Alliant International University MFT Program: Comprehensive Profile and Student Fit Analysis

Alliant International University is one of 71 BBS-approved MFT programs in California. Compare all 71 in our directory. Program data collected April 2026 from publicly available sources including the program's official website, the COAMFTE directory, and BBS records. Prospective students should verify all details directly with the program before applying.

Student Outcomes

Cost and Regional Pay

Approximate placement of this program’s total cost (about $67,000 (online) to $86,000 (on-ground), tuition only) against the directory’s lowest and highest published totals.

Estimated total tuition: approximately $66,780 for the online format and about $86,040 for the on-ground format (60 units at $1,113 or $1,434 per unit for 2025-2026; a $150 exam-prep fee applies in the first two semesters).

Regional pay context: In the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad area, marriage and family therapists earn a median of about $49,610 per year (mean about $65,440), with the middle half earning roughly $49,610 to $74,390 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). These figures cover all marriage and family therapists in the area at all experience levels, not this program's graduates. For more, see our San Diego LMFT salary guide.

Schedule and Format Details

On-Ground (San Diego, Los Angeles, Irvine, Sacramento): Day, evening, and executive-format classes offered at all campuses. Los Angeles campus offers a one-day-per-week option (Tuesday or Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.) or two-day-per-week option (Tuesday and Saturday, morning or evening classes only). All campuses operate on a semester calendar with some eight-week term options available. Practicum placement typically requires three consecutive semesters of commitment.

Online: Fully asynchronous and synchronous course options. Coursework can be completed on flexible schedules to accommodate working professionals and students across multiple time zones. The online program maintains identical curriculum, degree requirements, policies, and procedures as on-ground locations. Students must complete practicum at approved sites in their local communities.

Clinical Training and Fieldwork

Students complete a minimum one-year practicum commitment across three consecutive semesters. The practicum requires a minimum of 300 direct client contact hours, with at least 150 hours involving couples, families, or groups. Practicum students receive a minimum of 100 supervision hours (at least 50 of which must be via direct observation or recorded sessions). Upon completion of practicum and degree coursework, graduates accumulate 800 to 1,300 total supervised clinical experience hours applicable toward California licensure. The program does not operate its own in-house training clinic; placements are student-arranged in coordination with the program, with practicum sites located in students' local communities. Professional development requirements include 50 hours of approved workshops, colloquia, seminars, and related activities; up to 25 of these hours may consist of personal counseling or psychotherapy with a licensed mental health professional outside the university (per the program catalog).

Culminating Requirements

Students must pass a comprehensive examination as part of their degree program. Full-time students typically complete the exam in their second year's June term. The program offers remediation plans for students who require additional support.

Application Process

Application Deadlines: Rolling admission; applications accepted year-round. Specific start dates may have associated deadlines; contact Admissions for deadlines tied to individual terms and campuses.

Undergraduate GPA Requirement: Minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA on a 4.0 scale from a regionally accredited institution. Applicants with undergraduate or graduate GPA below 3.0 may petition for exemption from this academic requirement.

Prerequisite Courses: No specific prerequisite courses required. The program welcomes students from diverse academic backgrounds; a psychology degree is not required for admission.

Application Components: Official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended; resume or curriculum vitae; two letters of recommendation from persons familiar with applicant's work, academic abilities, or potential for professional accomplishment (may be from professional or personal references if applicant has been out of school for several years); personal narrative essay (2 to 4 pages for Master's applicants).

Interview Requirement: Required for admitted finalists; format varies by program and campus.

Program Start Terms: Enrollment available at multiple points throughout the year (semester and eight-week term enrollment periods); specific start dates vary by format and campus.

Concentrations and Specializations

Chemical Dependency Specialization: CAADE-accredited specialization available for MFT students. Students prepare to work with individuals, couples, and families facing addiction through coursework and practicum hours at residential treatment centers or intensive outpatient programs. The specialization does not require additional clinical hours beyond the standard MFT practicum requirement.

Graduate Certificates: Currently enrolled MFT students may pursue graduate certificate programs in fields such as Infant-Preschooler Mental Health and Latin American Family Therapy; certificate coursework can be applied toward the MFT degree with certification awarded upon completion of requirements.

What This Program Says About Itself

• One of few COAMFTE-accredited online MFT programs in the nation: The Master's in MFT coursework is offered completely online and is one of only a few such programs in the nation to be COAMFTE-accredited, providing flexibility without sacrificing accreditation quality.
• Flexible scheduling across multiple modalities: Day, evening, and executive-format classes are offered at each campus, with the Los Angeles campus offering a one-day-per-week option or two-day-per-week options to accommodate working professionals.
• Preparation for licensure in multiple states: A degree from a COAMFTE-accredited graduate program makes it easier to complete the licensure requirements and obtain MFT licensure in a new state.
• Contemporary family lens: The program recognizes the evolving American household and positions graduates to work with diverse family structures.
• Specialization option in chemical dependency: MFT students have the option to earn a CAADE-accredited specialization in chemical dependency.

This Program May Be a Good Fit For

Working professionals seeking schedule flexibility: Evening and executive formats are available at all four on-ground campuses, and the fully online program allows asynchronous participation.

Career changers entering the field: The program explicitly welcomes students from diverse academic backgrounds and does not require a psychology undergraduate degree.

Students seeking an accelerated path: The program can be completed in as little as two years through intensive scheduling.

Students seeking strong practicum infrastructure: The program provides structured program-arranged placement coordination with community-based sites and requires substantive supervision (minimum 100 hours including direct observation).

Students planning to practice in multiple states: COAMFTE accreditation facilitates licensure portability across state lines.

Students interested in serving specific populations: Chemical dependency specialization plus graduate certificate options in Latin American Family Therapy and Infant-Preschooler Mental Health.

Students in California: Multiple on-ground campus locations (San Diego, Los Angeles, Irvine, Sacramento) offer in-person learning for California-based students.

Students interested in a fully online format: Alliant's completely online MA in MFT is COAMFTE-accredited with asynchronous and synchronous options.

Related California MFT Programs

If you are weighing Alliant International University, you may also want to compare these nearby and similar programs in our directory:

• San Diego State University: Same San Diego metro, COAMFTE-accredited
• University of San Diego: Same San Diego metro, COAMFTE-accredited
• National University: Same San Diego metro, online option, COAMFTE distance MAMFT
• Loma Linda University: COAMFTE-accredited, Southern California, on-campus and online
• Point Loma Nazarene University: Same San Diego metro, online option

Or compare all 71 California MFT programs side by side.

How This California MFT Directory Is Built

This is the only California MFT program directory that accepts no paid placements of any kind. No program can pay to be listed, pay to rank higher, pay to be featured, or pay to remove information, and there are no affiliate links or sponsored entries. Every program on the California BBS approved-program list is included. At Sentio University, we believe in program transparency. Every prospective student should have as much objective information about MFT programs as possible to make the best decision for themselves.

How to Choose an MFT Program in California

Meeting the BBS requirements tells you that a curriculum clears a legal bar but says almost nothing about how skilled a clinician you can become. The students who get the most out of these years treat licensure as the floor, and then ask a far more ambitious question: which program will help me reach the very top of what I am capable of as a therapist? The program you choose changes everything. By the time they reach practicum, 2 in 3 students at COAMFTE-accredited MFT programs do not feel prepared to see clients. Training built around real, performable clinical skills, rather than theory alone, is what lets you walk into your first session with genuine confidence and keep growing from there. You get to decide how high to aim, and the right program will rise to meet you.

Look closely at four things. First, Deliberate Practice: the strongest programs let you rehearse specific skills with immediate feedback, the same way world-class musicians and athletes build mastery over time. Second, clinical hours: seek out programs that give you a high volume of direct client contact, because nothing accelerates your development faster than real, supervised repetition. Third, video recording in supervision rather than student self-report, so your supervisors can coach what actually happened in the room. Fourth, routine outcome monitoring, which teaches you to track, honestly and objectively, whether your clients are getting better. A program that does all four is training you to pursue excellence, not just clear a requirement.

Also consider programs that teach you safe and ethical AI-integrated clinical training. And do not let cost quietly lower your sights. There are more scholarships and financial aid options for California MFT students than most applicants ever realize.

The purpose of these years is not simply to pass a board and collect a license. It is to become the best therapist you can be, so struggling therapy clients will trust you with the hardest moments of their lives. Hold your education to that standard. Reach for the ceiling rather than settling for the floor, and choose the program that will help you get there.

Note from the Field:
"Aim higher than the license. A degree gets you in the door, but skill is what earns a client's trust. Pick the program that takes your training as seriously as you do."
Alexandre Vaz, PhD

Making Your Decision: What to Do Before You Apply

Salary data and job market projections are useful inputs to your program search, but they cannot tell you what a school is actually like to attend. Marketing materials, program websites, and admissions presentations are designed to present a program favorably. The most reliable way to cut through that and understand what a program actually delivers in the classroom is to ask to sit in on a live class session, whether in person or online, before you commit. Every program that is confident in the quality of its instruction should not only allow this but actively welcome it. If a program is reluctant to let prospective students observe a class, that reluctance is itself informative. The California MFT job market rewards clinical skill, and the training environment you choose over the next two to three years will shape the kind of therapist you become. Take the time to see it for yourself before you decide.

For a detailed comparison of every California MFT program, see our directory of all 71 BBS-approved MFT programs in California.

To learn more about Alliant International University's MFT program, visit their official website at alliant.edu. If you are comparing MFT programs in California, you can explore Sentio University's MFT program to see how our Deliberate Practice training model compares.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Alliant's MFT program accredited?

Yes. The MA in Marital and Family Therapy at the California School of Professional Psychology is COAMFTE-accredited, and Alliant is institutionally accredited by WSCUC. It meets California BBS LMFT requirements.

Does Alliant require the GRE?

No. The GRE is not required.

How much does the program cost?

Tuition is about $86,040 for the on-ground format (60 units at $1,434 per unit) and about $66,780 online (60 units at $1,113 per unit), plus a $150 MFT exam-prep fee in the first two semesters.

What outcomes does Alliant publish?

Alliant publishes campus-specific COAMFTE Graduate Achievement Data. For the San Diego campus 2022-2023 cohort, it reports 64% on-time graduation, 100% job placement, and 96% licensure. It does not publish a separate licensure exam pass rate.

How long is the program and how many units?

It is a 60-unit program with a minimum of two years to completion; on-ground formats typically take two to three years, and the online format varies by pace.

Where is the program offered?

The MA is offered on-ground in San Diego, Los Angeles (Alhambra), Irvine, and Sacramento, and fully online. The outcomes above are specific to the San Diego campus.

Disclaimer: This profile was prepared by Sentio University for informational purposes only. Sentio University is an MFT program in California and a peer institution to the program profiled above. All information was drawn from publicly available sources and the program's own published materials as of April 2026. Sentio University makes no guarantee regarding the accuracy or completeness of this information. Prospective students should contact the program directly to verify all details, including admissions requirements, tuition, accreditation status, and clinical training structure. This profile does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation. For a full list of California MFT programs, visit our California MFT Program Directory.

About the Authors

Tony Rousmaniere, PsyD is the President of Sentio University and Executive Director of the Sentio Counseling Center. He is Past President of the psychotherapy division of the American Psychological Association and the author of over 20 books on deliberate practice and psychotherapy training, including The Essentials of Deliberate Practice book series (APA Books). He is a licensed psychologist in California and Washington. Learn more

Alexandre Vaz, PhD is the Chief Academic Officer of Sentio University and cofounder of the Deliberate Practice Institute. He is co-editor of The Essentials of Deliberate Practice book series (APA Books) and the author of over a dozen books on deliberate practice and psychotherapy training. Dr. Vaz is the founder and host of Psychotherapy Expert Talks. He is a licensed clinical psychologist in Portugal. Learn more

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