West-virginia ALPS Requirements: Hours, Exams & Step-by-Step Guide

In West Virginia, the Approved Licensed Professional Supervisor (ALPS) credential is the Board‑recognized status that allows an experienced Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), or since April 2026 a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT), to provide post‑graduate supervision for counselors working toward LPC licensure. The West Virginia Board of Examiners in Counseling (WVBEC) sets out specific experience and training requirements for this credential in its Licensing Rule (27CSR1, effective April 14, 2026) and on its ALPS page.

Below is a structured, step‑by‑step explanation of what the Board requires, with attention to the exact types of hours and experience involved.

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1. Understand the Relationship Between Licensure and ALPS

You must already be fully licensed to become an ALPS. The current rule states that "the professional supervisor shall be pre‑approved by the Board and shall provide post‑graduate degree supervision for applicants provided they are a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) or Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT)." (apps.sos.wv.gov) The Board's ALPS web page still quotes the older wording, which allowed only LPCs. (wvbec.org)

That means:

• ALPS is not a stand‑alone license.
• You first meet all requirements for LPC (or LMFT) licensure, then apply for the ALPS credential as an experienced licensee.

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2. Baseline: Post‑Degree Supervised Experience Your Supervisees Need

Before looking at ALPS itself, it helps to know the supervised hours that your future supervisees must meet to become LPCs in West Virginia, since you will monitor and sign off on them.

Supervisees now hold the Licensed Professional Counselor-Associate (LPCA) license, which replaced the provisional license in April 2026. Under 27CSR1 §27‑1‑6.2 and W. Va. Code §30‑31‑8, the minimum supervised experience for full LPC licensure is: (apps.sos.wv.gov)

• 3,000 total counseling activity hours after a master's (1,500 after a counseling doctorate), over at least two years (one year after a doctorate).
• Of those 3,000 hours, at least 1,500 hours must be direct provision of services to clients.
• About 150 hours of supervision with the ALPS (1 hour per 20 hours of practice).

The Board further specifies:

• For every 20 hours of practice, there must be at least 1 hour of direct supervision, in person or by secured, encrypted telecommunication.
• Supervision must be continuous; any gap of more than six weeks must be reported to the Board in writing within 30 days.
• If you are not a full‑time employee of the same practice or agency as the supervisee, supervision must occur at least twice in each calendar month.
• The pre‑2026 rule capped credit at 1,500 hours in a 12‑month period (about a 19‑month minimum). The April 2026 LPC rule no longer contains that cap, although the Board's Supervision FAQ page still mentions it along with supervision "every two weeks." (wvbec.org)

This "3,000/1,500/150" structure applies to associate licensees seeking LPC, not to the ALPS credential itself. For ALPS, the Board focuses instead on years of licensure and counseling experience and supervision‑training hours (see next sections).

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3. Core Eligibility Requirements for the ALPS Credential

The current rule and the WVBEC "Approved Licensed Professional Supervisor" page outline the main requirements. In summary, to qualify as an ALPS you must: (apps.sos.wv.gov)

1. Hold a full LPC or LMFT license

   • You must have been licensed at the highest level for at least two (2) years.
   • The rule's language: "the professional supervisor shall have been licensed at the highest level for a period of two (2) years and shall have had five (5) years counseling experience."

2. Have five (5) years of counseling experience

   • The Board's ALPS page defines this explicitly: five years of counseling experience is "any counseling experience, licensed or unlicensed, that can be documented."
   • The page adds that the license can be from West Virginia or another state, so long as the other state's LPC requirements are equal to or greater than West Virginia's, and out‑of‑state LPCs must include a copy of their current license with their ALPS application. (wvbec.org)

3. Demonstrate a stable employment history and broad counseling competence

   • The governing rule (Series 1) requires that the professional supervisor demonstrate:
     • A stable employment history, and
     • Skills necessary to address all core areas of practice as listed in the Board's rules and the ACA Code of Ethics. (apps.sos.wv.gov)

4. Complete formal training in clinical counseling supervision

   • You must show that you have completed Board‑approved training in counseling supervision, with content and experiences relevant to supervising counselors.
   • The Board's page states this in terms of years of counseling experience and supervision‑training contact hours (detailed in the next section).

5. Pass the Board's jurisprudence exam

   • New in the April 2026 rule: the supervisor must document that they have completed the jurisprudence exam. (apps.sos.wv.gov)

6. Submit a professional statement

   • You must provide the Board with a written statement detailing:
     • Your counseling philosophy,
     • Your supervision experience, and
     • Your counseling experience.
   • The Board provides specific instructions for this "Professional Statement" in the ALPS application packet. (wvbec.org)

7. Pay no application fee

   • The Board explicitly notes: "There is no fee associated with applying or becoming an Approved Licensed Professional Supervisor (ALPS)." (wvbec.org)

Once approved, an ALPS may not supervise more than four individual applicants, or up to eight in total with prior Board approval. (apps.sos.wv.gov)

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4. Supervision‑Training Hour Requirements for ALPS

Unlike the LPC supervised‑experience requirement (3,000/1,500/150 hours), the ALPS credential's hour‑based requirement focuses on contact hours of clinical supervision training, not on additional clinical practice hours. The rule itself only says "Board approved training"; the hour amounts below come from the Board's ALPS page.

The Board distinguishes between applicants with more than ten years of continuous counseling experience and those with less than ten years:

4.1. If you have more than 10 years of continuous counseling experience

• You must provide 15 contact hours in clinical counseling supervision. (wvbec.org)
• This can be met by:
  • One graduate course (1 semester hour) in clinical supervision (the Board counts 1 semester hour as 15 contact hours), or
  • 15 contact hours of continuing education in clinical counseling supervision from an approved provider.

4.2. If you have less than 10 years of continuous counseling experience

• You must provide 30 contact hours in clinical counseling supervision. (wvbec.org)
• This can be met by:
  • Two semester hours of graduate supervision coursework (for a total of 30 contact hours), or
  • 30 CE contact hours in clinical counseling supervision from approved providers, or
  • A combination of graduate coursework and CE, as long as the total documented content equals 30 clinical supervision contact hours.

4.3. Accepted forms of supervision training

The Board states that clinical supervision training can be: (wvbec.org)

• Graduate coursework from an accredited institution
  • 1 semester hour of coursework = 15 contact hours of continuing education
• Continuing education from an approved provider

The key point is that the ALPS credential does not require new counseling practice hours (e.g., 1,500 direct + 1,500 indirect) beyond the experience you already have. Instead, it requires:

• Five years of counseling experience (counted in years, not hours),
• Two years of licensure at the highest level,
• 15 or 30 contact hours of clinical supervision training, depending on your years of counseling experience, and
• The jurisprudence exam.

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5. How "Years of Counseling Experience" Are Defined (Not Hours)

The West Virginia Board does not convert the ALPS experience requirement into a specific number of clinical hours. Instead, it uses years and documentation:

• Five (5) years of counseling experience is defined as "any counseling experience, licensed or unlicensed, that can be documented." (wvbec.org)

Practically, this means:

• You will need to be able to document your counseling positions over at least a 5‑year span (e.g., employment verification, job descriptions, etc.).
• There is no separate ALPS requirement of "1,500 hours of direct experience and 1,500 hours of supervised experience."
  • That type of numeric breakdown applies to supervisees' LPC licensure (3,000 total hours, of which 1,500 must be direct, with about 150 hours of supervision). (apps.sos.wv.gov)
  • For ALPS, the Board cares that you have:
    • A sufficient duration of counseling experience (5 years),
    • A full LPC or LMFT license held at the highest level at least 2 years, and
    • Adequate formal training in supervision (15 or 30 contact hours) and the jurisprudence exam, rather than a specific new tally of clinical practice hours.

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6. Application Components for ALPS

While the Board's online ALPS page summarizes the requirements, the detailed steps and forms are in the ALPS application packet. Based on the Board's descriptions, you should expect to provide: (wvbec.org)

1. Completed ALPS application form(s)

   • Available from the WVBEC website.

2. Proof of licensure

   • Copy of your current license.
   • If you are licensed in another state and seeking ALPS recognition in WV, a copy of that state's license and evidence that the requirements are equivalent to or greater than WV's.

3. Documentation of counseling experience

   • Employment history demonstrating:
     • At least two years of licensure at the highest level, and
     • At least five years of counseling experience (licensed or unlicensed) that can be documented.

4. Documentation of supervision training hours

   • Certificates of completion or transcripts showing:
     • 15 contact hours in clinical counseling supervision (if you have more than 10 years of continuous counseling experience), or
     • 30 contact hours in clinical counseling supervision (if you have less than 10 years of continuous counseling experience). (wvbec.org)

5. Jurisprudence exam completion

   • Required by the April 2026 rule. (apps.sos.wv.gov)

6. Professional Statement

   • A narrative that addresses:
     • Your counseling philosophy,
     • Your supervision experience and approach, and
     • A summary of your counseling experience and areas of practice.

7. No fee

   • The Board explicitly states that there is no application fee for becoming an ALPS. (wvbec.org)

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7. Maintaining the ALPS Credential

Once you are recognized as an ALPS, you must meet ongoing continuing education (CE) requirements each license renewal cycle.

The WVBEC outlines the ALPS‑specific renewal requirement as: (wvbec.org)

• An ALPS must complete 3 continuing education hours in clinical counseling supervision for each license renewal period.
• These hours:
  • Can be counted within the 20 hours of allowed home‑study or formal programs that apply to the LPC's overall CE requirement.
  • Must be clearly identified as "clinical supervision" in the title or description of the program.
  • Must be from NBCC, ACA, or WVBEC‑approved providers.

You also continue to meet all standard renewal requirements (forms, total CE hours, and renewal fee), with these 3 supervision‑specific hours embedded in your CE plan.

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8. Summary of Key Quantitative Requirements

Putting the numeric pieces together:

To become an ALPS (supervisor):

• 2+ years licensed at the highest level as an LPC or LMFT in WV (or an equivalent state). (apps.sos.wv.gov)
• 5 years of documented counseling experience (licensed or unlicensed).
• 15 contact hours in clinical counseling supervision if you have more than 10 years of continuous counseling experience; 30 contact hours if you have less than 10 years. (wvbec.org)
• The Board's jurisprudence exam.
• 0 additional clinical practice hours are specified beyond those already required for your license; the Board does not list an ALPS‑specific breakdown like "1,500 direct / 1,500 indirect." The experience requirement is stated in years, not hours.
• Up to 4 supervisees at a time (up to 8 with prior Board approval).

For your supervisees (LPCAs on the path to LPC, under an ALPS):

• 3,000 total counseling activity hours under supervision, over at least 2 years.
• At least 1,500 hours must be direct client contact (50% of total).
• About 150 hours of supervision with an ALPS (at least 1 hour of direct supervision per 20 hours of practice, and at least twice a month if you are not a full‑time employee of their practice or agency). (apps.sos.wv.gov)

Those supervised‑experience numbers are what you, as an ALPS, will monitor and document for your supervisees; they are not additional hour requirements placed on you to obtain the ALPS credential.

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That is the structure of the West Virginia Board of Examiners in Counseling's requirements for becoming and maintaining status as an Approved Licensed Professional Supervisor (ALPS), with emphasis on how the Board defines experience in years versus contact hours of supervision training, and where the specific 3,000/1,500/150 hour figures apply.