client contact hours

[Member6677]

I am planning on getting licensed in NJ and am finishing up my internship and applying to postdocs now. I am applying in NJ/PA/NY and am concerned about meeting the strict licensure requirements. NJ states that 1,000hrs must be "client contact hours". I wondered if anyone can direct me to more info on this. I am assuming it includes intakes/groups/individual hours. One site I applied to in PA dedicates 50% of their direct services to outreach. The site told me that in PA that meets the requirements, but I am uncertain of NJ's stance on outreach as direct client contact hours.

Thought I would give an ask here before calling the state licensing board.

Thanks!

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[deleted343839]

That would imply a loose definition of who is considered a "client." With a gray area like this all you can do is run it by the board. Give them as much specific info as you can. Theirs is the only answer that matters.

 

[Lunatik]

Is contact between the patient and the clinic staff considered "client contact hours" in any capacity? Or is it strictly one on one?

 

[LPPSYD]

I (and others I know) counted all individual/group/intake hours for NJ, but I don't know the answer about outreach hours. I agree that the board would be the best place to get an answer. I'm not sure if you've already seen the application form, but they are listing client hours to differentiate from supervision hours and other activities like writing notes, so client hours is likely a very broad category. I wanted to add that NJ will only count 20 hours of client contact per week. It doesn't state that on the application itself and the website isn't very user friendly.

 

[Member6677]

I (and others I know) counted all individual/group/intake hours for NJ, but I don't know the answer about outreach hours. I agree that the board would be the best place to get an answer. I'm not sure if you've already seen the application form, but they are listing client hours to differentiate from supervision hours and other activities like writing notes, so client hours is likely a very broad category. I wanted to add that NJ will only count 20 hours of client contact per week. It doesn't state that on the application itself and the website isn't very user friendly.

@LPPSYD , great call, to look up the application which I had not done previously. I will call the licensure board next week (tried today, closed for snow). I agree with the website not being user-friendly. I was curious about one part of the application (Supervisory Form for Psychology Candidates), specifically who has to fill this out. Is this only for postdoc, or also internship, or also practicum/externship sites? Thanks for any guidance; I want to make sure I have all the things I need once licensure comes!

 

[LPPSYD]

@LPPSYD , great call, to look up the application which I had not done previously. I will call the licensure board next week (tried today, closed for snow). I agree with the website not being user-friendly. I was curious about one part of the application (Supervisory Form for Psychology Candidates), specifically who has to fill this out. Is this only for postdoc, or also internship, or also practicum/externship sites? Thanks for any guidance; I want to make sure I have all the things I need once licensure comes!

Happy to help I believe that form is for both internship and postdoc supervisors to verify your completed hours. I think there is also a separate form for postdoc so that they can approve the supervisor beforehand. They did not ask about practicum at all because those hours don't count toward licensure. I should also mention (since you are applying to sites in other states) they require your supervisor for postdoc hours be licensed in NJ. I was able to get around this because mine was a federal site.

 

[Member6677]

Happy to help I believe that form is for both internship and postdoc supervisors to verify your completed hours. I think there is also a separate form for postdoc so that they can approve the supervisor beforehand. They did not ask about practicum at all because those hours don't count toward licensure. I should also mention (since you are applying to sites in other states) they require your supervisor for postdoc hours be licensed in NJ. I was able to get around this because mine was a federal site.

@LLPSYD holy crap whatttt so then essentially you can't do a postdoc in another state if you want licensure in NJ?!

edit: I looked on the licensure website, and it just says that the supervisor has to have been licensed for 2yrs in the state they practice in, and that IF the supervision occurs in NJ it must be by a board approved supervisor. Or at least that's what I read this as:

"Supervision must be by a psychologist licensed for at least two years in the state in which the supervision is received. All supervision received in New Jersey must be by a Board-approved supervisor and under permit issued by the Board."

 

[LPPSYD]

@LLPSYD holy crap whatttt so then essentially you can't do a postdoc in another state if you want licensure in NJ?!

edit: I looked on the licensure website, and it just says that the supervisor has to have been licensed for 2yrs in the state they practice in, and that IF the supervision occurs in NJ it must be by a board approved supervisor. Or at least that's what I read this as:

"Supervision must be by a psychologist licensed for at least two years in the state in which the supervision is received. All supervision received in New Jersey must be by a Board-approved supervisor and under permit issued by the Board."

As absurd as it sounds, that is what they will tell you when you call. Whether they make exceptions outside of exempt settings I'm not sure, but it would be good to get clarification directly from them. The language there definitely suggests that they do. I would recommend trying to speak with the director of the board because he was the most knowledgeable. I'd be curious to hear if others have had a different experience? I don't know anyone personally who completed postdoc in another state and then tried to become licensed in NJ, outside of those I work with in exempt settings.

Edited to add: NJ requires approval of a one-year temporary permit before you can accrue postdoc hours. This is where the supervisor's license comes into question. Given that I was in an exempt setting, I was informed (after much wrangling for the correct information) that I did not need a permit and would simply be submitting all of my completed hours for approval. Hopefully others on this board can talk about their experiences with the permit.

 

[Member6677]

As absurd as it sounds, that is what they will tell you when you call. Whether they make exceptions outside of exempt settings I'm not sure, but it would be good to get clarification directly from them. The language there definitely suggests that they do. I would recommend trying to speak with the director of the board because he was the most knowledgeable. I'd be curious to hear if others have had a different experience? I don't know anyone personally who completed postdoc in another state and then tried to become licensed in NJ, outside of those I work with in exempt settings.

Edited to add: NJ requires approval of a one-year temporary permit before you can accrue postdoc hours. This is where the supervisor's license comes into question. Given that I was in an exempt setting, I was informed (after much wrangling for the correct information) that I did not need a permit and would simply be submitting all of my completed hours for approval. Hopefully others on this board can talk about their experiences with the permit.

@LPPSYD , can you shed some light onto the one year temporary permit? The website is pretty sparse on that. What sort of paperwork/process is required? I called the licensing board and am waiting on a call back atm

 

[smalltownpsych]

The minimum of 1000 client contact hours and the maximum of 20 contact hours per week means that you have to work exactly 20 per week for a 50 week year or am I misreading that and they are counting internship in that total?

 

[Member6677]

The minimum of 1000 client contact hours and the maximum of 20 contact hours per week means that you have to work exactly 20 per week for a 50 week year or am I misreading that and they are counting internship in that total?

You are reading that exactly correctly, that's only for postdoc. I called and LM to see if they would include outreach in that, so we shall see.

 

[Member6677]

Incase someone stumbles across this thread in the future: outreach does not count, only direct clinical client hours. Also, you can be supervised by someone who isn't licensed in NJ; the person must just be licensed in the state they are providing sup in for at least 2 years. Also, you only need the temporary permit if you are working in NJ, thus why the supervisor must be from NJ

 

[LPPSYD]

@LPPSYD , can you shed some light onto the one year temporary permit? The website is pretty sparse on that. What sort of paperwork/process is required? I called the licensing board and am waiting on a call back atm

I'm glad to see you got the information directly from the board because I was not required to work under a permit. That makes sense regarding how they handle out of state postdocs. However, when I was working at a federal institution (exempt) in NY and my supervisor was actually licensed in NY, they initially rejected my application and told me I had to get licensed in NY first. This was when they were telling me I needed a permit. I was later told I don't need a permit, and they would allow a supervisor licensed in a different state only because it is an exempt setting. So be prepared in case this happens to you. It sounds like you talked to someone who actually knew the process.

 

[researchgirl]

my understanding w/ NJ (I supervise people who plan to move to NJ) is that your supervisor for your post doc hours must have had their license for 2 years in the state they practice in and supervise you in. so if your post doc is in PA and your supervisor has been licensed in PA for >2 years you should be fine.

 

[Member6677]

I'm glad to see you got the information directly from the board because I was not required to work under a permit. That makes sense regarding how they handle out of state postdocs. However, when I was working at a federal institution (exempt) in NY and my supervisor was actually licensed in NY, they initially rejected my application and told me I had to get licensed in NY first. This was when they were telling me I needed a permit. I was later told I don't need a permit, and they would allow a supervisor licensed in a different state only because it is an exempt setting. So be prepared in case this happens to you. It sounds like you talked to someone who actually knew the process.

@LLPSYD may I ask how many years ago you got licensed?

 

[LPPSYD]

@LLPSYD may I ask how many years ago you got licensed?

This past August. My coworker had a similar experience a few years earlier. It's a crapshoot with these boards unfortunately. But it always eventually works out.

 

[psychanator]

This thread is helpful. If I can jump in with a question: do we know if phone hours count for any of these states, or other states (i.e. clinic phone screens, telehealth, etc.)?

 

[Member6677]

This thread is helpful. If I can jump in with a question: do we know if phone hours count for any of these states, or other states (i.e. clinic phone screens, telehealth, etc.)?

The receptionist I spoke to at the licensing board NJ said that phone hours count. Again, this is N=1. I would double, maybe triple check with where you want to get licensed..

 

[Member6677]

Re-opening @LPPSYD re: NJ licensure. The website was useless for finding out about the temporary permit we need during postdoc. A woman I spoke with on the phone said we need to fill out the entire 20 page licensing form, and then attach a letter that says it's for a temporary permit; that sounded incorrect. Can anyone who has done this in NJ shed some light? Also, how long did the process take? Thanks?

 

[LPPSYD]

Re-opening @LPPSYD re: NJ licensure. The website was useless for finding out about the temporary permit we need during postdoc. A woman I spoke with on the phone said we need to fill out the entire 20 page licensing form, and then attach a letter that says it's for a temporary permit; that sounded incorrect. Can anyone who has done this in NJ shed some light? Also, how long did the process take? Thanks?

I was under the impression that you had to fill out most of it (at least the supervisor evaluation does not apply at this point) for the permit. I would either call back and ask again or wait for someone else to chime in who had to get the permit.