South Carolina requirements

Psychologist licensure requirements in South Carolina

What it takes to become a Licensed Psychologist in South Carolina: 3,000 supervised hours, a 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 South Carolina Board of Examiners in Psychology (LLR)Checked September 25, 2026Not individually reviewed by a clinicianAbout this site

Licensed Psychologist · South Carolina · regulated by South Carolina Board of Examiners in Psychology (LLR) · medium confidence

DegreeDoctorate in psychology: regionally accredited institution and APA/CPA-accredited or ASPPB/NR-designated program, or ≥3 years full-time graduate study meeting ASPPB content areas
InternshipPre-doctoral internship/residency may count as one of the two years (verified on Predoctoral Supervision Form)
Supervised experienceTwo years of supervised experience, one of which may be pre-doctoral; 3,000 hours total minimum, ≥1,500 per year
Pre-doctoral hoursUp to one year (≥1,500 h) pre-doctoral, typically the internship
Postdoc required?Yes
Postdoc hoursOne year of ≥1,500 hours of actual work (direct service, training and supervisory time)
Credential during the postdocNone named; Board-approved post-doctoral Supervision Contract required before hours count (temporary permit exists for limited practice)
ExamsEPPP (ASPPB passing score; SC scaled 500) + oral examination by Board member(s) on scope of practice, ethics and jurisprudence
EPPP-2not adopted (reg 100-2 names only the EPPP as the written exam)
PSYPACTmember — 2022 Act No. 159 (H.3833), eff. May 13, 2022 (S.C. Code §§40-55-300 et seq.); board: 'active member of PSYPACT'

Supervision during the postdoc

  • Supervision: ≥1 hour/week face-to-face under a Board-approved supervision contract; ≥50% of supervision hours in person
  • Who may supervise: Psychologist in good standing, licensed in SC or holding equivalent license elsewhere (reg); board page says SC-licensed in the candidate's specialty area
  • Time limit: All licensure requirements within 3 years of Board approval of the Preliminary Application (extendable for hardship)

Related credentials

  • School psychology: Not licensed by this board; exempt persons under §40-55-90 (school credentials sit with other agencies — not researched)
  • Specialty or health-service credential: Yes — board assigns areas of specialization (clinical, counseling, I/O, community, school, social, experimental) and limits practice/advertising to them (§40-55-180)

Can you be supervised remotely in South Carolina?

Only partly. Some supervision or presence must be in person or on site. What shapes this: in-person minimum, supervisor on-site rule, prior board approval, video limited.

  • Video supervision: ≥1 h/week of "face to face" supervision under a supervision contract; at least 50% of supervision hours must be in person, so up to half may be remote (remote format not defined).
  • In-person minimum: ≥50% of supervision hours in person
  • Supervisor licensed in South Carolina? not required for licensure experience (psychologist licensed in SC or holding an equivalent license in another state); but revenue-producing unlicensed persons must be supervised by a psychologist licensed by the SC Board
  • Supervisee cap: ≤3 full-time-equivalent registered supervisees per supervising psychologist (Reg. 100-8)
  • Board approval first: Preliminary Application must be approved and the post-doctoral Supervision Contract approved by the Board before supervision counts; board will not count supervision before approval.

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

Reg 100-1 and 100-2 amended eff. May 24, 2024 (SCSR 48-5, Doc. 5256), adding the ≥50% in-person supervision rule.

Where the rules are unclear

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

  • Reg 100-1(A)(5) allows a supervisor licensed in SC or holding an equivalent license in another state; the board licensure page says post-doctoral supervision must be by a psychologist licensed in South Carolina in the candidate's specialty — which governs out-of-state post-docs?
  • Are post-doctoral residents "Trainees" excluded from Reg. 100-8 (same physical setting, 3-FTE cap), or "unlicensed persons on the path toward licensure" covered by it?
  • Reg. 100-1(A)(5) accepts a supervisor licensed in another state, while Reg. 100-8(D)(2) requires a psychologist licensed by the SC Board for revenue-producing unlicensed persons — which governs an SC-based postdoc?
  • What remote formats count for the non-in-person 50% of supervision?

In the board’s own words

“has had two years of supervised professional experience, one year of which may be pre-doctoral.” — S.C. Code Regs. 100-1(A)(5)✓ checked by hand
“one year of which must have been completed post-doctorally, for 3,000 hours total minimum.” — Board licensure page✓ matched in the source
“Each year (or equivalent) shall be comprised of at least 1,500 hours of actual work” — Board licensure page✓ matched in the source
“A pre-doctoral internship/residency may be counted as one of the two years of experience.” — Board licensure page✓ matched in the source
“minimum of one hour per week of face to face supervision … a minimum of fifty (50) percent of supervision hours must be in-person.” — S.C. Code Regs. 100-1(A)(5)✓ matched in the source
“competent in psychology as shown by passing written and oral examinations as required by the board” — S.C. Code §40-55-80(3)✓ matched in the source
“a minimum of fifty (50) percent of supervision hours must be in-person” — S.C. Code Regs. 100-1(A)(5)✓ matched in the source
“There shall be a minimum of one hour per week of face to face supervision as set out in a supervision contractual agreement” — S.C. Code Regs. 100-1(A)(5)✓ matched in the source
“licensed in the State or who holds an equivalent license in good standing from another state” — S.C. Code Regs. 100-1(A)(5)✓ matched in the source
“must be under the direct and continuing administrative and professional supervision of a psychologist licensed by the Board” — S.C. Code Regs. 100-8(D)(2)✓ matched in the source
“shall work in the same physical setting as the supervising psychologist, unless other individual arrangements have been approved, in advance, by the Board” — S.C. Code Regs. 100-8(D)(6)✓ matched in the source
“No more than the equivalent of three (3) full-time supervisees may be registered for any one supervising licensed psychologist.” — S.C. Code Regs. 100-8(D)(12)✓ matched in the source

3 more quotes are in the state explorer.

Other licenses in South Carolina

Sources

Checked against South Carolina Board of Examiners in Psychology (LLR)’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.