Professional Licensure Disclosures

Professional Licensure Disclosures

Rutgers University-GSAPP makes every effort to ensure state licensure or certification information is current; however, state requirements may change. If you are planning to pursue professional licensure or certification, it is strongly recommended, and it is the student’s responsibility, to contact the appropriate licensing entity in that state to seek information and guidance regarding licensure or certification requirements before beginning an academic program.

For more information on professional licensure preparation to practice psychology, please contact your program representative:

Clinical PsyD Program (Licensure to practice psychology): Dr. Angelica M. Diaz-Martinez at angelica.diazmartinez@rutgers.edu.

School PsyD Program (Licensure/certification preparation in school psychology): Dr. Jennifer Durham at jdurham@gsapp.rutgers.edu.

Applied Psychology Programs

National Certification in Behavior Analysis: Dr. SungWoo Kahng at s.kahng@rutgers.edu.

Currently NJ licensure to practice Behavior Analysis became law January 2020 and practice regulations are in development.

Certification in Drug and Alcohol Counseling: Dr. Peter Economou at peter.economou@rutgers.edu

Performance Psychology Certification: Dr. Peter Economou at peter.economou@rutgers.edu

License to Practice Psychology. The doctoral programs in Clinical Psychology and School Psychology at GSAPP are accredited by APA (American Psychological Association). APA accreditation is recognized in all 50 states as providing required education for psychology license eligibility. State Boards of Psychology determine training requirements for licensure and typically include post-doctoral training as well as examinations beyond the educational requirements therefore, a doctoral degree from Rutgers University-GSAPP in Clinical Psychology or School Psychology is not sufficient to meet licensure requirements in most states. Students should confirm state licensing requirements directly with the state they are interested in licensure. ASPPB (Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards) provides a compendium called PsyBook which summarizes requirements for each state that may be a helpful resource for students determining vocational location and licensing requirements.

Generally, the way licensure to practice psychology works is (1) complete an approved education program. APA accredited programs are recognized in all states although some states impose additional education and training requirements; (2) complete a full-time one-year internship (Internship is a requirement for the degree if you are in an APA accredited program such as GSAPP’s doctoral programs. Note: Students in the school program also have the option of doing an internship that does not have APA approval); (3) complete a 1-year post-doctoral fellowship (i.e., this can be a formal post-doctoral fellowship or work experience in which you are supervised by a board approved licensed psychologist) with supervised clinical experience under the appropriate license or registration for the state you are located in (please note, some states do not require a post-doc). However, some states (e.g., Maryland) are beginning to count pre-doctoral hours towards the total number of hours required for licensure; (4) take the national (EPPP—Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology) and state examinations required; (5) complete any additional requirements for the state you are seeking licensure in (typically background checks, credential verifications, some states have juris prudence exams and some have additional specific training requirements as well).

Rutgers University - GSAPP produces graduates who are successfully licensed to practice psychology in many states. To the best of our knowledge, no GSAPP graduate has been turned down for licensure due to insufficiencies in the education and training GSAPP provides. As noted above some states do have additional training and education requirements and most states have post-doctoral clinical supervision requirements as well.

Because we are a State University of the State of New Jersey, our curriculum for the Doctor of Psychology degree complies with the State of New Jersey’s curriculum licensing requirements.

The ASPPB website also provides Psychology Licensure Requirements on their website for Psychologist, School Psychologist and Behavior Analyst which can be found at http://psybook.asppb.org/. You should directly check the web sites of the State Licensing Board you are interested in for the most accurate and up to date information on educational and other requirements for licensure as there is no guarantee that ASPPB’s is entirely accurate and up to date. Licensing boards may change requirements at any time with no notice to training programs.

For your convenience,  below are state by state listing of our recent understanding of educational requirements based largely on the annual review by ASPPB to give you a general idea of how well Rutgers Clinical PsyD Program, School PsyD Program, and Applied Behavior Analyst Program at GSAPP fits with the educational requirements of each state. 

• Consumer Disclosure (2022): Licensing Requirements and Compatibility with GSAPP School PsyD Curriculum
• Consumer Disclosure (2022): Licensing Requirements and Compatibility with GSAPP Curriculum in the ABA Programs
• Consumer Disclosure (2023): Licensing Requirements and Compatibility with GSAPP Curriculum in the Clinical PsyD Program

LICENSE TO PRACTICE PSYCHOLOGY

New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs State Board of Psychological Affairs Information about the license to practice psychology in New Jersey

https://www.njconsumeraffairs.gov/psy/Pages/default.aspx

Contact: Indira Nunez – NunezI@dca.njoag.gov

• Doctorate in Psychology or “closely allied field” that Board determines has substantially equivalent training (in regs), from regionally accredited institution (or one in process of accreditation)
  • No more than 1/3 of doctoral credits can be transferred from another school
  • Based on at least 40 doctoral credit hours in distributed among
    1. Personality theory and human development theory – 6 credits
    2. Learning theory and/or physiological psych – 6 credits
    3. Psychological measurement and psychological assessment – 6 credits
    4. Research and statistical design – 6 credits
  • Doctoral program requiring personal attendance that is
    1. Accredited by APA or CPA, or listed by ASPPB/NR designation or
    2. Meets the following
       • Has full-time faculty who are doctorally prepared in psych
       • Requires full-time students to physically attend classes on campus for at least one academic year
       • Requires part-time students to physically attend classes on campus for at least 2 academic years
  • Evidence of additional 20 credit hours, also in psych, but not necessarily part of the doctoral program. Additional hours can be granted at predoc or postdoc graduate level and must be obtained as part of an educational program in a regionally accredited institution
  • Board may recognize up to 6 credits for dissertation that is psychological in nature. Credits may be used to satisfy the 40 doctoral credit hours earned within doctoral program or to satisfy credit deficiency in one or more of the required areas of doctoral study
  • Board may accept up to 9 credits taken at a regionally accredited institution to remediate deficiency
• Equivalent of 2 years Supervised Professional Experience (SPE). One year is the internship year and the second year must be  1750 hours SPE (accumulated through doctoral practica that meet the licensing requirements and/or post-doctoral supervised experience). The 1750 hours include: 
  • 1000 client contact hours completed
  • 200 hours of supervision, w/ at least 100 hours of individual face-to-face. Remaining 100 may be group or individual. One hour of supervision for each 5 hours of client contact per week
  • 550 hours in other work-related activities – recordkeeping, consultations, report writing, etc.
  • Supervisors, including in exempt settings, must be licensed psychologists, either in NJ or, if in another state, licensed for 2 years and license-eligible in NJ
  • For postdoc SPE, temporary permit for SPE – good for 3 years
    1. Must get SPE and successfully complete EPPP and jurisprudence exam prior to expiration
    2. Must take only those kinds of cases that are ‘readily transferrable’ to licensed psychologist should holder of permit fail to obtain all SPE required or fail any exam
    3. Holder can’t bill for services, etc.
• Supervisors
  • Must have Board approval prior to start of supervision
  • No more than 3 “permit holders” at any one time
  • Document SPE on form provided by Board every 6 months and at end of supervision
  • Responsible to ensure that trainee has current and valid permit
  • Must inform clients, in writing, and signed by client for client’s record, that services are being rendered by ‘permit holder’
  • Fees for supervision must be ‘reasonable’
  • No dual relationships, etc.
• Pass EPPP at recommended ASPPB pass point
• Upon passing the EPPP, 90 days to take jurisprudence exam

The NJ School Psychologist Standard Certificate

The Doctoral Program in School Psychology at Rutgers University’s Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology (GSAPP) prepares students to meet the New Jersey School Psychologist Standard Certificate (https://www.state.nj.us/education/license/esp/), which is described here: https://www.state.nj.us/education/license/endorsements/3100S.pdf. To be eligible for the School Psychologist standard certificate, students at GSAPP complete the degree of Master in Psychology (Psy.M).; a minimum of 60 graduate semester-hour credits on specific topics (e.g., assessment, school consultation, human development), 300 practicum hours, 1200 externship hours (of which 600 hours must be in a school setting with school age children).

National Certified School Psychologist (NCSP).

The Doctoral Program in School Psychology at Rutgers University’s Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology (GSAPP) is a National Association of School Psychology (NASP)-approved program. Graduates of the School Psychology GSAPP program are eligible to meet NASP’s established standards to receive their NCSP credential. See here for more information: https://www.nasponline.org/standards-and-certification/national-certific....

Of note is that the GSAPP School Psychology program requires students to pass the Praxis exam, which is required for the NCSP credential with a passing score of 147 on the exam (https://www.ets.org/praxis/nasp). For their NCSP credential, students must also complete an organized program of study that is officially titled "School Psychology" that consists of at least 60 graduate semester, a sequence of supervised practicum experiences, and successful completion of a 1,200-hour internship in school psychology, of which at least 600 hours must be in a school setting. Graduates of the School Psychology GSAPP program can apply for the NCSP credential as a graduate of our NASP-approved program within 10 years of completing the program (Applicants who completed a program more than 10 years ago, regardless of the status of their programs at the time, must apply as graduates of a program without NASP approval).

National Certification in Behavior Analysis

Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA)- The Association for Behavior Analysis International has verified the Master of Applied Psychology and Master of Applied Behavior Analysis courses qualifies candidates for eligibility to take the Board Certified Behavior Analyst® examination. Applicants will need to meet additional requirements before they can be deemed eligible to take the examination.

Certification in Drug and Alcohol Counseling

The Addiction Counselor Track (ACT) in the Masters of Applied Psychology Program is offered through the Center for Alcohol and Substance Use Studies and in association with the School of Social Work. Applicants may be eligible for certification in drug and alcohol counseling.

Performance Psychology Certification

Association of Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) CMPC®s recommends that individuals with a master’s or doctoral degree in sport science, psychology or a closely related field who have met specific course requirements and have completed an extensive, mentored applied experience are eligible for certification. Our certificate program is aligned with these standards for graduates to become eligible to take the CMPC® examination.