Kentucky requirements

Psychologist licensure requirements in Kentucky

What it takes to become a Licensed Psychologist in Kentucky: 3,600 supervised hours, no postdoc required, plus supervision, time limits, exams and whether you can be supervised by video. Every figure is sourced to the state board and dated.

Sourced to Kentucky Board of Examiners of PsychologyChecked September 25, 2026Not individually reviewed by a clinicianAbout this site

Licensed Psychologist · Kentucky · regulated by Kentucky Board of Examiners of Psychology · high confidence

DegreeDoctoral degree in psychology acceptable to the board from a regionally accredited institution (foreign equivalents allowed)
Internship1,800-hour predoctoral internship with ≥100 hours of supervisory sessions; ≥2 h/week individual supervision; completed within 24 months
Supervised experience3,600 hours: 1,800 predoctoral internship + 1,800 pre- and/or postdoctoral (statute: 2 years, one an internship)
Pre-doctoral hoursInternship counts; the other 1,800 hours may be predoctoral (practica, field experience), postdoctoral, or a mix
Postdoc required?No
Credential during the postdocTemporarily licensed psychologist (temporary license, 1 year; extensions possible, 6-year cap)
ExamsEPPP (scaled 500); Kentucky jurisprudence exam (80%) and oral competency exam on ethics/practice (100%)
EPPP-2not adopted (201 KAR 26:230 names only the EPPP)
PSYPACTmember (KRS 319.054, 2021 Ky. Acts ch. 46, effective June 29, 2021)

Supervision during the postdoc

  • Supervision: Temporary licensee: ≥1 hour individual face-to-face supervision weekly; direct observation at least every 2 months
  • Who may supervise: Board-approved licensed psychologist with Health Service Provider designation; board supervision training within 12 months
  • Time limit: Internship within 24 months; temporary license 1 year (EPPP within 1 year), extensions to 6 years total

Related credentials

  • Master’s level: Licensed Psychological Associate: master's + 600 supervised practicum/internship hours, EPPP scaled 400, ongoing supervision; can progress to Licensed Psychological Practitioner
  • School psychology: School psychologists are credentialed by the Education Professional Standards Board (not this board)
  • Specialty or health-service credential: Health Service Provider designation (extra 1,800 supervised hours) required to supervise psychological health care services

Can you be supervised remotely in Kentucky?

Yes by video, but the supervisor needs a state-specific supervisor credential and the board must approve the arrangement first. What shapes this: state-only supervisor credential, prior board approval.

  • Video supervision: All clinical supervision requirements are met by individual weekly contact in person or via 2-way interactive video (201 KAR 26:171 §2); pre-internship experience may also be by 2-way video (26:190 §1(4)). Direct observation at least every 2 months may be by audio/videotape, video camera, mirror or co-therapy.
  • Phone only: not allowed (in person or 2-way interactive video)
  • Supervisor licensed in Kentucky? required
  • Supervisor credential: Board-approved licensed psychologist with Health Service Provider designation; board supervision training within 12 months of approval
  • Board approval first: Every supervisory arrangement needs prior board approval (joint written petition); Supervisory Plans and Goals submitted at the start; independent-practice experience needs a special application letter

The client’s location decides which state’s rules apply. This is not legal advice; confirm with the board before building a program. Compare every state on the remote-supervision map.

Recent and pending changes

201 KAR 26:190, 26:171 and 26:155 amended effective 2026-02-12 (52 Ky.R.): pre-internship experience and supervision may be by two-way interactive video; LPP path cut from 5 to 2 years. 2026 HB 439 (exam timing, board size) stalled in committee 01/28/26.

Where the rules are unclear

Kentucky’s own documents disagree or are silent on these points. Ask the board if they affect you:

  • KRS 319.050(3) sets a grace period of up to 180 days for supervised practice before a complete application; 201 KAR 26:155 §4 caps it at 90 days. Which applies? (Not a core field.)
  • 201 KAR 26:155 requires 'individual, face-to-face supervision on a weekly basis' for temporary licensees; does 26:171 §2 (in person or 2-way video) govern, so video satisfies it?

In the board’s own words

“shall be a predoctoral internship of 1,800 hours with at least 100 hours of supervisory sessions” — 201 KAR 26:190 §1(2)✓ matched in the source
“shall have completed a minimum of 3,600 hours of supervised professional experience in accordance with this administrative regulation” — 201 KAR 26:190 §1(1)✓ matched in the source
“The remaining 1,800 hours of supervised professional experience shall be predoctoral, postdoctoral, or a combination of pre- and post-doctoral” — 201 KAR 26:190 §1(3)✓ matched in the source
“Have had at least two (2) years of supervised professional experience satisfactory to the board, one (1) year of which shall be an internship.” — KRS 319.050(2)(d)✓ matched in the source
“The national examination shall be the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP)” — 201 KAR 26:230 §1(1)✓ matched in the source
“The applicant shall obtain an EPPP scaled score of 500 or greater” — 201 KAR 26:230 §3(2)✓ matched in the source
“A candidate shall score at least an eighty (80) percent to pass the jurisprudence examinations.” — 201 KAR 26:230 §1(2)(a)✓ matched in the source
“in addition to the 3,600 supervised experience hours required for licensure as a licensed psychologist under 201 KAR 26:190” — 201 KAR 26:125 §3(2)(a)✓ checked by hand
“Be met with individual, weekly contact either in person or via 2-way interactive video between clinical supervisor and supervisee” — 201 KAR 26:171 §2(1)✓ matched in the source
“Be met with individual, weekly contact either in person or via 2-way interactive video between clinical supervisor and supervisee” — 201 KAR 26:171 §2(1)✓ matched in the source
“either in person or via 2-way interactive video” — 201 KAR 26:171 §2(1)✓ matched in the source
“the proposed supervisor, who shall be a licensed psychologist with health service provider certification approved by the board” — 201 KAR 26:155✓ matched in the source

5 more quotes are in the state explorer.

Other licenses in Kentucky

Sources

Checked against Kentucky Board of Examiners of Psychology’s rules, statutes and publications on September 25, 2026. The board decides; if your situation is unusual, confirm with them.

Track your hours as you earn them

Practice Harbor is free while you are pre-licensed. It counts your clinical hours from the sessions you mark as attended, and you can add outside hours by hand.

General information, not legal advice. Requirements are summarized from each state’s licensing board, statutes and regulations on the date shown; the board decides, and rules change. Becoming Licensed is not affiliated with any licensing board.