Specialty Certification in Professional Psychology

A Specialty is a defined area in the practice of psychology that connotes specialty competency acquired through an organized sequence of formal education, training, and experience.

Most specialties recognized by the ABPP are health service specialties. Psychologists certified by the ABPP in the health service specialties meet the APA definition as a health service provider and the specific requirements of the specialty.

In order to qualify as a specialty affiliated with the ABPP, a specialty must be represented by an independently incorporated examining board which is stable, national in scope, and reflects the current development of the specialty. A specialty board is accepted for affiliation following an intensive self-study and a favorable review by the ABPP affirming that the standards for affiliation have been met. These standards include a thorough description of the area of practice and the pattern of competencies required therein as well as the requirements for education, training, experience, research bases of the specialty, practice guidelines, and a demonstrated capacity to examine candidates for the specialty on a national level.

The general process and optimal timelines to be awarded certification can be viewed by linking to Process Timeline link in the column to the right.

To access each specialty's brochure, describing the specialty and its certification process, scroll to the specialty of your interest from the menu in the right hand column.

Specialty Brochures:

(Required to view the above documents)