The Steps to Becoming a LMFT in Ca

During this process of becoming a California State Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist I have found out that many people are unsure of how this process works. Some people believe that Interns are still in school and thus give the MFT Intern very little credit. Actually while in school the MFT student is called a MFT Trainee. The Trainee gains clinical experience in an approved agency setting while in the supportive school environment. Once a MFT student graduates from an accredited Masters program they can register as a MFT Intern. They then have the option of working in an agency or in a private practice as an Intern under supervision of a Licensed Therapist who has met the supervisor requirements. The MFT Intern must gain three thousand hours in clinical experience which is broke down into several categories. Once those hours are acquired and approved by the Board of Behavioral Sciences the Intern applies to write the first exam which covers law and ethics, theory, crisis intervention, and treatment/treatment planning. Once that is passed the Intern applies to write the second and final exam called the Vignette Clinical exam. When these two exams are passed the Intern applies for License. Finally the Intern can work independently and apply to be on insurance panels. This is a sum up on the process.