Connecticut Counseling Association

CEU Issues:

Are CEU's for the NCC related to those for the LPC? 

No. These are separate requirements. NBCC requires 100 hours every five years for NCCs.  The State of Connecticut requires 15 hours every year.  Connecticut does recognize courses approved by NBCC as well as other providers such as the Department of Education and the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services. Both NBCC and the Department of Public Health have specific required content areas that must be met. LPCs who are also NCCs must ensure that both requirements are met.

Are LPCs audited for CEU's as NCC's are? 

The Department of Public Health may audit the LPC CEU requirements at any time and disciplinary action can be taken against anyone who falsifies their CEU statement on their renewal applications.

There is no difference in requirements for retired LPCs.  As long as the LPC is still valid, the state doesn't distinguish between active and inactive practitioners.

Requirements:

Do retired LPC's have different requirements than active counselors?

No. 

What are the State Requirements for LPC licensure?

You can find the requirements at the DPH website: http://www.dph.state.ct.us/Licensure/apps/lpc_ceu_regs.pdf 

Are there any exceptions to the requirement for licensure as a professional counselor to provide counseling in Connecticut?  

Connecticut law requires licenses for the following mental health professions in Connecticut: Counselors, MD Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Social Workers, Marriage & Family Therapists and Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (certified as a clinical specialist in adult psychiatric and mental health nursing with the American Nurses Credentialing Center).

Counseling exceptions to this licensure requirement as contained in the LPC law include:  
(1) A person who furnishes uncompensated assistance in an emergency;
(2) a clergyman, priest, minister, rabbi or practitioner of any religious denomination accredited by the religious body to which the person belongs and settled in the work of the ministry, provided the activities that would otherwise require a license as a professional counselor are within the scope of ministerial duties;
(3) a sexual assault counselor, as defined in section 52-146k;
(4) a person participating in uncompensated group or individual counseling; (5) a person licensed or certified by any agency of this state and performing services within the scope of practice for which licensed or certified;
(6) a student, intern or trainee pursuing a course of study in counseling in a regionally accredited institution of higher education, provided the activities that would otherwise require a license as a professional counselor are performed under supervision and constitute a part of a supervised course of study;
(7) a person employed by an institution of higher education to provide academic counseling in conjunction with the institution's programs and services; or
(8) a vocational rehabilitation counselor, job counselor, credit counselor, consumer counselor or any other counselor or psychoanalyst who does not purport to be a counselor whose primary service is the application of established principles of psycho- social development and behavioral science to the evaluation, assessment, analysis and treatment of emotional, behavioral or interpersonal dysfunction or difficulties that interfere with mental health and human development.

How many hours are needed for an LPC?

You need 3000 hours post-masters. The 3000 hours is elapsed time working as a counselor - not client contact hours. That means that, if you work a 40 hour week as a counselor and have seen clients for ten hours, you count forty hours towards your licensure. Of course, you must be under supervision as your supervisor confirms the hours towards the 3000 hours.

Do internship hours would count toward the needed hours for licensure?

Hours towards the 3000 hours must be earned post-masters, so you must have a masters (in counseling or a related field) before you can count the hours. Only if you have a masters before an internship, then the internship could count towards the 3000 hours.

Eligibility/Validity:

I have just moved from another state, is my license from that state valid in CT?

Answer

I have a 48 credit masters degree, am I eligible for licensure?

Answer

Other Issues:

Are Licensed Professional Counselors (LPCs) allowed to use standard projective techniques in assessment?

Connecticut does not preclude LPCs from using standard projective techniques in assessment. Or law states: "Professional counseling" means the application, by persons trained in counseling, of established principles of psycho-social development and behavioral science to the evaluation, assessment, analysis and treatment of emotional, behavioral or interpersonal dysfunction or difficulties that interfere with mental health and human development.

Parity Information for Employers of LPC's

Reimbursement for Services of Licensed Professional Counselors*