Arizona STL Requirements & Hours Tracker

Arizona’s Supervised Temporary License (STL) for psychologists is a supervised postdoctoral license created under A.R.S. § 32‑2073 and detailed in Arizona Administrative Code (A.A.C.) R4‑26‑203.04. It allows a postdoctoral trainee to practice psychology in Arizona only under supervision while finishing the supervised experience and examination requirements for independent psychologist licensure. (psychboard.az.gov)

Below is a structured guide focused specifically on what the Arizona Board of Psychologist Examiners requires in terms of hours and supervision.

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1. Big‑picture structure of required hours

Arizona’s psychologist licensure law is built around 3,000 total hours of supervised professional experience (SPE): (az.elaws.us)

• Total for independent licensure: 3,000 hours supervised
  • At least 1,500 hours must be predoctoral internship hours that meet A.R.S. § 32‑2071(F).
  • The remaining 1,500 hours may be any combination of:
    • qualifying preinternship/practicum hours,
    • additional internship hours, and/or
    • qualifying postdoctoral supervised hours under § 32‑2071(G).

The Supervised Temporary License (STL) sits inside this system:

• To obtain an STL, you do not yet need all 3,000 hours.
• You must:
  1. Have completed 1,500 internship hours that qualify under § 32‑2071(F). (psychboard.az.gov)
  2. Be participating in a supervised postdoctoral professional experience that meets § 32‑2071(G), with a written training plan. (regulations.justia.com)

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2. Core eligibility requirements for the STL

2.1 Education

You must have completed the educational requirements in A.R.S. § 32‑2071(A)–(C), which in practical terms means: (az.elaws.us)

• A doctoral degree in an applied psychology field (clinical, counseling, school/educational, or another Board‑acceptable applied specialty).
• From a regionally accredited institution.
• With specified core coursework (ethics, research, biological, cognitive‑affective, social bases of behavior, individual differences, assessment, treatment modalities).

The STL is only for postdoctoral trainees; it is not available if your highest degree is a master’s. (psychboard.az.gov)

2.2 Minimum internship hours completed

For an STL, the Board requires verification that you have already completed at least 1,500 hours of internship that: (psychboard.az.gov)

• Total ≥ 1,500 internship hours, and
• Were completed within 24 consecutive months, and
• Meet all internship criteria in A.R.S. § 32‑2071(F) and the related rules.

The Board emphasizes that internships must meet every statutory and rule‑based requirement; if even one is missing, the internship cannot be approved for licensure in Arizona and application fees are non‑refundable. (psychboard.az.gov)

2.3 Participation in a qualifying postdoctoral experience

At the time you apply for an STL, you must already be enrolled in and participating in a supervised postdoctoral professional experience that meets A.R.S. § 32‑2071(G). (psychboard.az.gov)

This supervised postdoctoral experience must have a written training plan from the site that, at minimum, specifies: (regulations.justia.com)

• The goals and content of each training experience
• Expectations for the nature, quality, and quantity of your work
• How you and the training experience will be evaluated
• Total number of hours to be accrued
• Total face‑to‑face client/patient contact hours planned
• Total supervision hours you are to receive
• Qualifications of all supervisors (and documentation that they meet § 32‑2071(G))
• An acknowledgment that ethics training is included in the training experience

2.4 EPPP linkage

The STL application can be combined with a request for approval to sit for the EPPP. The Board uses a minimum scaled score of 500 on the EPPP Part 1 (Knowledge) as the pass point; Part 2 (Skills) is not currently required. (psychboard.az.gov)

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3. How the Board defines and breaks down the 1,500 internship hours

Under A.R.S. § 32‑2071(F), your 1,500 internship hours (which are mandatory both for STL and independent licensure) must be a planned, organized training program that satisfies several quantitative conditions. (az.elaws.us)

3.1 Total hours and timeframe

• Total required internship hours: 1,500 hours of supervised professional experience in an internship or equivalent training program.
• Time limit: Those 1,500 hours must be completed within 24 consecutive months. (az.elaws.us)

3.2 Direct client/patient contact within the 1,500 hours

The statute requires that internship training: (az.elaws.us)

• Includes a range of assessment, consultation and treatment activities conducted directly with clients or patients; and
• Ensures that at least 25% of the trainee’s supervised professional experience hours are in direct client or patient contact.

In practical numeric terms, if you complete exactly 1,500 internship hours, the minimum direct contact requirement is:

• ≥ 375 hours of direct client/patient contact, and
• Up to 1,125 hours of other qualifying psychological service‑related activities, supervision, documentation, and structured learning experiences.

3.3 Required supervision and didactic activities in internship

For the internship hours to count under § 32‑2071(F), all of the following must be built into the program: (az.elaws.us)

• Supervising staff

  • Internship must provide at least two psychologists on staff as supervisors,
  • At least one psychologist is independently licensed in the jurisdiction where the internship exists, and
  • At least one supervisor is directly available in emergencies.

• Clinical supervision structure

  • At least half of the supervision must be provided by one or more psychologists.
  • Minimum supervision intensity:
    • ≥ 1 hour of individual, in‑person supervision for every 20 internship hours of experience.
    • Plus at least 2 additional hours per week in other learning activities.
  • Other learning activities may include case conferences, seminars on clinical issues, group supervision, co‑therapy with discussion, or additional individual supervision. (law.cornell.edu)

If you conceptualize a full‑time 40‑hour‑per‑week internship:

• 40 hours/week → ≥ 2 hours/week of individual supervision

• Plus ≥ 2 hours/week of group or didactic activities,

• Which, over roughly 37.5 weeks (~1,500 hours), yields on the order of 75+ hours of 1:1 supervision and 75+ hours of other structured learning, assuming the minimums.

• Peer interaction and trainee status

  • The program must include interaction with other psychology trainees;
  • Trainees must use a title that clearly designates trainee status (e.g., “psychology intern”);
  • The training site must provide a written statement of goals, content, and expectations for the internship at or before the time you began. (az.elaws.us)

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4. Requirements for the postdoctoral supervised experience linked to the STL

While the STL only requires that you be participating in a qualifying postdoctoral experience, that experience itself has legally defined hour and content requirements because it is intended to satisfy some or all of the remaining 1,500 hours for independent licensure. (az.elaws.us)

Key quantitative rules for postdoctoral supervised professional experience under A.R.S. § 32‑2071(G) and A.A.C. R4‑26‑210 include:

4.1 Maximum hours counted toward licensure

• For licensure, the Board will count no more than 1,500 hours of postdoctoral supervised experience.
• You may complete more than 1,500 hours in reality, but hours beyond 1,500 will not be credited toward the 3,000‑hour requirement. (az.elaws.us)

4.2 Distribution of postdoctoral hours (direct vs other)

Under § 32‑2071(G)(5) and R4‑26‑210(C): (az.elaws.us)

• At least 40% of postdoctoral supervised experience must be direct client/patient contact.
• If your postdoc hours submitted for licensure have less than 40% direct contact, you must work additional direct hours until the 40% threshold is met; the Board will still cap total countable postdoc hours at 1,500.

If you complete the full 1,500 postdoctoral hours and want all of them to count toward licensure, a compliant distribution would look like approximately:

• ≥ 600 hours direct client/patient contact (40% of 1,500), and
• Up to 900 hours in other clinical, administrative, and educational activities (documentation, consultation, didactics, etc.).

4.3 Postdoctoral supervision requirements

For the supervised postdoctoral experience used with an STL and later for licensure: (az.elaws.us)

• Supervisor qualifications

  • Supervisor must be a psychologist licensed or certified at the independent level in the jurisdiction where supervision occurs (or a qualifying full‑time active‑duty military psychologist).
  • Supervisor must have at least two years of independent licensure and be competent in the relevant areas of practice.

• Supervisor responsibilities

  • Takes full legal responsibility for client welfare, diagnosis, intervention, and outcomes.
  • Ensures clients are informed of your training status and may meet with the supervisor on request.
  • Ensures records are maintained and identifies the supervisor as the custodian of record access.
  • Provides emergency consultation coverage.

• Intensity and format of supervision

  • At least 1 hour of individual, in‑person supervision for every 20 hours of supervised postdoctoral experience.
  • At least 40% of your time must be direct client/patient contact.
  • The entire postdoctoral supervised experience must be completed within 36 consecutive months.

The written training plan for the postdoc (which must be submitted with the STL application) must spell out the planned total hours, direct contact hours, supervision hours, goals, methods of evaluation, supervisor qualifications, and inclusion of ethics training, as noted in R4‑26‑203.04(B)(2) and R4‑26‑210(D). (regulations.justia.com)

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5. Overall supervised experience math for an STL holder

Putting the Board’s requirements together, a typical STL‑to‑licensure pathway looks like this:

1. Before the STL is issued

   • You already have:
     • ≥ 1,500 internship hours meeting § 32‑2071(F), including:
       • ≥ 25% direct client/patient contact (≈ 375+ hours if you have exactly 1,500), and
       • Required supervision (1 hour individual supervision per 20 hours; ongoing didactic activities). (az.elaws.us)
   • You are enrolled in a postdoctoral supervised professional experience with a Board‑compliant written training plan. (regulations.justia.com)

2. During the STL period (up to 36 months, non‑renewable) (regulations.justia.com)

   • You continue accruing postdoctoral supervised experience hours toward the remaining 1,500 hours needed to reach 3,000 total for independent licensure.
   • These postdoc hours must be structured so that:
     • At least 40% of your time is direct client/patient contact;
     • You receive ≥ 1 hour of individual supervision per 20 hours; and
     • All postdoc hours to be counted are finished within a 36‑month window. (az.elaws.us)

3. For independent psychologist licensure

   • Once you have:
     • A qualifying doctoral degree,
     • Passing EPPP score, and
     • 3,000 total supervised hours in the allowed mix (internship + preinternship/additional internship/postdoc) meeting all statutory and rule requirements,
   • you apply separately for independent licensure using the standard Psychologist Application for Exam and/or Licensure (or applicable pathway). The STL itself does not convert to an independent license; a new application is always required. (psychboard.az.gov)

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6. Application materials and practice limitations specific to the STL

6.1 Application contents most relevant to hours

For the Supervised Temporary License application, the Board requires (among other items): (psychboard.az.gov)

• Completed online STL application and $200 non‑refundable fee
• PDF copy of the postdoctoral written training plan meeting A.A.C. R4‑26‑203.04(B)(2) and A.R.S. § 32‑2071(G)(7) (with goals, total hours, direct contact hours, supervision hours, etc.)
• Verification of internship:
  • Internship verification form from your supervisor or custodian of records, sent directly to the Board,
  • Demonstrating ≥ 1,500 internship hours completed within 24 consecutive months, satisfying all requirements of § 32‑2071(F).
• Official transcripts from all graduate institutions.
• Verification of any other professional licenses ever held.
• Two psychologist references familiar with your recent professional or postdoctoral work.

The Board stresses that all supervised experience verifications must use Arizona’s own forms and must come directly from verifiers; verifications from other states or older applications do not transfer. (psychboard.az.gov)

6.2 Practice restrictions while holding an STL

Under A.A.C. R4‑26‑203.04: (regulations.justia.com)

• The STL holder may only practice psychology under supervision.
• Practicing psychology without supervision while holding an STL is defined as unprofessional conduct.
• The STL holder may only practice within the postdoctoral experience described in the approved training plan.
• The STL is valid for 36 months from issuance and cannot be renewed. If the Board later denies independent licensure, the STL ends at the time of denial.

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7. How “hours” are categorized, in plain language

Using the Board’s definitions and numbers, you can think of your path to Arizona licensure via STL as:

• Internship (minimum 1,500 hours, required before STL)

  • At least 375 hours: direct, face‑to‑face clinical service to clients/patients (25% of 1,500).
  • Roughly 75+ hours: individual supervision (≥ 1 hour per 20 hours).
  • Roughly 75+ hours: formal learning activities (case conferences, seminars, group supervision, etc.).
  • Remaining hours: assessment, treatment, consultation, documentation, and other supervised service activities.

• Postdoctoral experience (up to 1,500 hours counted toward licensure, occurring while you hold the STL)

  • At least 600 hours: direct client/patient contact (40% of 1,500).
  • Roughly 75+ hours: individual supervision (≥ 1 hour per 20 hours).
  • Remaining hours: other qualifying professional and educational activities outlined in your training plan.

• Total for independent license

  • 3,000 supervised hours, with at least 1,500 internship hours and up to 1,500 more drawn from preinternship, additional internship, and/or postdoctoral experiences, all meeting Arizona’s detailed statutory and rule‑based standards. (az.elaws.us)

This framework is the basis on which the Arizona Board evaluates STL applications and, later, applications for full psychologist licensure.