Alabama Psychology Licensure Requirements

500

Alabama uses the ASPPB-recommended passing score of 500 for psychologists. Admin. Code Rule 750-X-3-.01(1)(a) ties the cut score to 'the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards recommended passing score for psychologists'; the Board's current applicant brochure states that number is 500. The scaled score of 400 in Rule 750-X-3-.01(1)(b) applies only to the separate psychological technician credential, not to psychologists. Alabama administers the full EPPP (225 items, 4 hours 15 minutes); there is no indication it has moved to EPPP Part 1 only.

Alabama states its supervised-training requirement in months and weekly hours, not in total hours, so no hour figure can be reported. Rule 750-X-2-.07 accepts any APA- or CPA-accredited internship; a non-accredited internship qualifies only if it met listed criteria, including that it was the equivalent of one year of full-time training completed in no less than 11 months (10 months for school psychology internships) and no more than 24 consecutive months, with at least 25% of the trainee's time in direct client contact, at least two hours per week of formal individual face-to-face supervision plus two additional hours per week of other learning activities, and a minimum of 20 hours per week. A maximum of two internship sites or consortium programs may be used, and each must meet all the criteria. No postdoctoral supervised-experience requirement appears anywhere in Chapter 750-X-2 or in the statutory licensure requirements as reproduced in the Board's brochure: the listed requirements are good moral character, age 19, a doctoral degree from a department or school of psychology, passing the required examinations, no unethical practice, and no board examination failure in the preceding six months.

Required

Professional Standards Examination (PSE): 42 multiple-choice questions covering the Alabama License Law and the APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. Passing score is 80% of items correct. The exam is not timed and generally takes under an hour. It is taken in person by appointment at the Board Office in Montgomery, Alabama, offered between 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Monday through Friday.

Fee: $50

Every candidate must pass the PSE before a license is granted, except applicants qualifying under the exemption in Ala. Code 1975 s 34-26-41(d) / Rule 750-X-2-.08(2). The $50 fee is paid at the Board Office when you sit for the exam, not with the application. Failing the PSE does not require retaking the EPPP, but the PSE may not be retaken until six months after the first attempt. Once admitted, a candidate must sit for the PSE within one year of the Board's admission letter. Endorsement, CPQ and ABPP applicants must also pass the PSE.

1. Earn a doctoral degree from a department or school of psychology at an institution accredited by national and regional accrediting agencies, with at least 60 semester hours (90 quarter hours) of graduate psychology coursework excluding internship.
2. Complete an APA- or CPA-accredited internship, or an internship satisfying Rule 750-X-2-.07: the equivalent of one year full-time in no less than 11 months (10 for school psychology) and no more than 24 consecutive months, at a minimum of 20 hours per week.
3. File the notarized licensure application with the $400 fee, a passport-quality photograph, official transcripts from the bachelor's degree onward, the Degree Validation Form, and four psychologist references (at least three licensed at the doctoral level, one from the dissertation advisor or program director and one from the internship supervisor or training director).
4. Submit two completed fingerprint cards, an executed criminal history information release, and $38.25 payable to ALEA for the state and FBI background check.
5. Wait for Board review: application files close on the first day of odd-numbered months and completed files are reviewed at the Board meeting generally held the second Friday of odd-numbered months.
6. After the Board admits you to testing, pass the EPPP at the ASPPB-recommended score of 500 within one year of the admission letter, paying ASPPB and Pearson VUE directly.
7. Schedule the Professional Standards Examination at the Board Office in Montgomery, pay the $50 fee when you sit, and score at least 80%; then renew the license annually by October 15 with 20 hours of continuing education.

PSYPACT member

Alabama has no formal reciprocity agreements. The Board's applicant brochure states that Ala. Code 1975 s 34-26-41(c)(7) 'is not yet operative in Alabama' and that 'Alabama does not have reciprocal agreements with any other state/jurisdiction at this time,' with all applications reviewed under Rules 750-X-2-.04 and 750-X-2-.08. Rule 750-X-2-.08 nonetheless provides several endorsement routes: (1) a psychologist in good standing licensed for independent practice in another jurisdiction is granted an Alabama license on meeting Alabama's education and internship requirements, passing the EPPP at Alabama's passing point, and passing the PSE; (2) an applicant with a doctoral degree in psychology licensed at the independent level in at least two states who has passed a recognized national exam at Alabama's passing point is issued a license and is exempt from the PSE; (3) holders of the ASPPB Certificate of Professional Qualification (CPQ) and holders of ABPP board certification are issued licenses on submitting the application, fee, background check and verifications, but must still pass the PSE; and (4) the Board retains discretion to license without an assembled examination someone licensed by a comparable board whose standards are not lower than Alabama's. Separately, a psychologist licensed at the doctoral independent level in an ASPPB-recognized jurisdiction may practice in Alabama up to 30 days per calendar year without an Alabama license (not available to Alabama residents, those intending to practice a major portion of their time in Alabama, or anyone previously denied licensure), and up to 60 days per calendar year in response to a Governor-declared state of emergency with registration within ten business days. Military spouses and other 'eligible individuals' may be certified under the Alabama Military Family Jobs Opportunity Act (Act 2018-540, Ala. Code 1975 s 31-1-6). Alabama also participates in PSYPACT; the Board's homepage states 'PSYPACT IS LIVE IN ALABAMA' and links applicants to the PSYPACT Commission.

Alabama Board of Examiners in Psychology

(334) 242-4127

Official board page →