Advisory committee weighs changing postdoctoral supervised-experience requirement to credit predoctoral hours

The Life and Psychology Advisory Committee discussed possible regulatory changes to allow predoctoral practicum hours to count toward the supervised-experience requirement for psychology licensure, a step committee members said could ease workforce shortages in Kansas.

Leslie Allen, assistant director and licensing manager, described current practice: Kansas requires two years of supervised experience and specifically references a one-year internship; the regulation language has required a postdoctoral year in practice for many applicants. "Currently, we require at least 1 year of postdoc. Most people do 1 year predoc internship and 1 year postdoc," Allen said. She said other states allow practicum hours to count toward the required total of supervised experience and that regulation changes, not a statutory change, would be necessary in Kansas because statute requires supervised experience but does not specify pre- or postdoctoral timing.

Members argued the change could help address long waiting lists for assessment and services and make Kansas more competitive with neighboring states. "Kansas desperately needs more psychologists," said Sarah Kirk, noting wait lists and long travel distances for assessments. Several members said Missouri and other states no longer require a dedicated postdoctoral year and allow qualifying predoctoral hours to count.

Some members raised reciprocity concerns, noting that states differ in licensure requirements, and that practicing in other states with stricter requirements (for example, California or New York) could create barriers for psychologists who used predoctoral hours for Kansas licensure. "There's a buyers-beware matter here," one member said, noting applicants should understand how different state requirements affect mobility.

Staff advised that because the requirement is implemented by regulation rather than statute, the board could pursue regulatory changes (education and supervision regulations) without returning to the legislature; staff committed to discussing next steps with the board and legal counsel.

Why it matters: Allowing predoctoral hours to count toward supervised experience could shorten time to independent practice, increase workforce capacity in underserved areas and affect reciprocity with other states. Committee members generally expressed support while asking staff to research regulatory language and potential consequences for reciprocity.

Provenance: discussion of postgraduate requirement, comparisons with neighboring states, and regulatory vs. statutory change.