Licensure Archives - Page 2 of 17

By not pursuing an interstate compact for MFTs, AAMFT is making a big mistake

June 21, 2023 by Ben Caldwell

In April, I wrote about AAMFT’s decision not to pursue an interstate compact for MFTs. You can see them discuss the issue and their rationale in this video. Their logic came down to two things: 1) since more than half of MFTs are in California and New York, and these states would almost certainly not join such a compact, the benefits to the MFT profession would be limited; and 2) the cost of such an effort, which would require resources to be pulled away from other initiatives, would not be worth it, especially given #1.

I think they’re wrong on both counts.

Why there isn’t an interstate compact for MFTs

June 26, 2023April 12, 2023 by Ben Caldwell

Telehealth-based mental health care is now the norm. Many clinicians have sought to expand their telehealth practices by getting licensed in multiple states. Psychology, counseling, and social work have all pursued interstate compacts to expand telehealth opportunities for professionals in participating states. This has led many marriage and family therapists to wonder: Why isn’t there an interstate compact for MFTs?

The mental health workforce shortage solution is right there

April 8, 2023February 14, 2023 by Ben Caldwell

There is a severe mental health workforce shortage in the US. You have heard this time and time again. In a time of unprecedented demand for mental health care – and deaths from lack of it – we simply don’t have enough therapists. And the therapists we do have aren’t representative of the communities they serve.

The solutions proposed for this problem so far are trivial. But there is a readily available solution to the mental health workforce shortage. It could immediately grow the field by thousands of qualified practitioners. It would dramatically improve diversity within the field at the same time. Even better, it would cost states virtually nothing to implement, and could be done in a week.

The ASWB Clinical Exam reckoning has begun

February 7, 2023 by Ben Caldwell

This week, legislators in Maryland introduced a pair of bills (SB0871, SB0872) to let clinical social workers get licensed without first taking the ASWB Clinical Exam. Other jurisdictions are likely to follow. The current social work exams, like all clinical exams in mental health care, simply don’t work. Worse, they fail in remarkably biased ways. Professionals, the policymakers, and the public are all catching on to the sham.

Are licensing exam prep courses a good value?

January 17, 2023January 17, 2023 by Ben Caldwell

Several exam prep companies offer products and services to help counselors and therapists prepare for their licensing exams. These offerings may cost hundreds of dollars. Are they worth your money?

I’ve previously posted a few tips for preparing for MFT licensing exams, including a list of providers of study courses and materials. I purposefully sidestepped the question of whether such products are worth the cost, which easily can add up to several hundred dollars. It’s hard to know for sure.