Psychology on board licensing mobility bandwagon

Practicing in other jurisdictions could get easier for psychologists thanks to a program created by the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards. The program, initiated in July of 2011, aims to make jurisdictional practice a more feasible option for practicing psychologists.

“It’s exciting, and it could really solve the mobility problem,” Stephen T. DeMers, ASPPB’s executive director, said. The “mobility problem” refers to a longstanding issue of psychologists, wishing to move to another jurisdiction and finding it difficult to verify records of training and certification that were completed years prior.

The Psychology Licensure Universal System (PLUS) is an online system that allows a psychologist “in a participating jurisdiction to apply for licensure, certification or registration through ASPPB.” Their license information would then be verified, kept, and applied for all participating jurisdictions. ASPPB does not determine eligibility for licensure, but functions as a reservoir for licensing records. The information can then be forwarded by ASPPB to any jurisdiction upon request.

The program aims to create a more cohesive licensing policy that is applicable in any state or territory in America or Canada. Boards in seven states are utilizing the PLUS system: Georgia, Mississippi, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Texas. Two other boards are nearly set to take part in the PLUS standards, Utah Psychology Licensing Board and the Washington State Examining Board of Psychology.

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