Definitions

There are numerous abbreviations commonly used in the fields of marriage and family therapy, psychology, counseling, and other mental health professions. We understand that it can be confusing at times, so we have defined all abbreviations used on our site.

Please note that when a therapists’ letters are listed as M.MFT or TLMFT, they are Pre-Licensed Clinical Fellows. This means that they are working under supervision until they are independently licensed (i.e., LMFT).

  • B.A. = Bachelor of Arts

  • B.B.A = Bachelor of Business Administration

  • B.B.S. = Bachelor of Behavioral Science

  • B.F.A. = Bachelor of Fine Arts

  • B.M. = Bachelor of Music

  • B.P.S. = Bachelor of Professional Studies

  • B.S. = Bachelor of Science

  • Ed.D. = Doctor of Education

  • EMDR = Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing

  • HDFS = Human Development and Family Studies

  • LMFT = Licensed Marital and Family Therapist

  • M.A. = Master of Arts

  • M. Div. = Master of Divinity

  • M.E. = Master of Engineering

  • M.Ed. = Master of Education

  • M.D.R. = Master of Dispute Resolution

  • MT-BC = Music Therapist, Board Certified

  • M.MFT = Master of Marriage and Family Therapy

  • M.S. = Master of Science

  • Ph.D. = Doctor of Philosophy

  • SYMBIS = Save Your Marriage Before it Starts

  • TLMFT = Temporary Licensed Marital and Family Therapist