Kan. Admin. Regs. § 102-4-3a

Current through Register Vol. 43, No. 49, December 5, 2024

Section 102-4-3a - Educational requirements

To academically qualify for licensure as a master's level psychologist or a clinical psychotherapist, the applicant's educational qualifications and background shall meet the applicable requirements specified in this regulation.

(a) Definitions.

(1) "Faculty member" means an individual who is part of the program's teaching staff and whose education, training, and experience are consistent with the individual's role within the program and are consistent with the published description of the goals, philosophy, and educational purpose of the program.

(2) "In residence," when used to describe a student, means that the student is present at the physical location of the institution for the purpose of completing coursework during which the student and one or more faculty members are in physical proximity and face-to-face contact.

(b) Degree requirements. At the time of application, the applicant shall have met one of the following requirements:

(1) Received a master's degree in psychology based on a program of studies that is substantially equivalent to the coursework requirements in subsection (c) if the degree was earned before July 1, 2003 or in subsection (e) if the degree was earned on or after July 1, 2003;

(2) Received a master's degree in psychology and has completed the coursework requirements in subsection (c) if the degree was earned before July 1, 2003 or in subsection (e) if the degree was earned on or after July 1, 2003; or

(3) The applicant passed comprehensive examinations or equivalent final examinations in a doctoral program in psychology and has completed the coursework requirements in subsection (c) if the program was completed before July 1, 2003 or in subsection (e) if the program was completed on or after July 1, 2003.

(c) Coursework requirements for applicants who earned a psychology degree before July 1, 2003.

(1) Each applicant shall have satisfactorily completed at least 36 discrete and unduplicated graduate semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, of formal, didactic academic coursework that is distributed across the coursework areas as specified in this paragraph, subject to the restrictions in subsection (d). This coursework shall have been completed at the time of application as a part of or in addition to the coursework completed for the graduate degree requirements:

(A) At least six semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, in psychotherapy that includes an in-depth study of the major theories, principles, and clinical methods and techniques of psychotherapy with individuals, groups, or families. These courses shall be completed while in residence;

(B) at least six semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, in psychological testing that includes studies in the selection, administration, scoring, and interpretation of objective and projective diagnostic tests as indicators of intelligence and scholastic abilities or as screening devices for organic pathologies, learning disabilities, and personality disturbances. These courses shall be completed while in residence;

(C) at least 12 semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, in any of the following psychological foundation courses:

(i) The philosophy of psychology, which may include studies that introduce the fundamental philosophical, conceptual, theoretical, or applied processes of psychology and the issues central to professional orientation, role development, ethical and legal standards, and professional responsibility;

(ii) the psychology of perception, which may include studies of memory, language, speech, sensory functioning, motor functioning, reasoning, decision making, problem solving, and other cognitive processes;

(iii) learning theory, which may include studies pertaining to the fundamental theoretical assumptions about and applied principles of learning, conditioning, concept formation, and behavior;

(iv) the history of psychology, which may include studies that trace and analyze the historical development and contemporary evolution of the concepts and theories in psychology;

(v) motivation, which may include studies of the concepts, principles, and empirical findings concerning the innate, biological, and acquired factors that underlie human motivation; or

(vi) statistics, which may include studies in the theory, analysis, and interpretation of statistics, and the manual or computerized application of statistical measures; and

(D) at least 12 semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, in professional core courses. The professional core courses shall include at least three semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, in psychopathology, which may include studies that examine the theories, definitions, and dynamics of the diagnostic classifications, and differentiation among diagnostic classifications. This subcategory may also include studies in abnormal psychology or studies that examine the etiological factors, clinical course, and clinical and psychopharmacological approaches to the treatment of mental, behavioral, and personality disorders. The remaining nine semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, may consist of any of the following professional core courses:

(i) Personality theories, which may include studies that seek to explain or to compare and contrast the major theories of normal and abnormal personality development, functioning, adaptation, and assessment;

(ii) developmental psychology, which may include psychological or biologically based studies that provide a comprehensive overview of the biopsychosocial factors, determinants, and stages that pertain to and impact the physical, emotional, intellectual, and social development and adaptation of humans from infancy through senescence;

(iii) research methods, which may include studies in the principles, techniques, and ethics of research and studies about the identification of research problems, selection of research designs, measurement strategies, sampling techniques, and methods of evaluating the results;

(iv) social psychology, which may include studies of the interactive and influencing effects of social, cultural, and ecological factors upon the emotions, beliefs, attitudes, expectations, roles, behaviors, and interactional dynamics of individuals, families, groups, organizations, and the larger society; or

(v) additional coursework in psychotherapy or psychological testing as specified in this subsection.

(2) In addition to or as a part of the 36 semester hours specified in paragraph (c)(1), each applicant for a clinical psychotherapist license shall have completed 15 graduate semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, supporting diagnosis or treatment of mental disorders using the "diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders" as specified in K.A.R. 102-4-15. Three of the 15 semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, shall consist of a discrete academic course with the primary and explicit focus of psychopathology and the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders as classified in the "diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders." The remaining 12 semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, shall consist of academic courses with the primary and explicit focus of diagnostic assessment, interdisciplinary referral and collaboration, treatment approaches, and professional ethics or other coursework that specifically contains identifiable, equivalent instruction. The 15 semester credit hours shall be subject to the restrictions in subsection (d).

(d) The following activities shall not be substituted for or counted toward any of the educational coursework requirements in subsection (c):

(1) Academic courses that the applicant completed as a part of or in conjunction with the undergraduate degree requirements;

(2) independent study courses, whether or not the coursework is taken for academic credit, unless the independent study course clearly occurred as a didactic course formally established and designed by the program to provide the student with specifically identified, organized, and integrated course content;

(3) thesis or independent research courses;

(4) academic courses that, by their experiential rather than didactic nature and content, are designed to precede, satisfy, or augment the practicum activities required for the graduate psychology degree;

(5) academic coursework that has been audited rather than graded;

(6) academic coursework for which the applicant received an incomplete or failing grade;

(7) graduate or postgraduate coursework or training provided by colleges, universities, institutes, or training programs that do not meet the requirements in subsections (f) and (g); and

(8) continuing education, in-service, or on-the-job training activities or experience.

(e) Coursework requirements for applicants who earn a psychology degree on or after July 1, 2003.

(1) As a part of or in addition to the coursework completed for the graduate degree requirements, each applicant shall have satisfactorily completed at least 60 discrete and unduplicated graduate semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, of formal, didactic academic coursework in psychology or a related field.

(2) Thirty-six of the 60 required graduate semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, shall be distributed across the coursework areas as specified in paragraph (c)(1). The coursework specified in paragraphs (c)(1)(A) and (c)(1) (B) shall be completed while the student is in residence.

(3) Of the remaining 24 required graduate semester credit hours, a maximum of six semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, may be attained through independent study courses or independent research courses, and a maximum of 10 semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, may be attained through thesis preparation.

(4) In addition to or as a part of the 60 semester hours specified in paragraph (e)(1), each applicant for a clinical psychotherapist license shall have completed 15 graduate semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, supporting diagnosis or treatment of mental disorders using the "diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders" as specified in K.A.R. 102-4-15. Three of the 15 semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, shall consist of a discrete academic course with the primary and explicit focus of psychopathology and the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders as classified in the "diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders." The remaining 12 semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, shall consist of academic courses with the primary and explicit focus of diagnostic assessment, interdisciplinary referral and collaboration, treatment approaches, and professional ethics or other coursework that specifically contains identifiable, equivalent instruction. The 15 semester credit hours, or the academic equivalent, shall be subject to the restrictions in paragraph (e)(5).

(5) The following activities shall not be substituted for or counted toward any of the educational coursework requirements set out in this subsection:

(A) Academic courses that the applicant completed as a part of or in conjunction with the undergraduate degree requirements;

(B) academic coursework that has been audited rather than graded;

(C) academic coursework for which the applicant received an incomplete or failing grade;

(D) graduate or postgraduate coursework or training provided by colleges, universities, institutes, or training programs that do not meet the requirements in subsections (f) and (g); and

(E) continuing education, in-service, or on-the-job training activities or experience.

(f) Program requirements. In order for the applicant to qualify for licensure, the educational program completed by the applicant shall meet all of the following conditions:

(1) The program has formally established program admission requirements that are based upon objective measures.

(2) The program requires and provides an established curriculum that encompasses at least two years of graduate study and that includes two consecutive semesters of enrollment, or the academic equivalent, attended and completed by the student at the same college or university granting the degree.

(3) The program has clear administrative authority and formal responsibility within the program for the core and specialty areas of training in psychology.

(4) The program has an established, organized, and comprehensive sequence of study that is planned by administrators who are responsible for providing an integrated educational experience in psychology.

(5) The program is chaired or directed by an identifiable person who holds a graduate degree that was earned from a regionally accredited college or university following that person's actual completion of a formal academic training program in psychology.

(6) The program has an identifiable, full-time, professional faculty whose members hold earned graduate degrees in psychology.

(7) The program has an identifiable and formally enrolled body of students.

(8) The ratio of students to faculty members does not exceed 15 students to one faculty member.

(9) The program conducts an ongoing, objective review and evaluation of each student's learning and progress, and the program reports this evaluation in the ofcial student transcripts.

(g) College or university requirements. In order for the applicant to qualify for licensure, the college or university at which the applicant completed the degree requirements shall meet all of the following conditions.

(1) The college or university is institutionally accredited to award the graduate degree in psychology.

(2) The college or university is regionally accredited by an accrediting body substantially equivalent to those agencies that accredit the universities in Kansas.

(3) The college or university documents in its ofcial publications, including course catalogs and announcements, the program description and standards and the admission requirements of the psychology education and training program.

(4) The college or university identifes and clearly describes in pertinent institutional catalogs the coursework, experiential, and other academic program requirements that must be satisfed before the conferral of the graduate degree in psychology.

(5) The college or university clearly identifes and spec-ifes in pertinent institutional catalogs its intent to educate and train psychologists.

(6) The college or university has clearly established a psychology education and training program as a recognized, coherent organizational entity within the college or university that, when the applicant's degree requirements were satisfed, met the program standards in subsection (f).

(7) The college or university has conferred the graduate degree in psychology on the applicant, or has advanced the applicant to doctoral candidacy status, following the applicant's successful completion of an established and required formal program of studies.

Kan. Admin. Regs. § 102-4-3a

Authorized by K.S.A. 74-5370, and 74-7507; implementing K.S.A. 2023 Supp. 74-5363; effective Dec. 19, 1997; amended Aug. 13, 2004; amended Oct. 27, 2006; amended by Kansas Register Volume 43, No. 23; effective 6/21/2024.