7702.1 An applicant shall furnish proof satisfactory to the Board in accordance with § 831(a) of the Act, (D.C. Official Code § 3-1208.31(a) (2004 Supp.)) that the applicant:

1. (a) Has successfully completed a master's degree or a doctoral degree in marriage and family therapy from a recognized educational institution; or
2. (b) Possesses a graduate degree in an allied field as defined in section 7799, from a recognized educational institution and has successfully completed graduate level course work which is equivalent to a master's degree in marriage and family therapy, as determined by the Board.

7202.2 For the purposes of Subsection 7702.1, qualifying degrees shall consist of at least sixty (60) semester hours or ninety (90) quarter credits in marriage and family therapy from a program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE).

7702.3 A qualifying graduate degree shall include a total of at least thirty-nine (39) semester hours in the following areas:

1. (a) A minimum of three (3) semester hours in family systems theories and their application in working with a wide variety of family structures, which shall include:
2. (1) Studies of families in transition, nontraditional families and blended families; and
3. (2) A diverse range of marriage and family issues presented in a clinical setting;
4. (b) A minimum of six (6) semester hours of marriage and family studies, which shall include:
5. (1) Theoretical foundations, history, philosophy, etiology and contemporary conceptual directions of marriage and family therapy or marriage and family counseling; and
6. (2) Preventative approaches, including premarital counseling, parent skill training and relationship enhancement, for working with couples, families, individuals, subsystems and other systems;
7. (c) A minimum of nine (9) semester hours of marriage and family therapy,

which shall include:

1. (1) The practice of marriage and family therapy related to theory, and a comprehensive survey and substantive understanding of the major models of marriage and family therapy or marriage and family counseling; and

2. (2) Interviewing and assessment skills for working with couples, families, individuals, subsystems and other systems, and skills in the appropriate implementation of systematic interventions across a variety of marriage and family issues presented in a clinical setting, including socioeconomic, abuse and addiction issues;(d) A minimum of nine (9) semester hours of human development, which shall include:1. (1) Individual development and transitions across the life span;

2. (2) Family, marital and couple life cycle development and family relationships, family of origin and intergenerational influences, cultural influences, ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, religious beliefs, gender, sexual orientation, social and equity issues, and disability;

3. (3) Human sexual development, function and dysfunction, impacts on individuals, couples, and families, and strategies for intervention and resolution; and

4. (4) Issues of violence, abuse, and substance use in a relational context, and strategies for intervention and resolution;(e) A minimum of six (6) semester hours of psychological and mental health competency which shall include:1. (1) Psychopathology, including etiology, assessment, evaluation, and treatment of mental disorders, use of the current diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, differential diagnosis, and multiaxial diagnosis;

2. (2) Standard mental health diagnostic assessment methods and instruments, including standardized tests; and

3. (3) Psychotropic medications and the role of referral to and cooperation with other mental health practitioners in treatment

planning, and case management skills for working with individuals, couples, and families;

(f) A minimum of three (3) semester hours of professional ethics and identity, which shall include:

(1) Professional identity, including professional socialization, professional organizations, training standards, credentialing bodies, licensure, certification, practice settings, and collaboration with other disciplines;

(2) Ethical and legal issues related to the practice of marriage and family therapy, legal responsibilities of marriage and family therapy and marriage and family counseling practice and research, business aspects, reimbursement, record keeping, family law, confidentiality issues, and the relevant code of ethics, including the code of ethics specified by the Board; and

(3) The interface between therapist responsibility and the professional, social, and political context of treatment; and

(g) A minimum of three (3) semester hours of research, which shall include:

(1) Research in marriage and family therapy or marriage and family counseling and its application to working with couples and families; and

(2) Research methodology, quantitative and qualitative methods, statistics, data analysis, ethics, and legal considerations of conducting research, and evaluation of research.

SOURCE: Final Rulemaking published at 53 DCR 7845 (September 29, 2006); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 54 DCR 8247 (August 24, 2007); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 62 DCR 12529 (September 18, 2015).