How many of you
are psychologists? How many of you would
identify yourselves as counseling
psychologists? How many would only admit
that to your closest friend or parish
priest?
I want to introduce you
to two of the sponsors of this wonderful
talk. The American Board of Counseling
Psychology is one of the original
constituent examining boards that
constitute the American Board of
Professional Psychology, the ABPP. We are,
as I like to call it, the real deal.
Unlike many other so-called board
certifications, we don't only require our
candidates to send us money. We actually
verify credentials and examine our
candidates. The American Board of
Professional Psychology is the only board
certifying entity recognized by the
American Psychological Association and
numerous state psychology boards, and we
have an association with the American
Board of Medical Specialites.
The American Academy of
Counseling Psychology is a membership
association whose members have all
obtained board certification in counseling
psychology. We advocate for and support
the profession. And just what is the
profession? Counseling psychology is
applied developmental psychology. It is
the only specialty that is firmly rooted
in the entire human life span, that is
overtly and proudly humanistic and
socially conscious in its orientation,
that trains its professionals in dealing
with the whole person and human systems as
opposed to a list of symptoms that
constitute a clinical syndrome. I believe
counseling psychology provides the
broadest and best training, not only for
individual clinical work but for family
and group work, systems consultation and
social change.
Board certification in
counseling psychology is a time-consuming
and even a challenging process, but a
friendly and collegial one. At the end of
it, you not only receive a lovely diploma
that looks great in a frame, you receive
substantial pay increases if you are in
the military or work for the Veterans
Administration. If you are an academic
your certification can help advance your
institution and your career in your
institution. If you are a practitioner, as
I am, you justifiably increase your fee.
But in addition, board certification
advances the entire field. In my opinion,
board certification is vital to the future
of counseling psychology. And
counseling psychology is vital to the
future of a field that, without us, may be
at risk of descending into a dehumanized,
medicalized extension of a
pathology-driven, industrialized
healthcare delivery
system.
I invite any of you who
identify yourselves as counseling
psychologists to consider becoming board
certified. Currently there are some strong
financial incentives for doing so; these
are detailed in your packets and/or on the
Academy website, which is at W W W. A A C
O P . N E T. There is no better time to do
it.
