Certification Process

 

Certification Process
 
Certification in Therapeutic Assessment
 
The Therapeutic Assessment Institute offers the possibility for TAI members who are licensed psychologists to become certified practitioners of Therapeutic Assessment (TA). (See Finn, 2007 for distinctions between Therapeutic Assessment, therapeutic assessment, and collaborative assessment.) Separate certifications are available for TA with four client types: 1) adult individuals, 2) children, 3) adolescents, and 4) couples.
Clinicians with at least one certification can be listed as such on this website.
 
Rationale
Certification in Therapeutic Assessment is designed to meet five goals:
  1. To provide a “marker” for practitioners who wish to know that they are practicing TA with fidelity and competence,
  2. To ensure that research on TA is done using practitioners who are well trained in the model,
  3. To provide a structure for advanced training in TA,
  4. To provide direction for clients who wish to work with assessors trained in TA,
  5. To build a community of assessors who have common language and training, who can promote the development of TA in years to come.
 
Competencies
The specific competencies that are required for each type of certification are listed under the training tab. If you wish to be certified in TA with couples, you must first be certified in TA with individual adults.
 
Process
Your first step is to pass the online Level 1 certification exam.
 
You can choose one of 2 ways to obtain certification.
 
Certification through Videotaping one completed case
With this method first, we ask that you seek consultation from one or more of the TAI faculty on one or more TA cases. You and the faculty member will then decide together whether you are ready to apply for certification.

Certification is granted as the end point of a case review/discussion involving you, the applicant, and a faculty member of the Therapeutic Assessment Institute (different from the one with whom you were training). To apply you will video record an entire assessment and provide an electronic copy of the following:
  1. videos of all the sessions,
  2. all test materials—typed or in legible format,
  3. the plan for the summary/discussion session,
  4. the written report(s), letter(s), or stories resulting from the assessment,
  5. a completed “Self-­evaluation for Certification,”
  6. a completed application form,
You must also pay the application fee of $950 USD. You may pay by check, bank transfer or PayPal. Once the materials are received and have been reviewed by a faculty member, they will schedule a discussion with you of these materials, either in person, or by video chat, or phone. This discussion is expected to last 60-­90 minutes.
 
Several weeks following the discussion, you will receive a letter giving you detailed feedback, and either granting certification immediately or suggesting next steps that could lead to certification. If you are not certified immediately, the reapplication process will be streamlined and will be tailored to the recommendations of the faculty who considered your application.


Certification through Working with One Mentor/Supervisor
Certification is granted when a mentor/supervisor passes you, the supervisee, on each of the competencies required for working with one of the 4 client types you selected. This process requires you to work closely with a faculty member of the TAI who is qualified to supervise your work and who reviews your videos. During the process the supervisor will be able to approve your skills in each of the competency areas. This can be accomplished through supervision of different cases. The focus is on the competencies that all certified individuals are required to obtain.
 
Continuing Education
Because TA is a rapidly evolving field, certificates are granted for 5 years. At the end of that period of time, if you wish to maintain your certification, you must fill out a “Renewal of Certification” form and describe activities you have taken part in to continue to develop your skills in psychological assessment and in TA. Also, because of our strong belief that it is inadvisable to practice TA in isolation, to maintain your certification you must demonstrate ongoing involvement with the TA community.
 
Multiple Certifications
Because the different forms of TA require different skill sets and expertise, you must undergo the same certification process for each client type. However, skills do generalize across the different forms of TA, and we expect that once you have achieved one kind of certification, the preparation needed for others will be greatly reduced.