Mexico despite the growing need for human service professionals. Typically, mental health services have been provided by psychologists (mostly bachelor’s or master’s level) and psychiatrists.

According to Eloísa Lara Portal, coordinator of NBCC Mexico, these services are generally accessible only to the economically advantaged. Similarly, school counseling is not a part of the comprehensive curriculum for primary and secondary schools in Mexico. Recognizing the need to promote a countrywide understanding of counseling, professionals in Mexico approached NBCC for assistance in closing the gap between needs and available services. The newly formed NBCC-Mexico staff will work to accomplish
these goals by promoting the benefits of counselors as providers of mental health and educational support.

As with other NBCC field offices, NBCC Mexico will advocate for the counseling profession by introducing quality assurance mechanisms such as professional standards and certifications. A primary focus will be protecting the public from untrained professionals while protecting counselors from third-party regulation or imposition of standards.* In addition, the office will strive to raise awareness of the profession through promotional activities for relevant stakeholders. Finally, NBCC Mexico will position itself as a research institute and help to explore the development of counselors who are trained to provide services in both Mexico and the U.S.

In April, NBCC and NBCC-Mexico will jointly present at the International Association for Educational and Vocational Guidance (IAEVG) conference in Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico. The presentation will outline the necessity of developing in-country certification guidelines prior to implementation of shared certification structures.