N.J. Admin. Code § 13:34-15.4 - Approval of courses or programs

(a) The following are acceptable sources of continuing education courses, programs and articles, as long as the courses, programs or articles fall within the content areas set forth in (c) or (d) below or are directly related to professional counseling:

1. Courses and programs approved by the National Board for Certified Counselors; the American Counseling Association; the American Psychological Association; the American Psychiatric Association; the National Association of Social Workers; the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy; the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselors Certification; the American Orthopsychiatric Association; the American Medical Association; the American Nursing Association; the National Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors; the United States Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association; and the member boards of the International Certification and Reciprocity Consortium/Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse, Inc.;

2. Teaching or completing graduate coursework at a regionally accredited institution of higher education;

3. Authoring a refereed article published in a professional journal within the preceding biennial period; and

4. Presentation of a course or program approved by one of the organizations listed at 13:34-15.4(a)1.

(b) Prior to seeking approval of continuing education credit from the Committee for attending or presenting a course or program that has not been approved by any of the organizations listed in (a)1 above, the professional counselor shall first apply to and obtain approval from one of the listed organizations.

(c) The following are acceptable content areas for continuing education:

1. Counseling theory and practice which provide basic theories, principles and techniques of counseling and their application to professional counseling settings;

2. The helping relationship, which provides broad understanding of philosophic bases of helping processes, basic and advanced helping skills, consultation theories and their applications, client and helper self-understanding and self-development and facilitation or client change;

3. Human growth and development and maladaptive behavior which provide a broad understanding of the nature and needs of individuals at all developmental levels, normal and abnormal behavior, personality theory, life-span theory, and learning theory within cultural contexts;

4. Lifestyle and career development which provides a broad understanding of career development theories, occupational and educational information sources and systems, career and leisure counseling, guidance and education, lifestyle and career decision-making, career development program planning, resources, and career option identification;

5. Group dynamics, processes, counseling and consulting which provide a broad understanding of group development dynamics, group counseling theories, group leadership styles, basic and advanced group counseling methods and skills, and other group approaches;

6. Appraisal of individuals which provides a broad understanding of group and individual educational and psychometric theories and approaches to appraisal, data and information gathering methods, validity and reliability, psychometric statistics, factors that influence appraisals, use of appraisal results in helping process and the specific ability to administer and interpret tests and inventories to assess abilities, interests, and identify career options;

7. Social and cultural foundations which provide a broad understanding of societal changes and trends, human roles, societal subgroups, social mores and interaction patterns, multicultural and pluralistic trends, differing lifestyles, and major societal concerns including stress, person abuse, substance abuse, discrimination and methods of alleviating these concerns;

8. Research and evaluation which provide a broad understanding of types of research, basic statistics, research and report development, research implementation, program evaluation, needs assessment, publication of research information and ethical and legal considerations; and

9. The counseling profession which provides a broad understanding of professional roles and functions, professional goals and objectives, professional organizations and associations, professional history and trends, ethical and legal standards, professional preparation standards and professional credentialing.

(d) A course or program in the subject area of social and cultural competence for the purpose of fulfilling the three contact hour continuing education requirement shall be obtained consistent with (a) above or shall be subject to the approval of the Committee. A course or program in the subject area approved by the Board of Marriage and Family Therapy Examiners, the Board of Social Work Examiners, or the Alcohol and Drug Counselor Committee shall be deemed acceptable by this Committee.

Notes

N.J. Admin. Code § 13:34-15.4

Amended by R.2008 d.120, effective 5/5/2008.
See: 39 N.J.R. 2199(a), 40 N.J.R. 2281(a).
In the introductory paragraph of (a), inserted "or (d)"; and added (d).
Amended by R.2009 d.301, effective 10/5/2009.
See: 41 N.J.R. 1946(a), 41 N.J.R. 3813(a).
In the introductory paragraph of (a), inserted a comma following the first occurrence of "articles"; in (a)1, substituted "the United States Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association; and" for "or"; and in (c)2, inserted a comma following "relationship", deleted a comma following "self-development" and substituted "client" for "consultee".