How to Serve as a Clinical Supervisor in Texas as a Licensed Psychologist

Are you a Texas psychologist wondering how to serve as a supervisor for trainees or provisionally licensed psychologists? In Texas, clinical supervisor requirements for Licensed Psychologists (LPs) are clearly defined by the state board. This comprehensive guide breaks down the Texas clinical supervisor requirements, ongoing CE obligations, pitfalls to avoid, and how you can meet your training needs with the Telehealth Certification Institute (TCI).

✅ Supervisor Eligibility Requirements in Texas

To serve as a clinical supervisor for someone working toward licensure as a Licensed Psychologist in Texas (e.g. interns, residents, fellows, or Provisionally Licensed Psychologists [PLPs]), you must meet specific criteria set by the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC) under Board Rule 22 TAC §465.2. Below is a clear breakdown of who qualifies to supervise and under what conditions, according to Texas regulations:

• Must Be a Qualified Supervising Licensee: Texas rules require that any unlicensed person providing psychological services (such as a trainee or PLP) “must be under the supervision of a qualified supervising licensee at all times”. In practical terms, this means you must hold a valid Texas psychologist license in good standing (meeting all board standards) to supervise someone pursuing LP licensure.

• No Restricted License (Disciplinary Status): You cannot supervise if your psychologist license is on a restricted status due to a board order or disciplinary action – unless expressly authorized by the Council. According to the code, “a licensee practicing under a restricted status license is not qualified to... provide supervision” for licensure purposes. If you are on probation, under supervision yourself, or have practice limitations, you must disclose this to any current supervisees and help them find alternate supervision (22 TAC §465.2(b)(3)).

• Cannot Be Related to the Supervisee: Texas prohibits nepotism in supervision. You may not supervise anyone who is related to you within the second degree by blood or marriage. In the board’s words, “licensees may not supervise an individual to whom they are related within the second degree of affinity or consanguinity”. Essentially, this rule disqualifies close family members (e.g. your spouse, child, sibling, grandparent, in-law) from being your supervisee, ensuring objectivity in the supervisory relationship (22 TAC §465.2(b)(6)).

• Must Document Supervisee’s Performance in Writing: For any practicum, internship, or postdoctoral supervision to count toward licensure, you are required to document the supervisee’s performance in writing and provide this documentation to the supervisee. This typically means completing formal evaluation forms or written progress reports during the supervision period. Proper documentation is critical – your supervisee will need it when they apply for licensure to prove their hours and competence. Failing to supply written evaluations can result in those hours not being accepted by the board (22 TAC §465.2(b)(4)).

• May Allow Supervisee to Supervise Others (with Limits): Texas does allow a “train-the-trainer” scenario in certain settings. As a supervisor, you may permit your supervisee to supervise others (such as a psychology intern supervising a practicum student) as part of the supervisee’s training, provided this occurs under your oversight and is part of an organized training program. In other words, an intern or trainee can mentor or oversee lower-level trainees only if it’s a sanctioned element of their own supervised experience (for example, a doctoral intern supervising a junior practicum student as a learning experience) and as long as it aligns with Texas Occupations Code Chapter 501 and ethical standards. You remain responsible for any services delivered under this layered supervision (22 TAC §465.2(b)(5)).

• Only Licensed Psychologists Can Supervise Provisionally Licensed Psychologists: If you plan to supervise a Provisionally Licensed Psychologist (PLP) – i.e. a doctoral graduate who is provisionally licensed and completing their postdoctoral hours – you must be a fully Licensed Psychologist. Texas rules specify that “Provisionally Licensed Psychologists must be under the supervision of a Licensed Psychologist” (and cannot practice independently until fully licensed). No other license type (e.g. LPC, LMFT) is permitted to supervise a PLP for the purpose of obtaining psychologist licensure (22 TAC §465.2(c)).

• Commitment to Weekly Supervision for PLPs: When supervising a PLP, you must provide at least 1 hour of one-on-one supervision per week as a standard. (If the PLP is working part-time, you can prorate the supervision time accordingly – for example, 0.5 hour/week if they’re half-time.) This is a firm requirement in Texas: weekly individual supervision ensures ongoing oversight of the provisional licensee’s work. Before you take on a PLP, be sure you can meet this weekly supervision schedule, as falling short could put the supervisee’s licensure progress in jeopardy.

• Overseeing Provisionals Who Supervise Others: A provisional psychologist (PLP) in Texas is actually allowed to supervise others (such as interns or assistants) as part of their own supervised experience. However, this is tightly controlled – the rule states a “Provisionally Licensed Psychologist may, as part of a period of supervised experience required for licensure as a psychologist, supervise others in the delivery of psychological services”. If you are the supervising Licensed Psychologist for a PLP, you must be willing and able to oversee not just the PLP’s work but also their supervision of others. In practice, this means you should mentor the PLP on how to supervise and ensure quality of services down the chain. It’s an additional responsibility to “supervise the supervisee’s supervision,” so make sure you’re comfortable with that level of oversight (22 TAC §465.2(c)(2)).

🔁 Ongoing Continuing Education Requirements

One common question is whether Texas requires any extra training or continuing education to maintain supervisor status. The answer is no – Texas does not impose any supervisor-specific CE requirement for psychologists. There is no separate Texas LP supervision CE mandate apart from the general license renewal requirements.

🔄 General CE Requirements: All Licensed Psychologists in Texas, including those who supervise, must complete the standard continuing education for license renewal. Per 22 TAC §463.35, this is 40 hours of professional development (continuing education) each renewal period (Texas licenses are renewed biennially). Key points include:

• At least 6 of the 40 hours must be in ethics and another 6 hours must be in cultural diversity. (These are not additional hours, but part of the 40-hour total.) (22 TAC § 465.35(a)(1))

• At least half (20 hours) of the CE must come from “approved providers” such as professional associations, universities, or state agencies – the Board provides a list in Rule 22 TAC §463.35(d) (e.g. APA, TPA, or other authorized providers).

• The remaining hours can be obtained through other professional development activities (teaching a course, writing an article, etc., as detailed in the rule). Up to 10 hours can be carried over to the next cycle if you earned extras.

⚠️ Pitfalls to Avoid

Even well-intentioned supervisors can run into trouble if they overlook certain requirements. Here are some pitfalls for Texas psychologists serving as supervisors – make sure to avoid these so that your supervisee’s hours count and your own license remains in good standing:

• Supervisee Not Properly Credentialed or “Registered”: Always ensure your supervisee has the appropriate status or board authorization to practice under supervision. In Texas, this means:

  • Doctoral students should be officially enrolled in an accredited internship/practicum if they are providing services.
  • Postdoctoral fellows must hold a Provisional License (PLP) before accruing postdoc hours. (Texas requires postdoctoral supervisees to obtain provisional licensure or trainee status first – hours gained without that status will not count toward licensure.)
  • If the Board requires any documentation or registration of the supervisory arrangement (such as filing a supervision plan or provisional license supervision agreement), complete it.

• Improper or Incomplete Documentation: Failing to document the supervision properly is a surefire way to invalidate experience hours. Remember, you must keep written records of supervision (dates, times, content) and provide written evaluations for licensure purposes. If you do not document the supervisee’s performance or if your supervisee cannot produce your signed supervision verification at the end of the period, the Board may not accept those hours.

• Supervision Hours Not Counting Due to Ineligible Supervisor: This occurs when the supervisor didn’t actually meet the requirements (or lost eligibility) at the time of supervision:

  • License Restrictions or Lapses: If you were under disciplinary restriction, expired, or otherwise not a qualified supervisor during the period you oversaw someone, their hours won’t count. Texas rules explicitly state that experience from a supervisor on a restricted license “may not be utilized to satisfy the requirements” for licensure. Always be transparent about any sanctions, and if you become ineligible mid-supervision, notify the supervisee immediately.
  • Dual Relationships: As noted, supervision of relatives is not allowed for licensure credit. The hours will be thrown out if the Board discovers the supervisee was your family member. Similarly, supervising someone with whom you have another inappropriate dual relationship (e.g. business partner) could be problematic ethically.

📘 How the Telehealth Certification Institute Helps You

While Texas doesn’t mandate extra supervisor-specific training, it’s wise to intentionally build your supervision knowledge and skills. The Telehealth Certification Institute (TCI) provides continuing education courses to help you strengthen your supervisory competency while also meeting your 40 PDH/CE renewal requirements for your psychology license.

Recommended Courses

• Clinical Supervision Certificate Program
  Our comprehensive Clinical Supervision Certificate (CSC) Program offers 49 CE hours of in-depth training in supervision. It is designed to help you:

  • Develop core supervision competencies (ethics, feedback, evaluation, multicultural awareness, telesupervision, and more)
  • Enhance your confidence and effectiveness as a supervisor
  • Earn CE that can be applied toward your 40 PDH license renewal requirement

  Please note: while the CSC program includes 1.5 CE hours related to cultural diversity, Texas requires a total of 6 hours in cultural diversity, so you’ll still need additional coursework in that content area to meet the full requirement.

• Cultural Diversity Courses
  Because Texas requires 6 CE hours in cultural diversity, we encourage you to browse our broader catalog for courses that address culture, identity, equity, and diversity in clinical practice and supervision. These offerings can help you:

  • Satisfy the cultural diversity CE portion of your Texas renewal
  • Integrate culturally responsive approaches into your supervision
  • Align your practice with evolving Texas supervision training requirements for LP’s
   

• Individual Clinical Supervision CE Courses
  If you’re looking to target specific skill gaps rather than complete a full certificate, you can explore our individual clinical supervision CE courses and select exactly what you need. These stand-alone courses allow you to:

  • Focus on particular topics (e.g., supervision ethics, documentation, tele-supervision or evaluation)
  • Customize your Texas LP supervision CE to match your role and setting
  • Build supervisory competency at your own pace with fully online, flexible options

🤝 Free Clinical Supervision Forum

Join our live, bi-monthly forum designed for clinical supervisors—open to all behavioral health professionals!

• ✅ Earn complimentary live CE hours
• 💬 Participate in real-world supervision case discussions
• 🌐 Network with supervisors from across the country
• 🔗 Register now and be part of the conversation

🌟 Why Choose TCI for Your Training?

• ✅ Trusted by thousands of behavioral health professionals nationwide
• ✅ Fully online and self-paced — study anytime, anywhere
• ✅ Accredited CE taught by leading industry experts
• ✅ Modular, flexible courses — pay only for the training you need

⚠️ Disclaimer

“The information provided in this article is for general educational purposes only and is not intended as legal advice. Licensing and supervision requirements may change, and interpretations may vary. It is the responsibility of each individual to verify the current rules and qualifications directly with their state licensing authority.”

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