OAR 833-040-0021: Experience Requirements for Licensure as a Marriage and Family Therapist

(1) To qualify for licensure as a marriage and family therapist under ORS 675.715(1)(c) and 675.720, an applicant must have completed at least three years, defined as 36 months, of supervised clinical experience. (2) To qualify for licensure through the associate registration method, supervised clinical experience must meet the requirements of OAR chapter 833, divisions 50 and 130. (3) To qualify for licensure through direct or reciprocity method, supervised clinical experience must have consisted of no less than 1,900 supervised direct client contact hours of therapy with at least 750 of those hours working with couples and families in the same session. The supervised clinical therapy must have included any combination of the following: (a) Post-graduate degree supervised experience completed in Oregon prior to June 30, 2002; (b) Post-graduate degree supervised experience completed in another jurisdiction pursuant to the jurisdiction’s laws and rules; (c) Experience completed while a registered associate (or formerly "registered intern") with the Board; or (d) Up to one year of full-time supervised clinical experience and 400 hours of supervised direct client contact completed during the clinical portion of the qualifying graduate degree program. (4) For reciprocity method applicants only: (a) Up to two years of post-license clinical experience may substitute for a maximum of 200 hours of required supervised direct client contact, credited at a rate of 100 hours per full year (12 months) of experience. (b) Applicants who have held an active license as described in OAR 833-020-0051(2) for three or more years in any U.S. state are presumed to have met the experience requirements and no further documentation is required. (5) For direct and reciprocity methods, the experience must be a formal arrangement under the supervision of a person who is trained specifically in the systemic approach to couples and family therapy and holds a graduate-level state-issued license or registration, as a marriage and family therapist or equivalent as determined by the Board such as a clinical psychologist, clinical social worker, or professional counselor.