Understanding Credentials When Choosing a Therapist
By: Bianca Simmons, LPC
If you are reading this then that probably means you have either started, are about to start, or helping someone else with their mental health journey. That’s an amazing accomplishment that not everyone who struggles with mental health completes. All victories of all shapes and sizes should be celebrated because they help us to keep pushing ourselves when the journey becomes difficult.
Choosing a therapist can be nerve wracking due to several things. Finding someone that not only specializes in what you need to be treated for, fits into your financial budget, has a schedule that aligns with yours, but also you have a good connection with is no easy feat. When you throw in all the different certifications and treatment modalities therapists also have, the decision might feel overwhelming. This becomes even harder when you are also trying to find someone who comes from a similar background as you. Hopefully, after reading this you feel more confident in making an informed decision for who you want to choose as your therapist.
Clinician Cost Vs. Clinician Experience
Psychologists tend to cost the most out of all the different clinicians, which is a result of attending more time in graduate school and being allowed to do a few more activities independently within their career and a higher focus on research they love. Master’s level clinicians tend to be in the middle in terms of cost, typically because they are fully licensed and can complete almost as many tasks as a psychologist, mostly focusing on clinical work. Licensed interns are often the most cost efficient because while they are licensed clinicians, they are required to be supervised by a qualifying professional until they complete a certain number of clinician hours.
| Psychologist | Master’s Level Clinician | Licensed Interns |
| -Went to graduate school for a minimum of 6 years -Completed multiple internships & Post Doctoral fellowships. -Can complete all responsibilities of a clinician independently, including administering specific assessments, hold certain board positions, become a professor at a university. | -Went to graduate school for a minimum of 2 years -Completed 3,000 hours of supervised hours -Can complete all responsibilities of a licensed intern independently. | -Went to graduate school for a minimum of 2 years -In the Process of completing 3,000 supervised hours -Can complete most responsibilities of a fully licensed clinician under the supervision of a licensed clinician that has completed additional schooling and license. |
The table above provides a breakdown of a few reasons that can affect clinician cost, but what is missing is how to determine if your clinician is an ERP SPecialist. In addition to the requirements mentioned above, ERP specialists attend several hours of additional training, supervision, and consultation in order to achieve that status.
Imagine searching for a therapist to assist you with your OCD symptoms. There are only 3 options available: A psychologist with no experience treating OCD, a masters level clinician who completed an internship during school at a facility that treats OCD, and a licensed intern who has completed internship and 1,500 supervised hours at a clinic that specializes in OCD.
In the scenario above, although the psychologist may have the most school and minimal training with ERP, both the masters level clinician and licensed intern clearly have more training overall. In addition, the licensed intern has been treating clients with OCD for several years. Who would you choose to help you with your healing journey?
How this Effects BIPOC Clinicians
BIPOC community members do not have many options if they want to choose a mental health provider that has a similar background. Therefore, providing additional avenues to receive this specialized treatment is crucial. Exclusively limiting options to doctorate level clinicians drastically decreases the amount of ERP specialists, especially from BIPOC communities, leaving community members with little to no options. BIPOC clinicians often face several barriers that make pursuing a PHD even more challenging, which results in a lack of BIPOC clinicians with doctoral degrees. This reality could cause these clinician of color to develop difficult feelings regarding their capabilities as a clinician, but lacking a PHD does not make you less qualified to treat OCD. Clinicians can have a PHD and not know how to administer ERP; what matters is the degree of ERP training and experience.