Department of Psychology

About

Master’s in ABA

Advanced Certificate

NYS Licensure (LBA)

BCBA

Experience/Fellowship

Admissions

Comps/Thesis

Funding

FAQ

Currently, both New York State and the BACB require 1500 hours of supervised experience. In January 2022, the BACB will require 2000 hours. It is important to understand the differences in the rules for accruing these hours.

Licensure (LBA) Experience Requirements

To be licensed as a behavior analyst in New York, the state requires 1500 hours of experience working with individuals with autism because this is scope of LBA-Practice in New York State. To accrue hours towards licensure, the student must have a supervisor who is a licensed behavior analyst (LBA). Until the education requirement is met (all coursework completed), one must gain experience within an academic program, like in the fellowships we offer at Queens College. If all the required hours are not accrued during the course of the program, when one graduates, an LBA applicant must apply for a limited permit to practice until s/he has accrued all the required experience hours and completed the application process.

Board Certification (BCBA) Experience Requirements

To be board certified in behavior analysis, the BACB requires 1500 hours of supervised experience (2000 hours after Jan 2022) and has rules about the percentage of experience that can be performing restricted activities (see handbook p. 15), percentage of supervision that can be group v. individual, and the number of supervisor contacts and observations per supervisory period. The BACB allows one to begin accruing hours once s/he has begun ABAI-approved coursework and that experience must be supervised by a BCBA who has completed the supervisor training. Unlike the LBA requirements, the supervisor does not need to be affiliated with the program where the students are completing coursework (but in NYS it would be illegal to do otherwise). See BACB Experience Standards.

To Meet BOTH Requirements

The most direct path for meeting both the LBA and BACB experience requirements is to gain experience through program-related experiences with individuals with autism that are supervised by individuals who possess both the LBA and BCBA credentials. After one has met the state’s education requirement, if there are remaining experience hours to accrue, the applicant can apply for a limited permit to work with individuals with autism and be supervised by someone who possesses both the LBA and BCBA credentials.

Fellowship Program

In order to assist students with gaining supervised experience hours toward both licensure and certification, we have an on-campus center with opportunities for students to learn to implement behavior analytic methods through our expert faculty.

On Campus Opportunities

The Queens College Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities Evidence Based Services (QC-ACES) provides on-campus clinical opportunities through:

• SIBS Club, directed by Dr. Emily Jones, and serves children with autism and their families and focuses on improving sibling relationships.
• The Child Behavioral Health Clinic directed by Dr. Joshua Jessel serves children with autism and focuses on treating challenging behavior.
• Queens College Project Reach (QCPR) focuses on neurodiversity, self direction by providing support to Queens College students diagnosed with autism.

Off Campus Opportunities

We have also partnered with over 30 local human service organizations and private schools where students work, conduct research projects, and obtain high quality paid supervised experience.