Oregon Psychology Licensure Requirements
Those wishing to become practicing psychologists within the state of Oregon will need to apply for licensure through the Oregon Board of Psychology (the Board). For approval, candidates must follow several state-specific guidelines. They will need a doctorate in psychology with an included practicum and internship, additional postdoctoral residency experience, and to pass the required exams. This guide is designed to help you understand how to navigate this complicated process.
Table of Contents
- How to Become a Licensed Psychologist
- Licensure by Reciprocity
- License Renewal and Continuing Education
- Related Licenses
- Jobs and Salary Information
- Additional Resources
- Frequently Asked Questions
How to Become a Psychologist in Oregon
1. Earn a bachelor’s degree and (optionally) a master’s degree in psychology.
Those hoping to practice as psychologists in the state of Oregon will first need to earn their bachelor’s degree in psychology or a related field. A bachelor’s will typically take four years of full-time study and 120 credit hours to complete. Keep in mind that if your bachelor’s degree is not in psychology, you may be required to complete prerequisite coursework before entering a graduate program.
After you have finished your bachelor’s degree, you may wish to complete a stand-alone master’s degree. Master’s degrees in psychology generally take two to three years to complete and require between 30 to 40 credit hours. Master’s can either be completed as stand-alone degrees or as part of the thesis portion of a doctorate and earned along with a PsyD or PhD in psychology. If you are interested in practicing in Oregon at the master’s level, you may be interested in the associate psychologist license that requires a master’s degree in psychology.
2. Earn a doctoral degree in psychology.
Those seeking licensure in Oregon state must have a doctoral degree in psychology, which can be either a Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) or a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD). You can read about the differences between the two degrees on our home page. To qualify for licensure in Oregon, the doctoral program you choose should have either American Psychological Association (APA) or Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) accreditation or be regionally accredited or provincially/territorially chartered.
The program should require at least three full years of study with one 12-month or two back-to-back semesters of in-residence in which students are physically present at the degree-granting institution. Programs must also provide clinical psychology coursework and at least 18 semester hours in the areas of personality and intellectual assessment, diagnosis, therapeutic intervention, and evaluation of the intervention. Doctoral programs should also include a practicum of at least 300 hours over a minimum of two semesters as well as 1,500 or more hours of supervised internship experience within the span of 24 months. At least 25% of internship hours must be spent in direct client contact. For every 40 hours, students must have two hours of face-to-face supervision on direct psychological services and two hours of other activities such as co-therapy sessions with staff, seminars, or case conferences.
Discover psychology schools in Oregon where you can meet your degree requirements.
3. Submit application documents and references to the Board.
Some documents, references, and a background check (with fingerprinting) may be sent to the Board before the submission of an application. Candidates can begin sending in these materials as soon as six months prior to graduation, but not before. For applications to be considered complete, the Board must receive three professional reference forms from colleagues willing to confirm professional behavior and the ability to practice in the field of psychology; a transcript with dates degrees were conferred; and a University Director of Training Reference form; in addition to the online application.
Individuals who completed programs without APA or CPA accreditation must also send in a University Accreditation form, Education Record in Psychology form, and Internship Site Director Reference form. Applicants must pay a non-refundable $371.25 fee with their applications, which includes the cost of a background check. Payment must be made with the submission of the online application.
If all accompanying documentation has been sent in addition to the application and fee, the review process will begin. Those who wish to track the status of their applications may do so by logging into the Applicant Portal. The review should take approximately two weeks, after which applicants will be notified if they have gained approval. Following approval, psychology candidates can request to take the required exams as well as approval for a residency contract.
4. Gain one year of supervised experience in your area of training.
A Psychologist Resident Supervision Contract must be submitted and approved by the Board for those pursuing their postdoctoral supervised work experience in Oregon. Although it may be submitted before application approval, residency contracts will not be granted until afterward. It is important to note that beginning residency requirements and practicing psychology without a contract is illegal, so these hours will not count and individuals may be sanctioned by the Board.
Following approval, the supervised postdoctoral experience must meet several requirements in order to be valid. It must include at a minimum of 1,500 hours and last no fewer than 12 full months. It must also not exceed two years following contract approval. Those in supervisory roles must be licensed with at least two years of professional experience and meet with trainees face-to-face for one or more hours of individual supervision for each one to twenty hours in a work week. Over 20 hours during a week will require two hours of supervision, either individually or one individual and one in a group.
Those completing their residency should maintain an up-to-date Record of Supervised Hours form and submit it following hours completion. A Final Resident Evaluation form and Final Supervisor Evaluation form signed by the relevant parties will also be required after the residency is over. These forms must be submitted within 30 days of the contract end date.
5. Pass the Oregon psychology licensing exams.
Exams required for those seeking psychology licensure in Oregon state include the Board-administered jurisprudence exam and the ASPPB Examination for the Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP). A written request to take the EPPP must be sent to the Board by either mail, email, or fax and an email with registration information will be sent following confirmation of eligibility. A scaled score of 500 is considered passing. The Oregon Jurisprudence Exam (OJE) can be taken before, during, or after the completion of your supervised work experience and either before or after the EPPP. Passing scores vary based on score distribution and candidates will be notified of their results within seven to 10 days of the exam. A Candidate Handbook can be found on the Board’s website. Candidates must complete both tests and all experience to become licensed within two years of receiving application approval.
6. Receive your psychology license from the Board.
Licenses will be granted a few days to a week after the last remaining requirement is met and the Board will send out both a scanned copy via email and a hard copy by regular mail.
Oregon Licensure by Endorsement
Those applying for licensure by endorsement will complete an online application. . All applicants will need to submit Endorsement Reference forms and a Verification of Health Care License/Registration form. Those who have maintained an active psychologist license for fewer than 15 years will also need to submit a Supervisor Reference form. Additional forms are available through the online. A fee of $371.25 is required.
EPPP score verification will be necessary for those with fewer than 15 years of experience and these individuals will also be required to meet the same postdoctoral supervised work experience as regular licensure candidates. Those with 15 or more years of practice will not be required to send EPPP score verification and are also exempt from post-doc hour requirements.
Once the office has the application and any additional paperwork the review process will begin. This should take two weeks or fewer, after which a notification of approval will be sent. Applicants can then take the jurisprudence exam before their license is confirmed.
License Renewal and Continuing Education
Psychologists with an even-numbered license will need to renew it in odd years, and those with an odd-numbered license will renew it in even years using the license portal. Renewal deadlines are the last day of a licensee’s birth month and notices for renewal will be sent out a minimum of six weeks beforehand. Those who cannot find their renewal notices may fill out a Replacement Renewal Notice and Affidavit online. Renewal fees are $784 and psychologists must provide a healthcare workforce data survey and associated fee as well.
In the Renewal Notice and Affidavit, psychologists will confirm they have met all continuing education requirements and disclose any felony, criminal, or discipline history. 40 credits of continuing education (CE) should be completed within the two years before license renewal, including four hours in ethics and/or laws and regulations concerning psychology in the state of Oregon. There is a continuous requirement of four hours of cultural competency and a one-time requirement of seven hours in pain management as well. Extra CE hours cannot be applied to the next period. Further information on CE is outlined in the Oregon Board of Psychologist Examiners Continuing Education Overview.
Related Licenses
Psychologist Associate
Those who wish to practice psychology without a doctoral degree can work as psychologist associates to test mental abilities, assess personalities, and counsel others while under periods of direct supervision by a licensed psychologist. Associate psychologists in Oregon state must have a master’s in psychology from a regionally-accredited or provincially or territorially chartered educational institution. To qualify, programs should require at least a one-year residency. A Psychologist Resident Supervision Contract is required to begin working as an associate psychologist. Resident Supervision Contracts are good for a period of four years but may be extended by the Board by request.
Associate psychologists also need three years (4,500 hours) of required postgraduate supervised work experience gained while under a resident supervision contract approved by the Board. Candidates for associate psychologist licensure will need to fill out an online application, submit accompanying materials, and pay the fee.
School Psychologist
The Oregon Teacher Standards and Practices Commission (TSPC) regulates the profession of school psychology in the state. To be eligible for a preliminary school psychologist license (valid for Pre-K to grade 12), applicants must have a master’s degree and have completed a school psychology program. The preliminary license is good for three years. A professional license is good for five years and requires a related doctoral degree or certification by the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), as well as five years of at least half-time experience in school psychology.
Oklahoma Psychologist Jobs and Salary Information
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), psychologists in Oregon, excluding educators, earned an average annual salary of $109,070 as of May 2021, while psychology postsecondary teachers earned an annual mean wage of $98,920.1 Oregon is the second-highest paying state for “all other” psychologists and the third-highest paying state for clinical and counseling psychologists.2,3 The long-term data available from Projections Central predicts that psychologist jobs (excluding educator jobs) in the state will grow by 18.47% by the year 2030.4 Industrial-organizational psychologist jobs are expected to increase the most during this time period, at an estimated 33.3% growth.4
| Occupation | Number Employed1 | Average Annual Salary1 |
|---|---|---|
| Clinical and Counseling Psychologists | 850 | $126,230 |
| Industrial-Organizational Psychologists | 50 | $110,840 |
| Psychologists, All Other | 230 | $112,570 |
| Psychology Teachers, Postsecondary | 280 | $98,920 |
| School Psychologists | 720 | $86,640 |
Additional Resources
- Central Oregon Association of Psychologists (COAP): Helps psychologists meet their continued professional development requirements,providing a combination of research, academic, and other types of activities for this purpose.
- Oregon Psychological Association (OPA): Promotes the science and application of psychology for the benefit of its members and the general public, and works to advocate for those in the profession on a local, state, and national level.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to become a psychologist in Oregon?
An undergraduate degree in Oregon typically takes four years, and a master’s degree can take two to three years. State requirements mandate that doctoral programs last a minimum of three years of full-time study, but those that combine master’s degrees will be longer. In addition to this, there is a required one year of postdoctoral residency for licensure. It will likely take over 10 years for most individuals to gain their psychology licensure in the state of Oregon.
What degree do I need to be a licensed psychologist in Oregon?
To be a licensed psychologist in Oregon, you will need a doctorate degree in psychology. The program must be accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA), the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA), or have regional accreditation and an open application for APA or CPA approval. Programs with only regional accreditation may be approved as well as long as they meet a long list of Board-mandated standards.
How much do psychologists in Oregon make?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported the average annual salary for psychologists (excluding educators) in Oregon was $109,070 a year as of May 2021 and $73,930 for psychology postsecondary teachers.1
References:
1. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics, May 2021 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates, Oregon: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_or.htm
2. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021, Psychologists, All Other: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes193039.htm
3. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021, Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychologists: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes193033.htm
4. Projections Central, Long Term Occupational Projections: https://projectionscentral.org/Projections/LongTerm