Why Board Certification

Board certification is a way of documenting that one meets the standards and demonstrates the competencies required in an area of specialty. As a pediatric psychologist working within a hospital setting, board certification is something that my medical colleagues understand and recognize. In fact, it is one of the very first questions asked on the application for promotion at my institution! Board certification, for me, just made sense as part of my plan for career advancement. However, although applying for board certification was purely a practical decision, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I benefited from, and even enjoyed, the process. It provided the opportunity to reflect on why I do what I do and to consider how I could do it even better. I found the examiners at my oral to be collegial, supportive, and genuinely interested in my perspective on psychology in general and my own work specifically. I enjoyed discussing my views with respected peers and valued their responses. The process was intellectually challenging, but never felt like a “test.” In the end, I obtained the board certification I needed for promotion, but also learned something about myself as a psychologist in the process.

I actually thought that the process was fun. I entered the process thinking that regardless of the results, it would be a great way to get feedback from experts in the field about my performance as a psychologist. I appreciated having the opportunity to sit down with a panel of experts to discuss my practice as a psychologist and to discuss the types of patients that I see.

Overall, my entire experience was really positive and I would highly encourage other psychologists to seek ABPP. I think specialty certification is becoming the standard among medical professionals and as psychologists, we owe it to our patients and our colleagues to demonstrate the same level of expertise. I got my diploma today. It's already up on the wall. :)

Margaret M. Richards, PhD, ABPP| Director, Postdoctoral Fellowship in Pediatric Psychology | Pediatric Behavioral Health| Children's Hospital, Cleveland Clinic

The practice of American Psychology has become increasingly complex and competitive. There has been a decided trend toward practice focused in delimited areas with a number of such areas emerging as specialties. The ABPP establishes and continually incorporates the current developments in the definition and requirements of specialties in professional psychology. Over the past decade 7 new specialties have joined the 4 traditional specialties which have been in the field for the past 50 years. The new specialties have emerged through public and professional needs.

The clearest and most responsible way for a psychologist to represent herself/himself to the public, third-parties, and the profession as a specialist is to be certified through an organized peer process as meeting the standards and demonstrating the competencies required in the specialty. The only non-profit professional unitary organization with multiple specialty board quality controls recognized by the profession as certifying specialty practitioners in psychology is the ABPP.

What did you learn about yourself and your practice while doing board certification?

I found the process of board certification to be very interesting and rewarding. The process of preparing for the exam required that I think critically about how I approach clinical work. It is not often that with busy schedules that one gets to really reflect on how one thinks about cases and it was a joy to have a reason to really analyze my approach, conceptualization, treatment techniques, and outcomes. Moreover, getting a chance to watch myself on tape helped me observe my treatment and assessment style in a somewhat detached way so that I could better see the interaction between me and my client and learn more about the therapeutic process. The process really reminded me of how important it is to take time to step back and really examine all of the factors impacting clients and helped me to see just how important it is to try and see the whole person and the variety of systems in a child's life that influence presenting problems.

What have you found most valuable or rewarding about board certification (e.g., salary increase, referrals, colleagues, increased self esteem, learning, something else)?

Since I became board certified, I find that my consulting work has really grown. Experts in other fields are quickly appreciating the certification process for psychologists as many other disciplines have had a similar process for their experts for some time and recognize what it means to have this qualification. I find that having the certification makes it easier to communicate to other professionals what skills I bring to the table.

What was the most challenging/interesting/surprising aspect of the board certification process?

I think what was most surprising about the process was the in-person exam. I was expecting it to be challenging and it was, but in a good way. The examiners were friendly and well-prepared and they really challenged me to explain my treatment approach. I really enjoyed the challenge as it made me really have to think through all possible pros and cons of what I do as a professional and critically evaluate my work. It reminded me how important it is to be thorough with every client. The exam was actually quite collegial and gave me a chance to really test my thinking about clinical work.

What advice would you give to a candidate for board certification in clinical child and adolescent psychology?

I think the best advice is to be prepared. The examiners take the exam process very seriously and have really taken the time to know the information you provide about your clients. Make sure you allow yourself sufficient time to gather your materials and try to think about why you did what you did from as many different perspectives as possible. Be able to defend your work knowing that no clinician is perfect and that there is always something you can learn or do better for the next client.