EVALUATION OF FOREIGN QUALIFICATIONS
Table 1. Clinical psychologists’ titles and academic training required for licensure in the European Union
Title (also in original language if provided) of the person whose major academic training was in psychology and who is legally entitled to treat mental disorders using psychological methods without major restrictions / Level of academic training / More demanding level / Specificity of master’s level academic trainingAustria / clinical psychologist (klinischer Psychologe) / master / bachelor / specific to clinical psychology
Belgium / clinical psychologist (psychologue clinicien) / master / bachelor / not specific
Bulgaria / clinical psychologist (klinichen psiholog) / master / master / not specific
Croatia / specialist clinical psychologist
(sveučilišni specijalist kliničke psihologijne) / master / master / specific to clinical psychology
Cyprus / registered specialist clinical psychologist (εγγεγραμμένος ειδικός ψυχολόγος) / master / master / specific to clinical psychology
Czech Republic / clinical psychologist
(klinický psycholog) / master / bachelor / specific to clinical psychology
Denmark / psychologist / master / no difference / not specific
Estonia / clinical psychologist (kliiniline psühholoog) / master / no difference / specific to clinical psychology
Finland / licensed psychologist (laillistettu psykologi) / master / master / not specific
France / psychologist (psychologue) / master / master / specific to clinical psychology
Germany / psychological psychotherapist
(psychologischer Psychotherapeut) / master / no difference / specific to clinical psychology
Greece / psychologist (ψυχολόγος) / bachelor / master / not specific
Hungary / psychotherapist (pszichoterapeuta) / master / bachelor / not specific
Ireland / clinical psychologist / doctoral / master / specific to clinical psychology
Italy / psychotherapist (psicoterapeuta) / master / master / specific to clinical psychology
Latvia / clinical psychologist / master / master / not specific
Lithuania / clinical psychologist (klinikinis psichologas) / master / master / specific to clinical psychology
Luxembourg / graduated psychologist (psychologue diplômé) / master / master / specific to clinical psychology
Malta / clinical psychologist / master / master / specific to clinical psychology
Netherlands / clinical psychologist (klinisch psycholoog) / master / master / not specific
Poland / specialist clinical psychologist
(specjalista psychologii klinicznej) / master / no difference / not specific
Portugal / clinical psychologist (psicólogo clínico) / master / master / specific to clinical psychology
Romania / psychotherapist (psihoterapeut) / master / master / specific to clinical psychology
Slovakia / clinical psychologist (klinický psychológ) / master / no difference / not specific
Slovenia / specialist clinical psychologist
(specialist klinične psihologije) / master / master / not specific
Spain / specialist clinical psychologist
(especialista en psicología clínica) / master / master / specific to clinical psychology
Sweden / licensed psychologist (psykolog) / master / master / not specific
United Kingdom / clinical psychologist / doctoral / master / specific to clinical psychology
EuroPsy / Registered EuroPsy Psychologist / master / Depends on the country where academic degree obtained / not specific
EuroPsy Specialist Certificatein Psychotherapy / Registered EuroPsy Specialist Psychologist in Psychotherapy / EuroPsy + 400 h / Depends on the country where academic degree obtained / not specific
Table 2. Clinical psychologists’ practical training required for licensure in the member states of the European Union
Practicum during academic training / Required training/ internship/ work experience after obtaining academic degreeDuration / Organizer† / Preferred methods / Supervision
Austria / 400 h / 1480 h / universities, accredited clinical institutions / CBT / 120 h, individual
Belgium / 750 h / - / - / - / -
Bulgaria / 750 h / 3 years / medical universities / none / 60 h, individual/ group
Croatia / 150 h / 1 year internship / licensing organization / none / required but amount not specified
plus further 2 or 3 years of academic + clinical training / universities / none / required but amount not specified
Cyprus / 500 h / 500 h of work experience / - / - / -
Czech Republic / 150-220 h / 3-5 years / universities / none / not required
Denmark / 500 h / - / - / - / -
Estonia / 390 h / 1600 h / not centralized, to be organized by candidates / none / required but amount not specified
Finland / 800 h / - / - / - / -
France / 1600 h / - / - / - / -
Germany / required but amount not specified / 4200 h during which 2400 h are to be completed in clinical institutions / universities, accredited clinical institutions / CBT, psycho-dynamic / 50 h individual + 100 h group
Greece / 1800 h during the master level studies (which are optional) / - / - / - / -
Hungary / 150-200 h / 4 years (specialist clinical psychologist) / universities / CBT, psycho-dynamic, systemic / 150 hgroup/ individual
additional 2-4 years (psychotherapist) / accredited method-specific psychotherapeutic schools / any accredited methods (16 currently) / largely differs across orientations (50-350 h)
Ireland / 3000 h (during doctoral studies) / 2 years of supervised practice / not centralized, to be organized by candidates / none / required but amount not specified
Italy / none / 4 years part-time / universities / none / 100-200 h, group/ individual
Latvia / 200 h / 2 years / licensing organization / none / 120 h group, 40 h individual
Lithuania / 640 h / - / - / - / -
Luxembourg / 300 h / - / - / - / -
Malta / 560 h / 2 years between bachelor and master studies and further 2 years aftergraduation / not centralized, to be organized by candidates / none / required but amount not specified
Nether-lands / 200 h / 2 years / educational institutions accredited by the licensing organization / none / required but amount not specified
Poland / 100 h / 4 years (including a 13-month internship) / licensing organization / none / not required
Portugal / 1600 h / 1 year / licensing organization / none / required but amount not specified
Romania / required but amount not specified / 2 years / universities, licensing organization / none / 12 cases, group/ individual
Slovakia / none / 3 years full-time (including a 7-month internship in the hospital setting) / universities / CBT, psycho-dynamic / required but amount not specified
Slovenia / none / 4 years / licensing organization, accredited clinical institutions / CBT, psycho-dynamic, systemic / 400 h, group/ individual
Spain / 300 h / 4 years / licensing organization, accredited clinical institutions / none / required but amount not specified
Sweden / 520 h / 1 year / not centralized, to be organized by candidates / none / 50 h, individual
United Kingdom / at least 50% of the graduate level study time (approx. 2400 h) / - / - / - / -
EuroPsy / at least 375 h / 1 year / not specified / not specified / not specified
EuroPsy Specialist Certificatein Psychotherapy / EuroPsy + see in the next cell to the right / EuroPsy + 3 years / not specified / not specified / 150 h
† Specific licensing organizations are displayed in Table 3.
CBT: cognitive behavioral therapy
Table 3. Some aspects of licensing of clinical psychologists in the European Union
Final examination before licensing / Regulatory body(in original language if provided) / Minimal number of years in higher education + training necessary for licensing / Regulated continuing education after licensure / Notes
Austria / no / Government Department for Health (Bundesministerium für Gesundheit) / 6 / yes / The postgraduate training will increase to 3 years starting from 2015.
Belgium / no / Federal Council of Clinical Psychology (Conseil fédéral de la psychologie clinique) / 5 / no / New regulations are in progress.
Bulgaria / no / Ministry of Health / 8 / no / Currently the Ministry of Health regulates education and training butdoes not keep a register/ does not give a practice permit. New regulations are under development.
Croatia / yes, general / Chamber of Psychologists / 10 / yes / The 3-year postgraduate academic training is directed towards a PhD. The 2-year program is more practice-oriented and includes further 100 hours of practicum. During both types of training, candidates also work in a clinical setting, since 5 years of work experience is required for licensing.
Cyprus / no / Psychologists' Licensing Board (Συμβούλιο Εγγραφής Ψυχολόγων) / 5 / no / While the law requires at least 500 hours of practice during master’s level studies and further 500 after graduation, local universities offer master’s programs with 1,000-1,500 hours of practicum.
Czech Republic / yes, general / Ministry of Health (Ministerstvo zdravotnictví) / 8 / yes / -
Denmark / no / Psychologists’ Association (Psykologforeningen) / 5 / yes / After having worked full time for two years, one can apply for what is called "authorization" by the Ministry of Social Affairs. With this, one can work towards becoming a "specialized" psychologist (e.g. specialist in psychotherapy). This requires a minimum of 3 years of work experience in the relevant area plus a whole range of courses, supervision, etc.
Estonia / yes, specific to clinical psychology / Estonian Qualifications Authority (Kutsekoda) / 6 / yes / -
Finland / yes, general / Ministry of Health and Social Affairs (Valvira) / 5.5 / yes / Psychotherapy training is also open to registered psychologists. Its duration is 4 years. The hours for personal psychotherapy during this training range from 50 to 200 hours depending on the orientation of the training.
France / no / Regional Health Organization (Agence Régionale de Santé) / 5 / no / -
Germany / yes, specific to clinical psychology / Federal Examination Authority for Health Care (Landesprüfungsamt im Gesundheitswesen) / 8 / yes / There are several regulatory bodies. The "Landesprüfungsamt" gives practice permissions. The Chamber of Psychotherapists (“Psychotherapeuten-kammer“) registers all psychological psychotherapists. The Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians ("Kassenärztliche Vereinigung") registers and controls psychological psychotherapists who work on a self-employed basis.
Greece / no / none / 3 / no / There is a law, passed in 1979, that defined specializations in psychological practice (as clinical psychology) but this law has never been enforced. At present, master’s level education is not required, but only recommended, for practice.
Hungary / yes, specific to clinical psychology / Office of Health Authorization and Administrative Procedures (Egészségügyi Engedélyezési és Közigazgatási Hivatal) / 11 / yes / Theprofessionals whose academic training was not specific to clinical psychology have to pass a differential exam before entering postgraduate clinical psychology training. Clinical psychologists are entitled to conduct only ‘basic’ psychotherapy, namely crisis intervention, brief psychological consultations, supportive therapy, and autogenic training. More specific interventions must be conducted only by psychotherapists.
Ireland / yes, general / Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI) / 8 (to receive degree)/ 10 to obtain the voluntary registration at PSI / yes (as a require-ment for optional regis-tration) / Registration at the Psychological Society of Ireland is optional. Obligatory registration is to be introduced in late 2014. The appropriate organization is intended to bea joint body for health professionals.
Italy / yes, specific to clinical psychology / Association of Psychologists (Ordine degli Psicologi) / 9 / yes / -
Latvia / no / none / 8 / no / The displayed data refer to the certificate issued by the Association of Latvian Clinical Psychologists. This is a voluntary initiative however, not supported by law. Further, there are two kinds of masters’ degree:academic and professional. Only the latter (being one year longer) is accepted for professionals wanting to practice.
Lithuania / no / none / 5 / yes / -
Luxem-bourg / yes, specific to clinical psychology / Ministry of Higher Education and Research (Ministère de l'Enseignement Supérieur et de la Recherche) / 5 / yes / -
Malta / no / Malta Psychology Profession Board / 9 / yes / -
Nether-lands / no / BIG-register / 6 / no / Although it is a master’s level training, the academic title of psychologists is ‘doctorandes’ and thus the 2-year postgraduate training of clinical psychologists is often labeled as ‘postdoctoral’.
Poland / yes, specific to clinical psychology / Medical Center of Postgraduate Education (Centrum Medyczne Kształcenia Podyplomowego) / 9 / no / -
Portugal / no / College of Psychologists (Ordem dos Psicólogos) / 6 / yes / -
Romania / yes, specific to clinical psychology / Romanian Board of Psychologists (Colegiul Psihologilor din Romania) / 7 / yes / -
Slovakia / no / Slovak Chamber of Psychologists (Slovenská komora psychológov) / 8 / no / The postgraduate training is rather assessment and diagnostics oriented, therapeutic aspects are relatively under-represented (these are emphasized in the additional, 3-year long and method-specific psychotherapeutic training).
Slovenia / yes, specific to clinical psychology / Ministry of Health / 9 / no / The official regulations are valid only in the health care system provided by the government. Psychotherapeutic practice outside the hospital setting is not regulated.
Spain / no / General Directorade of Universities Ministry of Education and Science (Dirección General de Universidades Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia) / 8 / no / Spain recognizes the EuroPsy Specialist Certificate in Psychotherapy with the requirements described in the current EuroPsy documentation (European Federation of Psychologists' Associations, 2013). Obtaining this certificate is an alternative route to licensing.
Sweden / no / National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) / 6 / no / -
United Kingdom / no / Health and Care Professions Council / 6 / yes / -
EuroPsy / no / National awarding committees (approved by the European Awarding Committee of the European Federation of Psychologists’ Associations) / 6 / Required but details not specified / Current data on the countries where the EuroPsy certificate can be obtained (20 countries as of Apr 2015) can be found on the website of the European Federation of Psychologists’ Associations ( Worthy of note that the official EuroPsy minimum standard for practicum during academic training is 375 hours. However, many EU countries are eligible to provide EuroPsy certificates where less practical training is offered to students (e.g., Czech Republic, Hungary, and Latvia).
EuroPsy Specialist Certificatein Psychotherapy / no / National specialist awarding committees (approved by the European Awarding Committee of the European Federation of Psychologists’ Associations) / 9 / Required but details are to be determined later / Eligible institutions to provide the 400 hours (after obtaining master's degree) of theoretical training in psychotherapy are not specified (e.g., universities, method-specific training institutions, colleges).
1