The faculty of the marriage and family therapy doctoral program at Virginia Tech are in strong support of this petition or similar regulations (e.g., Petition 254; http://register.dls.virginia.gov/details.aspx?id=7007) that would allow clinical and supervision hours accumulated in a Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE)-accredited doctoral practicum and internship to count toward Virginia’s LMFT residency requirements.  Allowing these hours to count toward residency will facilitate the licensure process for our doctoral students, all of whom come to Virginia with master’s degrees in marriage and family therapy or a closely related field and are interested in seeking licensure as LMFTs.  It would also help the Virginia Tech’s master’s and doctoral marriage and family therapy programs attract the best faculty candidates, which is critical to the future training of marriage and family therapists working and providing supervision in Virginia. 

In considering this petition, we would note that students in COAMFTE-accredited doctoral programs are pursuing advanced clinical training and, as part of the accreditation requirements, receive significant supervision and oversight of their clinical work, from credentialed supervisors.  As such, as a faculty, we see no concerns related to the quality of the training and supervision doctoral students would be receiving as part of their practicum and internships.

We urge the Board to give this petition or similar regulations that allow clinical and supervision hours accumulated in a COAMFTE-accredited doctoral practicum and internship to count toward Virginia’s LMFT residency requirements its highest consideration.