Montana Code 37-39-309. Clinical professional counseling license required — qualifications
37-39-309. Clinical professional counseling license required — qualifications. (1) A person may not practice clinical professional counseling unless licensed under Title 37, chapter 1, and this chapter.
Terms Used In Montana Code 37-39-309
- Approved examination: means a standardized test or examination of behavioral health knowledge, skills, and abilities that is approved by the board. See Montana Code 37-39-102
- Approved program: means a behavioral health educational program accredited or sponsored by an entity that is recognized at the national, regional, or state level and approved by the board. See Montana Code 37-39-102
- Board: means the board of behavioral health provided for in 2-15-1744. See Montana Code 37-39-102
- Clinical professional counseling: means engaging in methods and techniques that include:
(a)counseling, which means the therapeutic process of:
(i)conducting assessments and diagnoses for the purpose of establishing treatment goals and objectives; or
(ii)planning, implementing, and evaluating treatment plans that use treatment interventions to facilitate human development and to identify and remediate mental, emotional, or behavioral disorders and associated distresses that interfere with mental health;
(b)assessment, which means selecting, administering, scoring, and interpreting instruments, including psychological tests, evaluations, and assessments, designed to assess an individual's aptitudes, attitudes, abilities, achievement, interests, and personal characteristics and using nonstandardized methods and techniques for understanding human behavior in relation to coping with, adapting to, or changing life situations;
(c)counseling treatment intervention, which means those cognitive, affective, behavioral, and systemic counseling strategies, techniques, and methods common to the behavioral sciences that are specifically implemented in the context of a therapeutic relationship, including techniques to treat the perception of chronic pain. See Montana Code 37-39-102
- Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
(2)Except as provided in subsection (3), an applicant for licensure as a clinical professional counselor must have:
(a)completed a master’s or doctoral degree from an approved program;
(b)completed 3,000 hours of supervised clinical professional counseling practice; and
(c)passed an approved examination.
(3)An applicant who has not completed the degree requirements of subsection (2)(a) may be licensed if the applicant meets requirements established by the board by rule for additional postdegree experience equivalent to the provisions of subsections (2)(a) and (2)(b).
(4)The supervised clinical professional counseling practice required under subsection (2(b) must be completed as provided in 37-39-307 and as prescribed by the board by rule.