By Brittany Schank, LCSW | License #4949, North Dakota
Published: December 29, 2019 | Last updated: May 7, 2026

Who Needs Clinical Supervision?

Well, let’s face it, clinical supervision is a requirement for all of us. Anyone who is a social worker, psychologist, marriage and family therapist, or counselor has likely either considered finding a clinical supervisor or has actively searched for one. Clinical supervision is a way for us to hone in on our skills, while having someone oversee our work, to be able to consult with on cases, and to go to with questions on things such as case notes, billing, and ethical dilemas. But what’s the difference between our professions?

Do social workers, psychologists, counselors, and marriage and family therapists have differing requirements?

The simple answer is, “yes” and the difference is our licensing boards dictate things like:

• Amount of supervision hours required

• Number of clinical hours required

• How many group supervision hours allowed

• Number of individual supervision hours required

• Modality of the supervision (face-to-face, telephone, video)

• Who can provide the supervision

It doesn’t matter if you are a social worker, psychologist, counselor, or marriage and family therapist, clinical supervision is something you are probably somewhat familiar with.

If you are anything like me, you have a plan to complete your supervision as soon as possible.There are many reasons for this and my reason was, I wanted to to own my own private practice. For others, it may mean the ability to get promoted, a possible pay increase, or perhaps it’s hitting the goal you’ve been dreaming of for a long time now.

Where do I go if I have more questions?

Any additional questions you may have about the requirements for clinical supervision for your profession and state can likely be answered by your state licensing board website. Every state and profession varies greatly in these requirements, so this is the best place to check.

Supervisors, take a peek at our directory! We offer a fantastic space to list your services so those looking for supervision can find you.

Thanks for being here! We appreciate you!

Photo by Michael Soledad on Unsplash