Department of Psychology

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Master’s in ABA

Advanced Certificate

NYS Licensure (LBA)

BCBA

Experience/Fellowship

Admissions

Comps/Thesis

Funding

FAQ

New York State Licensure Law

To legally practice behavior analysis in New York State outside of full-time employment in an exempt setting, licensure is required. Our master’s program is registered with NYS as licensure qualifying. While enrolled in coursework, one must also complete 1500 hours of supervised experience that meets the standards and regulations outlined by New York State. See our supervised experience/fellowship tab.

Scope of Practice in New York State

A licensed behavior analyst (LBA) can only legally provide ABA services to individuals with autism and related disorders. Without an appropriate license, and outside of these and other state regulations, it is not legal to practice ABA in New York.

Exempt Settings

An exception to the license rule is when one works in an exempt setting. Most public schools (elementary, high school, colleges) are exempt settings if you are a full-time salaried employee of that setting. This means that one does not need to have a license to legally provide ABA services only in those settings. However, having a license (and board certification) is still preferred, even in exempt settings.

Disclaimer

Services restricted to New York State licensed professionals, including licensed behavior analysts, certified behavior analysts assistants (supervised by a licensed behavior analyst) and licensed psychologists, cannot be rendered by program students or graduates unless: (a) they are licensed in New York State to provide such services, (b) they provide those services in an exempt setting as salaried employee, (c) the person holds a limited permit to practice in a setting approved by the New York State Education Department, or (d) the person is a student, intern, or resident in an educational program acceptable to the Department pursuant to the commissioner’s regulations, provided that such constitutes a part of his or her supervised course of study.

One must be a licensed behavior analyst to engage in “behavior analysis” types of activities: modifying behavior, conducting behavior analysis, etc. The exception is if one works in a school, clinic, hospital, and similar institutions, which are called exempt settings. The New York State Education Department, which approves all graduate programs, requires this disclaimer in our materials. If you have a question, you can either contact us at ABA@qc.cuny.edu or call the State Education Department.

Applying to Become a Licensed Behavior Analyst

• After you have completed the educational requirements (all coursework), go to the NYS website where they post application forms.
• Complete Form 1, this is the general application
• Complete page 1 of Form 2. Then send the form to the ABA Program Director at aba@qc.cuny.edu for assistance submitting to the registrar.
• If you graduate from the ABA Advanced Certificate program, you should also order transcripts. If you order them online, you can mark them as “hold for attachment. ABA Master’s students need not request a transcript.
• If you have completed all of your supervised experience, complete one Form 4 with each supervisor you had while you were a student. Remember, only Queens College-approved experiences that compliment coursework (fellowship) count.

Additional notes: *Each of your supervisors will be contacted to verify the total number of experience hours you accrued, including the start and end date. This information is put into Form 2.