How to Get Your Psychology License in Pennsylvania: 2026 Guide
Licensed psychologists in Pennsylvania earn an average of $85,903 annually as of May 2021. The path to licensure demands dedication and takes 6 to 10 years to complete. This career path offers both challenges and rewards.
The path to becoming a licensed psychologist requires a doctoral degree, supervised experience, and successful completion of specific exams. The Pennsylvania State Board of Psychology maintains strict professional standards and oversees the licensing process. The field shows strong potential with clinical, counseling, and school psychologist positions expected to grow 6% annually through 2034.
This detailed guide explains each step you need to take for licensure. You’ll learn about educational requirements, application procedures, and continuing education needs. Understanding these steps will help you direct your path to becoming a licensed psychologist in Pennsylvania more effectively.
Educational Pathways
Your experience to get a psychology license in Pennsylvania starts with a bachelor’s degree. Students typically complete 120 semester credit hours over four years. A psychology major builds the strongest foundation. Related fields like sociology or criminal justice can work as starting points too. Students from non-psychology backgrounds should complete prerequisite courses before moving to graduate studies.
After finishing your undergraduate degree, you can choose between two paths. You might pursue a standalone master’s degree or apply straight to doctoral programs that include master’s-level work. Master’s programs need 30 to 40 credit hours and take about two years. Most future psychologists choose clinical or counseling psychology at this stage.
Doctoral Degree Requirements
A doctoral degree is the foundation of your educational experience. The Pennsylvania State Board of Psychology accepts two main doctorate options:
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Psychology – focuses more on research
- Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) – emphasizes practical application
Your doctoral program must meet strict accreditation standards. The program needs accreditation from the American Psychological Association (APA), the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA), or designation by the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards (ASPPB). On top of that, candidates who enrolled before July 1, 2008, might face different standards.
Doctoral programs usually take four to seven years, though timelines vary by program structure and research needs. West Chester University’s PsyD program runs on a five-year schedule: four years of full-time study plus one year of internship, adding up to 99 semester hours minimum.
Clinical Training Integration
Clinical experience weaves through your educational requirements. Your doctoral program requires supervised clinical experience – usually 1,500 hours or more. Programs with APA-approved formal internships need 2,000 supervised hours.
Pennsylvania has several outstanding clinical psychology programs. The University of Pennsylvania’s clinical training program focuses on creating expert psychological scientists rather than just expert clinicians. This program stands out – their core clinical psychology faculty ranks first among 157 university-based, APA-accredited programs.
The Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s PsyD program uses the local clinical scientist model to connect psychological science with real-life practice. They accept about 15 students each year in their intensive five-year program, which offers focused faculty support.
The path to licensure in Pennsylvania takes eight to twelve years, depending on your specialty and pace. Your coursework and clinical experiences should match the state board’s licensure requirements.
After completing your education, you must send official transcripts from your institution to the Pennsylvania Board, along with records of your pre-doctoral supervised experiences. This complete educational foundation prepares you for the next steps toward licensure, including supervised experience and examination requirements.
Supervised Experience Requirements
You’ll need to complete supervised experience requirements after your doctoral program to qualify for a Pennsylvania license. The state board requires one year of acceptable postdoctoral supervised experience. This means you must complete at least 12 months with 1,750 hours of professional practice.
Weekly Hour Requirements and Timeframe
The state has specific rules about scheduling your supervised experience. You can log between 15 and 45 hours each week toward your requirements. You should complete all required hours within 10 calendar years from when you received your doctoral degree. The Pennsylvania State Board of Psychology might grant you a written waiver if medical issues or hardship prevent you from meeting this timeline.
Experience Components
You’ll need to spend half of your required hours (875 hours) on these activities:
- Diagnosis and assessment
- Therapy and other interventions
- Supervision or consultation
- Receiving supervision or consultation
The other 875 hours can include teaching psychology programs, doing psychological research, or adding more hours to the activities listed above.
You can work at multiple locations at the same time if you meet these requirements:
- You spend at least 6 consecutive months at each place
- You work at least 15 hours weekly at each location
- Your total weekly hours across all places stays under 45 hours
- Each experience follows supervision requirements
Supervision Structure
A primary supervisor must oversee all your experience hours. Each location needs its own primary supervisor if you’re working at multiple places. Your primary supervisor can let another qualified professional handle up to one hour of weekly supervision, but they’re still responsible for your hours.
The state might count your supervised clinical experience from another state toward Pennsylvania requirements if it meets state standards.
Sometimes standard supervision requirements don’t fit your situation. You can ask the board to look at a detailed written supervision plan. They’ll assess your case and decide whether to approve your plan.
After finishing your supervised hours, you can keep practicing psychology under a licensed psychologist’s supervision until you get your license. This follows Pennsylvania’s rules for employing and supervising unlicensed psychology graduates.
Many places offer postdoctoral fellowships, like the University of Pennsylvania. These programs give you the two hours of individual supervision each week that you need for Pennsylvania licensure.
Licensing Examinations
Getting your Pennsylvania psychology license requires passing two exams. The Pennsylvania State Board of Psychology requires you to clear both the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP) and the Pennsylvania Psychology Law Examination (PPLE).
The Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards created the EPPP as a national exam. This detailed assessment has 225 multiple-choice questions that cover psychology domains of all types. You get 4 hours and 15 minutes to finish this computer-based test at Prometric testing centers across the country. The exam costs $600, which you must pay after getting authorization. You’ll receive an Authorization to Test (ATT) after registration that gives you 60 days to schedule and take your exam.
The EPPP tests these key areas:
- Biological and cognitive-affective bases of behavior
- Social and cultural influences
- Lifespan development
- Assessment, diagnosis, and treatment methods
- Professional ethics
After clearing the EPPP, you’ll face the Pennsylvania Psychology Law Examination. The PPLE tests your knowledge of state-specific legal and ethical requirements for psychology practice. You need a scaled score of 75% to pass this one-hour exam with 30 multiple-choice questions. You can pay the $225 exam fee using a credit card, debit card, or electronic check.
The PPLE takes place at Pearson VUE testing facilities, and you’ll need to book it through their online system. So, you should arrive 30 minutes early with two valid IDs – a government-issued photo ID with signature and another ID with signature.
Keep in mind that you must contact the testing provider 48 hours before your scheduled time to reschedule either exam. Your fee won’t be refunded if you miss this window. On top of that, it’s possible to request accommodations if you have documented disabilities affecting test performance.
Failed the exam? You’ll need to wait six months before trying again. The waiting time drops to 60 days for later attempts. All the same, you can only take the exam four times within a 12-month period.
The Pennsylvania State Board of Psychology manages the exam process to ensure candidates meet professional standards. Once you pass both exams, you can move forward with the final steps of your license application.
Application & Licensure Process
The final step to get your Pennsylvania psychology license involves submitting a formal application to the state board after completing your education, supervised experience, and examinations. You’ll need to submit everything through the Pennsylvania Licensing System (PALS) online portal.
You must register for PALS access and submit your completed application form with a non-refundable fee of $105.00. Your application should include these complete documents to verify your qualifications:
- Official transcripts sent directly from your educational institution
- Documentation of pre-doctoral supervised experiences with job descriptions
- Proof of completed post-doctoral supervised hours
- Criminal background check from the Pennsylvania State Police (dated within 90-180 days)
- Child abuse history clearance from the PA Department of Human Services (dated within 90 days)
- National Practitioner Data Bank self-query report
- Letter of Good Standing if applicable
The board reviews your materials and grants your psychology license once all requirements are met. You must complete 3 hours of board-approved continuing education in child abuse recognition and reporting for your original license.
Pennsylvania offers two paths to licensure for psychologists licensed in other jurisdictions. Licensure by endorsement might exempt you from retaking the EPPP if you have a current license from a state with equivalent requirements. Act 41 provides another option for out-of-state licensees who:
- Hold an active license in good standing
- Have no disciplinary actions or criminal convictions
- Have practiced professionally for at least 2 of the past 5 years
- Come from a jurisdiction with equivalent licensing requirements
Pennsylvania also participates in the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact (PSYPACT). This allows licensed psychologists from member states to practice telepsychology or conduct temporary in-person practice across state boundaries without additional licenses. We have a long way to go, but we can build on this progress as the technical implementation continues. Applications should open in late summer or early fall 2025.
Your license needs renewal every two years with a fee of $300.00. The board’s website offers dedicated assistance if you have questions about the application process or need technical support with PALS.
Continuing Education
You need to complete ongoing professional development through continuing education (CE) to keep your psychology license active in Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania State Board of Psychology requires 30 hours of acceptable continuing education during each biennial renewal period. Your biennial cycle starts December 1 of an odd-numbered year and ends November 30 of the next odd-numbered year.
These 30 required hours must include:
- At least 3 hours in ethics
- Minimum of 1 hour in suicide prevention
- At least 2 hours in child abuse recognition and reporting
You can’t use carryover hours from previous renewal periods to meet the ethics requirement. The suicide prevention credits also can’t count toward your ethics requirement.
Your CE activities must come from board-approved sponsors to count toward requirements. These sponsors include:
- Accredited colleges or universities (courses must relate to psychology practice)
- The American Psychological Association (APA) and APA-approved sponsors
- American Medical Association-approved sponsors (programs must relate to psychology)
Your certificates of attendance need your name, course date, number of CE hours earned, and proof that an approved sponsor offered the course. You should keep these records for at least two bienniums (four years).
The state gives you flexibility to complete your continuing education requirements. You can finish up to 15 hours through home study courses from approved sponsors. The board treats webinars as home study unless you can interact with the instructor immediately.
On top of that, you can earn CE credit through professional activities:
- Teaching psychology courses at accredited colleges/universities (15 hours maximum)
- Conducting workshops for approved sponsors (15 hours maximum)
- Publishing articles in journals abstracted in PsycINFO or chapters in psychology textbooks (10 hours maximum)
You can carry over up to 10 extra hours to the next biennium if you complete more than 30 hours. This doesn’t apply to ethics credits and child abuse recognition hours.
New psychologists get some exemptions from CE requirements. You don’t need to complete the 30-hour requirement if you got your license within two years of your first biennial renewal. However, you still must complete the mandatory 2 hours in child abuse recognition and reporting.
The renewal deadline falls on November 30th of each odd year. You’ll need to verify your completed continuing education through the online renewal system.
Special State Variations
Pennsylvania stands out from other states by requiring a doctorate degree for psychology licensure. This requirement reflects PA license requirements and shows the state’s dedication to excellence in the field.
Licensed psychologists from other states can practice temporarily in Pennsylvania while seeking state licensure. The state charges $105.00 for both standard and reciprocity applications. Applicants need their current license proof, educational records, and must pass the Pennsylvania Psychology Law Examination.
The Pennsylvania state board of psychology has specific rules for professionals from other fields who do psychology-related work. These professionals can perform psychological work that matches their training and ethics codes, according to Section 3(3) of the Professional Psychologists Practice Act. The Board looks at four key factors:
- The profession must have its own theoretical knowledge base that differs from psychology
- The group must control entry through knowledge standards
- The profession must follow ethical standards
- The group must show professional activities like journals, conferences, and continuing education
Pennsylvania takes a unique approach to substance abuse services. Licensed psychologists who provide these treatments don’t need additional Department of Health licensing. This rule applies to both individual practitioners and group practices. Psychology trainees and unlicensed staff with graduate training can also provide these services under proper supervision.
Pennsylvania moves closer to joining the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact (PSYPACT), with the Senate already voting 45-5 in favor as of July 2025. This agreement lets qualified psychologists work across state lines without extra licenses. Pennsylvania practitioners could soon find exciting new opportunities through this program.