Qualified Supervisor for Licensure

There are many factors to consider when selecting to work with a Qualified Supervisor. You first want to be sure that the supervisor is able to help you to meet licensing requirements by practicing in the right state and specifically in Florida, they have the license that you are pursuing. For instance, as a LMHC, I would supervise therapists who have graduated with a degree in Mental Health Counseling. 

You also want to make sure the supervisor has the time availability to provide supervision, especially if you are looking to get licensed in a timely manner. Finally, you want to work with someone that you get along with. While this may seem not as important, remember that you will be working with this supervisor for at least 2 years. You will want to be sure that you are interested in the modalities and approaches the supervisor specializes in. You also want to make sure you are a “good fit” personality wise, so that the supervision is enjoyable and conducive to your progress as a professional counselor. 

The minimum requirements for meeting with your supervisor in Florida include: 

At least one hour of supervision every two weeks and a total of 100 hours of direct supervision meetings in less than 100 weeks. That means you are likely to meet with your supervisor for an hour every week or every two weeks, depending on how fast you are hoping to get licensed. 

If you work for an agency or company that provides behavioral health services, there may be licensed staff that can offer supervision towards licensing for free as part of the work benefits. If this is not available, some offer to pay for your outside supervisor, so be sure to ask if either of these options are available.

Typical costs for supervision can be the same that the supervisor would charge for a private pay client session, however, if you are unable to pay this amount most qualified supervisors will offer a discount based similar to their sliding scale fee. If you are able to partner with a fellow therapist who is pursuing the same license, you may be able to split the supervision fee if the supervisor accepts this arrangement. 

While group supervision has benefits of more variety of cases to discuss and peer perspectives, The Florida Board requires that at least each hour of group supervision must alternate with an hour of individual supervision. In Florida, individual supervision can consist of one supervisor supervising one or two interns. Group supervision is defined as having three to six interns in the same supervision session. 

1. Apply online to be approved as a Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern through the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage & Family Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling. (https://floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov/licensing/
2. Have your accredited master’s level program send your official transcripts to the Florida Board of CSW, MFT, and MHC.
3. Once you have a Qualified Supervisor arranged, you will need the supervisor to draft a letter of intent to supervise you that includes their original signature, the supervisor’s license number, the applicant’s name, and the state. This will also be submitted to the Florida Board.

To get comprehensive information on the requirements of applying to be a Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern in the State of Florida, go to the Florida Board of CSW, MFT, and MHC (https://floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov/licensing/registered-mental-health-counselor-intern/) web page. There you will find links to apply to be an intern as well as other resources.

To get started, call or email me to set up a free consult meeting. We will be able to address specific questions, discuss clinical areas of interest, and check our availability to ensure that we are a good fit to work together. I look forward to hearing from you.