Alignment of CPD/CE Requirements for Credential Renewal With Best Practices for Professional Learning in Psychology and School Psychology

Requirements to renew a state or national license or certification can impact the selected professional learning experiences of psychologists. As a result, most credentialing agencies maintain some requirements for continuing professional development (CPD) or continuing education (CE) to renew or maintain a credential. Nevertheless, requirements across different credentialing agencies lack consistency in the type of activities required, as well as the number of hours mandated, and are regularly changing. Further, despite evidence on the value of varied types of CPD/CE activities to the promotion of lifelong learning, many state agencies' CPD/CE requirements include a limited or restricted set of allowable activities for renewal. The current paper reviewed CPD/CE requirements across state education agencies that credential school psychologists, state boards of psychology that credential psychologists for independent practice, and agencies that issue a national credential. Results reveal considerable variability, though with more consistency and alignment with best practices among state boards of psychology when compared with state education agencies. State agencies should aim to increase consistency, and utilize national standards and existing national credentials for setting renewal requirements. Public Significance Statement This study found that the continuing professional development/continuing education renewal requirements for psychologists and school psychologists vary widely across the country, both in terms of the number of hours required and the types of activities allowed. State psychology boards were more consistent in their requirements than state departments of education, and more likely to specify particular content to be covered (e.g., ethics).