Marriage and Family Therapist License Requirements in Connecticut

Connecticut marriage and family therapists are credentialed as Licensed Marital and Family Therapists, or LMFTs. They are regulated by the Department of Public Health, abbreviated DPH.

Candidates are eligible for licensure after they have earned a master’s or doctoral degree, passed a licensing examination, and completed a year of post-graduate practice.

Select a Connecticut MFT License topic below…

• Education Requirements
• Supervision Requirements
• MFT Exam
• Application & Related Materials (Link to Form)
• Licensure by Endorsement
• Contact Information: Board, Professional Organizations and MFT Programs

MFT Education Requirements in Connecticut

The candidate will need to earn a graduate degree with a specialization in marriage and family therapy. The program should have a full-time MFT faculty, an organized sequence of study, and a matriculated body of students. The candidate will need the equivalent of at least two years of full-time graduate study; at least one year must be completed at the degree-granting institution.

There must be 45 or more semester hours of coursework. At least 27 must be in the three core areas outlined below. (There is a minimum of six units in each area; the remaining units are at program discretion.)

• Marital and family systems: Coursework should give the student a background in the theoretical foundations of the profession.
• Marital and family therapy: Content must include assessment, diagnosis, and treatment.
• Individual development: Coursework may include concepts like personality theory, human sexuality, and development across the lifespan. Psychopathology also falls under this content area.

There must be three semester hours in each of the following:

• Professional ethics: Coursework should cover legal responsibilities, licensure laws, confidentiality, professional socialization, and family law.
• Research: Coursework may include computer applications as well as statistical analysis, research design, and critical appraisal of existing MFT research.

In addition, the student should have a full year of practicum/ internship. It should include at least 500 hours of client contact; there should be a total of 100 hours of supervision provided. If the practicum was not completed as part of the original degree program, it may be done through a post-graduate training program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE).

A description of content areas and MFT program standards can be found in the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies (http://www.ct.gov/dph/LIB/dph/practitioner_licensing_and_investigations/plis/mft/MFT_Ed_Exp_Regs.pdf).

Programs that were accredited by COAMFTE/ approved by the AAMFT after 1979 are assumed to meet requirements (http://www.aamft.org/cgi-shl/twserver.exe?run:COALIST).

Supervised Practice

Following graduation, the candidate will need to work under supervision for at least one full year. The candidate must accrue 1,000 hours of direct client care. The candidate will need 100 hours of direct supervision.

At least 50 supervision hours must be individual; Connecticut, like many states, counts supervision as individual whether it is one-on-one or there is one other supervisee in attendance. Group supervision sessions may have up to six supervisees in attendance.

If there is no suitable person at the agency who can act as clinical supervisor, an outside supervisor may be contracted. However, Connecticut does not allow candidates to contract directly. Arrangements may be made by the agency or through an institute.

At the end of the experience period, the supervisor will submit a form to the Board verifying hours.

Examination

The candidate may be approved to take the Examination in Marital and Family Therapy after the candidate initiates the licensing process. At this stage, the candidate must submit the application and fee and request official transcripts. The candidate must also have the practicum or internship verified– this documentation is to come from the program director. Documentation of supervised practice can come at a later stage.

A candidate should be prepared to pay $295 in fees to third parties. A candidate bulletin is available through the Association of Marital and Family Therapy Regulatory Boards (http://www.amftrb.org/exam.cfm). The exam is given four times a year at Prometric Centers across the country. A list of upcoming application deadlines can be found on the DPH site (http://www.ct.gov/dph/cwp/view.asp?a=3121&q=389372).

The Application Process

Applications can be found on the DPH site. (Here is the application form in a PDF: http://www.ct.gov/dph/lib/dph/practitioner_licensing_and_investigations/plis/mft/mft_apponly.pdf) The form includes questions about the applicant’s legal and professional history, for example, whether the applicant has ever been disciplined or censored. Any ‘yes’ answers will require detailed explanation.

The application must be notarized and submitted with a $315 fee made out to ‘Treasurer, State of Connecticut’. A recent photograph must be affixed with tape.

The applicant will need to have the program director fill out a form verifying the practicum or internship experience. The form can be found Here. (http://www.ct.gov/dph/LIB/dph/practitioner_licensing_and_investigations/plis/mft/MFT_Verif_Int_Pract.pdf) Third party documents are to be submitted directly to DPH by the source.

Candidates are permitted to hand deliver applications to the office in Hartford, though this is not the recommended method of delivery.

Applicants should email if they have questions about their own file. The Connecticut DPH does not routinely call applicants about items that are missing from application packets.

Out-of-State LMFTs

An applicant who has held licensing in other jurisdictions will be required to provide license verification from each. The applicant will fill out the top portion of the form and send it to the licensing agency. The fee for license verification is set by the state; contact information for licensing agencies is on the AMFTRB site (http://www.amftrb.org/stateboards.cfm).

If the LMFT holds licensing in another state and has five years of practice, the LMFT may be licensed by endorsement. If the LMFT was in private practice, verification may come from a professional with whom the LMFT shared referrals.

As an endorsement applicant, the LMFT will not need to document the practicum or supervised work experience.

Additional Information

The licensing agency may be contacted by phone at (860) 509-7603. An email link can be found on the licensing requirements page (http://www.ct.gov/dph/cwp/view.asp?a=3121&q=389372).

The Connecticut Association for Marriage and Family Therapy serves as an additional resource (http://www.ctamft.org/). Although the organization does not license professionals, it provides information about the licensure process. Candidates can find contact information for in-state schools. They also offer a detailed licensure process for students: Click Here to view the CT MFT Licensure steps that the CTAMFT has put together (This will open in a PDF document).

Marriage and Family Therapy Programs in Connecticut