Apt Letter To Universities

 

April 3, 2020

Re: New RPT Credential Requirements

Letter to Universities:

 

APT has updated and revised the credentialing requirements for all applications submitted after January 1, 2020. With the revisions now in place many questions have come up in regards to how graduate play therapy courses fit into the new phase system. APT understands that each applicant’s process for attaining the requirements may not align precisely with the phase approach. This letter serves to add clarity and provide guidance surrounding the changes.

 

• For applicants whose play therapy instruction hours were obtained via graduate play therapy courses, their process may be front loaded with instructional hours, but have limited supervised experience hours.  Or conversely, be back loaded with supervised experience but have limited instructional hours.  Applicants in these situations are required to demonstrate through their application materials that all three requirements (instruction, supervised experience, & supervision) were completed, to some capacity, in each of the three phases.  This may require students to lengthen the time period for an individual phase to permit for the “integration” of the requirements to occur (stretch out the timeframe so supervised experience can be completed or “sprinkle” in play therapy CE during their last phase, respectively). 

 

• Applicants must demonstrate through their application materials that the attainment of play therapy instruction, supervised experience, and supervision occurred in no less than two years.  The clock starts at the commencement of any of these three requirements.  For applicants whose play therapy instruction hours were obtained via graduate play therapy courses, this may mean extending the phase three timeframe to “run out the clock.”

 

• There is flexibility in the date ranges of the phases. Extending or shortening a phase to demonstrate integration is permitted.

 

• APT accepts no more than 10 hours of group supervision towards credentialing requirements.  There is no limit to individual supervision or individual in group supervision.

 

• APT understands that each applicant’s process for attaining the credentialing requirements may or may not align precisely with the phase approach of the revised standards. However, all applicants must still demonstrate a well-rounded education in play therapy and an integrated approach in the attainment of play therapy instruction, supervised experience, and supervision as this is a longstanding requirement.

 

We hope this is helpful for everyone. Additional resources to supplement this information will be sent soon. University staff and students are encouraged to contact APT regarding the credentialing requirements or application process, (559) 298-3400.

 

Sincerely, 

 

Michelle Horwege, MS-HCA

Coordinator, Credentialing Services

Association for Play Therapy, Inc.

401 Clovis Ave. #107 | Clovis, CA 93612

(559) 298-3400 x 310 | Fax (559) 298-3410 | a4pt.org

 

    Mental Health Professionals Applying the Therapeutic Power of Play!