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Clinical Health Psychology

In addition to the generic foundation requirements, the Clinical Health Psychology specialty requires completion of an organized doctoral education and training program in Professional Psychology, which includes an internship. The specialty also requires postdoctoral supervised practice and experience in the specialty. Please refer to the Document Library for more detailed information.

The specialty’s specific program requirements are met if:
 
  • The doctoral degree program was in Professional Psychology from a program accredited by the APA or CPA.  OR
  • The doctoral degree program qualifies as equivalent to an APA or CPA accredited program in professional psychology as determined by the ABCHP. This option is particularly applicable to degrees awarded throughout the U.S. or Canada.

Internship Requirements

A one-year full-time or two-year half-time internship program is required. The internship requirement is met if:
 
  • Accredited by the APA or CPA  OR
  • Listed in the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC) Directory for the year the internship was completed, OR
  • The applicant is listed in the NRHSPP or CRHSPP Directory or holds the CPQ

Postdoctoral Practice Experience and Supervision Requirements

By its nature, the specialty of Clinical Health Psychology denotes a level of practice requiring preparation beyond doctoral requirements. An individual whose degree is from an APA or CPA accredited program in Professional Psychology must have completed one of the three following training experiences:
 
  • The applicant can apply for certification after one postdoctoral year upon successful completion of at least one year of an APA/CPA accredited Clinical Health Psychology postdoctoral fellowship   OR
  • The applicant can apply for certification after two postdoctoral years upon successful completion of either: 
  1. An APA/CPA accredited postdoctoral fellowship in an area other than clinical health psychology if at least 50% of the training was in clinical health psychology, and one additional postdoctoral year of clinical health psychology experience OR
  2. A non-accredited but APPIC listed clinical health psychology fellowship and one additional postdoctoral year of clinical health psychology experience OR
  3. The applicant can apply for certification after three postdoctoral years including a one-year postdoctoral supervised experience in professional psychology, and two additional years of post doctoral experience in clinical health psychology.