Mental Health Peer Specialist Certification
Transform your lived experience into a meaningful career
Built for individuals in mental health recovery who want to turn their journey into professional expertise. This is where people who’ve navigated their own challenges learn to guide others toward hope and healing.
- Complete your 40-hour MHPS supplemental training in just 5 days
- Learn from certified facilitators who share your lived experience
- Master peer support skills: storysharing, crisis support, advocacy & documentation
- Practice real-world skills through interactive exercises and role-play scenarios
- Get step-by-step guidance through the full Texas certification process
100% Virtual
100+
Peers Certified
Cost
By region
Sign up to see the price for your region
Features
- Path to becoming a Mental Health Peer Specialist
- Training certificate included
- Scholarships available
Details
- 8 hours a day for 5 days40 Hours
- 9 am to 5 pm CT
MHPS
Who is a Mental
Health Peer Specialist?
A Mental Health Peer Specialist is a person who has lived experience of recovery with mental health challenges who is trained to support people with mental health challenges. They provide support by honoring the self-identification and self-determination of the people receiving peer services, without focusing on or using clinical language or diagnoses.
Mental Health Peer Specialists work in many different environments, with jobs that focus on direct service, program management, advocacy, and more. For example, MHPS roles typically include types of work such as:
- Recovery and wellness support, which includes providing information on and support with planning for recovery;
- Mentoring, which includes serving as a role model and providing assistance in finding needed community resources and services; and
- Advocacy, which includes providing support in stressful or urgent situations, and helping to ensure that the recipient’s rights are respected.
Build a rewarding peer support career that transforms lives at every interaction
This is a complete 40-hour certification training that gives you the skills, ethics, and confidence to provide professional mental health peer support. You’ll learn how to share your story purposefully, support others through crisis, and navigate the Texas certification process with clarity.
From ethics to advocacy, you’ll graduate with the knowledge and skills employers are actively seeking.
What you'll master:
- Understanding the history of mental health treatment and the peer support movement and how it shapes the work you’ll do today.
- Applying peer support principles and ethics to real-world situations using the peer voice and choice framework.
- Sharing your lived experience purposefully through ethical, boundaried storysharing that supports without oversharing.
- Navigating power dynamics and supporting autonomy using language that honors self-determination.
- Building essential skills: active listening, holding space, group facilitation, crisis support, and advocacy.
Who is this program for?
- Individuals in mental health recovery ready to turn their lived experience into professional expertise.
- Volunteers at recovery centers or peer-run organizations looking to formalize their skills.
- People seeking stable, meaningful work that accommodates their recovery journey.
- Job seekers who want their mental health history to be an asset, not a barrier.
- Anyone called to help others navigate challenges they’ve personally overcome.
If you’re ready to transform your lived experience into a credential that opens doors, this is the training Texas employers recognize and trust.
Meet Your Instructors
Taught by top
industry expert peers with
real-world experience
This is a complete 40-hour certification training that gives you the skills, ethics, and confidence to provide professional mental health peer support. You’ll learn how to share your story purposefully, support others through crisis, and navigate the Texas certification process with clarity.
Karla Vessels
Supporting Facilitator
Jan Lewis
Supporting Facilitator
David Castro
Supporting Facilitator
Perla Salce
Associate Spanish Facilitator
Judith Cazarez
Associate Spanish Facilitator
Kimberly Contreras
Associate Facilitator
Cassidy Lambert
Associate Facilitator
Lauren Cisneros
Primary Facilitator
Celia Franco Mora
Primary Bilingual Facilitator
Eligibility Requirements
Individuals interested in becoming certified as a Mental Health Peer Specialist must meet the following eligibilty criteria:
- Be at least 18 years of age;
- Have lived experience with mental health
- Have a high school diploma or General Equivalency Diploma (GED)
- Be willing to appropriately share your own recovery story with recipients
- Be able to demonstrate current self-directed recovery
- Pass criminal history and registry checks
- Texas Resident or someone who spends atleast 51% of their time working in Texas in-person or remotely.
MHPS Careers
Peer supporters work in many different environments, with jobs that focus on direct service, program management, advocacy, and more. For example, peer supporters in Texas provide direct services in:
- Criminal justice settings (jails, prisons, specialty courts, probation and parole, etc.)
- Community outreach programs (where peer supporters go into the communities where people live)
- Hospitals and Inpatient Treatment Centers (psychiatric hospitals, general medicine hospitals, substance use treatment centers, and Veterans Administration hospitals)
- Outpatient clinics (Federally Qualified Health Clinics, mental health clinics, substance use treatment clinics)
- Peer-run organizations (Consumer-Operated Service Providers, Recovery Community Organizations, and other groups that are run by peer supporters and/or people in recovery)
- Residential settings (domestic violence shelters, residential settings for people in substance use recovery, shelters or residential settings for people experiencing homelessness, etc.)
- Virtual settings (app-based services, teleconferencing, chat-based support, etc.)
- And many more!
Peer specialists also hold many different titles in the agencies where they work, including:
- Crisis Peer Support Specialist
- Peer Support Specialist - Jail Re-entry
- Military Veteran Peer Specialist
- First Responder Peer Support Specialist
- Youth Peer Support Specialist
- Peer Wellness Specialist
- Peer Outreach Specialist
- And more!
MHPS
Certification Steps
The certification process for Mental Health Peer Specialists in Texas involves taking formal training with a certified training entitiy, and completing a supervised internship period. During this internship, individuals receive supervision and support from a Peer Specialist Supervisor.
Full certification can be achieved in as little as 8 months, but may take up to a year to complete the work experience hours and application process, depending on the individual’s rate of completion.
1. Complete the Texas Peer Specialist Orientation and Self-Attestation
Texas Peer Specialist Orientation and Self- attestation
Once you read through the self-assessment questions and orientation resources, you will need to sign and download the completion pdf. Which you will need to upload this during your training registration.
2. Complete the Core Training Course
The Core training is a 3-day 24 hour, online training that will give you a comprehensive overview of what peer support is, and what peer specialists do, and familiarize you with the role and functions of a Peer Specialist.
3. Complete the MHPS Supplemental Training Course
Our 40-hour, 5-day MHPS Supplemental training is available 100% online and helps you learn and practice the essential skills for a Mental Health Peer Specialist. To move forward with your state application, you must also pass a knowledge assessment at the end of the course
4. Apply for Certification with the Texas Certification Board
After completion of Core and MHPS training, you can start your application with the Texas Certification Board (TCB) for your 6-month initial peer certification.
TCB uses a digital application called Certemy that you will be uploading information into for the duration of your internship and supervision period.
5. Complete 250 Supervised Work Experience Hours
After being approved by the Texas Certification Board, you will need to complete 250 internship hours under the supervision of a certified Peer Specialist Supervisor (PSS), either in-person or online.
These internship hours can be done on the job or in a volunteer position, as long as they are signed off by a Peer Specialist Supervisor and logged in your Certemy application. Certemy will walk you through how to give PSS access to your application to log your work experience hours.
6. Submit Your Application
After completing the necessary internship hours, you will need to complete and submit your Certemy application for the second phase full certification. Include your Peer Specialist Supervisor’s information, all hours logged, and a Letter of Recommendation from your PSS.
After completing your 250 hours, ask your PSS for a Letter of Recommendation. Upload this to your Certemy account and submit it for approval.
Wait for certification; you will be notified by the TCB when your application has been reviewed and approved and will be sent your official Peer Specialist Certification. Note that your certification must be renewed every 2 years.
Here's why peers choose Peer Academy
What is it like working as a Peer Specialist?
This is a complete 40-hour certification training that gives you the skills, ethics, and confidence to provide professional mental health peer support. You’ll learn how to share your story purposefully, support others through crisis, and navigate the Texas certification process with clarity.
MHPS Training Course Overview
Day 1
Module 1: Orientation
Introduces participants to the training environment, establishes group guidelines, and facilitates introductions among facilitators and participants.
Module 2: History of Peer Support & Mental Health
Explores how the history of mental health systems has created a culture of patienthood, connects lived experience to multiple pathways of recovery, and differentiates between treatment and recovery concepts.
Module 3: Refresher of Peer Support Principles & Ethics
Reviews the core principles of Texas peer professionals, distinguishes actions that align with or conflict with peer support principles, and interprets ethical requirements through peer support principles.
Day 2
Module 4: Power, Autonomy, & Language
Covers employing concepts of autonomy and power in peer support, analyzing actions through the four types of power (power over, power with, power to, and power within), and using strengths-based, non-clinical language.
Module 5: Informed Consent
Focuses on understanding and applying informed consent principles within mental health peer support relationships.
Module 6: Dreams and Goals
Covers dream exploring and goal planning skills, including facilitating conversations around planning with persons served.
Day 3
Module 7: Boundaries
Explores establishing and maintaining appropriate professional boundaries in peer support relationships.
Module 8: Storysharing
Focuses on the purposeful and effective sharing of personal recovery stories to support others.
Module 9: Crisis and Trauma Support
Covers crisis support skills, trauma-informed approaches, and supporting individuals during difficult experiences.
Module 10: Advocacy
Explores advocating with and advocating for persons served within mental health systems.
Day 4
Module 11: Group Facilitation
Focuses on skills and best practices for facilitating peer support groups.
Module 12: Ethics
Provides in-depth exploration of values and ethics in peer specialist practice through case-based learning.
Module 13: Integrated Practice
Offers hands-on practice integrating all peer support skills learned throughout the training.
Day 5
Module 14: Role Drift
Covers recognizing, addressing, and protecting against role drift in peer specialist work.
Module 15: Professional Wellness
Focuses on maintaining professional wellness, including developing personal purpose and mission statements.
Module 16: Documentation
Introduces documentation practices, recovery planning, and proper record-keeping for peer specialists.
Module 17: Conclusion
Wraps up the training with closing presentations and activities, preparing participants for the certification process.
MHPS Certification
FAQs
How much does the Core and MHPS/RSPS Supplemental Training Cost?
Prices differ by region. Sign up to see the price for your region.
Are There Scholarships Available?
Yes! Peer Academy offers scholarships covering up to 100% of training costs. Many students complete their training completely free. Money should never be a barrier to pursuing this career path.
How long does it take to get certified?
The time to obtain full MHPS certification typically ranges from 6 months to a year, depending on how quickly you complete the training and the 250 hours of supervised work experience.
Is the training available online?
Yes, the MHPS training is offered in a virtual format, allowing you to participate from anywhere in Texas with a reliable internet connection.
Do I need a college degree?
No. The minimum educational requirement is a high school diploma or GED.
What's the difference between an MHPS and a therapist or counselor?
Mental Health Peer Specialists are not clinicians. While therapists diagnose and treat mental health conditions, peer specialists use their personal lived experience to offer hope, support self-determination, and help people navigate their own recovery journey. Peer support is relationship-focused, not treatment-focused.
How do I get started?
If you have completed these requirements: Start by completing our MHPS application form
If you have not:
- Start by completing the free online orientation and self-attestation, and get the signed completion PDF.
- Complete Core training.
- Then complete our MHPS application form
Check the Peer Academy training calendar for upcoming Core and MHPS training dates.
Ready to Get Started?
Transform your lived experience into a meaningful career. Join 100+ peers who’ve made the journey.
