Consumer Information Disclosures: State-level Psychology Licensure Education Requirements*
* This disclosure refers only to the educational requirements for licensure as a psychologist and does not address criteria for supervised experience that also vary across states and jurisdictions.
Every state or jurisdiction in the US/Canada has its own separate criteria for an individual to become licensed as a psychologist at the doctoral level. Within the US, a compilation of licensure requirements, organized by jurisdictions, is available here. It will be updated annually. Items highlighted in yellow reflect a change “in progress” or a lack of verification by the board administrator in the jurisdiction. Students are encouraged to review these criteria for states or jurisdictions in which they might wish to practice in the future. As shown in the attached summary table, obtaining a degree from an APA accredited program meets educational requirements for most U.S. states and jurisdictions. The clinical psychology doctoral program at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) opened its doors to students in September 2019. Due to its relative newness it has not yet had the opportunity to achieve accreditation through the American Psychological Association (APA), although there is every intention to do so. Prior to accreditation, graduating students can still apply for licensure as psychologists under the ‘equivalent” provision that is available in most states but not all (see table). The program at UTRGV has been designed to adhere to APA accreditation standards and faculty believe it to be an “equivalent” program. Nevertheless, the final arbiter of who is eligible for licensure as a psychologist in any given state or jurisdiction can only be made by the pertinent state/jurisdiction licensing board. As such, UTRGV faculty cannot assure nor take responsibility for graduates meeting all educational requirements under the “equivalent” provision for licensure in every state/jurisdiction and this is reflected in the table. If you are curious about the “equivalent” provision for any state or jurisdiction, please contact the DCT.
Table
The columns “YES”, “NO, and “UNABLE TO DETERMINE” refer to UTRGV faculty estimates as to whether the program satisfies licensure requirements in each U.S. state prior to the program receiving APA accreditation.
STATE |
YES |
NO |
UNABLE TO DETERMINE |
EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS |
Alabama |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Alaska |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Arizona |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Arkansas |
|
X |
|
Requires a 3 credit course on the social basis of behavior |
California |
|
X |
|
Pre licensure coursework/training: human sexuality (10 contact hours); course in alcoholism/chemical dependency detection and treatment (1 semester/quarter); child abuse assessment (7 hours); spousal/partner abuse, detection and intervention strategies (15 contact hours); aging and long-term care (10 contact hours). |
Colorado |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Connecticut |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Delaware |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Florida |
|
X |
|
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program |
Georgia |
|
X |
|
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program |
Hawaii |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Idaho |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Illinois |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Indiana |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Iowa |
|
X |
|
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program |
Kansas |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Kentucky |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Louisiana |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Maine |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Maryland |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Massachusetts |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Michigan |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Minnesota |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Mississippi |
|
|
X |
Doctoral program must be APA accredited within 2 years of degree being granted. |
Missouri |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Montana |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Nebraska |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from APA accredited program or equivalent |
Nevada |
|
X |
|
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program |
New Hampshire |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
New Jersey |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
New Mexico |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
New York |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from any program approved by the New York State Education Department or equivalent |
North Carolina |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
North Dakota |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
Ohio |
|
|
X |
If not graduating from an APA accredited program, then a mandatory 1800-hour postdoc is required. |
Oklahoma |
|
|
X |
APA accredited program requirement will be waived for new doctoral programs with < 8 years from the 1st class of students until accreditation. Program must have a pending application for accreditation to meet this exemption. |
Oregon |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
Pennsylvania |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
Rhode Island |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
South Carolina |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
South Dakota |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
Tennessee |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
Texas |
X |
|
|
Doctoral degree from a regionally accredited institution or an APA accredited program. Supervised clinical experience of at least 1750 hours received in a formal internship within a doctoral program. |
Utah |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
Vermont |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
Virginia |
X |
|
|
UTRGV program meets “equivalent” requirement. Doctoral program must become APA accredited within 4 years of student graduating from the program. |
Washington |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
West Virginia |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
Wisconsin |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |
Wyoming |
|
|
X |
Doctoral degree from an APA accredited program or equivalent |