ABCCAP Board Certification

Individualized Review of Training/Credentials & Mentorship, in the Style of Dear Abby

ABCCAP Board Certification: Individualized Review of Training/Credentials & Mentorship, in the Style of Dear Abby

By David A. Langer, PhD, ABPP
President, American Board of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology

Dear ABCCAPy,

I’m excited to be board certified, but a bit daunted by the process. Is there any help available?

Sincerely,
I’M SO EXCITED

Dear EXCITED,

I love your excitement about board certification (as well as your love of 1980s hits), and I’m glad that the answer to your question is a resounding yes! Every ABCCAP board member is ready to answer your questions about each stage of the process that they manage. AND, ABCCAP has a mentorship program led by mentorship chair Dr. Sunnye Mayes. If you’re looking for a mentor, reach out to her at sunnyem@med.umich.edu. Readers who are already ABCCAP board certified should reach out to Dr. Mayes if you’d like to be a mentor. As Dr. Mayes says, “mentorship is a great way to help others, participate in the ABCCAP process, and engage in an enjoyable professional development activity.”

As the Pointer Sisters might have said, “This year’s the year you’re gonna make it happen.” Good luck!

Dear ABCCAPy,

I’m a clinical child and adolescent psychologist through and through – I even supervise clinical child psychologists-in-training! – but my graduate school training wasn’t specific to clinical child and adolescent psychology and I’m not sure about my internship and brief post-doc. Am I eligible for ABCCAP specialty board certification?

Sincerely,
BEMUSED BY BOARDING

Dear BEMUSED,

You’re right to be considering board certification to demonstrate competence in your specialty. Bravo! ABCCAP has standard training requirements (as you’ve read in the exam manual available online), but also recognizes that many competent specialists have varied training experiences. ABCCAP is working to formalize guidelines to review applicants whose training varies from the standard requirements. BUT you need not wait to apply – ABCCAP already reviews applicants with varied training experiences through an individualized review process to determine if an applicant’s training and experiences is consistent with the expectations for specialists in clinical child and adolescent psychology. Reach out to our credential reviewer, Dr. Kelsie Hendrickson at hendrick@slhs.org to find out more and/or consult on your specific application.