Compilation of Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia › Department 135 - RULES OF GEORGIA COMPOSITE BOARD OF PROFESSIONAL COUNSELORS, SOCIAL WORKERS AND MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPISTS › Chapter 135-5 - REQUIREMENTS FOR LICENSURE › Rule 135-5-.02 - Professional Counselors

Current through Rules and Regulations filed through June 27, 2024
Pursuant to Official Code of Georgia Annotated 43-10A-11 an
				applicant for a license in Professional Counseling must meet the following
				requirements.
(a)
Definitions.
1.
"The
			 Practice of Professional Counseling"
means practice in that specialty
			 which utilizes counseling and psychotherapy to evaluate and treat emotional and
			 mental problems and conditions, whether cognitive, behavioral, or affective.
			 The practice is further defined in O.C.G.A.
			 43-10A-3(10).
2.
"Direction"
means the ongoing
			 administrative overseeing by an employer or superior of a Professional
			 Counselor's work in the practice of professional counseling as defined by
			 135-5-.02(a)(1) by a
			 director. The director shall be responsible for assuring the quality of the
			 services rendered by that practitioner and shall ensure that qualified
			 supervision or intervention occurs in situations which require expertise beyond
			 that of the practitioner.
3.
"Director"
means the person who provides direction and who is
			 either the employer of the person who receives direction or is the supervisor
			 in the administrative chain of command to the person who receives
			 direction.
4.
"Supervision"
means the direct clinical review, for the purpose of
			 training or teaching, by a supervisor of a Professional Counselor's interaction
			 with their client(s). The purpose of supervision is to promote the development
			 of the practitioner's clinical skills. Supervision may include, without being
			 limited to, the review of case presentations, audiotapes, videotapes, and
			 direct observation of the practitioner's clinical skills. Supervision does not
			 require the supervisor to be present at the work site with the supervisee.
			 Supervision may be provided pro bono or for a fee. Both supervisors and
			 supervisees are required to maintain a contemporaneous record of the date,
			 duration, type (individual, paired, or group), and a brief summary of the
			 pertinent activity for each supervision session to be submitted to the Board
			 upon request. If there are any discrepancies in hours, contemporaneous
			 documentation of supervision will be requested.
(i)
Individual Supervision
means
			 one supervisor meeting with a maximum of two supervisees.
(ii)
Group Supervision
means one
			 supervisor meeting with a maximum of six supervisees.
5.
"Supervisor"
means a licensed
			 Professional Counselor, Clinical Social Worker, Marriage and Family Therapist,
			 Psychologist, or Psychiatrist, who complies with the ethical standards of
			 practice of their profession with particular attention being paid to prohibited
			 dual relationships. In addition,
(i) a
			 supervisor who holds a master's degree must have three (3) years of
			 post-licensure experience; and
(ii)
			 a supervisor who holds a specialist degree must have two (2) years of
			 post-licensure experience; and
(iii) a supervisor who holds a doctoral
			 degree must have one (1) year of post-licensure experience; and
(iv) for supervision entered into
after
			 September 30, 2018
, a supervisor who is a Licensed Professional
			 Counselor must hold either a National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC)
			 Approved Clinical Supervisor credential or a Licensed Professional Counselors
			 Association of Georgia (LPCAGA) Certified Professional Counselor Supervisor
			 credential.
(v) however, the Board
			 in its discretion may approve a supervisor whose experience is substantially
			 similar to those stated herein.
(vi) in a supervised practicum or internship
			 which is part of the graduate degree program, either the course instructor of
			 record or the on-site clinical instructor must be a qualified supervisor OR, in
			 the education of rehabilitation counselors, may be a Certified Rehabilitation
			 Counselor.
6.
"Directed Experience"
means time spent under direction engaging in
			 the practice of Professional Counseling as defined in
			 135-5-.02(a)(1).
(i) all work sites must include a formal
			 structure related to the practice of professional counseling as defined in Rule
			 135-5-.01(a)(1).
			 Valid work sites should have measurable detailed documentation for every
			 candidate, to include a signed contractual agreement that outlines the job
			 description, office hours, performance review procedures and dismissal
			 policies.
(ii) non-compensated
			 experiences or services will be reviewed on a case by case basis to determine
			 acceptability in defining the working relationship for the purposes of
			 obtainment of the required post-master's directed work experience only if they
			 meet these requirements. The agreement between the work site and the candidate
			 should be akin to employment.
(iii)
			 applicants may, at the discretion of the Board, be required to submit
			 documentation substantiating (a) the nature of the working relationship with
			 the directed experience site, (b) the formal structure of the organization, and
			 (c) whether any licensed or associate licensed individuals work there to ensure
			 compliance and understanding of these requirements.
7.
"Years of Directed
			 Experience"
(i) "One year of Directed
			 Experience" means a minimum of 600 hours of directed experience acquired within
			 a period of not less than twelve months and not more than twenty
			 months.
(ii) "Two years of Directed
			 Experience" means a minimum of 1200 hours of directed experience under
			 supervision acquired within a period of not less than twenty-four months and
			 not more than 60 months.
(iii)
			 "Three years of Directed Experience" means a minimum of 1800 hours of directed
			 experience under supervision acquired within a period of not less than
			 thirty-six months and not more than 60 months.
(iv) "Four years of Directed Experience"
			 means a minimum of 2400 hours of directed experience under supervision acquired
			 within a period of not less than forty-eight months and not more than 60
			 months.
(v)
After September
			 30, 2018
"One year of Directed Experience" means a minimum of 1000 hours
			 of directed experience acquired in not less than a twelve (12) month period.
			 The number of required years of Directed Experience is based on the applicant's
			 educational credentials as defined in Rule
			 135-5-.02 (b, c, d, e and
			 f).
(vi)
After September 30,
			 2018
, all Directed Experience must be obtained within the sixty (60)
			 months prior to the date of application. Endorsement applications will be
			 considered on a case by case basis at the discretion of the Board.
8.
"Years of
			 Supervision"
(i) "One year of
			 Supervision" means a minimum of 30 hours of supervision obtained during one
			 year of Directed Experience as defined in Rule
			 135-5-.02(7).
(ii) "Two years of Supervision" means a
			 minimum of 60 hours of supervision obtained during two years of Directed
			 Experience as defined in Rule
			 135-5-.02(7).
(iii) "Three years of Supervision" means a
			 minimum of 90 hours of s supervision obtained during three years of Directed
			 Experience as defined in Rule
			 135-5-.02(7).
(iv) "Four years of Supervision" means a
			 minimum of 120 hours of supervision obtained during four years of Directed
			 Experience as defined in Rule
			 135-5-.02(7).
(v)
After September 30, 2018
,
			 "One year of Supervision" means a minimum of thirty five (35) hours of
			 supervision obtained during one twelve (12) month period of Directed Experience
			 as defined in Rule
			 135-5-.02(7).
(vi)
After September 30, 2018
,
			 all Supervision must be obtained within the sixty (60) months prior to the date
			 of application. Endorsement applications will be considered on a case by case
			 basis at the discretion of the Board.
9.
"Work settings acceptable to the
			 Board"
means a directed work settings in which the practice of
			 Professional Counseling takes place and may include, but is not limited to,
			 education, rehabilitation, career development, mental health, community, or
			 industrial organizations. Practice without direction is not a work setting
			 acceptable to the Board. Directed experience sites in the contract must meet
			 the requirements of rule
			 135-5-.02(a)(6)
			 above, the definition of "Directed Experience".
10.
"Certified Rehabilitation
			 Counselor"
means a person who is certified as a rehabilitation counselor
			 by the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification.
11.
"Program Primarily Counseling in
			 Content"
and
"Program in Applied Psychology"
means a course
			 of study at an accredited educational institution consisting of a master's,
			 specialist or doctoral degree which includes either as part of the degree
			 program or as additional course work completed prior to, during or after the
			 degree program, the following graduate level courses.
After September 30,
			 2018
the degree program must be accredited by the Council on
			 Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), the
			 Council on Rehabilitation Education (CORE) or a regionally accredited program
			 recognized by the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). The
			 approved program must be substantially similar in coursework and content to a
			 CACREP or CORE accredited program. An individual course may not be used to
			 fulfill the requirement in more than one content area.
(i)
Counseling/Psychotherapy
			 Theory
, which includes the principles, concepts, and practice of
			 counseling/psychotherapy and the major models of
			 counseling/psychotherapy.
(ii)
A Counseling or Applied Psychology Practicum or Internship
as part
			 of the graduate degree program.
(iii)
Courses in six (6) of the
			 following nine (9) content areas: After September 30, 2018
, all 9
			 content areas of the following course work are required:
(I)
Human Growth and
			 Development
, which includes an understanding of the nature and needs of
			 individuals at all developmental levels, personality theory, and learning
			 theory, and which may provide a comprehensive overview of the factors,
			 determinants, and stages that pertain to physical, emotional, intellectual, and
			 social development and adaptation from infantile to geriatric stages.
(II)
Multicultural Counseling or
			 Diversity Training
, which includes an understanding of societal changes
			 and trends, human roles, societal subgroups, diversity, social mores and
			 interaction patterns, and differing lifestyles and competency in counseling a
			 diverse clientele.
(III)
Counseling Techniques or Skills
, which includes an understanding
			 of the philosophic bases of helping processes, helper self-understanding and
			 self-development, and the facilitation of client change; OR
Advanced
			 Psychotherapy/Intervention Theory
, which includes the in- depth study of
			 the major theories, principles, methods and techniques of psychotherapy with
			 individuals, groups or families, focusing on the treatment or prevention of
			 behavior disorders, adjustment problems, psychopathology, or other
			 psychological disturbance.
(IV)
Group Dynamics and Group Counseling/Psychotherapy
, which includes
			 an understanding of group development, dynamics, and counseling/psychotherapy
			 theories; group leadership styles; group counseling/psychotherapy methods and
			 skills; and other group approaches.
(V)
Lifestyle and Career
			 Development
, which includes an understanding of career development
			 theories; occupational educational information sources and systems; career and
			 leisure counseling, guidance and education; lifestyle and career decision
			 making; and career development program planning, resources, and
			 evaluation.
(VI)
Appraisal/Assessment of Individuals
, which includes an
			 understanding of psychometric theories and approaches to appraisal/assessment;
			 validity and reliability; psychometric statistics; the selection,
			 administration, scoring and interpretation of various assessment instruments;
			 and the use of appraisal/assessment results in the counseling/psychotherapy
			 process.
(VII)
Research
			 Methods and Evaluation
, which includes an understanding of types of
			 research, statistics, research report development, research implementation,
			 program evaluation, needs assessment, and ethical and legal considerations in
			 research; OR Research Statistics, which includes an understanding of the
			 theory, analysis and interpretation of manual or computer generated statistical
			 measures.
(VIII)
Professional
			 Orientation and Ethics
, which includes an understanding of ethical and
			 legal standards, professional roles, responsibilities, and functions;
			 professional goals and objectives; professional organizations and associations;
			 professional history and trends; professional preparation standards; and
			 professional credentialing.
(IX)
Psychopathology
, which includes theories, research, descriptive
			 characteristics, categories, dynamics, and etiology of mental, behavioral,
			 cognitive and personality disorders, with a focus on utilization of the
			 diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM) and/or
			 International Classification of Diseases (ICD).