Section 1375.120  Application for Examination/Permanent Licensure as a Clinical Professional Counselor

a)         Each applicant seeking original licensure under Section 35 of the Act shall file an application with the Division, on forms provided by the Division, at least 90 days prior to an examination date.  The application shall include:

1)         For individuals who graduated or who were enrolled in a program prior to January 1, 1999 (these individuals have until January 1, 2003 to complete the educational requirements set forth in Section 1375.140(a); otherwise, the applicant will be required to meet the educational requirements set forth in Section 1375.140(b)):

A)        Either:

i)          Certification of education from a master's degree program in counseling, rehabilitation counseling or psychology from a college, university or school recognized by the educational governing authority in the jurisdiction in which it is located, or certification of education and an official transcript from a similar master's degree program as defined in Section 1375.140(a) of this Part. Individuals who have completed experience prior to January 1, 1999 may complete the equivalent of 2 units of acceptable experience (2 years full-time satisfactory supervised employment working as a counselor in a professional capacity under the direction of a qualified supervisor as defined in subsection (a)(1)(B) or 4 years working as a counselor in a professional capacity independent of the direction of a qualified supervisor subsequent to the degree or a combination of supervised experience and independent experience).  All experience obtained beginning January 1, 1999 shall meet the experience requirements set forth in Section 1375.130; or

ii)         Certification of education or an official transcript from a doctoral degree program in counseling, rehabilitation counseling, or psychology from a college, university or school recognized by the educational governing authority in the jurisdiction in which it is located or similar degree program as defined in Section 1375.140(a) of this Part.  Individuals who have completed experience prior to January 1, 1999 may complete the equivalent of 2 units of acceptable experience (2 years of full-time satisfactory supervised experience working as a counselor in a professional capacity under the direction of a qualified supervisor or 4 years working as a counselor in a professional capacity independent of the direction of a qualified supervisor, as defined in subsection (a)(1)(B) or a combination of supervised experience and independent experience).  All experience obtained beginning January 1, 1999 shall meet the experience requirements set forth in Section 1375.130.

B)        Experience earned prior to January 1, 1999 shall be documented as follows:

i)          Certification of experience signed by the applicant's supervisor.  A qualified supervisor for purposes of this subsection (a)(1)(B)(i) is defined as any person who is a master's level or doctoral level counselor (such as, but not limited to, registered art therapist, licensed or registered marriage and family therapist, school counselor, school social worker, school psychologist, certified rehabilitation counselor at the master's level, pastoral counselor), a licensed clinical professional counselor, certified social worker or licensed clinical social worker, licensed/registered clinical psychologist, or psychiatrist as defined in Section 1-121 of the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Code; or

ii)         Three affidavits from the applicant's colleagues, consultants and supervisors who are familiar with the applicant's work.

One year of experience shall be a maximum of 1680 clock hours obtained in not less than 48 weeks.  No more than 1680 clock hours may be counted toward one year of experience.  Part time experience shall be counted toward the experience requirement.

2)         For individuals who graduated on or after January 1, 1999:

A)        Certification of education or an official transcript from a master's degree program in counseling, rehabilitation counseling, or psychology from a regionally accredited college, school or university or similar degree program as defined in Section 1375.140(b) of this Part and completion of the equivalent of 2 years full-time satisfactory supervised employment or experience working as a counselor in a professional capacity under the direction of a qualified supervisor, subsequent to the degree, as defined in Section 1375.130 of this Part; or

B)        Certification of education or an official transcript from a doctoral degree program in counseling, rehabilitation counseling, or psychology from a regionally accredited college, school or university or similar degree program as defined in Section 1375.140(b) of this Part and completion of the equivalent of 2 years of full-time satisfactory supervised experience working as a counselor in a professional capacity under the direction of a qualified supervisor, as defined in Section 10 of the Act, at least one year of which is subsequent to the degree.

3)         A complete work history since receipt of the first qualifying degree (master's or doctoral degree).

4)         The fee required in Section 1375.205.

5)         Certification of licensure, on forms provided by the Division, from the state or territory of the United States in which an applicant was originally licensed and the state in which the applicant predominantly practices and is currently licensed, if applicable, stating:

A)        The time during which the applicant was licensed in that jurisdiction, including the date of the original issuance in that jurisdiction;

B)        A description of the examination in that jurisdiction; and

C)        Whether the file on the applicant contains any record of disciplinary actions taken or pending.

b)         The Division, upon recommendation of the Board, has determined that individuals who hold the certification of a Certified Clinical Mental Health Counselor (CCMHC) based on examination meet the education, experience and examination requirements for licensure as a Clinical Professional Counselor.

c)         The Division, upon recommendation of the Board, has determined that the individuals who hold a certification from the following groups meet the education requirements to be eligible to sit for the examination.

1)         Clinical Member of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT);

2)         Fellow or Diplomate of the American Association of Pastoral Counselors (AAPC);

3)         Type 73 certificate issued by the Illinois State Board of Education as a School Counselor, if the holder of the certificate has graduated from a CACREP school counseling program or meets the educational standards set forth in Section 1375.50, Clinical Social Worker or School Psychologist.

An applicant shall submit a current certification from one of the above entities.  The applicant shall submit certification of education and proof of experience and pass the examination set forth in Section 1375.150.

d)         The Division, upon recommendation of the Board, has determined that individuals who received their Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) certification after January 1992 have been determined to meet the education and examination requirements.  Individuals who received a CRC certificate before 1992 will be required to submit a transcript pursuant to Section 1375.150 in order to evaluate educational requirements.  All applicants holding a current CRC certificate shall submit proof of experience.

e)         An applicant may begin gaining the required experience upon completion of the degree requirements.  Verification of the date of completion of the degree, when different from the date of graduation, shall be certified to the Division by the applicant's educational institution.

f)          When the accuracy of any submitted documentation or the relevance or sufficiency of the coursework or experience is questioned by the Division or the Board because of lack of information, discrepancies or conflicts in information given or a need for clarification, the applicant seeking licensure shall be requested to:

1)         Provide such information as may be necessary; and/or

2)         Appear for an interview before the Board to explain such relevance or sufficiency, clarify information or clear up any discrepancies or conflicts in information.

g)         If an applicant has taken and passed the examinations in accordance with Section 1375.150, the applicant shall file an application in accordance with subsection (a) and shall have the examination scores submitted to the Division directly from the testing entity or from the state of original licensure.

(Source:  Amended at 28 Ill. Reg. 16277, effective December 2, 2004)