2023 Texas Statutes › Occupations Code › Title 3 - Health Professions › Subtitle I - Regulation of Psychology and Counseling › Chapter 501 - Psychologists › Subchapter F. General License Requirements › Section 501.2525. License Qualifications

Sec. 501.2525. LICENSE QUALIFICATIONS.  (a)  An applicant is qualified for a license under this chapter if the applicant:
(1)  has received:
(A)  a doctoral degree in psychology from a regionally accredited educational institution conferred on or after January 1, 1979; or
(B)  a doctoral degree in psychology, or the substantial equivalent of a doctoral degree in psychology in both subject matter and extent of training, from a regionally accredited educational institution conferred before January 1, 1979;
(2)  except as provided by Subsection (c) and Section 501.253, has:
(A)  at least two years of supervised experience in the field of psychological services, one year of which may be as part of the doctoral program and at least one year of which began after the date the person's doctoral degree was conferred by an institution of higher education; and
(B)  passed any examination required by Section 501.256;
(3)  has attained the age of majority;
(4)  is physically and mentally competent to provide psychological services with reasonable skill and safety, as determined by the executive council;
(5)  is not afflicted with a mental or physical disease or condition that would impair the applicant's competency to provide psychological services;
(6)  has not been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude or a felony;
(7)  does not use drugs or alcohol to an extent that affects the applicant's professional competency;
(8)  has not engaged in fraud or deceit in making the application; and
(9)  except as provided by Section 501.263, has not:
(A)  aided or abetted the practice of psychology by a person not licensed under this chapter in representing that the person is licensed under this chapter;
(B)  represented that the applicant is licensed under this chapter to practice psychology when the applicant is not licensed; or
(C)  practiced psychology in this state without a license under this chapter or without being exempt under this chapter.
(b)  In determining under Subsection (a)(1)(B) whether a degree is substantially equivalent to a doctoral degree in psychology, the executive council shall consider whether, at the time the degree was conferred, the doctoral program met the prevailing standards for training in the area of psychology, including standards for training in clinical, school, and industrial counseling.
(c)  Subsection (a)(2)(A) does not apply to an applicant who:
(1)  is licensed in good standing in another state to independently practice psychology; and
(2)  has independently practiced psychology in that state for at least five years.
(d)  For purposes of Subsection (a)(2)(A), experience is supervised only if the experience is supervised by a psychologist in the manner provided by the executive council's supervision guidelines.  To determine the acceptability of an applicant's experience, the executive council may require documentary evidence of the quality, scope, and nature of the applicant's experience.  The executive council may count toward the supervised experience an applicant is required to obtain after the applicant's degree is conferred any hours of supervised experience the applicant completed as part of a degree program accredited by the American Psychological Association, the Canadian Psychological Association, or a substantially equivalent degree program.
Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 388, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.
Redesignated and amended from Occupations Code, Section 501.255 by Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 768 (H.B. 1501), Sec. 2.013, eff. September 1, 2019.