Best Mental Health Tech Programs in Palmdale, California (2026)

Quick answer: Mental health technicians in California earn a median of $49,140 per year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). This page lists accredited mental health technician schools near Palmdale, California with local wage data and median graduate earnings for each school.

If you want to train as a mental health technician in Palmdale, California, start by weighing program length, schedule, and cost at nearby schools. For context, the state median annual wage for this occupation is approximately $49,140 (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Palmdale Quick Facts

MetricValueSource
State median annual wage$49,140BLS OEWS, May 2025
California pay range (10th to 90th percentile)$40,880 to $88,090BLS OEWS, May 2025
Los Angeles, CA metro median wage$48,040BLS OEWS, May 2025
National job outlook (2024 to 2034)+20.0% growth, about 15,900 openings per yearBLS Employment Projections, 2024-2034
State employment14,100 workersBLS OEWS, May 2025
Los Angeles County unemployment rate5.7%BLS LAUS, 2025
California location quotient0.77BLS OEWS, May 2025

Nearby Cities

Explore the Mental health technician Career

What You’ll Find Below

The school listings below are sorted by proximity to Palmdale. Each entry includes the school name, address, and the credentials offered. Use the Los Angeles County and California figures above as a reference point when comparing program length, schedule, and tuition.


Mental Health Tech Schools near Palmdale

How We Rank Schools

We first gather the schools closest to the city or state page you are viewing, then rank that local group by BOC Score, with the highest at the top. The BOC Score is computed from federal IPEDS and College Scorecard data; schools without enough data to score appear last.

Location / proximity to this page
Defines the local group
Graduation rate
30%
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
25%
Average net price (lower is better)
20%
Retention rate
15%
Fully online availability
10%

Schools without enough federal outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

#1

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA 40.5 miles away BOC Score 80.2
Tuition Contact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Completion rate: 91.9% (College Scorecard)
  • Programs offered: 27
  • Annual completions: 1462
  • Median graduate earnings, 4 yrs after completing (all majors, not a single program): $95,739 (College Scorecard)
  • Online programs available

Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard

#2

Hacienda La Puente Adult Education

La Puente, CA 38.7 miles away BOC Score 74.6
Tuition Contact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Completion rate: 82.7% (College Scorecard)
  • Programs offered: 21
  • Annual completions: 978
  • Median graduate earnings, 4 yrs after completing (all majors, not a single program): $31,434 (College Scorecard)

Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard

#3

Mt San Antonio College

Walnut, CA 40.6 miles away BOC Score 71.8
Tuition Contact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Completion rate: 41.9% (College Scorecard)
  • Programs offered: 69
  • Annual completions: 2479
  • Median graduate earnings, 4 yrs after completing (all majors, not a single program): $51,460 (College Scorecard)
  • Online programs available

Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard

#4

InterCoast Colleges-West Covina

West Covina, CA 37.9 miles away BOC Score 54.5
Tuition Contact school for pricing
Contact
  • 2235 East Garvey Ave. North Suite B West Covina, CA 91791
  • (626) 337-6800
Key stats
  • Completion rate: 91.6% (College Scorecard)
  • Programs offered: 14
  • Annual completions: 545
  • Median graduate earnings, 4 yrs after completing (all majors, not a single program): $48,764 (College Scorecard)
  • Online programs available

Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard

#5

The Chicago School at Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA 38.6 miles away BOC Score 32.6
Tuition Contact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 1
  • Annual completions: 105
  • Median graduate earnings, 4 yrs after completing (all majors, not a single program): $82,068 (College Scorecard)
  • Online programs available

Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard

Mental Health Tech Pay and Job Outlook

Psychiatric Technicians annual wage by percentile: $35,090 at the 10th percentile, $45,130 median, $60,750 at the 90th. Source: U.S. BLS OEWS, May 2025 release.
What psychiatric technicians earn across the pay scale
Projected job growth for psychiatric technicians: 144,500 jobs in 2024 to 173,300 in 2034, +20.0% change. Source: U.S. BLS Employment Projections, 2024-2034.
Projected job growth for psychiatric technicians
Top-paying states for psychiatric technicians - District of Columbia leads at $67,430. Source: U.S. BLS OEWS, May 2025 release.
Top-paying states for psychiatric technicians

Next Steps

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does mental health technician training take near Palmdale?

Mental health technician certificate programs near Palmdale typically take 6 to 12 months of full-time study, while associate degree programs generally run about 2 years. Actual completion time depends on schedule (full-time vs. part-time) and any prerequisite coursework.

How much do mental health technicians earn in California?

According to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025), mental health technicians in California earned a median annual wage of approximately $49,140. Pay varies with experience, certification, and employer; the 10th to 90th percentile range was approximately $40,880 to $88,090 (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

How many mental health technician schools are near Palmdale?

The schools listed above are within about 250 miles of Palmdale. Compare them by tuition, program length, and the credential each one awards.


About this guide: Researched and written by the TradeCareerPath Editorial Team. Our editorial team researches and sources every trade school and career guide using federal labor and education data, including BLS OEWS and Employment Projections, DOL apprenticeship records, IPEDS, College Scorecard, and state licensing boards. We follow the editorial standards documented at /editorial-policy/.

Data sources

Figures on this page are sourced from the federal and state datasets below. Methodology: how we rank and source data.

DataProviderVintage
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMay 2025
Employment ProjectionsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics2024-2034
Integrated Postsecondary Education Data SystemNational Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)2024
College Scorecard (school-level outcomes)U.S. Department of Educationlatest release
College Scorecard (field-of-study earnings)U.S. Department of Educationlatest release (updated 2026-06-12)
Occupational licensing requirementsCareerOneStop (U.S. Department of Labor)latest release (updated 2026-02-22)
Registered apprenticeship programsCareerOneStop / Apprenticeship.gov (U.S. Department of Labor)latest release (updated 2025-10-25)