Ohio Psychological Association

Information about HB503

View the PowerPoint on the proposed rules.

Ohio is one of a handful of states that has passed legislation (HB503, the Sequence of Training bill) eliminating the requirement for post-doctoral supervised experience to be licensed as a psychologist. HB503 did not change the requirement for the number of hours of supervised experience that are needed for licensure, but it allows for the completion of those hours prior to receiving the doctoral degree. Review the bill.

In addition to addressing the sequence of training, this bill requires graduation from an accredited doctoral program, bringing Ohio in line with most other jurisdictions. Students enrolled in non-accredited institutions not later than June 6, 2009 and who earn a doctorate in psychology or school psychology by June 6, 2017 are eligible to be licensed in Ohio under the old law, that is, the law and rules in place before HB503 took effect. This “grandfathering” period gives time for non-accredited programs to become accredited or for students already enrolled in non-accredited institutions to complete their doctorates.

The law sets broad guidelines for the Board of Psychology relative to licensure. Implementation of the law occurs via rules developed by the Board of Psychology. These rules in the details and establish Board policy. As soon as the HB503 was passed, the Board of Psychology brought together a representative group of stakeholders to participate in the rule writing process. This group, led by members of the Board, spent months (and 40-50 hours) developing consensus on rules to implement HB503. The Board of Psychology reviewed these draft rules and accepted them at their September meeting.

A briefing on the rules for stakeholders was held Nov. 5, 2009. Read the list of amended rules.

A public hearing on the rules was held Dec. 2, 2009. A hearing before the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review (JCARR) to make sure the rules were properly written was the last stop before the rules became effective in January 2010.

One thing to keep in mind is that Ohio is one of only a few jurisdictions that have made this change in the sequence of training. An analysis of the requirements of other jurisdictions is underway to provide guidance for Ohio’s graduate students. Students intending to practice in another state should carefully examine the licensure requirements in all the places they think they might practice, since an Ohio license obtained without a post doc probably will not meet the requirements in some other locations. Another possible issue is that many states, at least at this point, do not accept supervised experience obtained after licensure as qualifying as a post doc experience.

If you have questions about the draft rules posted here, contact Michael Ranney.