Top Online Master’s in ABA and Certificate Options for 2025
7 Top Online Schools Offering the Degree or Certificate You Need to Earn the BCBA® or BCaBA®
See what these stand-out universities are doing to make our list of top-recommended social work degrees.
PROS
12 to 1 student to faculty ratio One-to-one career advising through the Career Center Access to an alumni network of more than 20000 Flexible access on mobile - tablet - or desktop devices Offers clinical placement support No GRE requirement for admissionCONS
Costs are relatively high compared to many other online ABA options Some synchronous course requirements reduce flexibility
PROS
The only option on our list with BCaBA® preparation Fully 95% of graduates find employment or continue to a master’s program within 18 months A 3-week trial period lets you try before you buy Optional internship placement gives you a head-start on real-world practice experience Hosts student organizations like the Psychology Club and Autism Speaks UCONS
A big-name university that comes with higher tuition costs Admission can be denied on the basis of your Career Outcomes Survey
PROS
The unique Believe & Achieve Scholarship™ offers tuition savings for reaching specific goals Multiple start dates each year More than 90% of faculty hold doctoral degrees Offers a broad skillset grounded in core psychology concepts Faculty hold active BCBA® certification and incorporate practical firsthand insights No application fee and no GRE requirementCONS
Does not offer supervised fieldwork options Although research methods are taught students don’t have the opportunity to engage in actual ABA research projects Lowest first-time exam pass rate among top programs
PROS
The unique Believe & Achieve Scholarship™ offers tuition savings for reaching specific goals Multiple start dates each year More than 90% of faculty hold doctoral degrees Offers a broad skillset grounded in core psychology concepts Faculty hold active BCBA® certification and incorporate practical - firsthand insights No application fee and no GRE requirementCONS
Does not offer supervised fieldwork options Although research methods are taught - students don’t have the opportunity to engage in actual ABA research projects Lowest first-time exam pass rate among top programs
PROS
Faculty drawn from a range of disciplines in cognitive science and psychology Develops tools in creating and applying behavior intervention plans based on best practices 24/7 tech support and online tutorials for the learning management system School is ranked 2nd in the U.S. for employability of graduates among public universitiesCONS
No options for curriculum customization in ABA certificate Required organizational behavior management course not applicable to all areas of ABA practice
PROS
Distinguished faculty bring on the ground ABA counseling expertise to the classroom A supportive learning environment cultivates interaction with instructors and peers Full or part-time options availableCONS
An MEd degree may not be ideal for some ABA career paths School services may be less robust than other online ABA options
PROS
Only fully-accredited program on the list No GRE required for admissions 9 to 1 student/faculty ratio Program may be completed in as little as 20 months Includes experiential learning componentCONS
Campus program BCBA® exam pass rate is 84% compared to 74% for graduates of the online program Program may be more expensive than other optionsThe Things You Should Care About Most When Selecting an ABA Degree or Graduate Certificate Program
Applied behavior analysis has a vast number of applications, used in everything from designing corporate and government training programs to treating Autism Spectrum Disorder. Even in a field this big and diverse, there’s only a few steps you need to be familiar with and a short list of criteria to consider when selecting a degree or certificate that will set you up with the skills and credentials you need.
How Do ABA Courses Versus Full Degree Programs Relate to the BACB Credentials I Can Qualify For?
There is more than one kind of BACB certification to consider.
A master’s in ABA, psychology, or education that’s purpose-built for certification with the right blend of ABA courses qualifies you for the BCBA® credential, the global standard for independent ABA practitioners. If you already have a master’s or higher degree in psychology or education that wasn’t specifically built for BCBA® certification, you’ll simply complete a post-master’s ABA certificate program to cover the required courses.
If your path into the field takes you through a doctorate degree, then you will earn the BCBA-D®, which comes with the same level of authority and practice privileges as the BCBA®.
If you’re interested in starting out in a support role with a more limited scope that does not include providing ABA therapy, you can become a Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analyst (BCaBA®) with only a bachelor’s degree. If you already have a bachelor’s in a major other than ABA that didn’t include the coursework required for certification, a post-baccalaureate ABA certificate has you covered.
How Do I Become a Board Certified Behavior Analyst?
For the vast majority of candidates, there are really only three steps to becoming a BCBA®:
- Meet the education requirements – You will be earning at least a master’s degree in education, psychology, or ABA. Your program can be pre-approved through accreditation or official recognition as delivering the right set of ABA courses, or otherwise include those same courses but work with BACB through an official attestation process as you approach graduation. And if you’re coming into the field with a master’s or higher degree in psychology or education that wasn’t specifically built for BCBA® certification, a graduate certificate in ABA will keep you on the standard path.
- Gain first-hand experience – You will need 1,500 hours of concentrated fieldwork or 2,000 hours of standard fieldwork providing ABA therapy under the mentorship of a practicing BCBA® or psychologist. Concentrated fieldwork requires 10% of hours to be supervised during six client contacts, versus just 5% and four client contacts under the standard fieldwork model.
- Pass the BCBA® Exam – BACB’s 185-question, multiple-choice exam delivered online and at testing centers in every state is the last step to becoming board-certified. Pass it and you are just an application process away from your BCBA®, and typically then qualified for licensure in your state.
It’s a simple set of steps. But like any path with big rewards at the end, the process will challenge you and come with a lot of opportunities for growth and discovery along the way.
What Are the Different Pathways to BCBA® Certification?
A program that offers coursework somewhere along one of the accepted BCBA® certification pathways is an absolute must.
Pathway 1 takes you through a program accredited or recognized by ABAI (Association for Behavior Analysis International), and soon APBA (Association of Professional Behavior Analysts), a new accrediting body that will also be evaluating and accrediting programs that meet BACB certification standards.
There are currently two different types of qualification tiers that keep you on pathway 1:
- Tier 1: ABAI Accredited Programs – Accredited programs have been reviewed in-depth and found, in their entirety, to meet every metric for accepted ABA training. They are guaranteed to include some experiential learning, which means practicum courses that will start you on the path to accumulating your required hours of supervised fieldwork.
- Tier 2: ABAI Recognized Programs – These degrees or certificates are recognized as either eligible for accreditation, or otherwise in the application review process. They meet the full standards for accreditation, but often for merely technical reasons related to course structure, may have some alignment to complete before being accredited. They may or may not offer experiential learning.
Pathway 2 centers primarily around the legacy VCS process:
Verified Course Sequence (VCS) – Although not evaluated or recognized by an accrediting body, programs with the Verified Course Sequence built-in have a resident faculty member serving as a VCS Coordinator who will attest that all the content requirements set out by BACB are in place and total up to at least 315 hours of instruction.
Either of these pathways will result in the exact same BCBA® credential.
Why Online ABA Courses and Degree Programs are Ideal for Most Students
Every path to BCBA® certification requires a graduate-level education. And every path to BCaBA® certification requires a bachelor’s degree.
Many undergrad students and most grad students today have jobs, families, and responsibilities that make traditional classroom study impractical.
In fact, it’s often the case that people come to the point where they want to become certified in ABA after working around the edges of behavioral treatment for a while. So you may very well be looking to simply expand your capabilities in a field where you’re already working.
That makes online education the only reasonable option. With asynchronous classes that let you tackle coursework, contribute to discussions, and access lectures at any time, you can balance almost any kind of personal obligation with the education you need to become board-certified.
Of course, you probably realize that no acceptable ABA education can ever be entirely online. The essence of behavioral psychology is in interaction, in weighing the ABCs of behaviorism while assessing and intervening in the chain of Antecedents, Behaviors, and Consequences in sessions with real patients.
So the 1,500 or more hours of supervised fieldwork required for the BCBA® credential will certainly involve real face-to-face interactions with clients, and between you and your supervisor. Some of these programs offer practicum courses that count toward fulfilling your fieldwork, while others do not
Why Is the BCBA® Exam First-Time Pass Rate Important When Considering Applied Behavior Analysis Master’s Programs Online?
For graduates heading toward certification, the biggest single obstacle is passing the national certification exam. Every piece of coursework, every hour of practical experience, is a step where you’ll have time to refine your approach and get things right. You will have extensive support and guidance from instructors and supervisors. You can play out the options with classmates and brainstorm all you need.
The test is different. It’s just you, 185 multiple-choice questions, and 4 hours in which to finish. Your performance will be a reflection not just on your study and preparation for the exam itself, but also on how well your school has prepared you for that moment. Does the coursework emphasize the nine content areas on the exam? Have your practicum mentors spent enough time on the practical applications of observation and analysis to answer behavior assessment questions? This is where you find out.
There are a wide range of first-time pass rates both on our list and in the ABA education world overall. First-time pass rates aren’t the last word on whether or not a program provides the best fit for you, but they should be considered in your final decision.
How Can I Find ABA Therapy Master’s Programs and Graduate Certificate Options Near Me?
The reality is that ABA programs are still pretty thin on the ground in much of the country. Online ABA degree and certificate programs that can be accessed from anywhere provide the solution. They are held to the same quality standards and BACB approval processes as traditional programs. And since ABA therapy itself represents the most modern iteration of behavioral psychology, having largely come into its own over just the past generation, online programs have always been a part of preparing practitioners in the field.
Whether you’re looking for a straight ABA master’s or a degree in psychology or education with ABA courses bult-in, you’ll find a program that fits the description right here on this list. And if you already have a master’s that wasn’t built to include BCBA® qualifying courses, you can easily stack on a graduate certificate that does. You’ll find those here too.
The few schools you’ll find right here are among the most respected in the field, offering the perfect solution at every stage of career preparation with online degree and certificate programs that deliver the exact blend of ABA courses you need to become board-certified.